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Normandy: A Graphic History of D-Day, The Allied Invasion of Hitler's Fortress Europe
Normandy depicts the planning and execution of Operation Overlord in 96 full-color pages. The initial paratrooper assault is shown, as well as the storming of the five D-Day Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword. But the story does not end there. Once the Allies got ashore, they had to stay ashore. The Germans made every effort to push them back into the sea. This book depicts the such key events in the Allied liberation of Europe 1. Construction of the Mulberry Harbors, two giant artificial harbors built in England and floated across the English Channel so that troops, vehicles, and supplies could be offloaded across the invasion beaches.2. The Capture of Cherbourg, the nearest French port, against a labyrinth of Gennan pillboxes.3. The American fight through the heavy bocage (hedgerow country) to take the vital town of Saint-Lô.4. The British-Canadian struggle for the city of Caen against the “Hitler Youth Division,” made up of 23,000 seventeen- and eighteen-year-old Nazi fanatics.5. The breakout of General Patton’s Third Army and the desperate US 30th Division’s defense of Mortaine.6. The Falaise Pocket, known as the “Killing Ground, ” where the remnants of two German armies were trapped and bombed and shelled into submission. The slaughter was so great that 5,000 Germans were buried in one mass grave. 7. The Liberation of Paris, led by the 2nd Free French Armored Division, which had been fighting for four long years with this goal in mind.
104 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
68 people are currently reading
469 people want to read
About the author
Wayne Vansant
110 books39 followers I was born and raised near Atlanta, GA, and served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War. I graduated from the Atlanta College of Art in 1975 and have had many jobs, including being a salesman, security guard, milk delivery man, and the Director of Security for a large art museum.
I began my writing and illustration career in 1986 with Marvel Comics' "Savage Tales" and "The 'Nam." Since then I have written and/or illustrated many books and comics on historical/military subjects such as Battle Group Peiper, Days of Darkness, Antietam: The Fiery Trial (commissioned by the National Park Service), Blockade: The Civil War at Sea, The War in Korea, The Hammer and the Anvil (profiling Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass), Normandy (profiling D-Day and the entire Normandy Campaign), Gettysburg (profiling the Battle of Gettysburg), and many others.
I am currently working on graphic histories of the Battle of the Bulge, Manfred von Richthofen, aka the Red Baron, and and am finishing up my Russian Front trilogy entitled Katusha: Girl Soldier of the Patriotic War, which is currently available as an eBook on Comics Plus, a leading comics book app.
I began my writing and illustration career in 1986 with Marvel Comics' "Savage Tales" and "The 'Nam." Since then I have written and/or illustrated many books and comics on historical/military subjects such as Battle Group Peiper, Days of Darkness, Antietam: The Fiery Trial (commissioned by the National Park Service), Blockade: The Civil War at Sea, The War in Korea, The Hammer and the Anvil (profiling Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass), Normandy (profiling D-Day and the entire Normandy Campaign), Gettysburg (profiling the Battle of Gettysburg), and many others.
I am currently working on graphic histories of the Battle of the Bulge, Manfred von Richthofen, aka the Red Baron, and and am finishing up my Russian Front trilogy entitled Katusha: Girl Soldier of the Patriotic War, which is currently available as an eBook on Comics Plus, a leading comics book app.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
January 28, 2022
Less a graphic novel, and more an illustrated storybook for adults. The author is a great storyteller, made you feel you were in the thick of the action, as D-Day unfolded.
June 19, 2014
This was the best graphic novel that Comixology gave away during their 20-day summer giveaway. Not only was it 100 pages for free, it was a good read.
The writer and artist, Wayne Vansant really took time to research this book. I could tell because it corresponded with what I've read in other World War II books. I guess one reason this book scored high marks from me was because I'm really into World War II material.
Still, read this book if you're into history, especially about World War II.
