Show, Don't Tell, Mo'fucker, Do You Speak It?

I've only just begun Flags of Our Fathers, by James Bradley, and I can already tell it's going to suck. Here's why:

A. The author's father was the only flagraiser to return home from Iwo Jima and live to a ripe old age.

B. The author's father never spoke of his role in raising the flag.

C. The author states in the beginning that the image of the six men raising the flag on Iwo Jima is iconic, but he doesn't say why; he either assumes it's unnecessary, or is going to explain it later.

Thus far, James Bradley has been shoving images of good ol' American boys in my face, trying to make me see what they sacrificed in the name of their country. He's trying to glorify war by telling me that it makes men out of boys. He even refers to himself now and then, giving his personal opinion from first-person perspective, as though this book is about him, too. Which in a way, it is, since he went to all the trouble to find out about these guys, but Bradley is detracting from their story. His stake in the story of the flagraising is too personal and he can't tell it objectively; Bradley feels this need to uncover the story because his father was always silent about it, even though Bradley Sr. was the one who lived the longest.

Yes, I know the flagraising picture represents the indomitable spirit of America or some shite, but the author gets so lost in his own emotional drivel that he fails to point this out. I should think that would be the thesis of the whole book, the whole point. As in, I'm reading this book to find out how six young men came to represent the indomitable spirit of America in one iconic image. But noooooooo, I'm treated to all this "American boys" this and that.

Basically, James Bradley is all tell and no show.