Customer Reviews

D-Day (Turning Points in History)

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I found this book to be a fast and excellent read. Where Ambrose's DDAY is a minute by minute tactical read of this moment in history, Gilbert focuses on the overall strategy and illuminates key points during the invasion. Gilbert also introduces a novel concept to American readers, Montgomery as an outstanding leader, loved by his men, and not just the prima donna other books and movies have made him out to be. Gilbert also makes a solid effort to accurately account not just for the lives lost by the Allied troops but also by French civilians prior to, during, and after the invasion. This is a well written account of DDay and worth the time to read.

This is a good overview from the British perspective of the Normandy Invasion. Gilbert points out that Churchill prepared the way for a return to France after the defeat in France. He did this by fostering the French Resistance, making guerrilla raids on the coast, and letting the captive population know the real news. When the Americans did enter the war, the British led the way in leadership on the invasion. Gilbert insists that it was not Churchill who was a critic of the French option rather than the soft under belly of Europe.

Gilbert does a good job of portraying the strategy of the invasion, rather than of the actual fighting. The actual invasion is covered in only three of the ten chapters. The rest details the preparation and the end result. As Gilbert reminds us, if the invasion had failed, the population of Europe might have led very different lives. A good read.

I loved this intriguing book about D-Day by Sir Martin Gilbert. My father was an American GI who landed at Utah Beach in Normandy. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in World War II. The maps are terrific! I was able to get permission to use one of Sir Martin Gilbert's maps from this book in my book, We Never Lost Hope, A Holocaust Memoir and Love Story, which helped support the authenticity of my family's story.