Killing Patton

Publisher's Summary

Listeners around the world have thrilled to Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy, and Killing Jesus - riveting works of nonfiction that journey into the heart of the most famous murders in history. Now, from Bill O'Reilly, anchor of The O'Reilly Factor, comes the most epic book of all in this multimillion-selling series: Killing Patton.

General George S. Patton, Jr., died under mysterious circumstances in the months following the end of World War II. For almost 70 years, there has been suspicion that his death was not an accident - and may very well have been an act of assassination. Killing Patton will take listeners inside the final year of the war and recount the events surrounding Patton's tragic demise, naming names of the many powerful individuals who wanted him silenced.

©2014 Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard (P)2014 Macmillan Audio

Bill O'Reilly "Phoned It In" - Poor Performance

What did you love best about Killing Patton?

The story was very engaging. A lot of very interesting history tidbits. Where do they get this stuff? I loved it.

Any additional comments?

I was so disappointed in Bill O'Reilly's performance. At times I wondered if he had even READ the material before. His delivery was consistently poor throughout. At times he slurred. There were mispronunciations and numerous things that just should not have passed quality control. Is there no one that has the spine to say to Bill "Hey, can we back up and take that paragraph again?"

21 of 25 people found this review helpful

Bill, stick with what you know!

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I would hire a professional reader!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Killing Patton?

I had never heard the allegations that Wild Bill Donovan played a significant role in the death.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Bill O'Reilly?

There are dozens of great, good or even adequate narrators on Audible products who would do a better job.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Yes

Any additional comments?

Bill O'Reilly's performance showed a lack of preparation. It was NOT a workmanlike effort, and it sometimes seemed that this was the first time O'Reilly had read this material! He made me suspect that he didn't participate much in the writing of the book other than to lend his name. He mispronounced common English words, and he hadn't a clue how to pronounce the German words and names. I was embarrassed for him!

20 of 24 people found this review helpful

Is this the book that could "Kill" a series?

There are two things about this book that are worth mentioning.

Firstly... The pace is fast and engaging as with the other three "killing" books. A good formula to engage those without a penchant for history. And on that alone I would recommend this book.

Secondly... For those who study history it offers very little in the way of new facts. There is also the problem that the story meanders around the title "Killing Patton" making one think it is full of filler material to bulk up the story. I trust this book is a one off and not a precursor of things to come. I say this because the other three books seem to stick with the premise "Killing..."
As to making one think there is a conspiracy I think it fails to bring the reader to that...

I enjoy the O'Reilly Factor on TV, but, Bill your narration style is not pleasant. Jerky, sloppy pronunciation can make it a chore for the listener. This in the past has been compensated/overlooked by the fast paced compelling stories, but not this time.

Once again, yes I would highly recommend this book to someone not familiar with the subject matter but on a personal note I'm somewhat disappointed and I'm left asking what may have really died here...

27 of 34 people found this review helpful

Really Disappointing and not about what you think.

What did you like best about Killing Patton? What did you like least?

There is a brutality to war explored in this book that perhaps is worthy of remembering. The history related is spot on, but only a very little of the content is actually devoted to the death of George Patton and that is in the last few minutes. Mostly in the epilogue. I already knew quite a lot of the history and wanted to know more about a possible conspiracy to murder Patton. I walked away feeling a little beat up and really still uninformed about the Killing of Patton. This was almost a waste of a credit to me. A few interesting anecdotes about William “Wild Bill” Donovan was about the only thing which kept me from requesting a refund.

How could the performance have been better?

Bill O'Reilly is entertaining on TV but no narrator - AND it sounded like he was unfamiliar with some of the content. Not good.

18 of 23 people found this review helpful

A good book with alot of flaws

Killing Patton is Bill O's latest 'fast food style' book in the Killing series. Preceded by Killing Lincoln, Kennedy and Jesus, Patton has some tall expectations to live up to.

Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard release a historical book every year and Patton is 2014's edition. All books are written in the same format so if you enjoyed the previous three installments, you will enjoy this book. It is an easy book to listen to. Add on top of that the fact that I'm a WW2 history buff made this book a must purchase for me.

THIS BOOK IS NOT WITHOUT ITS FAULTS

The first chapter of this book deals with Patton's automobile accident and subsequent death. You already know the ending before the second chapter begins. For me, it is anticlimactic

The rest of the book ping pongs back and forth through the final year of WW2. This book is not a thesis on the late General as the title suggests but more a weak melodrama. There are MANY MANY MANY incidents included in this book that have nothing to do with Patton or his immediate world around him. Examples are the chapters included about Auchwitz concentration camp The General and 3rd army never entered Poland or Auchwitz and therefor its reasons for inclusion in this book questioned. Additionally, the story of Anne Frank and her subsequent death are chronicled. Again, Anne Frank and George Patton have nothing in common. Why it is included is again a question.

All of the facts presented in this book are already widely known and readily available. One gets the impression that this book is meant for entertainment and quick sales and not as a historical thesis. Keeping that in mind, this book is recommended for its entertainment value.

