Tank Action

An Armoured Troop Commander's War 1944-45

By: Captain David Render, Stuart Tootal

Narrated by: Roger Davis

Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

A gripping account of the Second World War, from the perspective of a young tank commander.

In 1944, David Render was a 19-year-old second lieutenant fresh from Sandhurst when he was sent to France. Joining the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry five days after the D-Day landings, the combat-hardened men he was sent to command did not expect him to last long. However, in the following weeks of ferocious fighting in which more than 90 per cent of his fellow tank commanders became casualties, his ability to emerge unscathed from countless combat engagements earned him the nickname of the 'Inevitable Mr Render'.  

In Tank Action Render tells his remarkable story, spanning every major episode of the last year of the Second World War from the invasion of Normandy to the fall of Germany. Ultimately it is a story of survival, comradeship and the ability to stand up and be counted as a leader in combat.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2019 Captain David Render and Stuart Tootal (P)2019 Orion Publishing Group

A must read for any tank platoon leader

As the words flowed from the narrator, it took me back to my days as a tank platoon leader. The story is compelling and is repeat with all of the small interactions only known by me who ride steel into battle.

Well done

This is one of those books that is a pleasure to absorb. Simple and easy to follow with a perfect amount of information and history the result of which is an increased amount of respect for those who served.

It Doesn't Get Any Better!

Great story, well read, couldn't put it down. Now I think I shall read it again.

An amazing story, told by one who was there

Touching, shocking, thought provoking and shot through with a thread of humility. Well worth your time

Riveting action

An amazing recollection of a WW2 tank and troop commander. Feels like you're in the turret.

The verbatim truth of tank warfare in WWII

I learned of this from a WWII podcast on Spotify and glad I followed up to listen to David Render’s book after his interview.
I learned a lot. We owe it to these men to hear and honor their stories today.

good

excellent narration and interesting story. sometimes gets a bit bogged down describing regimental structure and stuff which can be a bit confusing.

War from the turret of a British tank

This is a wonderful story a British tank commander in World War II. allows you to live in the skin of the tank and the skin of the tank commander. you would learn what it is like 2 bail out of a tank on fire, 2 lose a friend who had just saved your life, 2 experience the Pride and the pain of serving with men who depended upon you 4life as you depended upon them.

One of the best tank combat books I have read

An excellent book. Great detail and pulls no punches regarding command structures, senior officers and other ranks (although I suspect that some names were changed in the latter group). Together, the author and co-writer do an excellent job of marrying the strategic, tactical and personal aspects of tank warfare in NW Europe. After 70 odd years I can forgive the very, very few factual errors - Welsh Guards 2nd btn/Guards Armoured Div liberated Brussels and not the separate 6th Guards Armoured division - my dad was in the second WG Cromwell into Brussels. An excellent memoir from a very brave boy and man about a tremendously accomplished British regiment - The Sherwood Rangers.

Delighted

This was a really interesting refreshment for me considering most of the World War 2 memoirs that I had listed to had been from the German side. Most of the time I tried to listen to Allied Memoir whether it be American or Soviet, it just seemed to drag on. This one did.

It was amazing to listen to the experiences of him and his unit that he went from from D-Day to VE Day. I loved learning about some of the stuff that you might never find out in a book about tanks such as in his unit, the lead tank would generally have a smoke shell loaded in the event that they were fired upon by a concealed tank, they could throw smoke in the in its face if it missed on the first shot.

Definite a recommend if you have a interest in World War 2 or tanks.