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the D-Day Experience
Book with cd in a case. Details the D-Day Experience
64 pages, Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 1994
8 people are currently reading
111 people want to read
About the author
Richard Holmes
116 books93 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
See this thread for more information.
Edward Richard Holmes was Professor of Military and Security Studies at Cranfield University and the Royal Military College of Science. He was educated at Cambridge, Northern Illinois, and Reading Universities, and carried out his doctoral research on the French army of the Second Empire. For many years he taught military history at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst.
A celebrated military historian, Holmes is the author of the best-selling and widely acclaimed Tommy and Redcoat: The British Soldier in the Age of Horse and Musket. His dozen other books include Dusty Warriors, Sahib, The Western Front, The Little Field Marshal: Sir John French, The Road to Sedan, Firing Line, The Second World War in Photographs and Fatal Avenue: A Traveller’s History of Northern France and Flanders (also published by Pimlico).
He was general editor of The Oxford Companion to Military History and has presented eight BBC TV series, including ‘War Walks’, ‘The Western Front’ and ‘Battlefields’, and is famous for his hugely successful series ‘Wellington: The Iron Duke’ and ‘Rebels and Redcoats’.
See this thread for more information.
Edward Richard Holmes was Professor of Military and Security Studies at Cranfield University and the Royal Military College of Science. He was educated at Cambridge, Northern Illinois, and Reading Universities, and carried out his doctoral research on the French army of the Second Empire. For many years he taught military history at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst.
A celebrated military historian, Holmes is the author of the best-selling and widely acclaimed Tommy and Redcoat: The British Soldier in the Age of Horse and Musket. His dozen other books include Dusty Warriors, Sahib, The Western Front, The Little Field Marshal: Sir John French, The Road to Sedan, Firing Line, The Second World War in Photographs and Fatal Avenue: A Traveller’s History of Northern France and Flanders (also published by Pimlico).
He was general editor of The Oxford Companion to Military History and has presented eight BBC TV series, including ‘War Walks’, ‘The Western Front’ and ‘Battlefields’, and is famous for his hugely successful series ‘Wellington: The Iron Duke’ and ‘Rebels and Redcoats’.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 3, 2019
Very well presented, impeccably printed and written very capably by Holmes, exhibiting an uncommon flourish of style for this genre of non-fiction book. There isn't actually a vast amount of text in this book, so it makes for a fairly quick read, with the right amount of detail to thoroughly understand what happened in 1944 without becoming unnecessarly academic and turgid. The removable artefacts in the back cover pocket are an unusual, interesting touch, if perhaps I might've chosen different papers (maybe the propaganda pamphlet on p112?). Some of the pictures within would often benefit from being a bit larger, such as the pilot's log book on p140 which is quite illegible, whereas some of the other b&w photos are (understandably) rather horrendous in places. Alas, the proofreading is quite substandard for such a recent, quality, short, £20 book, in it's 4th(?) edition having been in print for over over a decade. In the 4th paragraph of the introduction(!), "Normandy" is missing a D twice. On p25, "germany" and "ruhr" are written without capital letters in a headline(!) and on p143, "OneofthelessonsofGoodwoodwasthatunprotectedinfantryfound" is quite a noticeable one. This is aside from countless AmericaniZations of words, iffy punctuation and sentences that should've been rearranged for clarity. This would be a 5/5 book all day long were it not for the dubious proofreading. As it stands, 4.5/5
January 21, 2025
This book definitely punched well above its weight. It's not buried under the saccharine celebratory anniversary material that this kind of work falls prey to (this book/collection was timed for the 60th anniversary of D-Day in 2004) and for all of its brevity it's not a lightweight book. Instead it achieves the goals it declares in its introduction (not always a guarantee) to be a short history of the whole Normandy campaign from conception to breakout and it delivers that in better than expected detail and with really good maps.
Of course it's the inserts and other recreated artifacts that are the three-dimensional draw here and those are a genuine delight, but here they aren't marred by an awful text and that's a rare treat.
Also included is an audio CD with 73 minutes of veterans recounting their experiences from the campaign and so there's a great primary source here with everything else.
The campaign analysis doesn't break any new ground but it also doesn't give in to mythology and cliches either. Granted it helps that the book is originally British in conception and so that might help keep it both from being too much of a "gee whiz, Grandpa was a hero and a perfect shiny white knight" tone of post Brokaw/Ambrose American histories and would explain some of its leaning toward British narratives (fortunately without turning into Montgomery apol0gism.).
Of course it's the inserts and other recreated artifacts that are the three-dimensional draw here and those are a genuine delight, but here they aren't marred by an awful text and that's a rare treat.
Also included is an audio CD with 73 minutes of veterans recounting their experiences from the campaign and so there's a great primary source here with everything else.
The campaign analysis doesn't break any new ground but it also doesn't give in to mythology and cliches either. Granted it helps that the book is originally British in conception and so that might help keep it both from being too much of a "gee whiz, Grandpa was a hero and a perfect shiny white knight" tone of post Brokaw/Ambrose American histories and would explain some of its leaning toward British narratives (fortunately without turning into Montgomery apol0gism.).
June 18, 2023
A quick read of a common subject. Some nice added value in things like a facsimile of a letter in Montgomery’s own hand summarizing early progress in the campaign. And I learned a few things…like the presence of Japanese in the ranks of the German forces defending Normandy from Allied invasion.
June 10, 2019
Nicely done. Good maps and the facsimile documents included are a neat bonus.
Read
November 16, 2022Read this for school. Took way too long for as short as it is.
