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'Among the thousands of books devoted to Second World War history only a small minority can claim to appeal to a wide audience. But through Lloyd Clark's narrative skill, ARNHEM is surely one of them'
(Daily Telegraph )'Well stocked with dramatic personal accounts and much military detail'
( Edinburgh Evening News )'This is an insightful and gripping account of what is widely considered the greatest airborne battle in history'
(People's Friend )Product Description
An insightful and gripping account of the largest airborne operation in history.
In September 1944, the river Rhine was a serious barrier to the advancing Allied armies in the West who were intent on charging Berlin and ending the war. Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery decided to utilise the First Allied Airborne Army consisting of British, American and Polish troops. Codenamed Operation Market Garden, 40,000 paratroopers were dropped behind enemy lines while ground forces linked to relieve them. But, due to bad weather and German resistance, the operation failed. In March 1945, asecond attempt was planned: Operation Varsity Plunder. This time the plan worked. Despite extremely heavy fighting, they cracked the German line.
In September 1944, the river Rhine was a serious barrier to the advancing Allied armies in the West who were intent on charging Berlin and ending the war. Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery decided to utilise the First Allied Airborne Army consisting of British, American and Polish troops. Codenamed Operation Market Garden, 40,000 paratroopers were dropped behind enemy lines while ground forces linked to relieve them. But, due to bad weather and German resistance, the operation failed. In March 1945, asecond attempt was planned: Operation Varsity Plunder. This time the plan worked. Despite extremely heavy fighting, they cracked the German line.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Loyd Clark's 'Arnhem' is the book currently holding prime position as the 'set text' on the famous (infamous?) Operation Market Garden and it's not bad, but - as someone who's read an awful lot of books on this battle - it's not that good either.
Clark relies on very familiar sources - Stephen Ambrose's 'Band of Brothers' and Roy Urquhart's 'Arnhem' - and, though he quotes from the late Robin Neillands' fascinating 'The Battle for the Rhine 1944', he does not appear to have read it. Clark does not even discuss Neillands' central contention - that the critical full stop of Market Garden was at Nijmegen due to a failure by the US forces to grab the bridge necessitating XXX Corps having to stop and help them - which is disappointing. Worse, Clark chooses to print - unchallenged - the view that the Brits - effectively - sat down for a cup of darjeeling after the Nijmegen Bridge was taken instead of pressing on to Arnhem to relieve the hard-pressed Ist Airborne Division. Neillands argues that the tank forces were spread all over the town helping the US 82nd Aiborne when the bridge was finally seized by British Shermans, which explains the pause; unquestioned by the Americans until post-war memoirs. Neillands might be wrong, but, from this book, you would not even know there was a debate.
Clark also indulges in rather tired Monty bashing. Yes, Montgomery was a difficult man, but he undoubtedly knew what he was about. Clark quotes - rightly - from Charles B McDonald, Official US Army historian and junior officer in 1944, stating that the infantrymen didn't care who was in charge, just that the war was over and they got home, but fails to recognise that Montgomery's insistence on the Ruhr as the key to German capitulation was correct. Monty was a pain - 'detestable' as Neillands, quoted in this book, says - but so what? If he had been fully backed with proper supplies and troops,then the war could have been ended quicker, which matters considering how many Jews were sent to death camps in the last few months of the Nazi regime. Eisenhower, for all his post-war glow, allowed vital supplies to head towards Patton, who was not breaking into such a vital area. For that, the supreme commander has a lot to answer for.
The book is lucid and an easy read, but - if you know anything about the strategic situation in September 1944 - curiously one-dimensional for a lecturer from Sandhurst. He concludes the air plan for Arnhem was at fault which is so obvious that it comes across as stale.
I have no doubt there will be a better, more comprehensive book on Arnhem out before too long, but - as things stand - this is about the best around if you can't face the broad-sweep inaccuracies of Cornelius Ryan's 'A Bridge Too Far' or the slightly anoraky, painfully detailed 'Arnhem 1944' by Martin Middlebrook. I was a bit disappointed, though, and would recommend the Neillands book to everyone. It's not all about Arnhem, but the chapters dealing with Market Garden are the freshest words on the battle written in decades.
Clark relies on very familiar sources - Stephen Ambrose's 'Band of Brothers' and Roy Urquhart's 'Arnhem' - and, though he quotes from the late Robin Neillands' fascinating 'The Battle for the Rhine 1944', he does not appear to have read it. Clark does not even discuss Neillands' central contention - that the critical full stop of Market Garden was at Nijmegen due to a failure by the US forces to grab the bridge necessitating XXX Corps having to stop and help them - which is disappointing. Worse, Clark chooses to print - unchallenged - the view that the Brits - effectively - sat down for a cup of darjeeling after the Nijmegen Bridge was taken instead of pressing on to Arnhem to relieve the hard-pressed Ist Airborne Division. Neillands argues that the tank forces were spread all over the town helping the US 82nd Aiborne when the bridge was finally seized by British Shermans, which explains the pause; unquestioned by the Americans until post-war memoirs. Neillands might be wrong, but, from this book, you would not even know there was a debate.
