sevachkaa's review against another edition
1.0
If I could give a book 0 stars, I would. This was a necessary class read, and I just couldn’t make myself enjoy this. Too much unnecessary detail, and wayyy too much focus on such a niche event. But, I’m just salty because an entire class was spent talking about this book. 4 months of content centered entirely around one biased account. I appreciate Ambrose’s own research and archival (and interview) work, but I couldn’t find a way to care.
xxstefaniereadsxx's review against another edition
dark
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.0
The title of this book makes it pretty obvious what the subject is about, so I will not summarize. Stephen Ambrose is a wonderfully talented historian, and I enjoy all of the books by this author. The detail and descriptions of the battles and human experiences are unmatched. If you are interested in military history, get familiar with this author.
haha4456's review against another edition
5.0
This book is a factual account of the greatest large scale operation that took place during World War II in which the Allied nations (The United States of America, United Kingdom, Canada, and Free France) launched a massive seaborne and airborne assault on the 6th of June 1944 to liberate France from Nazi fanaticism. Codenamed Operation Overlord, it was probably the most prominent war operation that took place in the 20th Century. The success of which would bring about peace and democracy for the future generations to come.
The planning phase for the invasion took almost two years. This operation was a direct answer to Joseph Stalin’s pleads to open a second front in the European theatre. The Red army has been fighting the Germans for many years in the Eastern front which resulted in a horrifying bloodshed on both sides. In order for the war to be won, a second front must be opened to stretch the capacity of the Germans to its limit.
This book not only describes the bravery of the men on the frontline but also of those at home. The widely agreed miracle was the capability of the war production industry to churn out thousands and thousands of sea transportation (Landing crafts of different mediums) to allow for the crossing and landing of 175, 000 men, 54,000 vehicles on a single day. The invasion would not have been successful without the efforts of the workers who toiled to build the crafts for the war.
This book also gives readers an analytical review on the decisions made by the leadership of both sides which ultimately contributed greatly to the outcome of the war. From the humble, confident and optimistic General Dwight Eisenhower to the professional and dutiful Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, both were great leaders who lead men into battles by example. However both had different set of resources when planning for the battle. Eisenhower had every unit regardless of country under the direct command of him, a privilege which Rommel did not have. Hitler, who did not trust anybody, even his own subordinates, had a complex command structure that prevented Rommel from having all the units under his command, especially the elite Panzer divisions which were under the command of Hitler directly. Megalomaniac Hitler had a mentality of conquering more than he can defend. He insisted that the entire coast of continental Europe and the Scandinavia to be defended with men and fortifications. This led to the downfall of German Wehrmacht (German Armed Forces) and Nazis as their army is too thin to be stretched along the long strip of coast.
Stephen Ambrose draws from hundreds of oral interviews of veterans and civilians that were involved on D-Day (The day in which the invasion of France commenced). Stephen Ambrose makes things interesting and makes readers feel as if they are transported back in time to witness the gallantry and bravery of men involved in the gruesome fight for freedom. From the initial planning phase in which two capable Generals get ready to outwit and outplay each other on strategy, deceit and even luck to a microcosm level of an infantryman paralyzed with fear on his first combat experience, Ambrose has brought the emotions, actions and the grim reality of war to the readers. This book pays tribute to the countless sacrifices made by brave young men to pave the way for a free world.
The planning phase for the invasion took almost two years. This operation was a direct answer to Joseph Stalin’s pleads to open a second front in the European theatre. The Red army has been fighting the Germans for many years in the Eastern front which resulted in a horrifying bloodshed on both sides. In order for the war to be won, a second front must be opened to stretch the capacity of the Germans to its limit.
This book not only describes the bravery of the men on the frontline but also of those at home. The widely agreed miracle was the capability of the war production industry to churn out thousands and thousands of sea transportation (Landing crafts of different mediums) to allow for the crossing and landing of 175, 000 men, 54,000 vehicles on a single day. The invasion would not have been successful without the efforts of the workers who toiled to build the crafts for the war.
This book also gives readers an analytical review on the decisions made by the leadership of both sides which ultimately contributed greatly to the outcome of the war. From the humble, confident and optimistic General Dwight Eisenhower to the professional and dutiful Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, both were great leaders who lead men into battles by example. However both had different set of resources when planning for the battle. Eisenhower had every unit regardless of country under the direct command of him, a privilege which Rommel did not have. Hitler, who did not trust anybody, even his own subordinates, had a complex command structure that prevented Rommel from having all the units under his command, especially the elite Panzer divisions which were under the command of Hitler directly. Megalomaniac Hitler had a mentality of conquering more than he can defend. He insisted that the entire coast of continental Europe and the Scandinavia to be defended with men and fortifications. This led to the downfall of German Wehrmacht (German Armed Forces) and Nazis as their army is too thin to be stretched along the long strip of coast.
