hckilgour's review
While I know these men played an important roll in history. I just couldn’t get myself to get into their story or to care. I think for me it was that I couldn’t get through the beginning of their time in Europe and I was just like, I don’t know who this artist is and why do I care.
debzemanlms's review
3.0
While this is a great book tracking a major moment in history, I have to admit I struggled through it. It read more like a textbook then a third person account of the monuments men. I was surprised to learn that there were in fact more than 350 monuments men. I often wonder why the author only focused on the 11th. I think this would be a tough book for kids to get through even though it’s only around 250 pages. It bounced around a lot from monument man to monument man and I think that’s where I got lost.
north_elliot's review
It is kind of boring. I got about seventy pages in before I chose to abandon it
mis_evaluate's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
This was a great book that was really informative. I really enjoyed learning about the Monuments Men. The only issue with this book, which is common across other nonfiction books, is that it is quite slow, especially at the beginning. It is definitely worth reading, though!
crwolgamot's review
3.0
A little long for a young adult version. Fascinating story and well written though.
thisfoxreads's review
4.0
Edsel's book in a young adult edition.
When you learned about World War II, it's likely you had no idea that Eisenhower made the wonderful move of working to protect the cultural history of Europe at the same time as fighting in Europe. It wasn't just a proclamation, either: the Monuments Men were soldiers with backgrounds in art and museums, chosen to locate and protect the cultures of Italy, France, and Germany (with a very brief mention at the end of the book about Japan) as the Allies defeated the Axis powers.
I appreciate the page with photos/brief descriptions of the so-called Monuments Men (and the French woman who played a major role) at the beginning--I often flipped back to it while reading. The book is also filled with photos (sadly just the standard black & white of the times--and sometimes quite dark).
My only complaint is that, in trying to demonstrate the simultaneous efforts of the MM, the constant change of locale (and characters) is confusing.
A great historical nonfiction read. Having just been to Italy last year (including seeing Monte Cassino), this book showed me the kinder side of war. It was not a "to the victor go the spoils" mentality, but instead a sincere effort to return art works (Hitler and Goring were quite greedy!) to their proper homes.
When you learned about World War II, it's likely you had no idea that Eisenhower made the wonderful move of working to protect the cultural history of Europe at the same time as fighting in Europe. It wasn't just a proclamation, either: the Monuments Men were soldiers with backgrounds in art and museums, chosen to locate and protect the cultures of Italy, France, and Germany (with a very brief mention at the end of the book about Japan) as the Allies defeated the Axis powers.
I appreciate the page with photos/brief descriptions of the so-called Monuments Men (and the French woman who played a major role) at the beginning--I often flipped back to it while reading. The book is also filled with photos (sadly just the standard black & white of the times--and sometimes quite dark).
My only complaint is that, in trying to demonstrate the simultaneous efforts of the MM, the constant change of locale (and characters) is confusing.
A great historical nonfiction read. Having just been to Italy last year (including seeing Monte Cassino), this book showed me the kinder side of war. It was not a "to the victor go the spoils" mentality, but instead a sincere effort to return art works (Hitler and Goring were quite greedy!) to their proper homes.
kateteaching7and8's review against another edition
3.0
@kidlitexchange #partner
Thank you to @scholasticinc and Robert M. Edsel for sharing an advance copy of The Greatest Treasure Hunt in History: The Story of the Monuments Men with the #kidlitexchange network. This book was released January 1, 2019 and is currently available for purchase. All opinions are my own.
WWII was the most destructive war the world had ever seen and thousands of pieces of artwork with cultural importance were in harm's way. This book follows a special unit called the Monuments Men who were tasked with saving and protecting as many of these cultural objects as possible. The book recounts the stories of eleven men and one woman who risked their lives during WWII to save libraries, museums, churches, monuments, and works of art that for centuries have defined Western heritage and culture.
This is an incredibly interesting topic and this story needs to be told. I don't know a lot about art, but I've heard of several of the major works of art mentioned in the book and I enjoyed the photos that were included. I enjoyed learning about the huge impact that eleven men and one woman made during the war. I had previously heard of Monument Men, but I had no idea that there were so few of them or what their actual jobs entailed.
I love history, specifically WWII, and I found the concept of this book highly intriguing. That being said, I struggled with this book. While the concept is cool, it's the organization of the book and the voice that didn't work for me. The book jumps around to different Monument Men in different areas of Europe and I often found myself getting lost. The book is written in a very straightforward almost textbook like manner. Though this book is targeted at middle grades I believe it's interest level and the way it is written are more appropriate for high school and young adult readers. If I struggled with getting through the book (when I enjoy history and minored in it in college), I feel that many middle school students will also struggle with it. I think that someone who truly loves history and isn't looking for a narrative nonfiction piece will really enjoy this book. I just believe that the target audience is a little low.
Thank you to @scholasticinc and Robert M. Edsel for sharing an advance copy of The Greatest Treasure Hunt in History: The Story of the Monuments Men with the #kidlitexchange network. This book was released January 1, 2019 and is currently available for purchase. All opinions are my own.
WWII was the most destructive war the world had ever seen and thousands of pieces of artwork with cultural importance were in harm's way. This book follows a special unit called the Monuments Men who were tasked with saving and protecting as many of these cultural objects as possible. The book recounts the stories of eleven men and one woman who risked their lives during WWII to save libraries, museums, churches, monuments, and works of art that for centuries have defined Western heritage and culture.
This is an incredibly interesting topic and this story needs to be told. I don't know a lot about art, but I've heard of several of the major works of art mentioned in the book and I enjoyed the photos that were included. I enjoyed learning about the huge impact that eleven men and one woman made during the war. I had previously heard of Monument Men, but I had no idea that there were so few of them or what their actual jobs entailed.
I love history, specifically WWII, and I found the concept of this book highly intriguing. That being said, I struggled with this book. While the concept is cool, it's the organization of the book and the voice that didn't work for me. The book jumps around to different Monument Men in different areas of Europe and I often found myself getting lost. The book is written in a very straightforward almost textbook like manner. Though this book is targeted at middle grades I believe it's interest level and the way it is written are more appropriate for high school and young adult readers. If I struggled with getting through the book (when I enjoy history and minored in it in college), I feel that many middle school students will also struggle with it. I think that someone who truly loves history and isn't looking for a narrative nonfiction piece will really enjoy this book. I just believe that the target audience is a little low.
me_myself_myshelf's review
4.0
I love WW2 and art, so I decided to pick this one up at the book fair. It started off slow, but I did get hooked later on. This book is both entertaining and educational at the same time (a rare thing to do).