Brothers in Arms cover art

Brothers in Arms

One Legendary Tank Regiment's Bloody War from D-Day to VE-Day

Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Brothers in Arms

By: James Holland
Narrated by: Al Murray
Try Premium Plus free

Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $33.99

Buy Now for $33.99

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

** READ BY AL MURRAY **
'War as it should be described. The book is an assault on the senses...Painful to read but impossible to put down' Gerard de Groot, The Times

From the bestselling author of Normandy '44 and Sicily '43 comes an extraordinary account of the last year of the Second World War

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.

© James Holland 2021 (P) Penguin Audio 2021

20th Century Europe Great Britain Military Modern War Africa Italy

Critic 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.
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
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.
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
An intimate and harrowing portrayal of warfare
All stars
Most relevant
This is a great book. If you've ever wondered about what it must have been like battling in a tank during one of the Secpnd Wprld War's greatest battle this story will put you right in the drivers seat. It starts with landing on the beach of Normandy on D Day and goes right through to the German surrender. It covers the whole range of an armoured regiment from the commanding officer down through all the ranks right to the lives of the crewmen. It's very moving and the actions of the regiment's padre is very heart wrenching.

A great listen. Well written, narrated and produced.

Well worth a listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Well written and narrated, telling the story of a humble Regiment whose stoic and professional approach to fighting significantly contributed to victory.

A great Regiments brutal road to glory.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

It really hits home how young they were and how incredibly brave. This was a really well done book and very well read.

That was an amazing story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I have read and listened to most of James Holland’s histories of WW2, but this would have had to be the best so far, maybe not to be equalled? Al Murray has improved his narration as well. The Sherwood Rangers emanating from a Cavalry unit with horses to a group of mainly civilians in the famous Sherman tanks is an inspiring story of courage and resilience from the Day landings to the end of the war in Europe in May 1945. This is a story of ordinary people performing extraordinary feats without the modern day fanfare attributed to special forces nowadays. Listen to this audio version and as well buy the book. You won’t regret the purchases.

The best book of 2021

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Tremendous bravery but I struggled a little keeping track of all the name. I suppose it's inevitable really as so many of the men died or were rotated out through injury to be replaced by new men. we have so much to be thankful to those men for

I'm glad I read it and learnt a lot from it

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.