Positioning Statement

A gripping combat narrative history anchored in the never-before-told biography of West Pointer Harry W.O. Kinnard—one of the 101st Airborne Division's most consequential commanders—A Paratrooper's War brings readers inside America's most storied battles of World War II: D-Day at Normandy, Operation Market Garden in Holland, and the desperate defense at the Battle of the Bulge. Author Daniel P. Bolger, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general with a PhD in history from the University of Chicago, combines unparalleled military expertise with exclusive access to the Kinnard papers at Carlisle Barracks to deliver the definitive account of how America's airborne forces fought and won the war in Europe—from foxhole to château, from Pearl Harbor to victory.

Market

Market Opportunity and Audience:

The WWII history market remains one of publishing's most reliable performers: WWII titles consistently rank among top sellers in military history, with the category generating over $200 million annually in the U.S. trade market.

Band of Brothers effect: Stephen Ambrose's 1992 bestseller and the 2001 HBO miniseries (which briefly mentioned Kinnard) reignited mass-market interest in the 101st Airborne—a readership that remains passionate and loyal, with the miniseries averaging over 9 million viewers per episode.

We Were Soldiers crossover audience: Kinnard was portrayed in the 2002 film We Were Soldiers (based on the 1992 Lt. Gen. Harold Moore/Joe Galloway book), expanding his recognition beyond WWII readers to Vietnam-era military history fans. The film grossed $78.1 million domestically.

Battleground (1949) tie-in: Kinnard was credited as a military expert for this Academy Award–winning MGM film about the Battle of the Bulge, giving the book a Hollywood angle for legacy media coverage.

Veteran and military family market: Approximately 16.2 million U.S. military veterans (U.S. Census Bureau) represent a core audience with demonstrated book-buying behavior; WWII veterans' families form an especially motivated readership eager to preserve and understand their relatives' service.

Perfect for readers of: Band of Brothers (Stephen Ambrose), An Army at Dawn (Rick Atkinson), Citizen Soldiers (Ambrose), Cornelius Ryan's The Longest Day and A Bridge Too Far, and Killing Patton (Bill O'Reilly/Martin Dugard).

Military history readership skews heavily male (55–75 years old) but crossover potential to younger readers through gaming (Call of Duty, Medal of Honor franchises), streaming (Apple TV+'s Masters of the Air, 2024), and the ongoing cultural fascination with the “Greatest Generation.”

Masters of the Air (Apple TV+, 2024) and continued streaming interest in WWII content demonstrates robust mainstream demand; the show drew 9+ million viewers in its first week.

West Point and service academy community: Kinnard was Class of 1939; the West Point Association of Graduates has 55,000+ members. Strong potential for alumni outreach, adoption by military history courses, and USMA-affiliated events.

The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at Fort Campbell, KY maintains an active history program and will be a key institutional partner, given the book draws on the division's own WWII records held there.

Author Credentials

Daniel P. Bolger is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general—a rare combination of combat commander and credentialed historian—giving him credibility with both military readers and academic reviewers.

Lt. Gen. Bolger has been interviewed on many national news and public affair television and radio programs including The Situation Room (CNN, Wolf Blitzer), This Week (ABC, Martha Raddatz), Morning Joe (MS NOW), PBS, Fox News, and NPR, and will reach out to all of his contacts in the media.

Combat experience: Bolger commanded forces in both Afghanistan and Iraq, lending firsthand authority to his portrayal of battlefield decision-making and soldier psychology.

Academic distinction: PhD in history, University of Chicago; First in his class at The Citadel and the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.

Military honors: Five Bronze Stars (including one for valor) and the Combat Action Badge.

Prolific author: Ten books and numerous articles; established relationship with military history readership.

Current academic platform: Professor of history at North Carolina State University, providing access to academic reviewers, university press contacts, and student/faculty audiences.

Archival access: Exclusive familiarity with the Kinnard papers at Carlisle Barracks (U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center), supplemented by records from Fort Campbell (KY), Fort Leavenworth (KS), Fort Liberty (formerly Bragg, NC), and Fort Moore (formerly Benning, GA)—ensuring unparalleled primary source depth.

Previous book Why We Lost (2014, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) received widespread national coverage including NPR, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, demonstrating media traction.

Publicity

Print, Broadcast & Major Media:

Major trade reviewers: Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, Booklist, among others.

National newspapers: The New York Times (Books, Sunday Review, op-ed), USA Today, Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Chicago Tribune, The Boston Globe.

Military and history press, including: Military.com, Military Review, Military Times, National Review, Perspectives on History, the Journal of Modern History, Military History Quarterly (MHQ), World War II Magazine, Army Magazine (AUSA), Military Times, Stars and Stripes, The National Interest (digital only), War on the Rocks, Small Wars Journal, and numerous websites dedicated to the U.S. Army and the 101st Airborne Division (the “Screaming Eagles”).

General interest: The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Smithsonian Magazine, American Heritage (digital only), Lapham's Quarterly, TIME Magazine, Newsweek.

