looks huge and am sure this will be a winner with the ATB folk RZM.com- Your online source for WWII books & more!
think I may do the same Dave. it was one of the most insane to take operations in the MTO thanks for the Salute'
The books have finally cleared U.S. Customs and UPS promises me that delivery will occur tomorrow. After the Battle - Online Store Looking forward to seeing it. Dave
Erich, RZM Imports, the U.S. distributor for ATB, charged my credit card (today) $94.95 for the book. Dave
Let me know how the book is. As you know, my father was at Cassino, and I'm curious as to what it has to say about the 473rd.
I have been going through this book since Friday evening. It is quite an impressive work with its numerous maps, drawings, diagrams, OOB, and comparison photos. There are eight parts: The Italian Campaign Opening Moves on the Gustav Line The First Battle The Second Battle The Third Battle The Fourth Battle The End of the Battle Epilogue Parts V (15 March to 10 May 1943) and VI (11 - 18 May 1943) have 80 and 87 pages, respectively, devoted to the brave efforts of the New Zealanders and the 4th Indian Division, the British XIII Corps, and the Polish II Corps to capture the strategic heights around Cassino and ultimately the town and abbey itself. There is an extensive bibliography and the photo credits require an entire page. Most of the archive photos are from the Imperial War Museum, the ECPAD in Paris, the Bundesarchiv, the U.S. NARA, the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, and Library and Archives Canada. Authors Jeff Plowman and Perry Rowe are competent writers, employing simple declarative sentences in their well-researched account of the battle. But the Raison d'ĂȘtre of ATB is the juxtaposition of historical photographs with contemporary images. Not unexpectedly, the book excels with hundreds of comparison photos, many of which required serious effort and a little luck to locate the scene six decades after the battle. The editors did a great job processing the archive photos, some of which I have seen and scanned at the NARA II, College Park. Some of the contemporary photos are too dark for my liking and a few have a washed-out appearance. The book was printed and bound in China. This book deserves to be in the library of anyone who is a serious student of the Italian Campaign. The authors and editors deserve high praise for a truly worthwhile addition to the literary canon of the Battle for Monte Cassino. Dave
To complement the book, the AARs of the 760th, 756th, and 753rd Tank Bns are available at CARL: 760th Tank Battalion. :: World War II Operational Documents 756th Tank Battalion Commanders narrative for months of January and February 1944. :: World War II Operational Documents 753rd Tank Battalion Mechanized. :: World War II Operational Documents Dave