Rating: 
Summary: Great sequel to D-Day...
Review: If you have read and been captivated by Ambrose's D-Day and felt like it stopped just when the action started then here is the sequel you have been looking for. This book picks up on June 7, 1944, when the Allies grip on French soil was still very precarious. As the name implies, however, this is not so much a study on tactical moves as on the moves made by the true victor of WWII...the citizen soldier from all parts of the U.S. Yes I said the U.S. because this book concentrates on GI joe and not the Allies as a whole (by the way for a great account of all the fighting armies try 6 armies in normandy by Keegan). It carries you through the bocage of Normandy, Up through France and Belgium and into the Reich, all the while telling of individuals who gave all and sometimes more. Pick this up along with D-Day for a great picture of the American part in the European War...
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing Sequel to D-Day
Review: Stephen E. Ambrose's "Citizen Soldiers" is a disappointing sequel to the story begun in his book D-Day. The author attempts to cover the last year of the war in northwest Europe through the lives of soldiers, but the volume includes too many inaccuracies regarding basic historical and technical facts. What initially appears to be good research with in-depth first person interviews with the combat veterans is badly let down by inept handling of the research material and subject. Two examples, the author refers several times to German Tiger and Panther tanks being equipped with a 88mm cannon. The Panther, had a high velocity, long barreled 75mm cannon, and was never equipped with a 88mm main gun. The other example involves how he identifies units. In one case he is talking about the 1st Battalion of an infantry regiment. Final identification of this battalion is listed as "1st Battalion, 29th Infantry Division". Inaccuracies of this type appear throughout the book. Overall the book appears to be quickly put together, which suggests a lack of attention either by the writer, the editor, or a combination of both.The current popular interest in World War II has seen the release of some truly great books, some mediocre ones, and just plain wasted pulp. "Citizen Soldiers" fits somewhere in between great and mediocre. I strongly encourage Stephen Ambrose readers to pick up any of the following works. "Company Commander" by Charles MacDonald, "The Clay Pigeons of St. Lo" by Glover Johns, "The Men of Company K" by Harold P. Leinbaugh and John D. Campbell, and the "Last Battle" by Cornelius Ryan. Unfortunately, "The Clay Pigeons of St. Lo" and "The Men of Company K", are out of print. All of these books are eminently readable. This review refers to the hardcover edition.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting tribute to a brave and passing generation
Review: This paean to the American veterans of the European action in WWII, richly told through their own words, should be required reading for the postwar generation. Stephen Ambrose provides shrewd insight into the individual young men who came ashore at Normandy and, at great cost, confronted frightening and bloody resistance to liberate both Allied and Axis peoples. Many history texts speak of the armies and generals who waged the war in Europe; "Citizen Soldier" paints an indelible picture of the American infantry soldier, tank crewmember, or airman who won the war, foot by food. He asserts the modern historian's tenet that the writer cannot improve upon the words of the participants, recounting their words in a compelling and riveting tale more exciting than any novel or movie. The main thesis of this work is that the American GI was motivated first by a loyalty to his buddies, second by a desire to prove himself worthy of the task thrust upon him and the fear that he not measure up, and last by respect for command and authority and duty to country. (For German soldiers, particularly those from the SS and Hitler Youth, this hierarchy was reversed.) This immediate and pragmatic view echoed itself in the resourceful improvising used to deal with varying battlefield conditions, both military and geographical. I have often marveled at my father and his contemporaries who seem able to walk into any room, any group of people, and immediately establish an affable, respectful, and comfortable rapport. They exude an understated self-confidence and a shared direction and sense of purpose. "Citizen Soldiers" goes a long way to explain this phenomenon and trace it back to a time when, as young men from disparate origins and stations, they were called upon and pulled together to create the peace and the world we take for granted. The book's afterword, describing the postwar young men on the GI Bill studying in Ambrose's boyhood hometown, beautifully summarizes this spirit. As an aside, most of the book focuses on the experience of the foot soldier, but my father (a waist gunner on a B-17 in the 8th Air Force) states that the chapter on the airwar "Told it like it was" better than any other book he's read. "Citizen Soldiers" falls short in only three minor areas. (1) The battlefield maps, while generally complete and useful, all occupy double pages. The main and central areas of interest inevitably fall between the pages, disappearing into the spine's crease. (2) The author naively maintains that homosexual activity on the front lines was very rare. Several books, interviews, and documentaries demonstrate quite the opposite. Ambrose might be excused for this oversight insofar as he relied on accounts from the GI's themselves who, as products of their time, would be disinclined or ashamed to acknowledge any such behavior. (3) As with most historians, Ambrose engages liberally in second-guessing military commanders and their tactics, often to the point of contradicting himself. Specifically, he chides Eisenhower and Bradley for being too timid when they acted cautiously, for being too reckless when they acted boldly.
