Overview

In September 1944, the Allies believed that Hitler's army was beaten, and expected that the war would be over by Christmas. But the disastrous Allied airborne landing in Holland, American setbacks on the German border and in the Hürtgen Forest, together with the Battle of the Bulge, drastically altered that timetable. Hastings tells the story of both the Eastern and Western Fronts, and paints a vivid portrait of the Red Army's onslaught on Hitler's empire. He has searched the archives of the major combatants and interviewed 170 survivors to give us an unprecedented understanding of how the great battles were fought, and of their human impact on soldiers and civilians. Hastings raises provocative questions: Were the Western Allied cause and campaign compromised by a desire to get the Soviets to do most of the fighting? Why were the Russians and Germans more effective soldiers than the Americans and British? Why did the bombing of Germany's cities continue until the last weeks of the war, when it could no longer influence the outcome? Why did the Germans prove more fanatical foes than the Japanese, fighting to the bitter end? This book also contains vivid portraits of Stalin, Churchill, Eisenhower, Montgomery, and the other giants of the struggle. The crucial final months of the twentieth century's greatest global conflict come alive in this rousing chronicle.

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9798228935389

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Reviews

""Hastings writes with authority, as well as humanity, about the realities of combat--the fear, smells, hunger, humiliation, and the horrendous wounds inflicted...Every leader contemplating a military operation, for whatever reason, should read this book and take several deep breaths."" -- ""Wall Street Journal"" ""Magisterial...Hastings's gripping narrative blends individual accounts, sweeping reconstructions of battles. and devastating criticisms of military and political leaders."" -- ""Washington Post Book World"" ""Splendid...A book anyone with an interest in modern warfare will want to read."" -- ""New York Times Book Review"" ""The last eight months of World War II were the war's worst...In this tough, controversial, and uncompromising history, Hastings tells the story of the advance on Germany from the east and the west. He pulls no punches and presents a picture of war at its most vicious and cruel."" -- ""Foreign Affairs""

Author Information

Max Hastings is the author of more than twenty books. He has received numerous British Press awards, including Journalist of the Year in 1982 and Editor of the Year in 1988. Paul Woodson has won SOVAS and AudioFile Earphones Awards, and has recorded close to 350 audiobooks in many different genres-including romance, fiction, history, biography, and mystery-and received his BFA in acting from Boston University. In his theater days, he worked in many NYC shows, toured the USA and Europe, and played the title role as Vincent van Gogh in the sung-through, OOBR Award-winning musical Vincent. He enjoys backpacking the Appalachian Trail and visiting National Parks in his spare time. He is a member of SAG-AFTRA.

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