SAND & STEEL

This massive nuts-and-bolts account corrects many of the
inaccuracies surrounding the vaunted Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944.

British historian Caddick-Adams (Military History/Defence
Academy of the U.K.; Snow and Steel: The Battle of the Bulge, 1944-45,
2014, etc.), a major in the British Territorial Army, offers an impressive
summary of the sheer materiel and human effort required in securing the
Normandy beachhead, from years of preparation to excruciating execution.
Examining Gen. Erwin Rommel’s reinforcement of the so-called Atlantikwall,
which was supposedly impenetrable, the author underscores some faulty
suppositions—e.g., that German soldiers were “supermen” when in fact they were
aged, exhausted, and relying heavily on horses for mobility. The American
presence in Britain dazzled the local population, while the black American
troops were treated with markedly more respect and warmth by the British locals
than they were used to back home, prompting one veteran to recall, “our biggest
enemy was our own troops.” Caddick-Adams, an expert in this terrain, devotes
considerable space to the months of training that the invasion required and the
many lives that were lost in run-up accidents; the prickly personalities of the
various leading generals; the reliance on the sketchy weather reports; the
nerve-wracking decision to delay the invasion 24 hours due to unpromising sea
conditions; and how the Germans, who of course knew an invasion was coming at
some point, had essentially “applied different criteria for a successful
invasion” than the Allies. Following the armada toward Normandy, the author
explains the roles of airpower, minesweepers, and assault flotillas and chronicles
how, beach by beach, the Allies made their valiant, perilous forward thrust. In
an intriguing postscript, he examines the crucial role of the spy network in
“inducing Hitler to order a series of mistaken moves based on false
intelligence.” There is also a glossary, rank table, and a list of the orders
of battles.

A thorough, exciting, and altogether excellent choice for World
War II—and especially D-Day—aficionados.