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Loading... The Longest Day (original 1959; edition 1994)by Cornelius Ryan
Work InformationThe Longest Day: The Classic Epic of D-Day by Cornelius Ryan (1959)
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» 6 more No current Talk conversations about this book. The first in Ryan's WWII trilogy. He's got a great story to tell, that of the American Army in northwest Europe, and he tries and succeeds pretty well. By its nature episodic, and short on maps, but a good spot to start one's study of the battle. ( ![]() Almost certainly the best popular history book on D-day ever written though I stand to be corrected. The Longest Day is not a scholarly recitation of the facts (such as they are known) as even to this day there is controversy over what really happened during Operation Overlord. It was an enormously complex and difficult invasion involving 150-thousand people and thousands of supporting ships and planes and uncountable pieces of equipment. Ryan covers a little bit of everything and sprinkles lots of small details throughout the book that enliven it though he primarily looks at the invasion from on-high as it is a huge subject and properly needs a lot more space to fully cover than The Longest Day can offer. I really enjoyed reading about the German perspective on the invasion which he covers quite well. The takeaway? They really got caught with their pants down and thank God for that! I would think that since the book was first published in 1959, D-day scholarship has advanced considerably so I expect that we now know a lot more than Ryan did when he wrote the Longest Day. A simple example would be the number of dead on Omaha beach which for a long time was set at 2000-2500 and now is thought to be 4500-5000. I have not heard of any real controversy over Ryan's version of the landing, he did a lot of research and the touches on a little bit of everything from the early-morning paratroops and gliders right up to Hitler's reaction in Berchtesgaden. I recommend The Longest Day unreservedly, it's a terrific read and a great first start for anyone interested in the D-day invasion. This is a good book. What is not good is the ebook setting of margins and paragraph breaks. The last 40 per cent comes over like a drunk was typing it. 4 stars for the early part. 2 stars for the latter part. This is one of the books that have kept me from sleep all week. Before I get to my thoughts on the book, I want to explain a few things about the physical copy of the book. You all know by now that I am History-addict. I recently read The Dead and Those About to Die: D-Day: The Big Red One at Omaha Beach another 5 star read, for me, about D-Day. A few members of a group here recommended I read this account of D-day. It was not an easy book to find but I ended up getting a copy to read from MELCAT, the Michigan inter-library. When the book arrived, I thought "Good God, it's going to fall apart in my hands." How wrong (and right?) I was. I say both words because the book did fall apart-not physically-but it fell apart into my heart and soul with all the souls of the past readers. This book was published in 1959, this was an original copy of the first edition. It is taped up- top to bottom with mailing tape. If you remember the old "stamped" due dates that appeared inside the front cover of books: This started circulation on May 10, 1960 and ends March 24, 2000. Obviously the last is when they switched to computers. I want to thank the Vicksburg Library for keeping this in circulation, and trying desperately to preserve it's history. I believe when I return the book, I will attach a thank you note! This book covers D-Day-but through a thousand eyewitnesses (and he lists them all at the end of the book). The soldiers, their families, the Underground, the people who lived in the villages along the French Coast. Cornelius Ryan was an Irish Journalist who covered the war while being attached to various Air-Bourne and Land units. What made this story more chilling than ever for me? The fact that this man was writing the oral history just a a few years after, as spoken through those who fought and survived . It is told by all the fighters and survivors, from the countries who sent men to fight the evil that gripped Europe, not just the Americans. Highly Recommend! I read this years ago and just went back to it. It's always been known as one of the "classic histories" of D-Day, June 6, 1944. I'm not quite sure it deserves that status. I've read others ( ([b:The Guns at Last Light: The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945|16044941|The Guns at Last Light The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945 (World War II Liberation Trilogy, #3)|Rick Atkinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1435169033s/16044941.jpg|21858205] comes to mind) that seem to me to be more accurate, detailed, and personal than Cornelius Ryan. Perhaps back in 1959 this book was seen as great, and he does do a fine job of telling short stories about participants from France, Germany, England, Canada, and US. But those stories seem very short - a couple of paragraphs for most of them. And would it have been so hard to include a map!?!? Kudos to Ryan for including the job of the participants as an appendix. no reviews | add a review
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The classic account of the Allied invasion of Normandy The Longest Day is Cornelius Ryan's unsurpassed account of D-day, a book that endures as a masterpiece of military history. In this compelling tale of courage and heroism, glory and tragedy, Ryan painstakingly re-creates the fateful hours that preceded and followed the massive invasion of Normandy to retell the story of an epic battle that would turn the tide against world fascism and free Europe from the grip of Nazi Germany. This book, first published in 1959, is a must for anyone who loves history, as well as for anyone who wants to better understand how free nations prevailed at a time when darkness enshrouded the earth. No library descriptions found. |
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![]() GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)940.542142 — History and Geography Europe Europe 1918- Military History Of World War II Campaigns and battles by theatre European theatre FranceLC ClassificationRatingAverage:![]()
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