Clark also indulges in rather tired Monty bashing. Yes, Montgomery was a difficult man, but he undoubtedly knew what he was about. Clark quotes - rightly - from Charles B McDonald, Official US Army historian and junior officer in 1944, stating that the infantrymen didn't care who was in charge, just that the war was over and they got home, but fails to recognise that Montgomery's insistence on the Ruhr as the key to German capitulation was correct. Monty was a pain - 'detestable' as Neillands, quoted in this book, says - but so what? If he had been fully backed with proper supplies and troops,then the war could have been ended quicker, which matters considering how many Jews were sent to death camps in the last few months of the Nazi regime. Eisenhower, for all his post-war glow, allowed vital supplies to head towards Patton, who was not breaking into such a vital area. For that, the supreme commander has a lot to answer for.
The book is lucid and an easy read, but - if you know anything about the strategic situation in September 1944 - curiously one-dimensional for a lecturer from Sandhurst. He concludes the air plan for Arnhem was at fault which is so obvious that it comes across as stale.
I have no doubt there will be a better, more comprehensive book on Arnhem out before too long, but - as things stand - this is about the best around if you can't face the broad-sweep inaccuracies of Cornelius Ryan's 'A Bridge Too Far' or the slightly anoraky, painfully detailed 'Arnhem 1944' by Martin Middlebrook. I was a bit disappointed, though, and would recommend the Neillands book to everyone. It's not all about Arnhem, but the chapters dealing with Market Garden are the freshest words on the battle written in decades.
26 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I bought this book having read the excellent review in the Daily Telegraph and was not disappointed. I have read several books about Arnhem, but none have the readability of this one. Yes, I know all about 'A Bridge Too Far', but it's outdated and not a little confusing in places. This book by Clark blends the latest scholarship with the thrill of a great story briliantly told. It is not, it should be said, just about Arnhem (although that battle takes up half of the book) but is about British and American airborne warfare more generally. It includes an excellent chapter on the selection, training and character of airborne troops, and ends with three chapters on the Rhine Crossing in March 1945 which involved two airborne divisions. This, therefore, is a book for those intersted in the Second World War, those fascinated by 1944-45 in Europe and those who devour anything about the airborne method. To top it all off, it is so well written that you just drink it down. The main characters are wonderfully described, you really get to understand the soldier in action and the battle scenes just leap off the page. I'm not a historian, but it looks to me that all of this is backed by an incredible amount of research and lots of interviews. In summary, a great book. Buy it and you won't be disappointed.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Like the previous reviewer, I enjoyed this work immensely and it made more compelling reading than the other work I read at the same time, 'A Magnificent Disaster' (sorry, harsh but fair).
I would recommend this book to anyone with a serious or passing interest in the two Operations covered.
Pros:
- Great maps and excellent pictures, some being quite new to publication
- Great coverage of Operation Plunder Varsity, if a little short
- Fresh perspective on command decisions and the Commanders
- Liked the focus on Arnhem but the linkages through to other elements of the Operation worked very well
- Found the author to be very balanced and objective rather than just taking one side or the other, as is the case with many other books on this topic.
Cons:
- Would have liked a bit more coverage of Op Plunder Varsity !
Overall an excellent read and one definitely for the book collection of anyone interester in WW2 military history.
I would recommend this book to anyone with a serious or passing interest in the two Operations covered.
Pros:
- Great maps and excellent pictures, some being quite new to publication
- Great coverage of Operation Plunder Varsity, if a little short
- Fresh perspective on command decisions and the Commanders
- Liked the focus on Arnhem but the linkages through to other elements of the Operation worked very well
- Found the author to be very balanced and objective rather than just taking one side or the other, as is the case with many other books on this topic.
Cons:
- Would have liked a bit more coverage of Op Plunder Varsity !
Overall an excellent read and one definitely for the book collection of anyone interester in WW2 military history.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Absolutely superb account
I have now read a number of books on Market Garden, and I have to say that this book is by far my favorite. Read more
Published 9 months ago by A.J.S. 62
in memory to the airborne who gave so much at arnhem
the book brought out the facts of operation market garden by those who still remain alive today un believable facts and compelling reading from start to finish for those who love... Read more
Published 14 months ago by para
highly informative
This book starts right after the break out out of Normandy in August 1994 and ends after completing Plunder Varsity in March 1945. Read more
Published 21 months ago by L. Leentvaar
A fascinating read
Having seen the film "A Bridge Too Far" I thought it would be good to see how accurate it was. Having seen this in the shops and read a book by the author on another world war two... Read more
Published on 15 Dec 2009 by Mr. Stephen Rockey
An excellent page turner..
This is simply a superb book. It is pacey and full of brutal, gritty reality of the violence of war and especially the struggle of Operation Market Garden. Read more
Published on 11 Feb 2009 by Ian Annand
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