Veteran/service organization publications: VFW Magazine (1.5 million members), American Legion Magazine (1.9 million members), MOAA's Military Officer Magazine—all with highly targeted readerships.

Regional/local press: Fort Campbell Courier (circulation ~20,000 in the 101st Airborne community / digital only); Raleigh News & Observer (Bolger's NC State base); West Point–area outlets.

NPR shows: Fresh Air, On Point, 1A, All Things Considered, Morning Edition, Weekend Edition, Weekend All Things Considered—all strong performers for narrative nonfiction.

Broadcast: PBS NewsHour, C-SPAN Book TV (indispensable for military history authors), CBS Sunday Morning (strong “Greatest Generation” appeal), CBS 60 Minutes.

Cable: History Channel, Military History Channel, Smithsonian Channel—all with strong WWII programming rosters and book-tie-in traditions.

Op-ed/byline strategy: Bolger pitches bylined pieces to major outlets on the Battle of the Bulge, the evolution of U.S. airborne doctrine, and lessons of WWII command leadership.

Podcasts

Military history & WWII: Damn Interesting, The American Military History Podcast, Battleground: WW2 Podcast, Secret WWII (National WW II Museum podcast)

History & culture: Revisionist History (Malcolm Gladwell, ~5 million listeners/episode), American History Tellers, Throughline (NPR), Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History (Blueprint for Armageddon has 50M+ downloads)

General interest & narrative: The Ezra Klein Show, Hidden Brain, Armchair Expert (Dax Shepard, ~20 million monthly listeners), The Daily (NYT, 20M+ listeners), Lex Fridman Podcast

Leadership & professional: How I Built This, Masters of Scale, The Tim Ferriss Show, The Knowledge Project—Kinnard’s and Bolger’s leadership under fire is compelling content for business and leadership audiences

Veterans & military community: The Fighter Pilot Podcast, Jocko Podcast (Jocko Willink, 500K+ subscribers; explicitly covers WWII leadership), Modern War Institute Podcast (West Point), Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast

Social Media & Digital Marketing

Author Platform & Built-in Demand:

Author’s academic platform: NC State University’s History Department provides institutional amplification through university press releases, alumni networks (~600,000 living alumni), and the Research Triangle’s active intellectual community

Military and veterans organizations: The 101st Airborne Division Association (~10,000+ members); the 82nd Airborne Division Association; the Veterans of Foreign Wars (~1.5 million members); The American Legion (~1.7 million members)—all have newsletters, social channels, and event calendars that are ideal for promotion

BookTok & Bookstagram: Military history and WWII content performs strongly on TikTok (@militaryhistoryviz and similar accounts regularly hit 100K+ views); target accounts with overlapping military history + historical fiction audiences; #WWII has 3.5B+ views on TikTok; #militaryhistory has 1B+ views

YouTube: The book’s rich visual material (D-Day, Market Garden, Battle of the Bulge) pairs well with established WWII YouTube channels: Overly Sarcastic Productions (3.5M subscribers), History Matters (2M+ subscribers), Mark Felton Productions (1M+ subscribers)—pitch for sponsored content or organic coverage

Publisher social channels: Coordinate across publisher’s own Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter, and LinkedIn; create archival-photo content series featuring Kinnard, the 101st, and key battles; anniversary posts timed to D-Day (June 6), Operation Market Garden (September 17), and Battle of the Bulge (December 16)

Email and newsletter outreach: Pitch to military history newsletters with significant subscriber bases: War on the Rocks newsletter (~50,000 subscribers); The Dispatch (national security vertical); Task & Purpose email list; HistoryNet newsletter

Key Marketing Hooks

The Bastogne “Nuts” moment—Kinnard’s role: It was Kinnard who polled the 101st’s regimental commanders to gauge their will to hold Bastogne—and it was his report of the poll to General McAuliffe that preceded the legendary “Nuts!” reply to the German surrender demand. This is a story every American history reader will recognize, and few know Kinnard’s role in it.

The Hollywood throughline: From Battleground (1949 Best Picture Oscar) to Band of Brothers (2001 Emmy-winning HBO epic) to We Were Soldiers (2002 Mel Gibson blockbuster)—Kinnard’s story spans more than 50 years of America’s most beloved war storytelling, yet he has never had his own book. That story tells itself.

Archival exclusivity: The Kinnard Papers at Carlisle Barracks have never been the basis of a book-length biography. Bolger’s access to these papers—plus four other military archives—gives this book primary-source authority that no previous account of the 101st Airborne’s WWII story can match

General-to-general perspective: A retired three-star general writing about a fellow general’s journey from lieutenant to colonel creates a uniquely credible inside view of command, decision-making under fire, and the institutional culture of America’s elite airborne forces

The modern airborne legacy: Kinnard’s WWII leadership in the 101st Airborne directly shaped his later command of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) in Vietnam—the world’s first large-scale use of helicopters in combat, depicted in We Were Soldiers. This links WWII to Vietnam to the modern U.S. Army’s air assault doctrine still in use today, giving the book a “long shadow” appeal beyond pure WWII audiences.