The writer and artist, Wayne Vansant really took time to research this book. I could tell because it corresponded with what I've read in other World War II books. I guess one reason this book scored high marks from me was because I'm really into World War II material.
Still, read this book if you're into history, especially about World War II.
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January 12, 2018I read Normandy A Graphic History of D-Day, by Wayne Vansant. I really liked this book because history, especially American history, interests me a lot. The book follows the allied soldiers before, while and after they storm the beaches of Normandy. The book doesn’t have any dialogue, it is all narrated. It is quite wordy, as it explains what is going on in certain points during the war and also gives previous information so that the reader can understand better. The art in this book does use color and is very graphic. No part to me stood out as too graphic but there is blood. This book could be used as a resource to a student learning about World War Two and D-Day. I think that in a way it almost has more to offer than a textbook because the graphics give a deeper understanding of what was going on at each time. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys history.
February 28, 2025
The tour through WWII graphic novels continues with my 8yo. I’ve always been drawn to D-Day and Normandy — and this book helped shed new light for us on the military strategy and tactics behind the famous invasion.
April 23, 2025
This is the fourth one of Vansant’s graphic novel histories that I have read. As with the others, this would be a good gift for a younger reader who reader who is interested in history. The only reason that I give it three instead of four stars is that there is no bibliography.
June 19, 2014
This was free on Comixology recently and I thought it sounded like it was worth a read. It tells the story from the D-Day landing to liberation of Paris in a graphic format. It is not really what I would class as a graphic novel but it is more that than a normal book. Whilst the illustrations are good they serve as little more than something to catch the eye and give out no real information. Everything good here comes from the text.
Whilst I knew a little about D-Day I knew virtually nothing about what happened afterwards so I did find this book quite interesting. It does a decent job at telling the events and I liked the way it managed to focus on lots of individuals and small groups, sharing the small victories which were part of the big one.
However, the historian in me couldn't help but leap to the surface whilst I was reading this. For one thing is it felt a little biased towards the American side of things. The British forces were discussed a little and the German side of the story was rarely mentioned. I think it is important to remember that the German's on the front line doing the fighting were just normal soldiers fighting for their country and were just like most of the Brits and Americans fighting.
I also was disappointed that there is virtually no verification of facts here. The graphic format allows for individuals to be a quoted in speech marks really well and it wasn't used at all here. There were maybe two or three short contemporary quotes in the whole thing and I didn't feel it was enough. Although my limited knowledge verifies things a little, I have no other evidence that what the author wrote and drew here is accurate.
This is perhaps a good read for something who wants to know a bit more about the allied invasion but for anyone who wants detail and contemporary evidence this is not the place to come.
Whilst I knew a little about D-Day I knew virtually nothing about what happened afterwards so I did find this book quite interesting. It does a decent job at telling the events and I liked the way it managed to focus on lots of individuals and small groups, sharing the small victories which were part of the big one.
However, the historian in me couldn't help but leap to the surface whilst I was reading this. For one thing is it felt a little biased towards the American side of things. The British forces were discussed a little and the German side of the story was rarely mentioned. I think it is important to remember that the German's on the front line doing the fighting were just normal soldiers fighting for their country and were just like most of the Brits and Americans fighting.
I also was disappointed that there is virtually no verification of facts here. The graphic format allows for individuals to be a quoted in speech marks really well and it wasn't used at all here. There were maybe two or three short contemporary quotes in the whole thing and I didn't feel it was enough. Although my limited knowledge verifies things a little, I have no other evidence that what the author wrote and drew here is accurate.
This is perhaps a good read for something who wants to know a bit more about the allied invasion but for anyone who wants detail and contemporary evidence this is not the place to come.
