Rating: 
Summary: a great review of a WW 2 division
Review: The author does a fine job of describing an Infantry Division during the invasion of France in 1944. It goes into great detail on the training of this mostly National Guard unit.The book has great maps, and is a great tool for any student of military history.
Rating: 
Summary: SUPERB!!
Review: What can be said that hasn't already been said about this great book? Joseph Balkoski has crafted (to me, not just written, but crafted like a gem) a superb history which will stand as a tribute to all those who not only served in the Blue and Gray Division, but to all who served in the infantry divisions in the Normandy campaign. We see the 29ers from their training camps in Maryland and Virginia, to deployment in England, to Omaha Beach to the bloody, but triumphant entry into St. Lo. Along the way, we see the personalities, General Gehrhardt, Major Tom Howie, Glover Johns and Charles Cawthon endure the training, D-Day and the hedgerow slaughter. But Balkoski just doesn't rehash old facts. He compares the 29th to its German counterpart, the 352nd Infanterie Division. He shows German methods and compares the weapons used by both sides and explains why the fighting in Normandy was an attacker's nightmare and a defender's dream. In the end, the 29ers bested their foemen, but not without cost. Mr. Balkoski has written a tribute to them that will stand the test of time.
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