The War North of Rome: June 1944-May 1945

Rating:
Summary: A Blizzard of Details
Review: I originally bought the hardcover edition for research purposes. It doesn't have the narrative flow of Rick Atkinson's "An Army at Dawn" and is a bit of a slog for the casual reader. However, there are many gems contained within, such as references to the Polish troops whose heroism was rewarded at the Yalta Conference by turning them over to the Russians after the war. There is little reference to the role played by the various air forces in both tactical and strategic support, and I found that disappointing. However, the assault on the Gothic Line is pretty well covered, and there is a blizzard of details on troop movements. The action is presented in a very dry, forthright manner. It depends more on official reports than on first hand accounts. I'd still buy it as a reference work, though another reviewer presents a good case for carefully checking other sources too.

Rating:
Summary: A Blizzard of Details
Review: I originally bought the hardcover edition for research purposes. It doesn't have the narrative flow of Rick Atkinson's "An Army at Dawn" and is a bit of a slog for the casual reader. However, there are many gems contained within, such as references to the Polish troops whose heroism was rewarded at the Yalta Conference by turning them over to the Russians after the war. There is little reference to the role played by the various air forces in both tactical and strategic support, and I found that disappointing. However, the assault on the Gothic Line is pretty well covered, and there is a blizzard of details on troop movements. The action is presented in a very dry, forthright manner. It depends more on official reports than on first hand accounts. I'd still buy it as a reference work, though another reviewer presents a good case for carefully checking other sources too.

Rating:
Summary: Loved it, the real unknown war!!
Review: I read this book while I was living in Italy, so I found it even more interesting. The fall of Rome happened the same time the Invasion of Normandy did, and with the Battles in Western Europe raging on, this arena of combat has allways been overlooked. While few can name any key battles after the fall of Rome, the combat was as heroic and bloody as in any theater. Brooks does an amazing job of recanting this remarkable campaign. The level of detail is superb, and the book was very easy to read. The vast types of units that are described (US Mountain troops, Ethnic units, and varoius allies) makes the book even more enjoyable. This might be a tough book to find, however keep trying, it is well worth it.

Rating:
Summary: Loved it, the real unknown war!!
Review: I read this book while I was living in Italy, so I found it even more interesting. The fall of Rome happened the same time the Invasion of Normandy did, and with the Battles in Western Europe raging on, this arena of combat has allways been overlooked. While few can name any key battles after the fall of Rome, the combat was as heroic and bloody as in any theater. Brooks does an amazing job of recanting this remarkable campaign. The level of detail is superb, and the book was very easy to read. The vast types of units that are described (US Mountain troops, Ethnic units, and varoius allies) makes the book even more enjoyable. This might be a tough book to find, however keep trying, it is well worth it.

Rating:
Summary: Readable but flawed.
Review: The book is very detailed about the progress of the campaign. But there is a very serious mistake in the last page. Brooks writes that the town of Torbole was destroyed in a house to house battle. This is absolutely wrong, I lived practically next door and can assure you that Torbole survived unscathed. This throws into doubt all the rest of the book. Also there is no record among the population that any American soldiers were killed in tunnel # 5. But while dinamiting the road a contingent of German troops (actually they were from Bolzano)was decimated by a premature explosion and were laid to rest in a side chamber in one of the tunnels; the entrance was then bricked up.