February 4, 2013
This was the first nonfiction "graphic novel" I've read and I enjoyed it a great deal. I think the history is good and well written. The graphics are also excellent and entertaining. There are a small number of criticisms, like on page 75 the author states that we "had our tank aces too" and mentions Sgt Lafayette Pool of the 3rd Armored Division, but doesn't say what made him a "tank ace." At the same time, however, the book actually mentioned some things I did not know about the Normandy Campaign, like on page 59 where Vansant tells us that Sgt Curtis Culin of the 79th Infantry Division invented the "Hedgerow Cutter" that mounted on armored vehicles to help them bust through hedgerows.
I enjoyed the book, no doubt, but I still like to get my history from a traditional book or documentary. However, I wonder, and hope, that this kind of history book would engage anyone, not just the young. And anything that gets more people tuned in to history is more than okay with me.
I enjoyed the book, no doubt, but I still like to get my history from a traditional book or documentary. However, I wonder, and hope, that this kind of history book would engage anyone, not just the young. And anything that gets more people tuned in to history is more than okay with me.
June 18, 2014
Free comic!
Except it's not a comic. It's certainly not a graphic novel. Instead it's a very dry and not very remarkable account of a very well-known story.
Then, once the text is arranged on each page in very plain and boring block, very plain illustrations are added. These illustrations are usually one of three distinct types:
1. wide view of action
2. closeup of soldier's head with action in the background
3. closeup of soldier's head with no action in the background (featuring likeness of actual historical character)
To be honest, I really didn't like the style of art at all. There's no variation to the colour scheme or line weight or tone or anything.
At every point the language, art and layout of the pages distanced me, as a reader, from the action and the story. It's an amazing story, so I find it quite amazing how bland and detached the author managed to make it.
Except it's not a comic. It's certainly not a graphic novel. Instead it's a very dry and not very remarkable account of a very well-known story.
Then, once the text is arranged on each page in very plain and boring block, very plain illustrations are added. These illustrations are usually one of three distinct types:
1. wide view of action
2. closeup of soldier's head with action in the background
3. closeup of soldier's head with no action in the background (featuring likeness of actual historical character)
To be honest, I really didn't like the style of art at all. There's no variation to the colour scheme or line weight or tone or anything.
At every point the language, art and layout of the pages distanced me, as a reader, from the action and the story. It's an amazing story, so I find it quite amazing how bland and detached the author managed to make it.
April 16, 2023
Una buena manera de entender la ocupación aliada de la Francia ocupada en 1944. Personalmente la operación Overlord siempre fue mi favorita, y por lo tanto el autor de este libro ha cumplido con mis expectativas. Gran detalle el desarrollar los conflictos de los carros alemanes y aliados, con las potencias alemanas superiores en calidad pero muy inferiores en número. También se puede descartar el uso inteligente de los aliados de sus fuerzas aéreas para acabar así con las amenazas nazis. El autor plasma fielmente lo que tuvo que haber sido este escenario, una verdadera carnicería.
January 12, 2013
While the story is not new, I really enjoyed reading it in the graphic novel format. Historical fiction can tend to be dry for my tastes, so I enjoyed being able to breeze through Normandy without feeling bored. This would have been such a great idea when I was in high school learning about this time in our world's history. I am happy I won this book through Goodreads!
May 6, 2025
A decent yet not great overview of D-Day. We get a ton of names and names for battle groups. Often when the author tells us about something that happened we mainly just see a drawing of a man responsible for a decision. In other drawings we just see soldiers being shot and you wonder where the details are? If the drawing is just combat it means nothing we would rather see their equipment and vehicles up close and explained not creative depictions of what could have taken place.
We lack maps. Often battles take place in a town we don't really know anything about. He rarely even tells us what language they speak or what the historical significance is. The lack of maps makes it quite confusing. Why not draw 1 map at the beginning we could always return to it. Then have page numbers on the map or something. At least clear battle names on it with dates of the battles. Dates everywhere, locations on maps. Just the basics, really.
His obsession with names is also perplexing as we want to know about how Allies created the whole operation instead we get stories about some commander dying in a specific area or having a family. Do the grunts have families? I rather follow some smaller battles that are historically accurate. We at times see a single tank or unit do fanciful thinks yet it's just a few pictures not a comic story. An overview without details or an outline is hard to follow.
