Armageddon: The Battle for Germany, 1944-1945
by Max Hastings
List Price:
Our Price: $11.02
You Save: $7.93 (42%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $5.45 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Max HastingsEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-10-18
ISBN: 0375714227
Number of pages: 584
Publisher: Vintage
Book Reviews of Armageddon: The Battle for Germany, 1944-1945
Book Review: the last hellish nine months of World War 2
Summary: 4 Stars
Armageddon is the story of the end of World War 2. This story begins at the end of September 1944 on the western front directly after the Falaise Gap actions and continues until the end of the war in May 1945. Along the way, the author explores the actions, motivations, and intentions of the American-British force, the Russians, the Nazi army and the various civilian populations who were caught up in the ordeal. Every aspect of the war is addressed including bombing attacks, the concentation camps, POW's and the aftermaths of the war.
This book is a tour de force of information and a fountain of data that will be hard pressed to be found elsewhere. One of its most interesting featurs is that the author is not afraid to share his extremely pointed opinions of the various generals and leaders of the differing countries. While it is not exceptional for historians to point out how crazy Hitler was in his pursuit of policies like not allowing military retreats; insisting the death of the Jews; and using precious resources to move POWs away from the fighting fronts, it is very unusual to read criticisms of Eisenhower, Montgomery, Patton and other heroes of the western world.
In his criticisms, Hastings is unstinting. He portrays Eisenhower as a mostly inept general who nonetheless was a good people manager and thereby saved the alliance from disintegrating in acrimony. Montgomery is presented as an overweening and preening peacock who is only interested in his own glory and does not recognize that his only generalship skills are in fighting setpiee battles. Patton is shown to be a boor who conducts unrealistic battles, and launches raids to rescue his family members from German captivity. It is actually quite sobering to realize that the author has words of praise only for the Soviet generals and the German military men - on them he heaps unstinting praise for their fighting abilities while deplorin their cruel and wanton behaviors.
All the major events of this part of the war are laid out in chronological fashion. The follow of Operation Market Garden; The Battle of the Bulge; The Zhukov offensive in the East; terminating in the battle for Berlin are all explained in detail with maps assembled and placed ot aid understanding.
An interesting feature of this book is the telling of many events from the point of view of the participants, and most of those are the private soldiers and grunts who were in the trenches and really observed and participated in the war. The stories are told from the Bomber crews in both the British and American air forces, from the view of the American grunt, the Nazi privates, the German and Dutch civilians; the POW's and the concentration camp survivors. The author laments that so many people died on the Eastern fronts as he could not get as many diaries and source material as he was able to collect from the western front participants.
This is a large book. It is over 500 pages of text with several sets of photographs and assorted appendices. The text is rather small which means that more information is packed into every one of the pages.
The narrative is powerful and grim. This is not a book that you can simply pick up and read through in one shot. I frequently found myself putting it down when the going got too rough for me. It is a book that makes you think and really pounds its points home. If you are looking for a comprehensive look at the end of the war with pointed viewpoints, this is a good book for you to read.
Summary of Armageddon: The Battle for Germany, 1944-1945
In September 1944, the Allies believed that Hitler?s army was beaten and expected the bloodshed to end by Christmas. Yet a series of mistakes and setbacks, including the Battle of the Bulge, drastically altered this timetable and led to eight more months of brutal fighting. With Armageddon, the eminent military historian Max Hastings gives us memorable accounts of the great battles and captures their human impact on soldiers and civilians. He tells the story of both the Eastern and Western Fronts, raising provocative questions and offering vivid portraits of the great leaders. This rousing and revelatory chronicle brings to life the crucial final months of the twentieth century?s greatest global conflict.World War II Books
- Subjects > History > Military > World War II
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in World War II Books
The Limits of Empireby Robert J. McMahon
Columbia University Press; Published: 1999-02-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $24.32
Price in other shops:
Mussolini's Shadow: The Double Life of Count Galeazzo Cianoby Mr. Ray Moseley
Yale University Press; Published: 2000-02-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $30.00
Price in other shops:
Bat Bomb: World War II's Other Secret Weaponby Jack Couffer
University of Texas Press; Published: 2008-02-19; Paperback; Book
Best price: $17.13
Price in other shops:
Neighbors: The Destruction of the Jewish Community in Jedwabne, Polandby Jan T. Gross
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2002-10-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.50
Price in other shops:
They Were Expendableby William Lindsay, White
Harcourt; Published: 1942-01; Hardcover; Book
D-Day: The Battle for Normandyby Antony Beevor
Penguin Audio; Published: 2009-10-13; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $18.65
Price in other shops:
Hitler's Pope: The Secret History of Pius XIIby John Cornwell
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2008-04-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.67
Price in other shops:
Maus: A Survivor's Taleby Art Spiegelman
Penguin Books, Limited (UK); Published: 2003-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $16.43
Price in other shops:
First Lightby Geoffrey Wellum
Penguin Books; Published: 2003-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $39.88
Masters and Commanders: How Four Titans Won the War in the West, 1941-1945by Andrew Roberts
Harper Perennial; Published: 2010-05-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.37
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
The Second World Warby John Keegan
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2005-05-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.37
Price in other shops:
The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 (Liberation Trilogy)by Rick Atkinson
Holt Paperbacks; Published: 2008-09-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.92
Price in other shops:
The Fall of Berlin 1945by Antony Beevor
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2003-04-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.45
Price in other shops:
Ostkrieg: Hitler's War of Extermination in the Eastby Stephen G. Fritz
The University Press of Kentucky; Published: 2011-09-08; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $18.46
Price in other shops:
The End: The Defiance and Destruction of Hitler's Germany, 1944-1945by Ian Kershaw
Penguin Press HC, The; Published: 2011-09-08; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $9.99
Price in other shops:
The Korean Warby Max Hastings
Simon & Schuster; Published: 1988-10-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.50
Price in other shops:
Winston's War: Churchill, 1940-1945 (Vintage)by Max Hastings
Vintage; Published: 2011-05-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.98
Price in other shops:
Overlord: D-Day and the Battle for Normandyby Max Hastings
Vintage; Published: 2006-01-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.21
Price in other shops:
Retribution: The Battle for Japan, 1944-45 (Vintage)by Max Hastings
Vintage; Published: 2009-03-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.55
Price in other shops:
Inferno: The World at War, 1939-1945by Max Hastings
Knopf; Published: 2011-11-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.92
Price in other shops: