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D-Day June 6, 1944: The Climatic Battle of World War II
 
 
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D-Day June 6, 1944: The Climatic Battle of World War II [Paperback]

Stephen E. Ambrose (Author)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (321 customer reviews)
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D-Day June 6, 1944: The Climatic Battle of World War II + Citizen Soldiers: The U. S. Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany + Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest
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  • Citizen Soldiers: The U. S. Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany by Stephen E. Ambrose$12.24

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Editorial Reviews

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 --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Ambrose's account of the D-Day fighting on the Normandy beaches and bluffs is unsurpassed for detail, emotion and suspense. Quoting liberally from the recollections of participants, he reveals how the massive cross-Channel effort stretched back two years and involved millions of people. He describes the choice of the site and date of the landings, the planning and special training, ship loading and embarkation, and finally the amphibious assault itself--that moment when "the Western democracies made their fury manifest." Ambrose, director of the Eisenhower Center at the University of New Orleans, interprets events as the narrative unfolds and much of what he has to say is bracing. He concludes, for example, that German military leadership was abysmal that day, even at the small-unit level; that Allied elite units such as Airborne, Rangers and Commandoes were superior in fighting ability to those the enemy had in the field; and that the German reliance on fixed defensive positions, the so-called Atlantic Wall, was one of the greatest blunders in history. Among the spate of books marking the 50th anniversary of D-Day, Ambrose's overview will likely stand as definitive. Photos. 100,000 first printing; BOMC and History Book Club main selections; Reader's Digest Condensed Books selection.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 656 pages
  • Publisher: Pocket Books (June 5, 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0743449746
  • ISBN-13: 978-0743449748
  • Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 1.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (321 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #168,792 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
    #36 in  Books > History > Military > World War II > Normandy

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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First Sentence:
"AT THE BEGINNING of 1944, Nazi Germany's fundamental problem was that she had conquered more territory than she could defend, but Hitler had a conqueror's mentality and he insisted on defending every inch of occupied soil." Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
infantry assault teams, assault training center, gliderborne troops, mined obstacles, debriefing conference, specialized tanks, oral historv, flail tanks, beach obstacles, equipment bundles, fixed fortifications, airborne troopers, bangalore torpedoes, antitank ditch, beach defenses, landing craft, musette bag, naval shells, opening shock, naval fire
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World War, Atlantic Wall, Easy Red, Utah Beach, Van Fleet, New York, General Eisenhower, United States, Eastern Front, Pegasus Bridge, Ranger Battalion, Red Army, Sword Beach, North Africa, Transportation Plan, Dog Green, Seventh Army, West Point, Dog White, United Kingdom, Easy Green, Eighth Air Force, French Resistance, Gold Beach, Tank Battalion
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Customer Reviews

321 Reviews
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43 of 49 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Picks up where "The Longest Day" left off, April 9, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: D-Day: June 6, 1944 -- The Climactic Battle of WWII (Hardcover)
Ambrose has truly contributed to the world's knowledge by his work. This book was my introduction to the works of Steven Ambrose, but I have since read almost all of his books still in print. Having read scores of histories of The Second World War, including Cornelius Ryan's classic account of D-Day, I can honestly say that Ambrose's "D-Day" told me quite a bit that I didn't know. And, Dr. Ambrose is a gripping writer; his books are impossible to put down. While all his works are highly readable, this book is perhaps his best to this point, though Citizen Soldiers and Band of Brothers are also outstanding.

The real significance of "D-Day" is that it tells us just how brutal the assault at Omaha really was for the men of that generation. No account prior to this has been willing to expose the slaughter of the first waves of assault troops on Omaha. D-Day also tell us the personal stories of some of the average citizen soldiers placed into the horrible crucible of combat. Many times histories focus on strategies, officers, and overall accomplishments. This book gives us a compelling view of the rank and file who did the work of winning the war. Those who survived, and those who didn't, confronted and ultimately conquered what should have been an insurmountable fixed defense; they did their duty in a way that should make us all proud and grateful. Most veterans interviewed by Dr. Ambrose were quite modest about their accomplishments, but their quiet heroics---doing that which human beings find so hard to do---literally saved the world from a terrible tyranny---make no mistake about that! This book offers a compelling account of the price that was paid by average men (our fathers, uncles, and grandfathers), for the freedom we now take for granted.

