最厉害的战术绝对不是肉搏，而是智取。二次世界大战时，美军成立了这么一支“幽灵部队”，部队成员不是普通的士兵，而是一群专精美术、特效、音效的佼佼者。虽然他们从未杀死敌人，但是他们用自己最厉害的“技术”拯救了数万名士兵的生命。
1944年的暑假，一群精心挑选的年轻人，包括美国知名设计师Bill Blass、 艺术家Ellsworth Kelly、插画家Arthur Singer、知名时尚及音乐摄影师Art Kane与设计师Jack Masey在内一共1100人降落在法国诺曼第，进行一项秘密任务。他们带了一堆充气坦克，收集了大量的音效档，筹备了一些秘密计划，他们的工作就是要在欧洲战场上打造出一场前所未有的表演，而德军就是他们的观众。
从诺曼第到莱茵河，这个由1100人组成的第二十三特种部队司令部，也就是人们口中的“幽灵部队”，用虚张声势的车队、不见真实踪影的军部门和让人信服的总部，壮大美军的军力和所在位置，将敌军虎的一愣一愣的。执行任务期间，这些艺术家的行李袋里装的都是图画。他们的每一步都是最高机密，他们的故事在战争结束后，被封印起来，成为机密，直到1996年才被披露。《文人的胜仗：幽灵部队大揭密》是第一本完整讲述这场艺术家用自己的想像力、绘画和虚张声势打造的行军大秀，最重要的是这场表演，拯救了美国大兵的性命。
本书好评
"A fascinating read, and a fun one as well. Audacious is the right word for this daring sideshow that protected Patton's flank and other American soldiers. The original art is superb and frequently humorous. A well-crafted account of the amazing combination of shenanigans and tremendous courage that characterized the Twenty-Third Headquarters Special Troops." - Libby O'Connell, chief historian of the History Channel, author of The American Plate: A Culinary History in 100 Bites
"World War II was the greatest event in the history of mankind, and although it has been the subject of countless books, documentaries, and academic courses, there is so much still to know. The Ghost Army of World War II describes a perfect example of a little-known, highly imaginative, and daring maneuver that helped open the way for the final drive to Germany. It is a riveting tale told through personal accounts and sketches along the way-ultimately, a story of success against great odds. I enjoyed it enormously." - Tom Brokaw
"World War II history buffs will get a charge out of Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles's The Ghost Army of World War II, about a top-secret group of GIs who in 1944 deployed rubber tanks, fake artillery and other decoys to distract and mislead the Germans in France. This little-known episode is recounted alongside photographs, memos, maps sketches and other memorabilia." - Newsday
"What a story! In 1944, an American unit of 1,100 artists, designers, and sound engineers, known as "The Ghost Army," snuck around France, using inflatable tanks, fake street signs, sound-effects records, and other tricks in order to deceive the German army into believing the Allies were somewhere they weren't. The book is full of drawings, paintings, and sketches by the men of the unit. In the end, it's a book about this weird (and successful!) project, but it's also a personal visual record of the last year of the war, executed by soldiers who had been selected for their artistic talent." -- Slate
"This book is a complete delight. An engaging account of the battlefield sleights of American GI artists during WWII, it is unprecedented in the breadth and detail of its telling. The suspense of its text is enlivened by a wealth of on-scene photographs, artists' sketchbooks, diaries, and other compelling first-person accounts. This is the eyewitness story of the Ghost Army as told by the artists who made it succeed." - Roy R. Behrens, author of False Colors: Art, Design and Modern Camouflage
"The Ghost Army of World War II is a veritable hive of fascinating information based on sound research. It's apparent that Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles enjoy the subject with a level of dedication and passion that warms the hearts of irascible military historians such as me. I heartily recommend this book." - Martin King, author of Voices of the Bulge and The Tigers of Bastogne, consultant to the History Channel
"The Ghost Army is a unique book in many ways, which is little surprise given its subject; but perhaps the most striking thing about this tome is the fact that it can be enjoyed in two distinct ways. The hardcover book is large - it is of what one would call coffee table proportions, measuring about eight by ten inches - and about 240 pages long. Those pages are an almost even blend of captioned photographs, sketches, maps, graphics, and pure text. You could flip through The Ghost Army reading only the captions and looking at the pictures and be left with a decent understanding of what the unit did and who comprised its ranks. Alternately, you could read the prose without glancing at a single image and come away with a thorough grasp of who they were and what they did. But of course The Ghost Army is best enjoyed when every word is read and every image appreciated." - The Manual
"Brings to life a whale of a tale of World War II innovation-one laced with brash creativity. The notion of a special Army unit using dummy equipment, mobile loudspeakers, officer impersonations, and foul rumors to deceive German forces seems outlandish, but the tactics worked. This theater-goes-to-war story is finely told and beautifully illustrated-an important contribution." - Gordon H. "Nick" Mueller, president and CEO, the National WWII Museum
"The Ghost Army of World War II describes a perfect example of a little-known, highly imaginative, and daring maneuver that helped open the way for the final drive to Germany. It is a riveting tale told through personal accounts and sketches along the way—ultimately, a story of success against great odds. I enjoyed it enormously." – Tom Brokaw
关于作者
历史学家Rick Beyer是一位畅销书作家、获奖导演也是一位受欢迎的演讲者。他撰写并导演了知名的纪录片The Ghost Army，这部片于2013年首映。
Elizabeth Sayles是一位获奖的畅销插画家，她画了超过25本童书。她的父亲William Sayles过去也是这支“幽灵部队”的成员之一，她从小就听着爸爸这些战争故事长大。
