If only history was taught like this in school...
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James Holland's generosity of spirit and indefatiguable labour has created one of the best general histories I've read recently--and there's a lot of stiff competition about. As well as using writen sources, Holland personally interviewed survivors from all sides of the conflict; Germans, Poles, Canadians, Britons, Americans, Italian partisans and fascists. These accounts give a vivid picture of the heroism and brutality of war, and instil a sense of sympathy for (almost) all of the participants. Their stories are skillfully blended into the larger narrative, which explains what happened, and why the major players (Alexander, Mark Clark, Kesselring, Churchill, Roosevelt, Mussolini, etc) made crucial decisions. Holland is immenently fair-minded; the controversy surrounding Clark's dash for Rome (in defiance of Alexander's orders) is explained from all sides of the question.
Comparing this book with the banal materials presented in England's National Curriculum, one could almost be forgiven for thinking that our educators don't want our children to understand the past. If books like these--which don't require a vast amount of background knowledge--were used in our high schools, pupils would be queuing up to study history. For all that this is accessible to the non-specialist, there's nothing superficial about it. Certainly one of its most attractive features is the sympathy Holland shows to his cast of characters--a welcome relief from the sneering debunking that has been fashionable ever since Lytton Strachey first picked up his pen.
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Another tour de force
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This comparatively ignored part of WW2 occurred at around the same time as the Normandy landings but was every bit as ferocious, if not more so. Huge tracts of Italy were laid bare by the clashing armies, one of the most poignant photographic representations I have ever seen shows the lovely little town of Monte Cassino before and after the whirlwind of war had passed by; there was absolutely nothing left. As always with this superb author, we learn the tragedy of the civilians caught up in the catastrophic destruction, the confused politics, and the relentless slog of both the generals and the soldiers on each side. Amazing to discover that there seventeen different nations involved on the allied side including such diverse cultures as the Brazilians, Maoris, and Moroccan tribesmen. The latter though managed to disgrace themselves through extreme rape and pillage, adding to the continuing misery of the innocents, and they were never brought to justice, unlike the Germans who did commit many atrocities but not at the same level of depravity. Another beautifully written and complete piece of work.
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Wow what a clear and honest book
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This book makes a very clear picture of a very comlex part of the second world war. Harrowing in places the brutal truth of war and its impact on the civilian population is here in all its naked horrow.
I can't rate this high eneough and i cant wait to read his Novel based in the second world war due out in May.
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My review on Italy's Sorrow
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Of course I knew that the 1939-45 Second World War had been fought in Italy but I had never realised the extent and just how much the ordinary Italian population had suffered. This book should be required reading for anyone interested in Italy and particularly the younger generations of present day Italy.
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