Overall it's indeed a D-Day overview and does go over basic battles. He knows a lot. Repeats a few points 2 times as it's rushed editing. There is a lot of history here. Yet it's not conveyed effectively. I'm impressed by his knowledge. I'm let down by my understanding after reading all of this. Do I get D-Day now? The drawings are just not detailed enough to convey the illustration. It feels like reading text rather than reading a clear story. It's somewhat recommended if nothing better is created. But D-Day documentaries show you photos with details. You understand how everything worked based on these photos.
We lack maps. Often battles take place in a town we don't really know anything about. He rarely even tells us what language they speak or what the historical significance is. The lack of maps makes it quite confusing. Why not draw 1 map at the beginning we could always return to it. Then have page numbers on the map or something. At least clear battle names on it with dates of the battles. Dates everywhere, locations on maps. Just the basics, really.
His obsession with names is also perplexing as we want to know about how Allies created the whole operation instead we get stories about some commander dying in a specific area or having a family. Do the grunts have families? I rather follow some smaller battles that are historically accurate. We at times see a single tank or unit do fanciful thinks yet it's just a few pictures not a comic story. An overview without details or an outline is hard to follow.
Overall it's indeed a D-Day overview and does go over basic battles. He knows a lot. Repeats a few points 2 times as it's rushed editing. There is a lot of history here. Yet it's not conveyed effectively. I'm impressed by his knowledge. I'm let down by my understanding after reading all of this. Do I get D-Day now? The drawings are just not detailed enough to convey the illustration. It feels like reading text rather than reading a clear story. It's somewhat recommended if nothing better is created. But D-Day documentaries show you photos with details. You understand how everything worked based on these photos.
July 27, 2017
Desde el punto de vista gráfico «Normandía. Una historia gráfica del Día-D» es tan clara como desde el punto de vista del guion. Vansant no emplea bocadillos, sino que cada viñeta va acompañada de un recuadro con un prolijo texto (a la manera de los libros ilustrados o de las viñetas del icónico cómic ‘El Príncipe Valiente’, si bien aquellas incluyen diálogos que no se Seguir leyendo
March 2, 2018
I borrowed this book from a kiddo and ended up having to read it quite quickly to get it back to him, which really influenced my reaction to the book. It was almost information overload, but I think if I had had time to read it slowly and time to digest/process the material I would have come away with a much better understanding. Additionally, I'm not nearly as knowledgeable about D-Day as some -- so others may find that this book wasn't information overload because they have the connection and content to process it all.
November 16, 2020
This book was a bit hard for me to really understand since I really don't understand much about military movements or the structure of the armed forces. But, I did learn about this two month period of WWII and what happened after the D-Day landing to give me a much greater understanding of the enormity and complexity of this fight than I ever had before. Quite honestly, the book covers two months of fighting that I just find incomprehensible. I am glad to have read it just to have increased my appreciation of what the members of the military went through.
February 19, 2023
The illustrations are well done although because of the subject matter also often gruesome. Not an expert on the Normandy campaigns, I was taken aback by how many soldiers were part of this, how many died, how much fire power was involved in the form of tanks, bombers and other air fighters and the destruction wreaked on the countryside and towns of Normandy.
And the cruelty and finality of war. That was made very clear by this 103 page book.
And the cruelty and finality of war. That was made very clear by this 103 page book.
November 3, 2018
I participated in a reading event through my local library, and read my first adult graphic novel.
I feel that graphic novels have a definite place in today's literary society.
The drawings in this novel are stark, but they portray the horror of D-Day in such a way that even adults with weak literary skills will understand the captions.
I feel that graphic novels have a definite place in today's literary society.
The drawings in this novel are stark, but they portray the horror of D-Day in such a way that even adults with weak literary skills will understand the captions.
