Rating: 
Summary: Excellent tale of ordinary men and their extraordinary feats
Review: Prior to its happening, the world had never seen a conflict like World War II and it hasn't come close to seeing one like it since then. It was the last war fought without a political agenda or national policy being the driving force. It was fought for the purpose of preserving our own nation's way of life, the right of other nations to enjoy the same freedom, and the outright survival of people and nations. The men who were tasked with the awesome responsibility of winning this war were your ordinary, everyday men. From Harvard graduates to midwestern farmboys, they all heeded the call to arms. Often referred to as 'citizen soldiers' (a title of another Ambrose book), these men were not career military. They were civilians when they entered the war and would return to those lives upon the wars conclusion. Yet, it was these brave men who fought against the seemingly superior forces of the German and Japanese Empires and emerged triumphant in the most critical victory over tyranny and evil this world has ever experienced.
"Band of Brothers" tells the tale of one such group of brave men whose exploits were nothing short of spectacular as the armies of the Allied nations sought to bring down the German empire. The men of Easy Company of the 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne embodied the greatness of the American spirit and clearly demonstrated why, once they entered the fray at Normandy, the tide had turned against Hitler's Army. Easy Company was one of the true elite squadrons in World War II. It was tasked with such crucial operations as airborne landings behind German lines to enable the D-Day landings to be a success to holding the fort during the last major German offensive at Bastogne and Battle of the Bulge.
The casualty rate for this group of men was high (150% from the point of its inception until its decommissioning after the war), but that was due to the nature of the missions. The training these soldiers received in preparation for battle is what enabled to avoid higher casualty rates and to succeed in most of the missions they engaged in. The men of Easy Company make no secret of their disdain for their initial commanding officer, Captain Sobel. They considered him to be a petty, selfish, mean-spirited martinet. They would just as soon go into battle with him leading them as go into battle without a gun. Yet, to a man, Easy Company also says that it is because of Sobel that they were such an elite group. If only to spite him or to avoid petty wrath, these men trained faster, harder, and better than most units serving. It is clear from narrative that, despite Sobel's 'contribution', the true glue of unit was Lieutenant (later Major) Richard Winters and his staff non-commissioned officers. Winters and the non-coms were so universally admired and respected by the other soldiers that they were able to be asked more of themselves and produce it.
Each soldier in "Easy Company" has his own story. Ambrose does a fine job telling as many of the stories as possible without bogging down the narrative with too many names and unrelated tales. There is a certain awe at the ordeals these men faced. It's hard not to have butterflies in one's stomach as one reads about the men preparing for their first drop over Normandy under heavy fire and in dark conditions. "Band of Brothers" chronicles these men from that initial Normandy invasion all the way until the capture of Hitler's Eagle's Nest and shows why this country does and always will owe a debt of gratitude to the men who 'laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom (Lincoln)'.
Rating:
Summary: Just a wonderful, power packed group of young men.
Review: I could not put the book down. I have always admired the 101st airborne troops, and now more than ever they were truly a band of brothers. Nothing with the exception of the Ranger force could equal their belief in themselves. It took a special kind of man, in a special time of this country. I would recommend the book to almost everyone I have ever known
Rating: 
Summary: Rent the DVD
Review: I picked up "Band of Brothers" for two reasons: first, I have been hearing for years what a great historian Stephen Ambrose was; second, I loved the HBO series and thought the book would provide deeper insights into the men of Easy Company and their WWII experience. How surprised I was to discover just the opposite. Ambrose may have been a great historian, but he was no writer. Incidents that in the series were presented with drama and suspense were written of in a flat-footed, perfunctory manner. What I came away with most after reading "Band of Brothers" was less respect for Ambrose and more for the producers and writers of the series, who so successfully fleshed out Ambrose's skeletal text. I don't think I've ever said this before, but skip the book and rent the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Plagiarist, too bad
Review: Was a great book, too bad Ambrose "borrowed" from other writers. Oh- well, hes dead now. Great book, even if he was a Plagiarist.