Rating:
Summary: Ambrose's best work by far
Review: Not only does this novel explore the conditions that the GI's fought under, it takes stories from all types of soldiers, from the brave to the scared to the worthless. Ambrose gives the reader the sense that nothing he says can describe what these men and women went through, but can only give an account to let the reader know what every American experenced. One very nice point to this book was the perspective that Ambrose showed of the Germans. While most World War Two accounts portray every German as a Nazi, Ambrose explains why they continue fighting, and successfully leads the reader to feel for all soldiers, not just the Americans.
Rating:
Summary: Ambrose's best work
Review: I've read Eisenhower's Lieutenants, the definitive history of the U.S. Army in Europe, and I have to say, Citizen Soldiers is a better book. While not nearly as detailed as Eisenhower's Lieutenants, this book manages to give a better sense of the tide of the war and what it was like to fight in it. This book is essentially an ode to the war generation. Ambrose's viewpoint is that American GIs won the war through toughness and ingenuity. Fighting with inferior equipment and under bad generals, the common GI somehow finds a way to win. Ambrose makes his points through heavy use of oral history, which also gives the book a vivid "and you are there" feeling. As a first generation American whose father fought in the German army, I found it especially gratifying to see Ambrose occasionally show things from the German side too. After pages of reports from American GIs saying what a living hell the fighting was, Ambrose switches to Germans saying "it was terrible, they just kept coming, half my unit was killed -- I was sure I was going to die." The effect is striking. Most of these interviews are primary research, which makes them all the more remarkable. Most Germans just want to forget the war. If you can get them to relate their war experiences, you've achieved quite a feat.
Rating: 
Summary: A worthwhile read.
Review: Mr. Ambrose tells the story of the last year of the war in Europe in a workman-like manner. His style is unpretentious, not unlike the men (and women) of the WWII generation. Weaving the personal stories of the hundreds of men he (and his son) has interviewed from both sides, the book is a tapestry that moves steadily eastward from Normandy to Berlin. By the end of the book, the author has told the VE story almost completely from the perspective of the GI, not the 'brass'. It is a refreshing change, and a reminder that wars are fought in foxholes by men, not in smoke-filled rooms by politicians.
Rating:
Summary: Highly recomended
Review: All I can say is read it. Teriffic book. I just returned from a trip to France and Normandy. Wish I had read this first, so much I missed. Ambrose's D-Day was a great book but this was even better.
Rating:
Summary: Another winner by Ambrose
Review: Although not as gripping as the D-Day book, this book is another one that tough to put down.
Rating: 
Summary: Too many one-sided bits of stories
Review: 3 weeks of waiting for the book to arrive was rather long disappoinment. The book was just full of too many "here & there" stories told by the veterans yet contained a little information. Most of time bothering me is too many over-heroic statements trying to emphasize the courages of GI in ETO during WWII. No doubts what the soldiers had been doing there were just plain heroic but need no too many statements over it. Let the readers judge by themselves and let the book speaks the history by itself. Further, the books also need a lot more counterchecks from the enemy side (German) and even the allies (British, Canadian, Russian) to be more neutral.
Rating:
Summary: The true battle for France and Germany...In detail.
Review: Are you hunting for a World War II history book that will perfectly describe every detail that took effect? Then you have found the right book! From the horror stories of a single soldier's life to the exact performance of a Tiger tank, Citizen Soldiers just can't be beaten. Surely all the research and effort that Stephan Ambrose put into the making of this book was worthwhile. If you have been one of those people who think war is something for tough guys and a bunch of fun, boy, are you in for it. Citizen Soldiers will tell the personal stories of a soldiers life...and in full detail. Another factor that makes this book one of the best is how well it mixes the war machines and diaries into one story. You may be surprised at how accurate Ambrose describes the great flying fortresses to the Me 262 jet fighter, even to a single MG 42 machine gun. (You'll probably also be able to find imformation on the ammo itself!) If you are to get Citizen Soldiers, which is A MUST, then go ahead and grab "D-Day" while you're at it...Another book much like Citizen Soldiers, only it concentrates on the planning and execution of the great day in June 6th, 1944. After all, who wants to live without knowing what their fathers and grandfathers did in European soil before them? Get the book. Let the battle begin!
|
