Six Armies in Normandy: From D-Day to the Liberation of Paris

By John Keegan

Book Overview

Acclaimed military historian John Keegan's investigation into World War II and the Normandy Invasion The armies of six nations met on the battlefields of Normandy in what was to be the greatest Allied... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0670647365
• ISBN13: 9780670647361
• Release Date: July 1982
• Publisher: The Viking Press
• Length: 365 Pages
• Weight: 1.77 lbs.
• Dimensions: 20.0" x 20.0" x 20.0"

Customer Reviews

The finest overall account of D-Day put on paper

This book is why I think that John Keegan is one of the greatest historians of our times. As I write this, the 56th anniversary of the landings is but two days away and we are also very close to the opening of the D-Day memorial. This book, written in Keegans wonderful narative style shows us what all of these celebrations are really for. While Keegans writing style does not use the same overly dramatic touches that Stephen Ambroses' style does, he always manages to keep you entralled in the subject that he is presenting. And the subject that he is presenting is done infinitely better than in any other contemporary novel. He not only gives us the normal tales of the Americans and British and Germans, but we also get to see the contributions of the Free Polish and French divisions that landed after the intial wave. Being an American, I am used to seeing D-Day memorials to the British, Canadian and American forces involved. We tend to forget that other countries also had a hand in the victory involved there, and Keegan shows us this magnificently. He does this in the best way possible. He has devoted an entire chapter to each country, which gives us a chance to see each countries story presented uninterrupted and in my opinion paces the book wonderfully. This book is a must read for anybody who really wants a good, unbiased look at one of the pivotal moments in the worlds history. Highly recommended.

Awesome and encyclopaedic.

I would scarcely have believed that a detailed account of a single campaign could be so moving and so detailed simultaneously. His account of his wartime childhood in the West Counties is heartbreakingly poignant, and at the same time keenly insightful; this first chapter is among the most evocative and beautiful personal accounts of the war which I've ever read.His analytical method (I hesitate to call it a 'device' because it is not the least bit artificial or awkward) compares the national historical character of each combatant nation with the decisive phase of the campaign in which each struggled. He compares the dashing (and desperate) courage of American paratroopers compares to the savage, sacrificial bravery of the Free Polish tank corps, in a way that no historian I've read has done before.Mr. Keegan is a writer and historian of the first rank. Each of his many books is among my all-time favorite works of non-fiction; my only regret is that his erudite, rigorously scholarly output cannot possibly meet my voracious demand! Keegan's contribution to the field of history (the weight, variety, and evenly superb quality of his work) makes one compare him inevitably to Sir Kenneth Clarke. Perhaps those in charge of making Britons into 'Sirs' will take notice of this fact and reward him accordingly.Three cheers for Sir John!

A fine account of the battle

I usually stick to war novels like "The Triumph and the Glory" because fiction is such a powerful medium for portraying the harsh reality of war. But I always read John Keegan because he is John Keegan, the master military historian of our age. Six Armies in Normandy is his best book, I hope you read it.