Rating: 
Summary: Ordinary men, extraordinary courage
Review: "Band of Brothers" is not good history; it's lacking in objectivity, it's highly anecdotal, it doesn't have any maps, and its scope is highly limited. However, it is all of these factors that make it such a wonderful portrait of men in combat. Ambrose wasn't setting out to write a history of the European Theater of Operations, he wasn't even trying to write a history of the 101st Airborne. Rather, he was trying to capture something of the uncommon courage show by these otherwise common men in this face of astonishing trials.Ambrose picks up the story of Easy Company as they work their way through training, and follows it all the way through to the end of the war. In between, through an enormous volume of first hand interviews, he paints a harrowing picture of the men of Easy as they slog through Europe. It's not always pretty; Ambrose doesn't pull any punches, particularly when it comes to inept leadership (and he names names), and he doesn't take any pains to hide the drinking and gambling. The result, though, is an intimate view of men who have been thrust into extraordinary circumstances, and are just struggling to get by. Because of the book's limited scope, Ambrose was able to capture the chaos of combat quite effectively. The big picture is rarely elaborated upon, and the reader is presented with Easy Company, time and again, hanging on to survive, and then taking the fight to the enemy. One can't help but feel that this approach more than adequately captures the sense of isolation that men in infantry combat must feel. If you are looking for a comprehensive history of airborne operations in World War II this is not the book for you. But if you are seeking a deeper understanding of why these men were able to face extraordinary odds and win, of what made them brothers in the truest sense of the word, then you would do well to pick up this book. By turns funny and sad, unbearably tense and lighthearted, "Band of Brothers" is a remarkable look at what combat can do to men, and how they can make something good out of something awful.
Rating: 
Summary: Surprisingly Easy Read
Review: I had to read this for a book review in my military science class, and I was surprised at how easy this book was to read. I was expecting something along the lines of this company did this and this company did that. Stephen Ambrose got personal. He relied mostly on interviews with the people who were there to write to book. Only when giving a larger view of what was going on did he refer to histories of the war. Ambrose gives a more personal account of the men who were in this company. He also give a sense of the comraderie that went on - how these men literally depended on each other for their lives. I highly recommend this book to someone who wants a history of WWII but not a confusing book with a lot of military terms and concepts.
Rating:
Summary: Right on the money
Review: I have read the book, watched the mini-series, read the unit battle citations, and even talked to a member of Easy Company 506th PIR. Band of Brothers is a realistic, accurate representation of the events that shaped one of the finest fighting units ever assembled. It made me feel like I was walking right alongside the other soldiers.
Rating:
Summary: Band of Brothers--the good and the bad
Review: Ambrose is a competent but not an exceptional writer. Nonetheless, I would still recommend Band of Brothers. There are many instances when Ambrose breezes over what should have been important discussions of battles, and he moves along at a rapid clip as if he's given the reader all he needs or wants to know. I also defy most readers to keep all but a handful of soldiers straight. A number drop into and out of the account of the 506th Airborne Division so infrequently that it's often tough to remember who's who. Nonetheless, Ambrose does manage to pull together a lot of interesting stories about the men who served in the 506th at this point in history and also gives a good sense of many of the hardships and fears the combat soldier faced for those of us who will never share this type of experience. Though definitely a flawed work, at no point while reading it was I ever bored with it or looking to put the book aside to move on to something else.
Rating: 
Summary: Good....But Not The Best
Review: I'll hand it to Ambrose....this is a pretty good book. I don't think a hundred books about small units of the 101st and 82nd could really ever get me there, but "Band of Brothers" is a decent attempt. A semi-personal account such as this is pretty entertaining, but for a gut feel of what it is like up close, read Donald Burgett's excellent set or my personal favorite, the unparalleled "Those Devils In Baggy Pants" by the late Ross S. Carter.
Rating:
Summary: Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne
Review: I am just an average guy who likes books about WWII. I found this book quite riveting, very deatailed and yet, easy to read. I read the whole thing in one weekend as I just could not put it down. Its absolutely one of the best books I have every read obout the war.
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