good, short Normandy/WWII reading

Cary,

One of the best and most complete books I've ever read about the Normandy landings is D-Day: The Battle For Normandy by Antony Beevor. I felt it was very well researched and provided a lot of background information that I haven't previously seen.

While it's definitely "good", it's NOT "short".

Cheers!

Cary, I have not read that book and may look for it. I have read Ambose's "D-Day" which is a good book to read before going over to visit the beaches. Also, "Citizen soldiers" by Ambrose and "The Victors" which gives a good account of D-Day. "The Supreme Commander" by him about Dwight D. Eisnehower is another one I enjoyed. Not a short book either. I will have to get the one Ken mentioned too. Another book that I enjoyed is "The Simple Sounds of Freedom" by Thomas H. Taylor, son of General Maxwell Taylor. "The Simple Sounds of Freedom" was the original title but the name of the book was changed to "Behind Hitler's Lines" in subsequent releases. It is the true story of 101st paratrooper, Joseph Beyrle who was the first American paratrooper to land in Normandy and the only soldier to fight for both the United States and the Soviet Union against Germany. The book deals about D-Day and beyond D-Day as he is captured and escaped several times. I had the honor of meeting Beyrle in Toccoa, GA a few years ago when he was signing this book. He has since died. Oliver North did a piece on Beyrle on his "War Stories" series a few years ago.

I recommend the book written by David Webster, one of the soldiers featured in BOB. The book is called, Parachute Infantry: An American Paratrooper's Memoir of D-Day and the Fall of the Third Reich.

Webster, who went on to become a professional writer, died at sea in the early 60s. His book was written decades before Stephen Ambrose started writing about Easy Company. It is a very gritty view of the war and gives great insight into what was happening in the mind of one soldier.

If you liked BOB, you will like this book.

I have read several books on the subject and would concur that Beevor's book is exceptionally written and while it isn't a quick read, it is very interesting and historically accurate.

It's confirmed: we're all WWII junkies! Part One of Ambrose's book Ike's Spies deals w/ the war years. My husband is re-reading Omaha Beach: D-Day, June 6, 1944 by Joseph Balkoski. Although it's not set in Normandy, Wine and War:The French, the Nazis, and the battle for France's Greatest Treasure by Donald & Petie Kladstrup is an interesting look at the ingenious ways the French protected their vintages and their vines. An oldie, Is Paris Burning? by Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre was written in the early 1960s when the authors were able to interview many, both French and German, who were in Paris during the final days days before it was liberated. Alan Furst has several novels set in late 1930s/early 1940s Paris.

Here are some more good, short Normandy/WWII readings. "The Bedford Boys" by Alex Kershaw about "A" Co., 29th Inf., 116th Regt. a Virginia National Guard unit that lost 19 "Bedford Boys" at Dog Green. Also "Honor Untarnished" the memoirs of Lt. Gen. Donald Bennett written with William Forstchen. At Normandy Bennett was the commander of a hybrid tank battalion that landed with the second wave at Fox Green. His description of that landing is intense. And then theres "Currahee! A Screaming Eagle at Normandy" by Donald R Burgett who landed in Normandy with the 506th PIR.

I am heavily into reading about WWII in France (and have done lots of research and written papers on the topic), and if you speak French, there is tons of good literature out there:

-W ou le souvenir d'enfance by Georges Perec

-Auschwitz et Après: Aucun de nous ne reviendra by Charlotte Delbo

-Rue orderner, rue labat by Sarah Kofman

-La place de l'étoile by Patrick Modiano

-La douleur by Marguerite Duras

Those are a few of the "classics". I believe they all have translations in English if you don't read French; I know the Perec book is supposedly a good translation, but not really sure since I do not read them in translation.

Bonne lecture!

Erica

Can anyone recommend something for my 16 and 18 year old girls to see/read that will prepare them for a visit to the Normandy beaches? I want them to understand what it meant to world what happened on the beaches.

Battlebus Tours has a link for recommended D-Day reading at the following link:

http://www.battlebus.fr/Books.html

Cornelius' Ryan's "The Longest Day" is the classic short study of D-Day, still very readable, fascinating. As has been pointed out already, Stephen Ambrose's "D-Day," while longer, is outstanding. PBS has a documentary called "D-Day," as well. Very well done.

If they haven't seen "Saving Private Ryan" it is a quick way to give a visual impression of some of the elements of D-Day. The first 20 mins of that movie, while extremely graphic, is also intense and memorable.

I found it hard to stand on Omaha beach and not think about "Saving Private Ryan." It is an increadible contrast to the serene setting it is now.