Synopses & Reviews
June 6, 1944 was a pivotal moment in the history of World War II in Europe. On that day the climactic and decisive phase of the war began. Those who survived the intense fighting on the Normandy beaches found their lives irreversibly changed. The day ushered in a great change for the United States as well becuse, on D-Day, America began its march to the forefront of the Western world.
By the end of the Battle of Normandy, almost one of every two soldiers involved was an American, and without American weapons, supplies, and leadership, the outcome of the invasion and ensuing battle could have been very different.
In the first of two volumes on the American contribution to the Allied victory at Normandy, John C. McManus (Deadly Brotherhood, Deadly Sky) examines, with great intensity and thoroughness, the American experience in the weeks leading up to D-Day and on the great day itself. From the build up in England to the night drops of airborne forces behind German lines and the landings on the beaches at dawn, from the famed figures of Eisenhower, Bradley, and Lightin' Joe Collins to the courageous, but little-known privates who fouhgt so bravely, and under terrifying conditions, this is the story of the American experience at D-Day. What were the battles really like for the Americans at Utah and Omaha? What drove them to fight despite all adversity? How and why did they triumph? Thanks to extensive archival research, and the use of hundreds of first hand accounts, McManus answers these questions and many more.
In The Americans at D-Day, a gripping narrative history reminiscent of Cornelius Ryan's The Longest Day, McManus takes readers into the minds of American strategists, into the hearts of the infantry, into hell on earth.
Impressively researched, engrossing, lightning quick, and filled with human sorrow and elation, The Americans at D-Day honors those Americans who lost their lives on D-Day, as well as those who were fortunate enough to survive.
Review
Praise for John C. McManus' The Americans at D-Day and The Americans at Normandy
"McManus has written an epic, an American Illiad, of the ordinary, mortal men who fought and won the pivotal battle of World War II. From generals and prime ministers to the G.I. Joes who carried the destiny of nations in their hands, his scope in monumental. An extraordinary achievement."---Stephen Coonts
"Required reading on a bitter battle that won't be---and never should be---forgotten."
---W. E. B. Griffin
"Far more gripping than Saving Private Ryan. Comprehensively detailed . . . Utterly fascinating. McManus' style fits the slam-bang fighting that characterized one of the most crucial periods of the war, and he makes every battle---and every soldier---count as if it were the last round in the clip."---Walter J. Boyne, New York Times bestselling author of Operation Iraqi Freedom
"Awesome! A definitive account of a turning point in American and world history."---Thomas Fleming
"I thought I knew something about war and men at war until I read John C. McManus' deeply insightfiul book. I stand humbled by what I consider nothing less than a definitive work on a subject whose scope is simply so vast that no writer until now has put int in perspective and made it real."---David Hagberg, winner of the American Book Award, three-time winner of the American Mystery Award, and USA Today bestselling a
Review
"Vividly portrays the brutality of the conflict."--The Washington Post
"McManus has written an epic, an American Illiad."--Stephen Coonts
"Required reading on a bitter battle that won't be---and never should be---forgotten."
--W. E. B. Griffin
"Far more gripping than Saving Private Ryan."--Walter J. Boyne, New York Times bestselling author of Operation Iraqi Freedom
Review
"Vividly portrays the brutality of the conflict."
The Washington Post
Review
"McManus has written an epic, an American Illiad."
Stephen Coonts
Review
"Required reading on a bitter battle that won't be---and never should be---forgotten."
W. E. B. Griffin
Review
"Far more gripping than Saving Private Ryan." Walter J. Boyne
Synopsis
D-Day was only the beginning. The Battle of Normandy was a turning point in the history of World War II. Those who survived the intense fighting on the Normandy beaches and farms found their lives irreversibly changed. Careers and reputations were made for those at the helm of the fighting, for good or bad. On D-Day, the fate of Europe and the United States was born; Hitler lost the chance to end the war on his own terms and America began its march to the forefront of the Western world. Presented now is the most thorough examination of the American experience during that summer of 1944, from the build-up to D-day to the slaughter of the Falaise Gap; from the courageous, famed figures of Bradley, Patton, Collins, and Rommel, to the lesser-known privates who toiled in torturous conditions for their country. What was this battle really like for these men? What drove them to fight against all sense and obstacles for the hope to survive? How and why did they triumph? Engrossing, lightning-quick, and filled with real human sorrow and elation, "Americans at Normandy honors the memory of those Americans who lost their lives on the fields of Normandy, and those who survived. Finally their stories are told with the rich depth and important historical perspective they deserve.
Synopsis
Engrossing, lightning-quick, and filled with real human sorrow and elation, "The Americans at D-Day" honors the memory of those Americans who lost their lives, and those who survived.
Synopsis
June 6, 1944 was a pivotal moment in the history of World War II in Europe. On that day the climactic and decisive phase of the war began. Those who survived the intense fighting on the Normandy beaches found their lives irreversibly changed. The day ushered in a great change for the United States as well becuse, on D-Day, America began its march to the forefront of the Western world.
By the end of the Battle of Normandy, almost one of every two soldiers involved was an American, and without American weapons, supplies, and leadership, the outcome of the invasion and ensuing battle could have been very different.
In the first of two volumes on the American contribution to the Allied victory at Normandy, John C. McManus (Deadly Brotherhood, Deadly Sky) examines, with great intensity and thoroughness, the American experience in the weeks leading up to D-Day and on the great day itself. From the build up in England to the night drops of airborne forces behind German lines and the landings on the beaches at dawn, from the famed figures of Eisenhower, Bradley, and Lightin' Joe Collins to the courageous, but little-known privates who fouhgt so bravely, and under terrifying conditions, this is the story of the American experience at D-Day. What were the battles really like for the Americans at Utah and Omaha? What drove them to fight despite all adversity? How and why did they triumph? Thanks to extensive archival research, and the use of hundreds of first hand accounts, McManus answers these questions and many more.
In The Americans at D-Day, a gripping narrative history reminiscent of Cornelius Ryan's The Longest Day, McManus takes readers into the minds of American strategists, into the hearts of the infantry, into hell on earth.
Impressively researched, engrossing, lightning quick, and filled with human sorrow and elation, The Americans at D-Day honors those Americans who lost their lives on D-Day, as well as those who were fortunate enough to survive.
About the Author
John McManus is a professor of military history at the University of Missouri who has traveled extensively in researching his books about the American experience in the Second World War.