December 31, 2025
This overview of the Normandy campaign (D-Day to Paris) effectively blends text and illustrations. Vansant provides a good balance between American, British, French, and German perspectives. Well worth reading!
June 14, 2017
Decent graphic novel basic overview.
January 16, 2022
this is NOT a comic
This a novel with a lot of photos, but NOT a comic. I can’t understand how purposely deceitful a cover can be
This a novel with a lot of photos, but NOT a comic. I can’t understand how purposely deceitful a cover can be
January 27, 2022
All of Vansant's historical graphic novels offer an accessible and fun look at the given episode in history. I recommend it to the erudite historian and reluctant teen reader alike.
September 22, 2022
I’m not the biggest fan of military history but this was very thorough and fascinating.
April 17, 2024
i thought this book was okay i maibnly already learned this witch is why i kinda hated this but the art was pretty good and i did learn some new things it has alot of action witch i like on books
December 21, 2016
The book Normandy, I would say it isn’t really worth your time to read the book. The main characters are basically the Americans and Germans. The big conflict is the war and how it happened. How the war had started was hitler was trying to kill all of the Jews. The book was mostly about World War 2 and how it started and how it ended. If you are a history person that loves to read about the past wars and conflicts that we had back then, this would be a fantastic book for you. This book was really boring to me because I am not one of those people that like to learn about our past. It was just a waste of time for me to read it there weren’t any main characters that you could get to know and understand how they felt during the book. It was really boring because it was the same thing after another, which was the Americans and Germans going at war. It talked a lot about who was winning and some people that had died. It just had a repeat of the same things. If there were more main characters in this book it would have made it more interesting and pull the reader in. Since that there wasn’t any main characters is was really hard for me to stay on task and read the book. Hitler was a big part in this book because he was one of the biggest reasons on why the war started. Hitler was trying to make America his so he could rule Germany and America. We had to go to war so he couldn’t take us and Germany or that would be a very big problem. If he hadn’t try to kill the jews the war probably wouldn’t have started or not have been as big. Another reason why I disliked this book and why I think that it was a waste of time was because there wasn’t very many questions I could ask my group and they couldn’t find very many questions to ask us either. I think that the writer could have made the battles have more information and what went on during them. He could have made them more interesting and have more details to make the reader want to read more. But he still had good descriptions on the war and fights. He did make it sound like we new who was fighting in some of the fights when we didn’t really know who was who. But at the end it cleared it up a little bit. The author did pretty good of explaining such little of pages that he had. I thought that it didn’t have the best story line. One of the Americans main characters was Franklin D. Roosevelt he was a good leader because he had us prepared with more troops than germany did before we started the war. That is another good reason of why we won. I felt like if we weren’t prepared like we were before the war had started it would have been a lot harder to come out with the win in the end of the war. I thought that because if we have more troops we can have people die and it won’t matter as much, where on the other side with Germany losing a lot of troops is really bad because, more and more people are dieing and you are running out of people to fight for you. Our troops had better weaponry than the Germans did our tanks were a lot better. We had nuked japan to make them retreat. I feel like he could have made the conflict a little bit more appealing to the reader which would then, make them want to read more. Again he could have made the characters more important in this, but he made characters at least. All of the illustration were really good it really brought the book to life the images were really good it was very fun to look at it kinda evened out the book with the words. Again I wouldn’t recommend this book because it was boring and all about the war and history. If you like history and learning about the past then go ahead and read this book. I would recommend it if you like history and are interested about all of the war and hitler past. Thank You.
December 13, 2016
The book “Normande” was a quick but good read. There was plenty of action, and it was described very well. The book is a graphic novel and the illustrations compliment the book. I would suggest this book to those that like history or just a good fight.
