The Tin Can Runner (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798554893063)

A military fiction novel by T.J. Stavros, inspired by a stunning piece of history.

It is the snowy Belgian winter of 1944. The Germans have just launched an enormous offensive in a desperate attempt to turn the tides of war. If they could only get to the Belgian port of Antwerp where all Allied supplies arrive, they would cut 21st British army group in the Netherlands off, starving them of food, fuel, and ammo, stopping any resistance in its tracks. The German offensive would wreak havoc in Allied lines in Western Europe and make a serious halt to their plans. All progress from the D-Day would be lost. Lives of thousands of soldiers would have to go to waste.

The Third Reich will not surrender easily as there is still hope for peace. If the Allied offensive can be halted, they won't be able to drive into the German Fatherland and will be forced to sign a treaty. This in turn will allow remaining Axis forces to be moved to the Eastern Front and stop Soviet waves.

The German push towards western shores of Belgium has started on the December 16th 1944. The Axis forces gathered 13 Infantry Divisions (Volksgrenadier) and 7 Panzer Divisions totaling 406,000 soldiers while the US forces in the area consisted of only 6 Infantry Divisions and 2 Armored Divisions. The Allies were caught off guard and their units initially scattered in different directions.

An Allied M4A3 Sherman tank from US 10th Armored Division got lost in the snow near town of Noville. The crew is separated from their already broken platoon and the radio is malfunctioning. Sgt Mark Johnson is determined to boost the morale of his people and to get to the base in one piece. Running a tank seems to be much harder than running in the wilderness of his home state Colorado. It's all about putting one leg in front of another and repeating it indefinately, his uncle used to say when asked for jogging tips. The metal can sgt Johnson found himself in was never a desired burial site he has dreamed of.

Who will get West faster? German elite Panzer Division or a lost American tank?