Customer Reviews

The All Americans in World War II: A Photographic History of the 82nd Airborne Division at War

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Phil Nordyke's latest work THE ALL AMERICANS IN WORLD WAR TWO is truly a magnificent work of eye-poping photo journalism worthy of it's juggernaut narrative companion volume ALL AMERICAN ALL THE WAY!

Having been a student of the 82nd Airborne Division and the 505th Parachute Infantry Regimant in particular all my adult life I was truly surprised to see so many photographs for the very first time! While any photographic record would include many familiar pictures Nordyke's gift for narrative and crips prose bypasses the routine, sets the stage and clarifies what the reader is seeing thus providing a compelling vision of what the World War Two ALL AMERICANS experienced themselves in the greatest conflict ever known to man.

Drawing on exhaustive research and hundreds of first hand accounts gives the author's text a crisp immediacy and authority as equally compelling as the photographs are visually stunning.

More than a companion volume the book stands alone as a worthy visual testament to the bravery, sacrifice and honor of the ALL AMERICAN DIVISION. I am personally grateful for this work and when open it up I am sure you will be too.

ALL THE WAY!!

I am both pleased and impressed with this latest work by Mr. Nordyke. This book is an outstanding visual supplement to the history ALL AMERICAN ALL THE WAY which came out last year.

A year ago I arranged to visit the 82nd Airborne Division War History Museum to examine their photographic archives. Now I have copies of many of the same photographs in the convenient format of this book. In addition, this work contains many other photographs which are new to me. It has given a clear historic visual representation of the All-American 82nd Airborne Division in WWII.

I have been a great enthusiast of photographic histories, and this one passes my inspection with highest honors.

The photos and accompanying text are excellent. A condensed version of Nordke`s earlier work on the 82nd, but with a much larger format.

This is an excellent book, loads of wonderful pictures and descriptions of events. Highly recommended for anyone with a passion for WW II ETA history or airborne history.

This is an excellent photographic tribute to the men of the 82nd Airborne Division who suffered and sacrificed so much during World War II.

The book is an excellent companion piece to the author's combat history of the "All American" division. Both books have the same chapter headings and can be read simultaneously, although the photographic history is quite skimpy on text (the introduction to each of the 36 chapters being one page).

The book also includes over two dozen detailed maps that help you follow the progress of this proud division from its training in the U.S. and elsewhere to its landings and operations in Sicily (Operation Husky), Italy (e.g., Salerno and Anzio), and Normany (e.g., Operation Neptune Ste. Mere-Eglise), not to mention its involvement in Operation Market Garden in Holland, the Battle of the Bulge (Operation WACHT AM RHEIN), the occupation of Berlin, and the victory parade back home.

The book is a valuable asset not only as an adjunct to the author's combat history of the 82nd Division but also on its own as a fascinating photographic study of U.S. airborne operations in World War II.

Phil Nordyke's a foremost expert in 82 Airborne history. He has based his information form historical text but has obtained most of the hard core history form the WW 2 veterans of the 82nd Airborne themselves. I have meet Phil at the Reading Air Show he has introduced me to many 82nd AB veterans. I have all his books signed by him and several veterans. Phil is a dedicated historian and is an expert on 505th history.

This is a great book showing RARE photos that are not in the average books and on the web. I would highly recommend this as well as all his books:

"Airborne All the Way"!!!

JERSEYCITYJOHN

"The All American's in World War II: a Photographic History of the 82nd Airborne Division at War" is a masterful complement to Nordyke's two volume combat history of the 82d Airborne Division in World War II. Where his previous volumes provide the reader with the detailed descriptions of the combat action, this book provides readers with numerous black and white photographs.

The book is organized into major combat actions, such as the jumps into Sicily or Normandy. Each chapter begins with a summary of the action, and an expertly produced chart showing the locations of allied and axis units for the major combat actions. The reader then enjoys pages of period photographs of the action.

This book is an invaluable adjunct to his previous works, or a great stand-alone book for the reader wanting to learn more about the All American Division in World War II.

This is a very good pictorial history of the 82nd Airborne. Obviously anyone who reads World War ll history knows
of this unit and it's battles but I came away feeling that many of their accomplishments went unnoticed
especially earlier in the war. If you have recently traveled through Normandy or the Battle of the Bulge areas
you see alot about the 101st and to a lesser degree the 82nd. The Band of Brothers series probably had something
to do with this. My opinion.

"The All Americans in World War II: a Photographic History of the 82nd Airborne Division at War" by Phil Nordyke delivers what the book's title promises, a photographic history of the 82nd Airborne Division at war. The book is filled with numerous black and white photographs. The photographs are excellent and many that have never before been published.

The book is organized into 36 chapters. The chapters chronicle the 82nd Airborne Division's from the division's reactivation in February 1942 to the return to the USA in January 1946. The chapters begin with a one-page summary of that stage of the 82nd's action. A skillfully produced map showing the locations of allied follows the chapter summary. It contains locations of allied and axis units visually showing their actions that are covered in the chapter. Next, the reader feasts with pages of period photographs of the action. There are 30 detailed maps and 365 photographs.

This book is a very useful addition to or a great stand-alone volume for the reader wanting to learn more about the All American Division in World War II. It really is spectacular. It would be an excellent addition to any military historian's library of college and community library.

I am a former US Army officer who graduated from airborne school in class 36-76. I found myself reading the book in one sitting. My father is a World War II veteran who served in the European Theater of Operations. He also could not put the book down until he had read it from cover to cover.

This is a coffee table book about 10 ½ by 10 ½ inches in size and includes a colorful dust jacket.

It contains a wealth of vintage black and white photographs on high quality glossy paper that chronicle the history of the division (The All Americans) from its inception and training through the end of World War II.

The book is organized into thirty-six chapters, each one preceded by a brief description of what follows. It is comprised mostly of fabulous photographs and maps covering the training, assignments and battles conducted by the division. The maps are large and of excellent quality. Every one of the hundreds of photographs is captioned and all combine to provide an intense visualization of the time period.

This book is a visual feast interspersed with insightful commentary and explanations of the various campaigns and the life of a World War II paratrooper. At nearly 200 pages, it is fully indexed and concludes with a stirring collection of photographs of the "New York Victory Parade" in January of 1946. This scene is described in the final chapters of my historical novel.

If a picture is worth a thousand words then this book explains everything there is to know about the 82nd Airborne Division and is an essential visual supplement to Nordyke's other two narrative works, All American All The Way and Four Stars of Valor.

John E. Nevola
Author of The Last Jump - A Novel of World War II