|
D-Day, June Sixth, Nineteen Forty-Four
by Stephen E. Ambrose
Product Group: Book
Publisher: Econo-Clad Books (2002-09)
ISBN: 0613501268
EAN: 9780613501262
Dewey Decimal #: 973
Binding/Media: Library Binding
Reading Level: Young Adult
SKU: 544332
Condition: Collectable Very Good
Comments: **A HARDCOVER BOOK!** NOT A LIBRARY BOOK. First edition, early print. Hardcover book and pages are in great condition, clean and tight. Ships immediately with a free tracking by expedited. Priority air mail for overseas.
|
Editorial Reviews
|
Product Description
The author of Eisenhower chronicles the events, politics, and personalities of this pivotal day in World War II, shedding light on the strategies of commanders on both sides and the ramifications of the battle. 100,000 first printing. BOMC & History Main. Reader's Digest Cond Bks.
|
Amazon.com Review
Published to mark the 50th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy, Stephen E. Ambrose's D-Day: June 6, 1944 relies on over 1,400 interviews with veterans, as well as prodigious research in military archives on both sides of the Atlantic. He provides a comprehensive history of the invasion which also eloquently testifies as to how common soldiers performed extraordinary feats. A major theme of the book, upon which Ambrose would later expand in Citizen Soldiers, is how the soldiers from the democratic Allied nations rose to the occasion and outperformed German troops thought to be invincible. The many small stories that Ambrose collected from paratroopers, sailors, infantrymen, and civilians make the excitement, confusion, and sheer terror of D-day come alive on the page. --Robert McNamara
|
Customer Reviews
|
Putting the Record Straight
Rating  (1)
Date: 2010-06-20
Ambrose described an alleged incident on Omaha Beach in which a Captain Zappacosta threatened the British coxswain of his landing craft with a pistol in order to make him move closer inshore. Private Robert Sales, the only survivor of that landing craft has since stated that this was a complete invention. It never happened. Sales, who was angered by the allegation, challenged Ambrose in person and asked him to correct it but the writer just brushed it off. There is much more in this vein - Ambrose rarely missed an opportunity to disparage America's Allies. If this is representative of the standard of his research, then this book should be treated with extreme caution. His sections on the Anglo-Canadian contribution to D-Day are in any case lamentably brief. This is just bad history. There are many excellent works about D-Day, but this isn't one of them.
|
|
An interesting book
Rating  (4)
Date: 2010-04-10
Stephen E. Ambrose is an acclaimed author of numerous books. The book is written to inform people of what went into the battle of Normandy, France during World War II. The book is very helpful to someone that wants to know all about the battle and how the battle turned out. Ambrose goes into detail about how the different beaches were taken. The book includes accounts of different men that took part in the invasion. The book's copyright was in 1994 and the information is accurate mainly because it has first hand accounts of the men that were there. The author covers the subject matter by starting it off with talking about some of the people that he wants to thank for taking part in his book and some of the people that helped him. Ambrose lets the readers understand some of the terms that the military uses so that the reader will be able to understand what is going on. The book is very interesting and it is a read that most people will enjoy although it is not meant for children because of some of the language of the men that were there.
|
|
Details, details, details: the highs and lows of Ambrose's D-Day
Rating (4)
Date: 2010-02-16
I'm quite surprised by my opinion of this book now that I'm done reading it. Let me first state that I read a 1994 paperback edition, so there is a chance that some things have changed with newer editions. There is little doubt in my mind that this is the definitive book on D-Day, though I will admit I haven't read too many.
The details that Ambrose writes are both shocking and intriguing at the same time, but therein lies one of my biggest problems with the book. Its 575 pages can, at times, be a bit much. After a while the quotes get repetitive. When compared to one of my recent favorites, the 900-or-so-page masterpiece Team of Rivals, which also includes a multitude of facts and details, D-Day can drone on at times.
My second and final issue with the book is that it needs many more maps that are better placed in the book to assist the reader with their understanding of the battlefield. Because Ambrose goes into such detail of where units landed, where they moved to, and where German resistance came from, more maps would be most helpful. The chapters dedicated to the fighting on D-Day can be rounded to 20, yet the total number of maps are nine, including two printed before said "fighting chapters." One shows the overall Overlord invasion plan and the other details German strength in all of Western Europe. When maps are included in subsequent chapters, many times they are placed two or four pages after the items they explain, which forced me to go back and re-read those sections once I realized the maps were there to assist my understanding of what I'd just read.
Granted, this is 2010. In 1994, before Saving Private Ryan, HBO's Band of Brothers, or similar features, this information and these details were new to the readers. With the current wealth of movie, television, and print attention that D-Day has received, there are few surprises left to uncover. But this is the book that inspired them. It will give you a complete understanding of the battle, from all sides and from all ranks. Ambrose's access to the Eisenhower Center's treasure trove of personal accounts gives locations and statistics their color. The books thoroughness will also inspire internet searches and additional reading on the many intriguing units and individuals mentioned in the book.
Those two issues are the reasons this is a four-star review. Condense some of the chapters and include more strategically-placed maps, and there's no doubt this would be a five-star read.
|
|
Never forget
Rating  (5)
Date: 2010-02-03
My husband volunteered in the US Infantry, 29th Division, and
landed on Omaha Beach on that terrible day. He was lucky, and lived to fight on, all the way to Bitburg, Germany. Because he never
talked about the atrocious fighting on Omaha, I was very interested
in Ambrose's book and awed, grateful ( I was in France at the time)
by the scope and ferocity of the author's descriptions. This is a
book which should be required reading, a deep and factual record of
War in all its facets, sadness and glory, fear, distress and humour,
bravery and luck, plans and errors, and many more.Very recommended
for all.
|
|
Interesting account of D-Day
Rating (4)
Date: 2009-11-14
Stephen Ambrose provides an excellent narrative on the invasion of D-Day. The book is divided into three sections with the first two about 100 pages each and the last taking up the rest of the book. The first section is an introduction to the major players focusing mostly on Eisenhower, Montgomery, and Rommel. The next section focuses on the build up of forces and the special operations of the invasion. Finally the last section is an account of the four various beaches (focusing on Omaha and Utah) and the trials and tribulations these troops faced. It is a masterful storytelling and while not recounting every detail it relies on interviews to piece together what happened that day. The reader is given an account of what happened from the view of American soldiers. For those who level that this book is pro-American, I encourage them to take a look at the sources and realize that is what the offer is working with. He did not interview Germans, British or French but American troops. For those who want a historical account of troop movements they should buy a different book. This is an account of personal stories and one that is complied very well.
|
|
|
|
|