hwolffshall's review against another edition
3.0
My god, that took FOREVER to get through! Not Ambrose's fault -- just mine for reading 5 different books at once. An incredibly thorough history of the greatest day in the history of the world (in my humble opinion). It was difficult to read though. Just too much to get through and to take in to really make for a *good* read. Thoroughly interesting and informative though. I'd just view it more as a reference than a good book for curling up on the couch with.
alivira's review against another edition
4.0
A detailed recount of D-Day, but reads more at times as a list of events as opposed to a narrative - particularly in the back half of the book where this style becomes very dull very quick. Could also greatly benefit from more photos and maps to offset some of the more dense passages. Very Allies-centric so be prepared for a patriotic narrative.
allen_h's review against another edition
4.0
It’s hard to imagine what these people went through on this fateful day. We live in a better place because of what they did.
fivetilnoon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
Well organized and well told. The book focuses mostly on the American beaches Utah and Omaha. The British and Canadian beaches get a chapter each. Good pacing and hard to put down. I liked the maps and photo sections. Some of Ambrose's key points that stuck with me:
1. Allied armies were organized better to make decisions. The German command structure was fractured and ineffective. All of the Allies reported to Eisenhower.
2. Hitler's strategy for defense of France was flawed, trying to hold every inch of ground rather than allowing for retreat and counterattack.
3. Rommel favored driving back the allies at the beaches and created a defensive line with no depth and flexibility.
4. The invasion of France and opening of a second front was critical, as Nazi Germany's only hope was to hold off the Russians long enough to negotiate a peace with either Russia or England and the US.
5. Allied naval and air bombardment was mostly ineffective at reducing German defenses before the invasion. Navy guns were important for close support after the invasion started and air bombardment was effective at cutting off German transportation and supplies.
1. Allied armies were organized better to make decisions. The German command structure was fractured and ineffective. All of the Allies reported to Eisenhower.
2. Hitler's strategy for defense of France was flawed, trying to hold every inch of ground rather than allowing for retreat and counterattack.
3. Rommel favored driving back the allies at the beaches and created a defensive line with no depth and flexibility.
4. The invasion of France and opening of a second front was critical, as Nazi Germany's only hope was to hold off the Russians long enough to negotiate a peace with either Russia or England and the US.
5. Allied naval and air bombardment was mostly ineffective at reducing German defenses before the invasion. Navy guns were important for close support after the invasion started and air bombardment was effective at cutting off German transportation and supplies.
swoodo's review against another edition
4.0
Ambrose somehow brings into scale the operations that happened on D-Day with such precision and empathy, tapping many interviews, diary’s, and accounts of the event you can’t help but feel in awe. Yes the numbers, names, regiments, locations get jumbled in your head and I could have used more maps throughout the book but in illustrating the sheer scale and hardship the men went through, I haven’t read anything better.
I will say though, it is much more an American experience of D-Day, not an American, British, and Canadian experience. And being half Canadian I was looking forward to more perspectives. But, nonetheless, this book is so able to put most everything into scale and context that it is really amazing. Great stuff. 4.5/5
I will say though, it is much more an American experience of D-Day, not an American, British, and Canadian experience. And being half Canadian I was looking forward to more perspectives. But, nonetheless, this book is so able to put most everything into scale and context that it is really amazing. Great stuff. 4.5/5
audreyknutson's review against another edition
4.0
Cornelius Ryan's "Longest Day" has always struck a cord with me and I have always been fascinated by D-Day and I wanted to broaden my knowledge and gain additional sources so I read this book.
I couldn't put this book down. Ambrose does a great job of explaining the D-day objectives of the Allied Navy and Army Air Forces as well as the British, American, and Canadian army assault forces and paratroopers. He narrated what they wanted to accomplish and what actually happened and why. He also uses a lot of first person narrative to give a better picture of what June 6, 1944 was actually like. Ambrose also gives a lot of background information and context that allows it to be an easy read even without having any knowledge of the military or WWII.
Stephen Ambrose gets a lot of heat these days for being accused of plagiarism and that hasn't even bothered me because I believe the merit in his works lay in the information. I learned a lot in this book and it makes me what to read more of his stuff.
I'd recommend this to history/WWII buffs and anyone wanting background or information on one of the most decisive battles in the 20th century.
I couldn't put this book down. Ambrose does a great job of explaining the D-day objectives of the Allied Navy and Army Air Forces as well as the British, American, and Canadian army assault forces and paratroopers. He narrated what they wanted to accomplish and what actually happened and why. He also uses a lot of first person narrative to give a better picture of what June 6, 1944 was actually like. Ambrose also gives a lot of background information and context that allows it to be an easy read even without having any knowledge of the military or WWII.
Stephen Ambrose gets a lot of heat these days for being accused of plagiarism and that hasn't even bothered me because I believe the merit in his works lay in the information. I learned a lot in this book and it makes me what to read more of his stuff.
I'd recommend this to history/WWII buffs and anyone wanting background or information on one of the most decisive battles in the 20th century.
creosoto's review
3.0
Il sottotitolo corretto dovrebbe essere Storia dello sbarco americano in Normandia: il testo si concentra infatti sulla ricostruzione degli eventi a Utah e Omaha, dedicando solo poche pagine agli avvenimenti di Gold, Juno e Sword (solo 76 pagine su 576!).
jayft0312's review against another edition
5.0
The book is very detailed but not tedious. It gave me an excellent perspective of what the average soldier (on both sides) went through.