Bitter Victory

by Carlo D'Este

Book Overview

Bitter Victory illuminates a chapter of World War II that has lacked a balanced, full-scale treatment until now. In recounting the second-largest amphibious operation in military history, Carlo D'Este... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0525244719
• ISBN13: 9780525244714
• Release Date: September 1988
• Publisher: Dutton Books
• Length: 666 Pages
• Weight: 2.35 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Bitter Victory: The Battle for Sicily, 1943

I am very pleased with this purchase. I ordered this book after reading Decision in Normandy by the same author. Bitter Victory was advertised as new and it was. It came quickly. I am 100% pleased with this purchase. Fred Strong

A frustrating Account

I've always enjoyed Carlo's books. They are always intensely researched and well written. However, sometimes his inaccurate conclusions drive me up a wall. For example, in one paragraph, he states that Monty really wasn't a vain glorious, power hungry commander, but rather he just wanted to do things right. Then in the very next paragraph, Carlos writes about how Monty tried to replace Alexander with himself and then have Patton placed under his direct command. This type of contradictory writing is common among historians. But instead of calling a spade a spade, Carlo tends to spend way too much time attempting to justify an individuals actions, when they are all too apparently self-serving. And finally, after studying WWII myself for the last 30 years, I believe that Carlos gives way too much credit to the British.

A Complete and Authoritative Account of the Sicily Campaign

"Bitter Victory" is an exhaustive and brilliant telling of not only the Sicily invasion but of one of the most discordant times between the US-British alliance. The author will describe the battle for Sicily in great detail but will also cover the friction between Patton and Montgomery and the upper echelons of British and American Commands. The author also shows this mistrust and wrangling will be part of the Italy landings as well as the Normandy landings. To get a better understanding of the invasion of Sicily, the author starts in North Africa and the Torch landings where the mistrust and animosity began. The early days of 2nd Corps under General Fredendall were not auspicious; Alexander and Montgomery looked down on the Americans from the very beginning and their attitudes wouldn't change throughout the war despite the fact that once competent commanders took over and with a little experience, the American soldier became as good a soldier as any Brit. They both tried to undercut, and subordinate American involvement in Tunisia and later in Sicily. The planning for Sicily was simply terrible, uncoordinated and lacking confidence. Once the airborne / amphibious landing took place in the south, Montgomery almost immediately changed the battle plan, excluding the Americans from their part in the plan. It was a terrible mistake on Montgomery's part for several reasons. First, the German resistance was stronger than Montgomery figured and second, he underestimated Patton for Patton went ahead on his own and captured the majority of the island and beat Montgomery to Messina. The plan for the ground assault was faulty and insufficent air power was not called in as well allowing most of the Axis garrison to leave through Messina and reach Italy where the Allies would have a much tougher time defeating them. The author has written the definitive account of this campaign; I would highly recommend this book to anybody interested in the campaign or the early relationship of the Allies. The author's books on the Anzio landings and on Normandy are also comparable accomplishments

An Outstanding Work

I strongly agree that it is unfortunate this title is out of print. This is the book that turned me on to D'Este's writing. He has an excellent knack for enlivening his very detailed but smooth reading narrative with colorful anecdotes not often seen elsewhere. His account of the fighting around Primosole Bridge (darkly foreshadowing Montgomery's later, very similar failure during Operation Market Garden) is particularly good. There is a lack of coverage of the air and naval war around Sicily, and how operations on the Eastern Front (where the Battle of Kursk was raging) affected the German conduct of the battle, if at all. However, these are very minor criticisms, and I view this book as a classic.

Very good military history of the Sicily campaign

Bitter Victory is an excellent portrayal of the Sicily campaign of WWII. It shows the battle as both the great victory it was, and as a series of mistakes and missed opportunities. The campaign as a predecessor for D-Day is presented also. I would have liked to have seen more names of officers and more information about specific units. The author is capable of being very technical, but for the most part stays away from military technical jargon. This is not a teaching treatise for West Point; nor is it fluff for an ABC mini-series. Overall, I recommend this book to those interested in the second World War. It is very unfortunate it is out of print.