Eisenhower at War 1943-1945

by David Eisenhower

Book Overview

Eisenhower: At War 1943-1945, by Eisenhower, David This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0394412370
• ISBN13: 9780394412375
• Release Date: August 1986
• Publisher: Random House (NY)
• Length: 1 Pages
• Weight: 2.35 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A Thorough Study of Ike At War

"Eisenhower at War 1943-1945" is a long, detailed and thorough study of Dwight Eisenhower's career in the Mediterranean and Europe during World War II. I like books which confront the reader with ways of viewing things not previously thought of. This book meets that test. I had always thought of Eisenhower as a commander directing armies of conquest. This book shows him, as he is often depicted, as a Chairman of the Board, a negotiator who worked to achieve a concensus among often squabbling rivals. Caught between his subordinates and politicians who were not his direct superiors, Ike often had to walk the tightrope over a chasm of dismissal and defeat. The amateur often thinks of strategy, but this book clearly shows Ike as the professional, rationing available supplies among the dream list of targets. I find that the treatment of the coordination of moves of the Western Allied with those of the Russians introduces a whole new perspective on war planning. The sections on the closing maneuvers of the war explain in great detail the competing interests and viewpoints as the wary allies jockeyed for postwar position and tested each other's resolve. Although over eight hundred pages, David Eisenhower avoids becoming so bogged down in details as to lose the reader's interest. Although writing about his grandfather, this book is not a "homer." While generally favorable, the doubts of some, such as Gen. Marshall, do find their way into the narrative. "Eisenhower At War" is a must for any student of Gen. Eisenhower or World War II.

Intricately detailed.......

With 825 pages devoted to a period of three years, David Eisenhower, the grandson of DDE, has ample space to provide an intricate look at his grandfather at war. This book is primarily focused on the preparation and execution of Normandy through to the formal capitulation of Germany. The author, presenting the rivalries between allied generals, the political machinations of Roosevelt, Churchill and the Combined Chiefs of Staff, and the seemingly unfathomable Stalin, shows the extreme patience, diplomacy, and fortitude required of the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expedition Forces, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, to win the war in Europe.Eisenhower: At War, 1943-1945, expertly dissects the relationships between allied parties while describing the utter destruction of Germany. It is thorough and frequently thrilling. Patton, Bradley, and Montgomery receive appropriate attention as does Normandy and the Ardennes offensive most commonly referred to as the Battle of the Bulge. I recommend the book highly and rate it an enthusiastic 4 stars.

Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander, President and...

grandpa. I've been meaning to read At War for some time specifically to to get David Eisenhower's perpective. It's a perpective most historians would kill for. As a kid David had the run of the White House. The familiarity he gained from comtemporaries of his grandfather-generals, aides, heads of state, friends & even other historians was invaluable. His admits this. The book look daunting at first glance, but is quite readable & I was able to stay with it for hours at a time. ha-mevaker is correct. This is a political rather than a military view of the war in Europe. Military matters are of course the backdrop for the political intrigues Ike is subjected to. The personal stories are appreciated & humanize the whole horrible war: The young private from Abeliene simply walking up to Eisenhower"s H.Q. & demanding of the guard to see Ike. He got his audience with the general as well as a signed note as proof to his buddies. The book is peppered with little stories like that. The Eisenhower-Montgomery feud is covered extensively. Surprisingly, David is more even handed & perhaps more understanding of Monty's motives than other American historians have been. By D-Day Britain was finished. She was bankrupted, & would never regain her former glory. Montgomery knew this well. The men lost could not be replaced. Yet he wanted one last moment in the sun for Great Britain, that of a spearhead into Germany & the capture of Berlin by the English ( & himself). In this plan he was over-ruled by Eisenhower, his superior, a general with no battlefield experience. He was a great patriot & it galled him that by this point the British Empire was the junior partner in the U.S./British alliance. Churchill was proponent a defeating Germany thru Italy & did not support the Normandy invasion. He experienced the carnage of World War I trench warfare feared a repeat if a frontal assault was attempted. Eisenhower greatest strength was he wasn't fighting the last war as many of the people around him were. He was fighting the war he had before him & he did it quite well.

This is a different look at the events of WW II

This is the first part of what David Eisenhower's intended political biography of his grandfather. The main thrust of the book is how Eisenhower's decisions in WW II were made, and the tensions that existed in the USA/British alliance during the war. The Anvil/Dragoon controversy is given full length because it was one of the most contended points of the allaince. The fighting of the war is distinctly in the background. It isn't clear to me how much personal analysis David Eisenhower put into the fighting aspect of the book. In a number of places it seems that he relys on the historians. Because of this, I think that it is important to keep in mind that this probably isn't an important book in terms of military history, even though it is very important in terms of understanding the political aspects of the war. Almost all the other books on WW II ignore the political aspects.