D-Day

The Battle for Normandy

By: Antony Beevor

Narrated by: Cameron Stewart

Length: 19 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

"Glorious, horrifying...D-Day is a vibrant work of history that honors the sacrifice of tens of thousands of men and women." (Time)

Beevor's Ardennes 1944: The Battle of the Bulge is now available from Viking Books.

Renowned historian Antony Beevor, the man who "single-handedly transformed the reputation of military history" (The Guardian) presents the first major account in more than 20 years of the Normandy invasion and the liberation of Paris. This is the first book to describe not only the experiences of the American, British, Canadian, and German soldiers, but also the terrible suffering of the French caught up in the fighting. Beevor draws upon his research in more than 30 archives in six countries, going back to original accounts and interviews conducted by combat historians just after the action. D-Day is the consummate account of the invasion and the ferocious offensive that led to Paris' liberation.

©2009 Anthony Beevor (P)2009 Penguin

Critic reviews

"Absorbing... The reader finished this accessible history with the sense he has had a 360-degree look at Operation Overlord and its multinational cast... Terrifing reading." (USA Today)

"A dramatic, important, and instructive story, and Beevor tells it surpassingly well." (The Washington Post)

"Where the book really scores is in its eye for the operational detail and its vivid reconstructions of the experience of battle, as unavoidable courage mixes with arbitrary tragedy." (Lawrence Freedman, Foreign Affairs)

Among the best..

This book is marvelous in all ways. Having been written many years after the fact, With newly released archives, it is a grand edition to add to the ,”you are there”, quality.
Reading both sides of a battle as seen and lived by the rivals, Beevor deserves enormous credit for adding greatly to what we had read earlier.
The reader is excellent. His efforts at imitating the manner speech of the main characters are most successful with Churchill and Monty.
And Patton is his best American voice. Patton would like that.

Life used to be a little harder back in the day...

Perspective through history is important. While it's good to remain in the present, it's critical to remember the past.

Another great book by Beevor

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

If you are into a methodical story of a battle from both sides, then Beevor is a master, and this book is for you. I couldn't stop listening.

What other book might you compare D-Day to and why?

Stalingrad by Antony Beevor and Berlin by Antony Beevor

What does Cameron Stewart bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His accents were great. He has brilliant, distinct accents for American Generals, American Soldiers, Canadians, Scottish, German and eccentric Brits, etc... I was pleasantly surprised by his masterful performance

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I did, but at 20+ hours, that's not possible. It took me about a month of listening to and from work.

Any additional comments?

The only criticisms I have is there is far too much focus on the French (especially at the end), and not enough criticism of the French (there seemed to be praise and admiration for them and their pompous attitudes). Also, while it is highlighted, I don't think there is enough criticism of Montgomery's failures. I would have also like to hear more from the German perspective, especially from their home-front. But these criticisms are nothing significant. Overall this is a great book.

Pre D-Day to liberation Paris; the start of European campaign

I expected a story about the beaches of Normandy, but ended up (happily) getting a history covering the first several months of the European campaign. Detailed summary of the overall strategic push towards Paris, combined with a collection of individual accounts of tactical engagements put the reader/listener in 1944 France. This audiobook is best listened to while occasionally glancing at a map, as understanding the geography of northern France is important to grasp what is occurring.

Some reviewers have negatively commented of the narrator’s American accent as too “1940’s Hollywood”, I on the other hand was simply impressed by his multiple accents: German, French, American, and several British dialects. He makes it easy to understand who’s speaking.

If I had one wished for improvement, it would be audible footnotes which I can only assume exist in the print version of the book. There are numerous French and German quotes which are not translated in the audiobook. Some are understandable with context, others I had no clue what was being said.

Overall, would highly recommend to anyone desiring a solid account of the greatest naval invasion in history.

Awesome!

I really liked the in-depth explanation of this battle, many people focus a lot on the landings and not enough on the drive to Paris. highly recommend!

Incredibly Well-Done Narration

Would you listen to D-Day again? Why?

I have listened to this audiobook three separate times. Cameron's ability to do multiple languages and accents is unrivaled.

Excellant audiobook

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes I would recommend to anyone interested in D day and the battle for France.

Which character – as performed by Cameron Stewart – was your favorite?

The Narration was very well done. But we Americans don't really sound like that do we?

History the way it should be...

If it is written by Antony Beevor you know you're getting a great history lesson. This is my 3rd book by Beevor. I highly recommend it.

Fascinating read

A great overall narrative. Well read with good pacing and delivery. While the changing accents for different speakers throughout the book took a little bit to get used to, it was helpful in remembering which countries each of the people were from.

Interesting story and details of d day and post

Interesting story and details of d day and post to Paris liberation. well read , generally well balanced account.