The Dead and Those About to Die by John C. McManus

Along the way, McManus explores the Gap Assault Team engineers who dealt with the extensive mines and obstacles, suffering nearly a fifty percent casualty rate highlights officers such as Brigadier General Willard Wyman and Colonel George Taylor, who led the way to victory and punctures scores of myths surrounding this long-misunderstood battle. As the men hit the beach, their equipment destroyed or washed away, soldiers cut down by the dozens, courageous heroes emerged: men such as Sergeant Raymond Strojny, who grabbed a bazooka and engaged in a death duel with a fortified German antitank gun T/5 Joe Pinder, a former minor-league pitcher who braved enemy fire to save a vital radio Lieutenant John Spalding, a former sportswriter, and Sergeant Phil Streczyk, a truck driver, who together demolished a German strong point overlooking Easy Red, where hundreds of Americans had landed. Yet on D-Day, these jaded combat veterans melded with fresh-faced replacements to accomplish one of the most challenging and deadly missions ever. Nicknamed the Big Red One, 1st Division had fought from North Aįrica to Sicily, earning a reputation as stalwart warriors on the front lines and rabble-rousers in the rear. McManus has written a gripping history that will stand as the last word on this titanic battle. Show moreĪ white-knuckle account of the 1st Infantry Division's harrowing D-Day assault on the eastern sector of Omaha Beach-acclaimed historian John C. 'September Hope' conveys the American perspective like never before, through a vast array of new sources and countless personal interviews to create a truly revealing portrait of this searing human drama.

In eight days of ferocious combat, they mauled the airborne, stymied the tanks, and prevented the Allies from crossing the Rhine. The Germans, however, proved much stronger than the Allies anticipated. Their mission was to secure key bridges at such places as Son, Eindhoven, Grave, and Nijmegen until British armored forces could relieve them.

On September 17, the largest airborne drop in military history commenced over Holland-including two entire American divisions, the 101st and the 82nd. Rumors swirled that the war would soon be over.

Germans were in disarray, overwhelmed on all fronts. August 1944 saw the Allies achieve more significant victories than in any other month over the course of the war. McManus explores World War II's most ambitious invasion, Operation Market Garden, an immense, daring offensive to defeat Nazi Germany before the end of 1944.

The Dead and Those About to Die by John C. McManus