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22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A Grunt's Eye View of D-Day, November 19, 2004
By Scott Carpenter (Newport Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: D Day: June 6, 1944: The Climactic Battle of World War II (Paperback)
Ambrose used over 1400 interviews to piece together a compelling history of the D-Day invasion. The strength of this "oral history" approach is that the reader is brought into the heart of the battle through eye-witness testimony of the facts and poignant expressions of emotion from a wide range of participants in this epoch-making event. Once the battle starts, the excitement and fear of the grunts sweeps the reader up into their personal histories. The weakness of the "oral history" approach is that with so many individual data points to connect the historian is hard pressed to find synthesis for all the details. Ambrose has done history a great service by collecting these memories, and the soldier's stories make for great reading. But Ambrose often fails to describe larger unit actions in full detail or to convey a sense of larger meaning of individual actions. In fact, little is said of the English and Canadian beaches, presumably because the participants were not as available for interviews. Ambrose's treatment of historical controversies is often short on factual background, and there is little if any theoretical or analytical context for these oral histories. These are simply good stories of many individual experiences. Don't read this book for lessons on strategic decision making or to answer questions such as Rommel's degree of responibility for the German defeat or Montgomery's total failure to achieve his D-Day objectives until after the American breakout. Ambrose touches on these larger issues, but that is not his focus. This is a book about the American achievement in Normandy, and here is where Ambrose excels. The individual courage and independence of the American small unit leaders is big story of this book and one of the great stories of the ETO. In portraying these Citizen Soldiers in all of their valor and toughness, Ambrose is right on target.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book, but very unobjective., June 11, 2000
By M. Blanchard (Ann Arbor, MI. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: D Day: June 6, 1944: The Climactic Battle of World War II (Paperback)
First off let me say that this book will live on as one of the best accounts of D-Day ever put on paper, along with Six Armies in Normandy (John Keegan) and The Longest Day (Corneilus Ryan). However, what kept it from receiving 5 stars from me and what I think will always hang over this book is Ambroses views and writing style. He is unabashedly the most pro American historian I have ever read. This, I think, hurts him more than helps him. He takes an event that was a total allied effort to crack the Atlantic Wall, and turns it into almost an exclusive American outing. If I did not know better I would think that the British and Canadians played almost no part on that day except for the British Airborne at Pegasus Bridge. While the focus on the Americans is not necessarily a bad thing in itself, it becomes obvious through Ambroses statements that he feels that the British and Commonwealth troops were not really pulling their weight. This view point has got to be one of the most shameful ever take by someone who calls themselves a historian and sounds more like right wing commentary rather than a professor trying to impart history on individuals. And his almost total disregard for the Germans on that day shows that more than a little objectivity has been lost. I am a believer that once a historian loses their objectivity that they begin walking the path of rewriting history or becoming a propagandist. From the above statements you might take it that I did not enjoy this book. This is untrue. Ambrose has a gift, a gift of interviewing. He more than any other historian has the ability to get vets to talk and talk openly about the most horrible/wonderful period in their lives. This comes out in the incredible first person accounts of D-Day, and in my opinion make this book a must have for everyone. Be they a casual reader or a student. For I also believe that it is only through the eyes of a vet can we really ever understand what it was like on that cold June day. My hat is off to Ambrose in the end. He has the gift to put us in that moment of history like we were actually there, but if he would temper that with the ability to look beyond the almost entirely America only perspective we would have a novel that could be regarded as a classic.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Putting the Record Straight
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... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Al Roughley

4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting book
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. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Prospectus

4.0 out of 5 stars Details, details, details: the highs and lows of Ambrose's D-Day
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... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Brian C. Ferry

5.0 out of 5 stars Never forget
My husband volunteered in the US Infantry, 29th Division, and
landed on Omaha Beach on that terrible day. Read more
Published 5 months ago by solange r baumann

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting account of D-Day
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... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Lehigh History Student

5.0 out of 5 stars Full of Information
After watching the HBO miniseries 'Band of Brothers' I started shopping around for a good/informative book on D-Day. Typing that exact topic into amazon. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Alexander

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive review of D-Day.
Ambrose has done a massive documentation job with survivor interviews to give you a close-to-reality review of this famous event. Read more
Published 9 months ago by George Nolta

2.0 out of 5 stars Propaganda and patriotism
After 100 first pages I had to stop reading this book forever. The awesomeness and courage of US soldiers is described in a way that makes non-US reader sick. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Sengir

2.0 out of 5 stars Image over substance
With all the inaccuracies and plagiarism charges leveled at Ambrose, one has to wonder how much of this book to believe. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Calochortus

4.0 out of 5 stars Fine Overview of D Day
If you are only going to read one book about D Day then I would recommend this book. Any American can not help to be moved by the sacrifices borne by our fathers, grandfathers,... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Thomas Grover

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