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on the edge of twilight

by Aaron T Knight

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117,778,140 (3)None
NEWS BULLETIN: NORMANDY INVASION FAILSThe author was ten years old when America entered WWII and I remember the Home Front very well. The Nazis could have won the war if the Normandy invasion had failed because it would have provided the time to use the futuristic weapons in existence and ready to be used. PROLOGUE When Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese on December 7, 1941 I was ten years old. Although I was a boy through the wartime years I followed the events as they happened via movie newsreels and radio like most Americans. My impression of the war from the first Pacific offensive on Guadalcanal in 1942 forward to the end of the global conflict was, we Americans were always victorious in almost bloodless battles. I believe it was a common conviction shared by many Americans. This public impression of non stop winning in the largest war ever fought on this planet was perpetuated by Hollywood movies. Recently I saw a fictional version of the Anzio invasion depicting the hero as discovering the German construction of their gun emplacements in the hills overlooking the Anzio beachhead. He carries the alarm to the allied commanders who promptly send in the bombers to destroy the artillery positions. One bombing mission seems to wipe out all of the defensive positions only a few days after the landing. In reality, the Germans bombarded the allied beachhead from their hilltop positions for forty days. Propaganda in wartime is used by political leaders of every country to sustain the war time effort of it's citizens. I know now the morale of the American people was of paramount importance because our war production was absolutely vital to all of our Allies fighting around the globe. Our country was far away from the horrors of war so it required a smooth running propaganda campaign to keep up our fighting spirit. After reading a number of history books about WWII from the viewpoint of historians from other countries I gained a revised impression of the war. These other accounts especially from the perspective of the English and French scholars provided me with astonishing truths which to my knowledge were never revealed to the American public. We could have lost the war in Europe if Hitler and the Nazis had enough time to put into action a number of super weapons actually in existence in 1944. At every stage of the war with Germany we were up against far superior weapons mass produced by a country whose sole purpose was war. All of the top scientists in Germany were devoting their efforts to finding more efficient ways to kill people. It was an advantage the Nazis depended on to defeat the Allied armies who outnumbered them. As a German general put it, " this war is run on machines, oil and gasoline." War news as edited for consumption by the public can be likened to the bull fights in Spain. These fights are begun by Picadors on horseback sticking lances into the bull's shoulders and neck to weaken the muscles of the animal so it can't effectively defend itself by using it's deadly horns. The Picadors' horses have padded blankets over them giving the crowd the impression the horse is being protected from the bull's repeated charges and goring as the Picadors are driving their lances into the beast's muscles. Truth is, the padded blanket is for the benefit of the crowd so they don't see the terrible blood streaming wounds sustained by the horse. As I read other accounts of the war I was surprised to learn the Allies discovered a squadron of jet propelled bombers with pressurized cabins in Norway. These ultra modern bombers were capable of flying at 60.000 feet and bombing New York City. V3 intercontinental rockets were under construction to attack the East coast of America. Two super class submarines were also a reality rather than on the drawing board. Churchill's greatest fear could have happened if these super U boats had been operational.… (more)
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I have to start my review a little different than I normally do. Let me explain how you cannot approach this book.

This is a story of what-if. Forget your history to an extent. World War II didn’t develop the way you remembered. This is a story of a different D-Day and a different war afterwards. The Allies did not win. Hitler grew stronger. If you are a history buff, this might proof difficult for you. I found myself stopping periodically as I would question the events. Several times, I had to remind myself that it was fiction and most of the story was not based on historical events but more on the players’ personalities and drive.

There are many characters that play in this story though the author narrows it mainly to one man. You are there as they watch men die, as politicians negotiate, and as they try to keep some of their own sanity during it all. A few times the pace slowed down, but it was more to develop characters and give background.

I think the author did an excellent job in describing the battle scenes. In fact, that was where he excelled the most in his writing. The dialogue was okay. I felt that it was not too realistic at times and the description surrounding the dialogue was awkward. I spent a lot of time rereading many of the action scenes because they were so well done. I felt like I was there when it was happening.

This was a creative piece of writing and a huge challenge for any writer. I commend him for taking the chance to do so. It really had me thinking about the various what-ifs. Also, he explored a bit of military trivia and turned it into a history changing story. Most of us know that Hitler was on the verge of many technological advancements. We just have no idea how close and how it would have changed the entire war.

Give this book a try. Use it to discuss the technology and the what-if scenarios with your history friends. You’ll find a lot to talk about.

Note: I received this book from the author with no expectation of a positive review. ( )
  RebeccaGraf | Mar 28, 2013 |
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NEWS BULLETIN: NORMANDY INVASION FAILSThe author was ten years old when America entered WWII and I remember the Home Front very well. The Nazis could have won the war if the Normandy invasion had failed because it would have provided the time to use the futuristic weapons in existence and ready to be used. PROLOGUE When Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese on December 7, 1941 I was ten years old. Although I was a boy through the wartime years I followed the events as they happened via movie newsreels and radio like most Americans. My impression of the war from the first Pacific offensive on Guadalcanal in 1942 forward to the end of the global conflict was, we Americans were always victorious in almost bloodless battles. I believe it was a common conviction shared by many Americans. This public impression of non stop winning in the largest war ever fought on this planet was perpetuated by Hollywood movies. Recently I saw a fictional version of the Anzio invasion depicting the hero as discovering the German construction of their gun emplacements in the hills overlooking the Anzio beachhead. He carries the alarm to the allied commanders who promptly send in the bombers to destroy the artillery positions. One bombing mission seems to wipe out all of the defensive positions only a few days after the landing. In reality, the Germans bombarded the allied beachhead from their hilltop positions for forty days. Propaganda in wartime is used by political leaders of every country to sustain the war time effort of it's citizens. I know now the morale of the American people was of paramount importance because our war production was absolutely vital to all of our Allies fighting around the globe. Our country was far away from the horrors of war so it required a smooth running propaganda campaign to keep up our fighting spirit. After reading a number of history books about WWII from the viewpoint of historians from other countries I gained a revised impression of the war. These other accounts especially from the perspective of the English and French scholars provided me with astonishing truths which to my knowledge were never revealed to the American public. We could have lost the war in Europe if Hitler and the Nazis had enough time to put into action a number of super weapons actually in existence in 1944. At every stage of the war with Germany we were up against far superior weapons mass produced by a country whose sole purpose was war. All of the top scientists in Germany were devoting their efforts to finding more efficient ways to kill people. It was an advantage the Nazis depended on to defeat the Allied armies who outnumbered them. As a German general put it, " this war is run on machines, oil and gasoline." War news as edited for consumption by the public can be likened to the bull fights in Spain. These fights are begun by Picadors on horseback sticking lances into the bull's shoulders and neck to weaken the muscles of the animal so it can't effectively defend itself by using it's deadly horns. The Picadors' horses have padded blankets over them giving the crowd the impression the horse is being protected from the bull's repeated charges and goring as the Picadors are driving their lances into the beast's muscles. Truth is, the padded blanket is for the benefit of the crowd so they don't see the terrible blood streaming wounds sustained by the horse. As I read other accounts of the war I was surprised to learn the Allies discovered a squadron of jet propelled bombers with pressurized cabins in Norway. These ultra modern bombers were capable of flying at 60.000 feet and bombing New York City. V3 intercontinental rockets were under construction to attack the East coast of America. Two super class submarines were also a reality rather than on the drawing board. Churchill's greatest fear could have happened if these super U boats had been operational.

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