English Pronunciation Audio

In a burnished, driving prose, incorporating a myriad of fresh sources,
John Keegan tells the story of the Allies greatest military achievement as he chronicles the 1944 invasion of Normandy, from D-Day to the liberation of Paris.

 

At the same time he furthers his exploration of the role which warfare and its institutions play in social life by showing how each of the armies, while resembling one another in purpose and authority, is a mirror of its own nations values.

In an ingenious and marvelously effective scheme, each of the titles six armies is shown at successive stages of the invasion in a battle sequence testing them to the utmost:

the Americans in their gallant and terrifying night drop on the eve of the landings the Canadians in crucial action at the Omaha beachhead
the English tanks and infantry savagely fighting their way inland
the Germans in their surprisingly strong resistance the Poles in exile blocking the German escape route in a fierce and desperate firefight
the French, liberating at last the City of Light.

This extraordinary book is both a shining confirmation of John Keegans reputation as one of our foremost military historians and a memorable addition to the tragic and dramatic literature of men at war.

John Keegan is the defense editor of the Daily Telegraph (London) and Britain's foremost military historian. He is the author of many best-selling books, including The First World War, Intelligence in War, and The Battle for History. He lives in Wiltshire, England.

Fred Williams, a graduate of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, works in theater, film, TV, and radio in England, Ireland, and America. Besides narrating audiobooks, he is a performer in living-history re-enactments, an archer, and a poet.