Point Out Of Books The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin
| Title | : | The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin |
| Author | : | Cornelius Ryan |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | First Touchstone Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 571 pages |
| Published | : | May 1st 1995 by Simon Schuster (first published January 1st 1966) |
| Categories | : | History. Nonfiction. War. World War II. Military. Military History. Military Fiction. Cultural. Germany |
Cornelius Ryan
Paperback | Pages: 571 pages Rating: 4.21 | 5776 Users | 167 Reviews
Ilustration As Books The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin
The classic account of the final offensive against Hitler's Third Reich.The Battle for Berlin was the culminating struggle of World War II in the European theater, the last offensive against Hitler's Third Reich, which devastated one of Europe's historic capitals and marked the final defeat of Nazi Germany. It was also one of the war's bloodiest and most pivotal battles, whose outcome would shape international politics for decades to come.
Cornelius Ryan's compelling account of this final battle is a story of brutal extremes, of stunning military triumph alongside the stark conditions that the civilians of Berlin experienced in the face of the Allied assault. As always, Ryan delves beneath the military and political forces that were dictating events to explore the more immediate imperatives of survival, where, as the author describes it, “to eat had become more important than to love, to burrow more dignified than to fight, to exist more militarily correct than to win.”
It is the story of ordinary people, both soldiers and civilians, caught up in the despair, frustration, and terror of defeat. It is history at its best, a masterful illumination of the effects of war on the lives of individuals, and one of the enduring works on World War II.
Particularize Books Concering The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin
| Original Title: | The Last Battle |
| ISBN: | 0684803291 (ISBN13: 9780684803296) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Setting: | Berlin,1945(Germany) |
Rating Out Of Books The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin
Ratings: 4.21 From 5776 Users | 167 ReviewsCrit Out Of Books The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin
I am in 2019 reading a book written in 1966 about events that happened in 1945...AND I AM FURIOUS AT GENERAL DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER! 74 years have passed and I CANNOT believe that he gave the order to stop on the Elbe River and not proceed to Berlin. What a time to be a wide-eyed, trusting, boy scout! It makes one heartsick to think of how things might have been different if he had unleashed his armies that were rip roarin' ready to go. This book was riveting. My heart raced as the AmericansAhh.. Cornelius Ryan never disappoints. Another brilliant piece of work from him. Excellent portrayal of the last battle for Berlin and the three main sides (US, Britain, Germany) and the civilian population that were involved in it. Loved it! :)
It was hard to put this book down. Ryan captures your attention in the first pages and your attention never wanes. It was the first non-fiction that I felt read like a novel. Well written, very informative and conveyed the atmosphere on all sides German, Russian, and the Western Allies, that prevailed in the last days of Berlin.
This book is pushing near 50 years old, and it shows its age. Written at the height of the Cold War, it features cartoonish evil Russians and angelic Americans and Brits. It also has a cringe-inducing chapter of Russian rapes of German women. I don't doubt the accuracy of the accounts, but there is a salacious glee in the detailed recounting, while thousands of deaths don't warrant such attention. This book is a slice of history in and of itself, beyond its topic.
Ryan tries the same formula that worked for him in "The Longest Day" and "A Bridge Too Far" but doesn't seem to work as well this time, perhaps because there's lots of politics and top-level scrambling involved and less "action" -- sure, there's action, but not in as great a detail as "A Bridge . . ." -- probably not as much as in "TLD," too, but I haven't read that.Ryan seems to have interviewed scads of people but there's not really a good thread running through the book. And as far as
It's been a crazy hectic couple of weeks for me recently. Ramping up into a new role at my job (work for which I'm postponing to try to catch up on my reviews... PRIORITIES.), travelling for a conference for said new role, getting delayed on my flight home from said conference due to crazy weather, delayed again, flight cancelled, then cancelled again and again, and essentially being stranded for TWO DAYS half a country away from home... and then trying to get caught up with life afterward...
Listened to on Audible. A well-done history with the usual Ryan cast of thousands which at times made it hard to follow. He focused on both civilian and military actors, and he was able to interview many of the principals, including Russians, in writing the book. It appears his research was mainly based upon interviews and diaries.Antony Beevor has written a more recent history of the battle of Berlin which I have not read (it is not available as an audiobook) so I can't compare versions. I
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