Stephen Ambrose draws from hundreds of oral interviews of veterans and civilians that were involved on D-Day (The day in which the invasion of France commenced). Stephen Ambrose makes things interesting and makes readers feel as if they are transported back in time to witness the gallantry and bravery of men involved in the gruesome fight for freedom. From the initial planning phase in which two capable Generals get ready to outwit and outplay each other on strategy, deceit and even luck to a microcosm level of an infantryman paralyzed with fear on his first combat experience, Ambrose has brought the emotions, actions and the grim reality of war to the readers. This book pays tribute to the countless sacrifices made by brave young men to pave the way for a free world.
italianstallion91r's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
external_cyberbrain's review against another edition
4.0
Very fact heavy. I have read this book a couple of time to refresh my memory on the subject. Ambrose writing style in my mind is very dry. That being said his books have carved out a great may details about the subject.
anti_formalist12's review against another edition
3.0
Probably about as good a single volume on the D-Day planning and invasion. Full to the brim with personal narratives, some of which are haunting. But it’s also full of American chauvinism. He vacillates between explaining how the Germans were demoralized and many of their troops manning the Atlantic wall were foreign conscripts, young men, or aging wounded soldiers, and that the American army invading Normandy was the finest fighting force the world had ever seen. Moreover, his assertion hat the Soviets might make another deal with the Nazis if the allied invasion failed has zero basis in reality.
nerdofdoom's review against another edition
3.0
Please read beyond Stephen Ambrose if your going to study the second world war. Please, please, please, do.
nelsta's review against another edition
3.0
This book was good, but it wasn't as good as it could have been. It was pitched as the end-all-be-all of books on D-Day, but I just felt like it missed the mark. The book begins weakly and grows in strength, but even at its greatest strength the book never matched the quality of Band of Brothers, Ambrose's other famous work. This book is popular history, short and simple. It's entertaining to read, but I would rather read another work to properly understand the history.
To give a few examples, Stephen Ambrose makes the correct claim that the armada gathered off Normandy on June 6, 1944 was the largest armada ever assembled. But then he never justifies it with numbers or any other explanation. Even though it's correct, I feel like some kind of show-and-tell is necessary to prove it to posterity. Additionally, Ambrose dedicates about 8/10 of the book to the American efforts and the German counter-efforts. Only 2/10 is left to explain the valiant efforts of the British and Canadian forces on Sword and Juno beaches. That seems disingenuous. Even if the Americans did provide 80% of the effort that day, this needs to be justified in some way in the text. Ambrose needs to explain why you only begin to read about the British and Canadians after the vast majority of the book has already been read. He even explains that Juno beach was almost as stoutly defended as Omaha and yet the Canadians get a handful of chapters compared to the nearly 50% of the book that was spent describing the horrors of Omaha beach. The Commonwealth forces deserved a more detailed section than they received.
To add insult to injury, this book begins with a criminal amount of assumption. Ambrose says things like (and I'm paraphrasing), "if D-Day had failed, Germany would have won the war." Statements like these are gross exaggerations of the truth and don't belong anywhere near a work of history. These assumptions dissipated after a while, but it got to the point that I nearly put the book down in favor of something else.
The book is thoroughly entertaining, however. I felt like I could see and hear the battles through Ambrose's descriptive imagery. This might have been because I have recently seen HBO's Band of Brothers, though. I can't recommend this book without reservation, but it's probably worth picking up at a garage sale or the library.
To give a few examples, Stephen Ambrose makes the correct claim that the armada gathered off Normandy on June 6, 1944 was the largest armada ever assembled. But then he never justifies it with numbers or any other explanation. Even though it's correct, I feel like some kind of show-and-tell is necessary to prove it to posterity. Additionally, Ambrose dedicates about 8/10 of the book to the American efforts and the German counter-efforts. Only 2/10 is left to explain the valiant efforts of the British and Canadian forces on Sword and Juno beaches. That seems disingenuous. Even if the Americans did provide 80% of the effort that day, this needs to be justified in some way in the text. Ambrose needs to explain why you only begin to read about the British and Canadians after the vast majority of the book has already been read. He even explains that Juno beach was almost as stoutly defended as Omaha and yet the Canadians get a handful of chapters compared to the nearly 50% of the book that was spent describing the horrors of Omaha beach. The Commonwealth forces deserved a more detailed section than they received.
To add insult to injury, this book begins with a criminal amount of assumption. Ambrose says things like (and I'm paraphrasing), "if D-Day had failed, Germany would have won the war." Statements like these are gross exaggerations of the truth and don't belong anywhere near a work of history. These assumptions dissipated after a while, but it got to the point that I nearly put the book down in favor of something else.
The book is thoroughly entertaining, however. I felt like I could see and hear the battles through Ambrose's descriptive imagery. This might have been because I have recently seen HBO's Band of Brothers, though. I can't recommend this book without reservation, but it's probably worth picking up at a garage sale or the library.