The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 (The Liberation Trilogy)

The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 (The Liberation Trilogy) | Rick Atkinson | Awesome Book

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The Day of Battle:...

	The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 (The Liberation Trilogy) Rick Atkinson Henry Holt and Co., 2007 - 791 pages average customer review:based on 85 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The Day of Battle - The War in Sicily and Italy 1943 - 1944

Unlike some writers who think history has to be written in a stultifying, boring style and convoluted language to make it academically acceptable, Rick Atkinson's hard-hitting and clear writing, based on meticulous research of the conduct of the war in
Sicily and Italy, and the problems that operations there encountered, have produced a page turner for anyone interested in military history. Although much has been written on the Mediterranean campaign, Atkinson's book provides a comprehensive narrative of that conflict that stands on its own. Atkinson's analysis of the allied leadership is superb. His description of General Patton and his relationship with General Montgomery, the British commander, offers a welcome relief from the overblown way that this - undoubtedly gifted general - is depicted in the film "Patton." The problems in the Sicilian/Italian campaign were not confined to the lack of clear objectives and inter-allied differences, but extended to the battle itself. The successful conquest of Sicily was marred by a disastrous supporting airborne operation, and it was a serious mistake to allow the two German divisions defending the island to escape across the Straits of Medina. In Italy itself, the mountainous terrain, the atrocious climate, and the tenacious and skillful defense by the Germans, including the two divisions from Sicily, resulted in a largely unexpected and grim challenge to the Allies that took a long time and a steep learning curve to overcome. Atkinson is particularly skillful in describing the fighting, bringing to the reader a vivid picture of the enormous sacrifices the soldiers were called on to make, fighting under extreme weather conditions, massive enemy fire, and in terrain for which they lacked adequate training. The casualty rates were commensurately high. Atkinson also spends some time discussing the Anzio operation. General Lucas, the US VI Corps commander, was blamed for its sluggish progress; he was in fact relieved of command. However, Atkinson shows that while General Lucas was far from being an inspiring commander, the main reasons for the problems must be found elsewhere. They rested, first of all, in the lack of sufficient forces, and second, in the ambiguity of the orders that were received by General Lucas. A major contibutor to the failure to interdict the German lines of communications was General Clark himself, the US 5th Army commander. His overriding ambition was to be the first to enter Rome, contrary to the Theater Commander's intention to destroy the German forces in the area. The book ends with the liberation of Rome, following which the campaign in Italy ground to a halt. Atkinson refrains from a final judgment as to the overall value of the Sicilian/Italian conflict, but the reader is left with the impression that the campaign, despite tremendous human sacrifice and material loss, achieved little in support of the main effort in Western Europe. Atkinson's book makes a valuable contribution to the history of World War II. It is well written, interesting, and easily worth five stars. It makes you look forward to his next book.

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Awesome Book

This is most defintive book I have ever read about WWII. Insightful and informational without the normal tediousness of other books on the subject. Hard to put down.

Well-researched, well-written account of important history

This is the second book in the trilogy about the liberation of Europe. Atkinson also wrote Army at Dawn, which covered North Africa, and was the 2003 Pulitzer Prize winner, as well as The Long Grey Line, In the Company of Soldiers, and Crusade.

Atkinson did his homework as this account is well-written--and well researched, but we have come to expect that from him. If you are a WWI collector or have a family connection, you will learn the strength and valor of these men--many very, very young. Some say that to understand today, you must understand yesterday, and this especially relates to how America's role in this war affected life as we know it.

My husband can't wait to read this book as he has become a collector of WWII memorabilia and books on that war. His father was in the 1253 Combat Engineer Battalion. Like so many men of that era, his father didn't talk about it, so he is learning from reading about others.

This is an 816-page book, however the last 200 plus pages are extensive notes and references.

Step by step we go along with the U.S. and British soldiers as they first invade Sicily in July 1943--and then attack Italy two months later. President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill were not sure this invasion was the right thing, but once it started, both countries were committed, determined and proficient.

Rome was liberated in June 1944 and the Allies drove the Nazis northward. From the landing on, so many things went wrong on the shore, inland and in the mountains. The Italian campaign was mostly fought in the mountains, not exactly conducive to using large tanks, and was complicated by many poor strategic decisions--and made me wonder we overcame the Germans who were incredible adversaries

There are so many stories from that WWII. A friend, Avis Shore, who wrote Hell's Half Acre, about her experiences as one of the first Army nurses to land at Anzio, stayed there during German's horrible nighttime bombing of her hospital (hospital are not supposed to be bombed).

We have to wonder, because this is so very long ago--and seems to have no relevance to today's students--how much is taught in school. Do they understand the efforts of their relatives and countrymen over 60 years ago?

Armchair Interviews says: Important history brought to life.

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An Historical Tour de Force

This detailed, superbly written, meticulously documented account of the aftermath of the victory in North Africa is invaluable. We can clearly see the shift from a British effort to an Allied effort dominated by the Americans, with all the consequences..intended and unintended... spelled out. A magnificent contribution to the literature.

Deserves Another Pulitzer Prize!

This is an exceptinally written and researched book. It is even more deserving of a Pulitzer than his "An Army at Dawn". His rich and detailed descriptions of the battle scenes in Sicily and in Italy constitute masterful writing at its best. The depicted realism and inherent saddness of the Italian campaign is both haunting and overpowering. He has set an extraordinarily high standard for the third part of his trilogy dealing with the war in Western Europe.
Thomas.E. Davis

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