A group of American soldiers hitch a ride into battle on an M4 Sherman tank covered with sandbags for extra protection.   National Archives

Hitching a ride 

An American M1 57mm and antitank gun crew in position in Normandy's hedgerows in France, July 19, 1944.

Antitank gun and crew

Two American officers enjoy a hometown newspaper that somebody mailed them. For most front-line soldiers in World War II, their knowledge of the world around them was restricted to a few thousand yards around their current position.