April 25, 2023
Great book about D-Day. Loved seeing all the original pictures ❤️
July 2, 2013
In preparation for our trip to the Normandy Beaches, I thought we should read up on what actually happened and not rely on having seen "Saving Private Ryan" those two times. This was a great little coffee table book, Though the slant was definitely for the Allies - UK, Canadian, American , it did give some background on the German side as well, particularly the commanders.
The pictures and captions were a great addition. Not only could you read about the campaign and the various battles/initiatives - (I know there must be a military term for the various offenses that happened at the same time, but clearly, if it was in the book, it didn't stick.) - but the pictures and maps showed exactly what Richard Holmes was writing about. The facsimile documents were a little hokey but I can understand why they were included. They are a piece of memorabilia that still exists today in someone's writing desk drawer.
The impact of this initiative, the beaches, and taking back the French countryside to Paris, the loss of life on both sides, the damage done to the villages and towns, brings home the impact of war and the price to be paid for freedom. There are probably fewer and fewer WWII veterans but their commitment and sacrifice was truly noble.
The pictures and captions were a great addition. Not only could you read about the campaign and the various battles/initiatives - (I know there must be a military term for the various offenses that happened at the same time, but clearly, if it was in the book, it didn't stick.) - but the pictures and maps showed exactly what Richard Holmes was writing about. The facsimile documents were a little hokey but I can understand why they were included. They are a piece of memorabilia that still exists today in someone's writing desk drawer.
The impact of this initiative, the beaches, and taking back the French countryside to Paris, the loss of life on both sides, the damage done to the villages and towns, brings home the impact of war and the price to be paid for freedom. There are probably fewer and fewer WWII veterans but their commitment and sacrifice was truly noble.
July 5, 2022
The D-Day Experience: from the Invasion to the Liberation of Paris by Richard Holmes
D-Day took place on June 6, 1944. The subsequent battle of Normandy involved over a million men from the US, Canada, Britain, France, Poland, and Germany. It helped seal the fate of Hitler’s Third Reich. This book was published to celebrate D-Day’s 60th anniversary. It is a graphic account of the planning and execution of Operation Overlord as well as the campaign that destroyed the German forces in France and opened the way for the allied advance to Holland, Belgium and into Germany itself. It includes a wealth of first-hand accounts. Facsimile memorabilia like maps, diaries, letters, sketches, secret memos and reports, posters and labels are integrated into its pages. It is a beautifully designed book. A great read for anyone who is interested in the Second World War or history in general. 3,5 out of 5,0 for this one.
D-Day took place on June 6, 1944. The subsequent battle of Normandy involved over a million men from the US, Canada, Britain, France, Poland, and Germany. It helped seal the fate of Hitler’s Third Reich. This book was published to celebrate D-Day’s 60th anniversary. It is a graphic account of the planning and execution of Operation Overlord as well as the campaign that destroyed the German forces in France and opened the way for the allied advance to Holland, Belgium and into Germany itself. It includes a wealth of first-hand accounts. Facsimile memorabilia like maps, diaries, letters, sketches, secret memos and reports, posters and labels are integrated into its pages. It is a beautifully designed book. A great read for anyone who is interested in the Second World War or history in general. 3,5 out of 5,0 for this one.
October 25, 2014
Excelente libro para conocer o iniciarse en el día D, desde los preparativos hasta la liberación de París.
Con documentación, mapas e imágenes que ayudan a entender la descripción y los planes aliados.
Recomendable para tenerlo como guía junto con otros libros sobre el tema.
Anexo los capítulos del libro:
The Planning; The Leaders; German Forces & Defences; Deception & Intelligence; Resistance and SOE; Pegasus Bridge; British Airborne Assault; US Airborne Assault; Utah Beach; Pointe du Hoc; Omaha Beach; Gold Beach; Juno Beach; Sword Beach; Villers Bocage; Pluto and Mulberries; Operation Epsom; Bocage and the Capture of Cherbourg; Medics; Battle for St Lo; Operation Goodwood; Operation Cobra; Operation Luttich; Allied Air Support; Operations Totalize and Tractable; The Falaise Pocket; Crossing the Seine and the Liberation of Paris
Con documentación, mapas e imágenes que ayudan a entender la descripción y los planes aliados.
Recomendable para tenerlo como guía junto con otros libros sobre el tema.
Anexo los capítulos del libro:
The Planning; The Leaders; German Forces & Defences; Deception & Intelligence; Resistance and SOE; Pegasus Bridge; British Airborne Assault; US Airborne Assault; Utah Beach; Pointe du Hoc; Omaha Beach; Gold Beach; Juno Beach; Sword Beach; Villers Bocage; Pluto and Mulberries; Operation Epsom; Bocage and the Capture of Cherbourg; Medics; Battle for St Lo; Operation Goodwood; Operation Cobra; Operation Luttich; Allied Air Support; Operations Totalize and Tractable; The Falaise Pocket; Crossing the Seine and the Liberation of Paris
October 20, 2012
The best D-Day book (?) I have read. It makes the whole operation and the struggle on to Paris totally clear and understandable. It also makes a very good companion for travelling the D-Day beaches, and the area of Goodwood battle. The interactive elements are superb - more non-fiction should be like this.
May 31, 2014
page 50 is repeated as page 52 in the edition i bought on sale for 2bucks at 1/2 price books. even w/that error the book is fantastic. great for a jr. or sr. high library, also for a retirement community.
August 10, 2015
An extremely interesting read and I always find myself going back to it.
I love all of the documentation that it comes with.
I love all of the documentation that it comes with.
August 13, 2016
The facsimile memorabilia are interesting and engaging - I found the maps to be particularly fun - but the book itself is relatively standard.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews