Reviews
Praise for James Holland: "Highly detailed . . . The interplay of personal stories with the broader strategic picture makes this book especially illuminating . . . A fascinating must-read for World War II aficionados." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on Big Week "James Holland's The War in the West is set fair to become one of the truly great multivolume histories of the Second World War." --Andrew Roberts, New York Times -bestselling author of The Storm of War: A New History of the Second World War and Napoleon: A Life "A fascinating story of how the fortunes of war changed in obvious--and particularly not so obvious--ways." --Col. Eric M. Walters, Military Review on The Allies Strike Back "Holland puts the case for Allied technological and military skills as a vital factor in turning the war's tide . . . Ranks as a towering work of historical research and writing." -- BBC History Magazine on The Allies Strike Back "This is narrative history as intimate, intricate tapestry . . . Mr. Holland's success is built in part on an engaging writing style and in part on a genuinely fresh approach to events that have been so often--and apparently definitively--recounted . . . Exceptional . . . Epic." -- Wall Street Journal on The Rise of Germany "Impeccably researched and superbly written . . . Holland's fascinating saga offers a mixture of captivating new research and well-considered revisionism." -- Guardian on The Rise of Germany, Praise for Normandy '44 : "A superb account of the invasions that deserves immense praise . . . To convey the human drama of Normandy requires great knowledge and sensitivity. Holland has both in spades." -- Times (UK) "Describes with exhilarating pace and detail where the contents of all those rural Hampshire depots and tank parks ended up between early June and late August in 1944. This may sound like a story you have heard and seen before, but this version--even though the outcome is familiar--contains an ingredient too infrequently found in history books: it is exciting . . . Adrenaline flows here from a thrilling sense of being close to the people making the decisions, firing the weapons, and witnessing enemy tanks come rumbling around a corner." -- Strong Words Magazine "This hefty, scrupulously balanced history of the Allied invasion of northern France goes beyond some of the well-known events of D-Day, thanks to Holland's meticulous research and clear-eyed view of the big picture . . . An excellent and engrossing new look at the Normandy invasion." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Veteran military historian Holland knows the drill but doesn't hesitate to wander from the script . . . A skillful writer, Holland delivers the occasional jolt, such as a mild rehabilitation of Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. Even contemporary criticized his careful preparation and slow advances, but the author points out that this took maximum advantage of superior Allied resources and saved lives. Far from the first but among the better histories of the Allied invasion of Europe." -- Kirkus Reviews "[A] major new history . . . A comprehensive look at less sensational or dramatic aspects, such as the economics and logistics of war." --Lenny Picker, Publishers Weekly Praise for James Holland: "Highly detailed . . . The interplay of personal stories with the broader strategic picture makes this book especially illuminating . . . A fascinating must-read for World War II aficionados." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on Big Week "James Holland's The War in the West is set fair to become one of the truly great multivolume histories of the Second World War." --Andrew Roberts, New York Times -bestselling author of The Storm of War: A New History of the Second World War and Napoleon: A Life "A fascinating story of how the fortunes of war changed in obvious--and particularly not so obvious--ways." --Col. Eric M. Walters, Military Review on The Allies Strike Back "Holland puts the case for Allied technological and military skills as a vital factor in turning the war's tide . . . Ranks as a towering work of historical research and writing." -- BBC History Magazine on The Allies Strike Back "This is narrative history as intimate, intricate tapestry . . . Mr. Holland's success is built in part on an engaging writing style and in part on a genuinely fresh approach to events that have been so often--and apparently definitively--recounted . . . Exceptional . . . Epic." -- Wall Street Journal on The Rise of Germany "Impeccably researched and superbly written . . . Holland's fascinating saga offers a mixture of captivating new research and well-considered revisionism." -- Guardian on The Rise of Germany, Praise for Normandy ''44 : An Amazon Best Book of the Month (History) "While the invasion''s first wave consumes half the book''s ammunition, Mr. Holland holds plenty in reserve for the Allied crawl through hedgerow country, the battle with Hitler''s panzers at Caen, the brilliant breakout of Operation Cobra seven weeks after D-Day, and the corpse-strewn German retreat through the Falaise Gap . . . Detail and scope are the twin strengths of Normandy ''44 . . . Mr. Holland effectively balances human drama with the science of war as the Allies knew it." --Jonathan