The Crash of Ruin: American Combat Soldiers in Europe during World War II

Rating:
Summary: A classic!
Review: One of the most remarkable books on World War II I have ever come across. Belongs up there with Ambrose and Linderman. Up there even with Bell Irvin Wiley's classics on Johnny Reb and Billy Yank, America's Civil War soldiers.

Rating:
Summary: Europe seen by American Soldiers
Review: Peter Schrijvers' book is a wonderful one when as a reader or a scholar you are interested in intercultural studies or more generally in perception that one has of the other(s). Using an extensive aray of primary sources (diaries, letters, poems, songs, jokes, cartoons and memoirs) Peter Schrijvers allows any readers to enter the G.I.'s state of mind. Either intellectually or emotionally one has the possibility to see how Europe (its nature, weather, landscape, cities, town) and Europeans (whether Allies or Foes) were perceived by the G.I.'s during this period. But this book also is about another actor of this dark period, namely: War. Peter Schrijvers' book is a reminder on how powerfully War can shape someone's perception and how it surprisingly can blur G.I.s' vision of their surroundings. It is striking to see that American soldiers weren't really able to distinguish between a normal and an exceptional period of time in European life. War years seemed to be the reflection of a normal image of Europe and by reading Peter Schrijvers' book one might understand why it was perceived so.