I received this ARC from Publisher for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Battle of the Bulge by Rick Atkinson Published by Macmillan on June 30th, 2015
Pages: 256
Source: ARC from Publisher
Amazon-Indiebound
Goodreads
On the 16th of December, 1944, in the frozen forests of the Ardennes, the German army attacked American Allied forces, launching a final bid to turn the tide of World War II. Thus began the long, hard slog of a battle that was nicknamed by the media as the Battle of the Bulge. Lasting more than a month, it led to tens of thousands of casualties. Sir Winston Churchill called it "the greatest American battle of the war and . . . an ever-famous American victory." Atkinson skillfully guides his audience through the attacks and counterattacks, the advances and retreats of this terrible bloodbath. Whether history buffs or newcomers to the topic, young readers will appreciate the author’s clear and accessible prose, as well as the many fascinating facts, photographs, and statistics.
A historical exploration of World War II's Battle of the Bulge from Pulitzer Prize–winner and New York Times–bestselling author Rick Atkinson.
My Thoughts:
Rick Atkinson’s other YA nonfiction – D-Day: The Invasion of Normandy, 1944 is really popular in my middle school library. When I saw this one offered for review I knew I wanted to give it a try. It fits my “read one nonfiction book a month” goal and now I can talk about it with my students!
The set-up for this book is really well done… the photos, the headings, the boxes of information… I liked it all. I am really interested in seeing a finished copy. Not all of the images were there in the ARC and many didn’t have captions yet. Obviously this was to be expected but now I really want to know more about the images that were there!
As far as the story itself… it wasn’t what I was expecting. It was a very detailed timeline of the before, during, and after of the Battle of the Bulge from both sides. It’s really well done and I can think of a number of students off the top of my head who will love it. I found it interesting but I’m learning that I’m much more interested in the stories of the people involved in historical events. I want to know about their lives and how they were affected. There is some of this in the story but it is much more about the event itself.
Readers interested in military battles will find Battle of the Bulge by Rick Atkinson to their liking. It really gives the reader a clear understanding of the event and the repercussions that followed. I’ll certainly be buying a copy for my library.
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