W. Jordan, Wall Street Journal "A superb account of the invasions that deserves immense praise . . . To convey the human drama of Normandy requires great knowledge and sensitivity. Holland has both in spades." -- Times (UK) "Describes with exhilarating pace and detail where the contents of all those rural Hampshire depots and tank parks ended up between early June and late August in 1944. This may sound like a story you have heard and seen before, but this version--even though the outcome is familiar--contains an ingredient too infrequently found in history books: it is exciting . . . Adrenaline flows here from a thrilling sense of being close to the people making the decisions, firing the weapons, and witnessing enemy tanks come rumbling around a corner." -- Strong Words Magazine "This hefty, scrupulously balanced history of the Allied invasion of northern France goes beyond some of the well-known events of D-Day, thanks to Holland''s meticulous research and clear-eyed view of the big picture . . . An excellent and engrossing new look at the Normandy invasion." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Veteran military historian Holland knows the drill but doesn''t hesitate to wander from the script . . . A skillful writer, Holland delivers the occasional jolt, such as a mild rehabilitation of Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. Even contemporaries criticized his careful preparation and slow advances, but the author points out that this took maximum advantage of superior Allied resources and saved lives. Far from the first but among the better histories of the Allied invasion of Europe." -- Kirkus Reviews "[A] major new history . . . A comprehensive look at less sensational or dramatic aspects, such as the economics and logistics of war." --Lenny Picker, Publishers Weekly Praise for James Holland: "Highly detailed . . . The interplay of personal stories with the broader strategic picture makes this book especially illuminating . . . A fascinating must-read for World War II aficionados." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on Big Week "James Holland''s The War in the West is set fair to become one of the truly great multivolume histories of the Second World War." --Andrew Roberts, New York Times -bestselling author of The Storm of War: A New History of the Second World War and Napoleon: A Life "A fascinating story of how the fortunes of war changed in obvious--and particularly not so obvious--ways." --Col. Eric M. Walters, Military Review on The Allies Strike Back "Holland puts the case for Allied technological and military skills as a vital factor in turning the war''s tide . . . Ranks as a towering work of historical research and writing." -- BBC History Magazine on The Allies Strike Back "This is narrative history as intimate, intricate tapestry . . . Mr. Holland''s success is built in part on an engaging writing style and in part on a genuinely fresh approach to events that have been so often--and apparently definitively--recounted . . . Exceptional . . . Epic." -- Wall Street Journal on The Rise of Germany "Impeccably researched and superbly written . . . Holland''s fascinating saga offers a mixture of captivating new research and well-considered revisionism." -- Guardian on The Rise of Germany, Praise for Normandy '44 : "Veteran military historian Holland knows the drill but doesn't hesitate to wander from the script . . . A skillful writer, Holland delivers the occasional jolt, such as a mild rehabilitation of Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. Even contemporary criticized his careful preparation and slow advances, but the author points out that this took maximum advantage of superior Allied resources and saved lives. Far from the first but among the better histories of the Allied invasion of Europe." -- Kirkus Reviews Praise for James Holland: "Highly detailed . . . The interplay of personal stories with the broader strategic picture makes this book especially illuminating . . . A fascinating must-read for World War II aficionados." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on Big Week "James Holland's The War in the West is set fair to become one of the truly great multivolume histories of the Second World War." --Andrew Roberts, New York Times -bestselling author of The Storm of War: A New History of the Second World War and Napoleon: A Life "A fascinating story of how the fortunes of war changed in obvious--and particularly not so obvious--ways." --Col. Eric M. Walters, Military Review on The Allies Strike Back "Holland puts the case for Allied technological and military skills as a vital factor in turning the war's tide . . . Ranks as a towering work of historical research and writing." -- BBC History Magazine on The Allies Strike Back "This is narrative history as intimate, intricate tapestry . . . Mr. Holland's success is built in part on an engaging writing style and in part on a genuinely fresh approach to events that have been so often--and apparently definitively--recounted . . . Exceptional . . . Epic." -- Wall Street Journal on The Rise of Germany "Impeccably researched and superbly written . . . Holland's fascinating saga offers a mixture of captivating new research and well-considered revisionism." -- Guardian on The Rise of Germany
