The story of World War II is one that has been told many times over by historians, authors and filmmakers.Yet, according to Pulitzer-Prize-winning author Rick Atkinson, with the proper "archival spade work" into the 17,000 tons of U.S. Army records from that era, there are always new things to be discovered – always new and intriguing stories to be told."I believe the narrative historian’s true calling is to bring back the dead, and that’s what I try to do," said Atkinson, who spoke at the Association of the United States Army’s national headquarters in Arlington, Va., as a part of AUSA’s and The Army Historical Foundation’s Lemnitzer Lecture Series.Atkinson’s latest book, "The Guns at Last Light: The War in Europe, 1944-45," the final volume of his "Liberation Trilogy," was published in May.According to the author, his "Liberation Trilogy" presents a narrative history of the U.S. military’s role in the liberation of Europe during World War II, mainly by examining figures "whom have slipped into obscurity and even oblivion with most Americans.""My eye is always drawn to the small particular catastrophe that illuminates the larger disaster," Atkinson said.Adding that, in his latest book, "We move from a tactical foxhole view, [to] up high where we can see operational and strategic issues periodically, and then back down. And periodically we go to the other side of the hill to see what the Germans are up to."A substantial portion of the book deals with Operation Dragoon, the Allies’ invasion of southern France, an event that Atkinson said "most Americans know very little about."During his research Atkinson came across both interesting aspects of Allied planning as well as inspiring and often times harrowing personal accounts from those on the frontlines.While concerns over weapons of mass destruction (WMD) seem a uniquely contemporary concern, Atkinson explained that the Allies were very much worried about possible chemical and/or biological warfare by the Germans – not only were Geiger counters secretly hidden all over London to test for any "radioactive agents" the Germans may have dropped during air raids, but the British government also, for fear their enemy had tossed rats infected with bubonic plague onto their island, rewarded bounties for rodent carcasses to be tested for infection.Yet the Axis powers had no monopoly on possible WMD warfare. The Allies retained two secret plans, both approved by the supreme allied commander, Gen. of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower, for chemical warfare in Normandy, using the 160,000 tons of chemical munitions in England and the Mediterranean their forces had stockpiled."The first plan was predicated on caring about French civilian casualties – the second plan, not so much," Atkinson said. "And, had there been chemical warfare in Normandy as certainly there was in France during the First World War, there would’ve been tens of thousands of French civilian casualties."Among the other scrapped plans for invasion Atkinson came across was an attempt to organize a series of tunnels under the English Channel as a means of secret attack."The one thing they couldn’t finesse, that they could never figure out was: What happened when that first miner popped his head out of the hole in Normandy and the entire German 7th Army was waiting for him?" Atkinson asked.Atkinson also discussed the various changes to U.S. Army draftee standards during the war – including allowing soldiers with poor vision, partial deafness, missing digits [including their trigger finger], no teeth, and venereal disease into the ranks by 1944."Why these extreme measures to fill the ranks?" he said. "Because of the crying need for soldiers, especially infantry men and especially riflemen … we were running out.""The war remained brutal and voracious till the very end," added Atkinson, explaining that with more than 10,000 American soldiers killed in action in Germany in April 1945, the last full month of the war in Europe, "it was awful virtually till the last gun shot."Atkinson explained that although the United States "suffered less than any of the other major belligerents" during the war, with "our industrial base not only intact but thriving, with two-thirds of the world’s gold supply, with plentiful energy, and with optimism and a sense of great hope about the future," America still suffered greatly, with about 400,000 Americans dying in combat.And nowhere was that suffering more profoundly expressed than in the personal writings from those who experienced it, Atkinson explained.For example, in a letter Gen. Sandy Patch sent to his wife about their deceased son, the grieving father wrote "Providence decrees and we must obey.""How many millions of families in World War II had a similar sentiment?" Atkinson asked.Atkinson also came across a small notebook that belonged to Lt. Hershel G. Horton, a 29-year-old from Auorora, Ill., who was shot in the right leg and hip during a firefight with the Japanese in New Guinea. During the days it took him to die he wrote a final letter home to his family that included the line "my dear sweet father, mother, and sister, I lay here in this terrible place wondering not why God has forsaken me but why he is making me suffer."It is for this reason, Atkinson said, that he writes about World War II, explaining that "my ambition as the author of this trilogy is for you and our countrymen … to feel the palpable presence of those who risked everything and in some cases gave everything for us."Adding, "The first duty…is to remember."