- Hardcover: 608 pages
- Publisher: William Kimber & Co Ltd (3 Jan 1964)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0718300203
- ISBN-13: 978-0718300203
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 3,738,932 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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35 reviews
48 of 48 people found the following review helpful
Vintage Uris
22 Feb 2004
Format:Paperback
Mention the author Leon Uris and books like "Exodus," "Trinity," and "QB VII" come to mind. His novel ARMAGEDDON rarely makes such a list, which is a shame, as this powerful story reveals an accomplished author able to weave a riveting tale populated by a stunning array of complex characters.
I first read ARMAGEDDON over thirty years ago; it was my introduction to Uris--an intro that led me in an enthusiastic frenzy to his other works. While I have enjoyed them all (especially "QB VII"), I keep coming back to ARMAGEDDON as Uris' definitive accomplishment. Written during the height of the Cold War--detailing the alarming complexities of the Soviet blockade of Berlin following World War II and the subsequent Allied airlift--this novel explores post-war Germany from literally dozens of different perspectives.
This is a compelling read, beginning with the liberation of the Nazi death camps, when angry and frustrated Allied commanders ordered German citizens from neighboring towns to tour the prisons and see firsthand the atrocities their government had committed. As Soviet domination in eastern Germany threatens to choke the divided city of Berlin, Uris relates the fascinating events of the Allied airlift--a herculean task involving British and American cargo planes flying around the clock into the west side of the city to deliver supplies. If not for the airlift, West Berlin would have collapsed and succumbed to Soviet domination.
The story is told through the points of view of a multitude of characters: an American pilot; a young German woman; a former SS officer who was forced to perform unspeakable acts; British, American, even Russian commanders. The list of characters coming in and out of the story is formidable, yet convincing and essential. And, like Uris' other books, ARMAGEDDON is essentially a portrayal of the indomitable human spirit; for Uris fans unfamiliar with this book, or for fans of historical fiction this novel is highly recommended.
--D. Mikels
26 of 26 people found the following review helpful
A Stunning Work! 40 years hence, still evokes chills . . .
21 April 1999
I read this book several years ago, unable to put it down - and its prose still affects me today! This is perhaps the most powerful story I'd ever read. A dazzling array of characters from General Marshall to working women gathering bricks on rubble strewn Berlin cities, they're all here. Your transportation back to post-WWII Berlin is so vivid that you'll hear the roll and pounding of allied bombs, you'll swear that C-47s are flying over your living room every nineteen seconds delivering aid to stranded Berliners! Yes, its THAT powerful.
Every character is human. They elicit empathy from you, even the SS candidate who must do the unthinkable upon graduation.
To be sure, this book was written in the late 50s, early 60s. You know who the villian was then. There is a certain slant to Uris's story. He is not entirely objective in his portrait of all the villians in this novel. But it still works powerful magic.
For an engrossing, absorbing history lesson, Read Armegeddon.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Great story set against the first front of the Cold War
9 May 2008
Amazon Verified Purchase
Armageddon is my favorite Leon Uris, unless I just reread Exodus. The book is the story of one of three brothers serving as soldiers during World War II, each in different capacities. Sean O'Sullivan's war is not one of glory and flying but of thinking and strategizing how the United States will occupy Germany after the War. After his brothers are killed by the Germans he finds it hard to do his job and begin the rebuilding of this enemy state.
The story gradual turns to Berlin, the first front of the Cold War. The struggles of Sean O'Sullivan are set against the drama and escalation between the United States and the Soviet Union culminating in the Soviet blockade of Berlin in 1948 and the fledgling United States Air Force successful effort to supply Berlin by air. An air power buff will love this story of the logistics and planning it took to supply half of Berlin, by air, for almost a year.
The intermingling of the facts of rebuilding Germany, the political fight for Berlin and its eventual division into East and West, and the Berlin Airlift with the story of Sean O'Sullivan and Ernestine a young German woman he comes to love create a potent story that you don't want to end despite the long pages.
The story gradual turns to Berlin, the first front of the Cold War. The struggles of Sean O'Sullivan are set against the drama and escalation between the United States and the Soviet Union culminating in the Soviet blockade of Berlin in 1948 and the fledgling United States Air Force successful effort to supply Berlin by air. An air power buff will love this story of the logistics and planning it took to supply half of Berlin, by air, for almost a year.
The intermingling of the facts of rebuilding Germany, the political fight for Berlin and its eventual division into East and West, and the Berlin Airlift with the story of Sean O'Sullivan and Ernestine a young German woman he comes to love create a potent story that you don't want to end despite the long pages.
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