This book is about World War II. At this time in the war America had just joined the war making it a world war. The main conflict of this book (war) was the fight against Hitler and his men. I think that the author did a great job of describing the war. I think he did an even better job at describing the actual fights. He told us more than who won he told us some of the specific things people did that was amazing that helped the war. Making the battles a lot more interesting. He told us a lot in a little amount of space. Now he did make some assumptions. Like he assumed we new who was fighting who. And things like that but I already new a lot about that so it didn’t bother me too much.
I think the author did an amazing job at describing a captain or someone else's personality. I think that he also did well at telling us how the captains commanded their armies and the strategy they used throughout the war. I liked how the author described the armies state physically and emotionally before and during the battles. And he didn’t just focus on describing the allied forces, but he also did a good at describing Hitler and his men and some of the problems they had. Now there was a lot of people, places, and armies that I had a hard time keeping track of. But the content was brought to life well.
Between the story itself and how the author gave it character it wasn’t a bad read. It was also a really quick read and not like a regular history book at all. I think that it is an okay book definitely not the best but still a good read. I would definitely suggest it to someone that is looking into reading the book.
This book is about World War II. At this time in the war America had just joined the war making it a world war. The main conflict of this book (war) was the fight against Hitler and his men. I think that the author did a great job of describing the war. I think he did an even better job at describing the actual fights. He told us more than who won he told us some of the specific things people did that was amazing that helped the war. Making the battles a lot more interesting. He told us a lot in a little amount of space. Now he did make some assumptions. Like he assumed we new who was fighting who. And things like that but I already new a lot about that so it didn’t bother me too much.
I think the author did an amazing job at describing a captain or someone else's personality. I think that he also did well at telling us how the captains commanded their armies and the strategy they used throughout the war. I liked how the author described the armies state physically and emotionally before and during the battles. And he didn’t just focus on describing the allied forces, but he also did a good at describing Hitler and his men and some of the problems they had. Now there was a lot of people, places, and armies that I had a hard time keeping track of. But the content was brought to life well.
Between the story itself and how the author gave it character it wasn’t a bad read. It was also a really quick read and not like a regular history book at all. I think that it is an okay book definitely not the best but still a good read. I would definitely suggest it to someone that is looking into reading the book.
December 13, 2016
The book Normandy, I don't think it's really worth reading. The main characters are the americans and germany. The main conflict is pretty much the whole thing which is just a big war. What starts it is the whole thing with hitler and not doing what's right. So it's just mostly about the world war and the kind of stuff that happened and what kind of weapons and who was winning when and stuff like that
It's about when hitler was trying to rule and stuff so if you like history and the big world war and stuff then you might enjoy reading about what happened and stuff during the war and the turning of it and stuff. However i am not really that interested and it so was expecting like a good graphic novel and stuff but it was just plain boring words and words and i really didn't enjoy it but it really just depends on the person and the kind of things that they like.
I think that it got kinda boring because it didn't really have big interesting things. It was just people killed then more then one side is winning then the other. I feel like since it's a graphic novel and stuff it was really boring and just words and words and the same thing. It has some turns and stuff to it but it's kinda hard to want to keep reading by then.
I don't really recommend it. It's not really worth your time of reading. I think that someone that's more into the world war and stuff and informational stuff will like it a whole lot more but for someone like me that likes more story and cliff hangers and stuff it was really boring. I would give it like a 4/10. But like the thing i said before that's for me, so you might be the kind of person that likes that type of stuff so if you are then I actually recommend reading it.
It's about when hitler was trying to rule and stuff so if you like history and the big world war and stuff then you might enjoy reading about what happened and stuff during the war and the turning of it and stuff. However i am not really that interested and it so was expecting like a good graphic novel and stuff but it was just plain boring words and words and i really didn't enjoy it but it really just depends on the person and the kind of things that they like.
I think that it got kinda boring because it didn't really have big interesting things. It was just people killed then more then one side is winning then the other. I feel like since it's a graphic novel and stuff it was really boring and just words and words and the same thing. It has some turns and stuff to it but it's kinda hard to want to keep reading by then.
