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Das Reich

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Das Reich

By: Max Hastings
Narrated by: Nigel Carrington
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About this listen

With an introduction read by Max Hastings.

Within days of the D-Day landings, the 'Das Reich' 2nd SS Panzer Division marched north through France to reinforce the front-line defenders of Hitler's Fortress Europe. Veterans of the bloodiest fighting of the Russian Front, 15,000 men with their tanks and artillery, they were hounded for every mile of their march by saboteurs of the Resistance and agents of the Allied Special Forces. Along their route they took reprisals so savage they will live forever in the chronicles of the most appalling atrocities of war.

Max Hasting's powerful account of their progress is a true military classic. Max Hastings, author of 20 books, was editor of the Daily Telegraph for almost a decade, and then for six years edited the Evening Standard in London. In his youth he was foreign correspondent for newspapers and BBC television. He has won many awards for his journalism, particularly his work in the South Atlantic in 1982. He was knighted in 2002.

©1984 Max Hastings (P)2014 Audible Studios 20th Century Europe France Germany Military Modern Politics & Government War & Crisis War Imperialism
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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

The book has the right mix of drama, suspense, history and action to hold your attention.

What did you like best about this story?

Having visited Oradour sur Glane I thought I understood the complicated story behind the massacre but this book gave me a much better background

Did Nigel Carrington do a good job differentiating each of the characters? How?

The narrator portrayed the characters well but he appeared to have a need to impress his readers with his knowledge of French pronunciation. The French passages, names and places were over dramatised and annunciated to the point that I hardly recognised them! The audio engineers must have spent quite some time cleaning sputum out of the microphone!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Oradour sur Glane. Unforgettable

Overdone French pronunciaion

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This book has authority: Sir Max Hastings is a renowned historian. His retelling of the movements of the Das Reich Panzer Division, immediately pre and post D-Day is founded on his own personal interviews with many of the participants of the time. So often history is (perhaps unintentionally), stripped of its dimensions as re-tellers focus on the iconic parts, for example the June 6 D-Day landings. But just one 'ripple' back from that massive 'splash' was yet another story unfolding...a story which delivers much the same as the rest on the horror-meter, but is none-the-less a vital puzzle-piece in coming to terms with what really happened around the D-Day phenomenon. A little too dense in details perhaps, for the reader who just wants a good non-fiction yarn...but spot on for those readers who want to hear the stories of WW2 in authentic and complex detail. It is vital that these stories are told, so that history can once again be understood with realism.

Beyond the Normandy beachs: This is what happened

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A detailed explanation of the delaying actions of the maquis of the 2nd SS Panzer Div and related issues.

das ist fascinating

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enjoyed the story and the performance. i never cease to be amazed by how people lived the life of a soldier and then re integrate back into a normal hum drum life. the greatest generation

a story of courage and evil in equal measure

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Great read , loved the different accents, really brought the book to life for me, highly recommended

Great narration

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The author provides an intensely interesting account of the times and by reflection. For those, like myself who don't speak French I'm sure though I have missed many points made in the book as there is no translations of these numerous comments.

A balanced book

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An interesting book which seems to be rather padded out. Not what I expected has rather a lot of French sections which are never explained to the English reader.

Interesting but not what I expected

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Well thought and balanced work on a infamous part of the war. Really makes you question the supposed rules of war.

Brilliant

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So much more to WW2 than what is consistently presented on the history channel and accadbooks.

Interesting presentation of history

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Story was all over the place. More about French resistance than Das Reich. Don't recommend it.

Story was all over the place

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