If you enjoyed Bill's other Killing books, you will enjoy this book May I suggest to Bill a title for next years book, Killing Hoffa. Id preorder that copy right now.

36 of 47 people found this review helpful

Another Killing: The Best So Far

Easily the best of all of the "Killing" books.

I really enjoyed this one and enjoy even more telling others about this book. While the assassinations' of Kennedy and Lincoln are part of modern school curriculum, I'm amazed how much I didn't know about Patton's death.

The book is a good overview of the march toward Berlin, but delves more into the Geopolitical Chess game being played than the strategy of the fighting. Great insight into the mind of Patton and his motivations.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

O'Reilly Should Not Read His Own Books

The story is well known and the book brought out some obscure information and, in my opinion, jumped to some fanciful conclusions.

Maybe he was murdered and maybe not. Author did not build a convincing case. Too much supposition.

Narrator mispronounced many words that are commonly known to students of WWII history. That was disappointing and distracting!

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

Disappointed on two fronts

Ok book, however, disappointing on two fronts .. sadly while a professional newscaster, Bill O'Reilly is not a good narrator. His stumbling through this book really detracted from the story, in fact the epilog, which is read by someone else was the easiest to listen to. The book is probably best read as a physical book. While the story was interesting, there was really nothing new historically.

11 of 15 people found this review helpful

Mysterious DEMISE of "old blood and guts" Patton

PLOT: the circumstances surrounding the death of the General George Patton.

General George Patton "old Blood and guts" ...the general who used every bit of his skills and pushed him men to the brink many times. His victories are legendary this larger than life general. He pushed his way into the Rhine and the heart of Germany and helped save BASTOGNE by pushing against very heavy odds to help win the Battle of the Bulge. His distrusted the Russians openly and often offended them in interviews and comments to the point where the KGB....(RUSSIAN secret police) had him on their HIT list. Patton often made many mistakes including "slapping' a soldier and wanting to push ahead of the Russians into Berlin. He suffered from "foot in his mouth".... He knew many secrets of Allies. He was a "loose cannon" in the eyes of many people including 2 American Presidents both FDR and Truman. Some near misses including an attack by a British Spitfire on Patton's plane add to the intrigue. Being sent home and given a "bogus" army to lead.....to save face....Patton is days away from returning to the USA when he is "accidentally" hit by stolen American military truck with 3 DRUNK American soldiers in the truck. Suffering a serious spinal injury but he is expected to live but suddenly dies. Leading yet more mystery surrounding his death. There are NO reports about a stolen truck or investigations of the soldiers involved in the accident. CREDIBLE witnesses including fellow passengers in the same car as Patton.....a General NO less.... and Patton's Driver.....who all said told the same story about the DRUNK soldiers. Did someone "silence" the outspoken Patton so he could not tell HIS story when returning to the US? O'Reilly and Dugard the authors both do admit they do not believe in any kind of "conspiracy" theories on this event. But give plenty information about Military files come up missing or were never investigated. This bio is very entertaining since they give us a close up look from both the American, German and Russian sides of the War and add some very clear pictures of history and of the fascinating and odd.. demise of Patton..... VERY good.....4 stars all the way.

8 of 11 people found this review helpful

Excellent book for memorial weekend!

Interesting book on Patton and a lot of good stories of WW2. I recommend it!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

An interesting biography, but a weak conspiracy.

There have been many tellings of the Patton story over the years - not least the major motion picture carrying the man's name. This doesn't really stray too far from anything that I have already seen or read. It offers a dose of intrigue and gossip to hook the reader in - small side stories about Rommel, Eisenhower, FDR, Churchill, Stalin and so on. It does a good job of teasing out personality traits - both good and bad.

This being said the premise for the book is about a conspiracy to kill General Patton - this really doesn't develop until much later in the telling. I felt a bit conned by that. Really this is just a biography, plus the biographer has a personal theory about the circumstances of the death.

Without giving any spoilers at all I can tell you now that Gen Patton was a leading war figure - which gave many a reason to kill him. He was an inspirational figure, a charismatic leader and successful on the battlefield - why wouldn't his enemies want him dead? Add to this, he was outspoken, he caused political embarrassment to his nation through clumsiness, and he offended his allies. So they had reason to want him 'removed'. In addition he worked in one of the most dangerous places and times of the 20th Century - mainland Europe circa 1944 and 1945. Who, in such a place and time, did not have near misses - was not subject to friendly fire, and did not dodge death repeatedly? Particularly when, as was Patton's way, the individual was so keen to prove their bravery or put themselves in the way of visible harm?

The intrigue the authors offer could be explained by any number of interpretations that don't necessarily mean that Patton was assassinated.

Did many people want Patton to die? Oh - certainly - but that's not a new book.

So while I did enjoy the book - I felt it was slightly misleading, and the conspiracy was far from compelling. I would not have bought another biography about Patton and this didn't take me really anywhere that a previous Patton biography didn't.

Buy this if you don't have a Patton biography. Don't bother if you do, or unless you really must digest everything you can about the man.