I don't really recommend it. It's not really worth your time of reading. I think that someone that's more into the world war and stuff and informational stuff will like it a whole lot more but for someone like me that likes more story and cliff hangers and stuff it was really boring. I would give it like a 4/10. But like the thing i said before that's for me, so you might be the kind of person that likes that type of stuff so if you are then I actually recommend reading it.
December 13, 2016
I was asked to read a book called Normandy for a month and talk about it with are group and the people that's in it are carter Jacob and Jeff and the book is about Normandy or d day that happened in Monday June 6th 1944 and if you didn't know what d day was or Normandy is when we attack the forces of Germany and the allies the Americans and Britain and other countries took heavy losses and the Germans did too and the allies won.Because we had more men and supplies than the Germans and what started this war was the Japanese attacked pearl harbor because allies took over resources that was supplying japan and they're war machines. So we won because of our men and are tanks also are strategies we're better than the Germans also Hitler the evil leader of Germany didn't have and good strategies so that's why he failed the war. the main characters are Hitler the evil leader of the German Franklin D. Roosevelt the Americas leader and was the allies or in the allies and the Britain was in the allies too also the Russians we're attacked by the Germans in their own country but of course Russia pushed them back.The bad characters are Hitler and Hideki Tojo and they're generals and these people are the ones that attacked France and Britain and Russia and the Japanese we're the ones to make america go to war with them.So the allies pushed Germany and japan back then we nuked japan and ended the war with japan but we keep attacking Germany pushing back then started Normandy so the allies mixed forces pushed the beaches and we took heavy losses but we still won the battle of Normandy. So everyone should try the book out because it tells you more details about Normandy and why it happened and stuff like that.
March 4, 2015
From my 10 year old boy:
I like this book because it talked about D-day and it's detailed. It talks about after D-day when the Allies started fighting their way to Paris. It talks about before D-day when the British and Americans sent planes to take a few villages and sabotage supply lines and blow up railroad tracks in German-occupied France.
I like this quote at the front of the book from Winston Churchill.
It was given in a railroad speech in Nazi-occupied France:
"Good night then. Sleep to gather strength for the morning, for the morning will come. Brightly it will shine on the brave and true. Kindly upon all who suffer for the cause. Glorious upon the toms of the heroes. Thus will shine the dawn, vive la France!"
here are some tidbits I learned from the book:
- June 6, 1944 dawned murky and gray
- Sergeant Harrison Summers was in the 101st Airborne Division. He was supposed to capture a German coastal artillery barracks. He burst into a room and discovered fifteen Germans sitting at a mess table eating their breakfast. With his tommy gun, he shot them down. In the whole fight, which wasn't just when he burst into the room, but in the five hours that Summers was attacking the barracks, Summers and his friends killed more than 100 Germans and captured 31.
-There was a British dude on Omaha beach. He was in the British 6th regiment. His name was Sergeant Major Stanley Hollis. He was a veteran of Dunkirk, North Africa, and Sicily. He had killed 90 Germans and he wanted to kill more.
I like this book because it talked about D-day and it's detailed. It talks about after D-day when the Allies started fighting their way to Paris. It talks about before D-day when the British and Americans sent planes to take a few villages and sabotage supply lines and blow up railroad tracks in German-occupied France.
I like this quote at the front of the book from Winston Churchill.
It was given in a railroad speech in Nazi-occupied France:
"Good night then. Sleep to gather strength for the morning, for the morning will come. Brightly it will shine on the brave and true. Kindly upon all who suffer for the cause. Glorious upon the toms of the heroes. Thus will shine the dawn, vive la France!"
here are some tidbits I learned from the book:
- June 6, 1944 dawned murky and gray
- Sergeant Harrison Summers was in the 101st Airborne Division. He was supposed to capture a German coastal artillery barracks. He burst into a room and discovered fifteen Germans sitting at a mess table eating their breakfast. With his tommy gun, he shot them down. In the whole fight, which wasn't just when he burst into the room, but in the five hours that Summers was attacking the barracks, Summers and his friends killed more than 100 Germans and captured 31.
