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 | Great Job

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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 - 816 pages average customer review:based on 82 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

In the second volume of his epic trilogy about the liberation of Europe in World War II, Pulitzer Prize winner Rick Atkinson tells the harrowing story of the campaigns in Sicily and Italy In An Army at Dawn?winner of the Pulitzer Prize?Rick Atkinson provided a dramatic and authoritative history of the Allied triumph in North Africa. Now, in The Day of Battle, he follows the strengthening American and British armies as they invade Sicily in July 1943 and then, mile by bloody mile, fight their way north toward Rome.
The Italian campaign?s outcome was never certain; in fact, Roosevelt, Churchill, and their military advisers engaged in heated debate about whether an invasion of the so-called soft underbelly of Europe was even a good idea. But once under way, the commitment to liberate Italy from the Nazis never wavered, despite the agonizingly high price. The battles at Salerno, Anzio, and Monte Cassino were particularly difficult and lethal, yet as the months passed, the Allied forces continued to drive the Germans up the Italian peninsula. Led by Lieutenant General Mark Clark, one of the war?s most complex and controversial commanders, American officers and soldiers became increasingly determined and proficient. And with the liberation of Rome in June 1944, ultimate victory at last began to seem inevitable.
Drawing on a wide array of primary source material, written with great drama and flair, this is narrative history of the first rank. With The Day of Battle, Atkinson has once again given us the definitive account of one of history?s most compelling military campaigns.

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Best d**** war history ever

The depth of anecdotes, the overview of strategy, the on the scene feelings of battle make this book one of, if not the, best books I have read of WW11.

Great Job

Another wow from Rick Atkinson. Loved this book as much as an Army at Dawn. Can hardly wait for #3 in the liberation trilogy.

Another Winner

Rick has followed the first volume of his WWII trilogy with another winner. The first book "An Army at Dawn" captures the amatuer performance of a great Army learning to fight. This book captures the beginning of the Army's maturity as a fighting force and the growth of it's leadership.The tragic Airborne operation is painful to read. The unending battle of egos between Patton and Mongomery is tragic. Rick captures the story of the Sicily and Italian campaign with the great skill.

Well worth any WWII History Buffs time.

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Focus on Sicily and Italian Campaign in WWII

This book focus' on Sicily and the Italian campaign in World War II. However, in my opinion, it is not as good as the first book, Army at Dawn. Some examples of why are the following. (1) The author must have used the phrase "Marcus Aurelius Clarkus" six times at least to describe General Mark Clark. This sort of repetitiveness gets annoying. (2) In the first book, the focus was on the US Army. This time that isn't the focus of the book. The book shares what the New Zealanders did, what the Poles did, what the French did, what the English did and what the Canadians did. Now, to some level that makes sense, since all of these forces fought at Monte Cassino. But when the book moved to the other side of the peninsula to focus on a Canadian action. Consequently, I found myself unclear on what the focus was. (3) There was less of the soldiers experiences this time and more of the general's experiences. I was hoping for a book that shared the perspective of the GI, but didn't get it as much this time. In spite of these comments, this is a good book, on a theater that hasn't been written about adequately.

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