It took a certain type of courage to serve in a tank in World War Two. Encased in steel,surrounded by highly explosive shells,a big and slow-moving target,every crew member was utterly vulnerable to enemy attack from all sides. Living - and dying - in a tank was a brutal way to fight a war.
The Sherwood Rangers were one of the great tank regiments. They had learned their trade the hard way,under the burning sun of North Africa,on the battlefields of El Alamein and Alam el Halfa. By the time they landed on Gold Beach on D-Day,they were toughened by experience and ready for combat.
From that moment on,the Sherwood Rangers were in the thick of the action til the war's end. They and their Sherman tanks covered thousands of miles and endured some of the fiercest fighting in Western Europe. The first British unit to cross into Germany,their engagements stretch from the Normandy beaches,to the bridges at Eindhoven,and the grinding crossing of the Siegfried Line and on into the Nazi heartland.
Through compelling eye-witness testimony and James Holland's expert analysis of the war in the West,Brothers In Arms brings to vivid life the final bloody scramble across Europe and gives the most powerful account to date of what it was really like to fight in the dying days of World War Two.
Publisher: Transworld Publishers LtdISBN: 9780552177917Number of pages: 704Weight: 495 gDimensions: 198 x 127 x 30 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'Brothers in Arms does not disappoint... he has an eye for detail... he seemingly incorporates technical information about tanks and anti-tank weapons so that we get a feel for how men interacted with the technology of war... likewise,amid the numbers that demarcate hills of military deployments,Holland takes us down to the individual's experience.'-Times Literary Supplement
'War as it should be described - ordinary men facing extraordinary horror. Caught in the drama of battle,we sometimes forget the good men who died. Holland,to his credit,forces us to remember'- The Times
'Powerful and moving... James Holland's greatest strength as a military historian is that he brings humanity to his work. Brothers In Arms does more than just tell the story of the Sherwood Rangers... Holland has delved into their world and brought their characters to life.'- The Spectator
'Their (the Sherwood Rangers) story can be seen as a reflection of the British war as a whole and Holland tells it very well,using his trademark technique of immersive detail and a cast of well-defined characters. If you are a fan of his style and I am,you will find that once again it works brilliantly.'- The Daily Telegraph
'An intimate and harrowing portrayal of warfare.'- Radio Times
James Holland
James Holland is a British historian,novelist and broadcaster. He specialises in the military encounters of World War II,and his work has drawn plaudits for its humanity. Holland has also written war-related novels for both adults and children.
Visit the James Holland author page
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