-There was a British dude on Omaha beach. He was in the British 6th regiment. His name was Sergeant Major Stanley Hollis. He was a veteran of Dunkirk, North Africa, and Sicily. He had killed 90 Germans and he wanted to kill more.
November 29, 2016
I read this book to do a Q&A with the homeschoolers as part of our World History series. Plus, when you work with boys, comic books win the day. Vansant is a hero in this regard because he turns the bits of history into fun for the students.
That being said, like Vansant's other books I did not really enjoy the book. It was a narrative with lots of pictures, an easy read, and fairly interesting. Despite of this, I found it not quite what I expected for a comic book, and not in depth enough for a history book. As a retelling of Normandy, my heart broke for it didn't even come close to describing the sheer magnitude of importance of that time.
Graded under the umbrella of a good book to study history from, I'd have to give it 2.5 stars. It might be enough to pique someone's interest, but there was absolutely no depth to the parts of the story. For example, Vansant mentions a random name, what they did, and you get that it's supposed to be impressive... but unless you've studied Normandy or wars, you don't know what it is.
As I did with the other Vansant books, I took the time to check the info against a military historian, Travis Beiersdorfer, as well as someone who was there. The vet that I chatted with was sorely disappointed in the presentation, but the military historian noted that it's a decent start and as accurate as could be within the scope of the project.
Thus, I'd recommend it as a side reading to pique interest, but not to really go the importance of Normandy.
That being said, like Vansant's other books I did not really enjoy the book. It was a narrative with lots of pictures, an easy read, and fairly interesting. Despite of this, I found it not quite what I expected for a comic book, and not in depth enough for a history book. As a retelling of Normandy, my heart broke for it didn't even come close to describing the sheer magnitude of importance of that time.
Graded under the umbrella of a good book to study history from, I'd have to give it 2.5 stars. It might be enough to pique someone's interest, but there was absolutely no depth to the parts of the story. For example, Vansant mentions a random name, what they did, and you get that it's supposed to be impressive... but unless you've studied Normandy or wars, you don't know what it is.
As I did with the other Vansant books, I took the time to check the info against a military historian, Travis Beiersdorfer, as well as someone who was there. The vet that I chatted with was sorely disappointed in the presentation, but the military historian noted that it's a decent start and as accurate as could be within the scope of the project.
Thus, I'd recommend it as a side reading to pique interest, but not to really go the importance of Normandy.
June 6, 2016
Detailing the events from the planning of Operation Overlord to the liberation of Paris, I received this book from Comixology for free maybe two years ago, and it seemed appropriate to read it now.
More an illustrated primer than a graphic novel, this is a rather shallow, surface telling of the history of D-Day. Little here is enlightening or remarkable for those who have read other, better sources. The illustrations themselves are merely utilitarian and lack little in the way of 'art.' Vansant uses a rather sketchy style, that captures neither the horror or action of the war scenes, nor delineates well the various portraits of military officers. The book succeeds most on its discussion of tank formations and strategy, and how that it is more than just a brute strength tactic. Equal focus is given to various regiments of the Allied Forces, (British, Canadian, Polish, etc.), in what in media seems to often be framed as an American narrative.
More an illustrated primer than a graphic novel, this is a rather shallow, surface telling of the history of D-Day. Little here is enlightening or remarkable for those who have read other, better sources. The illustrations themselves are merely utilitarian and lack little in the way of 'art.' Vansant uses a rather sketchy style, that captures neither the horror or action of the war scenes, nor delineates well the various portraits of military officers. The book succeeds most on its discussion of tank formations and strategy, and how that it is more than just a brute strength tactic. Equal focus is given to various regiments of the Allied Forces, (British, Canadian, Polish, etc.), in what in media seems to often be framed as an American narrative.
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