World War II - Nonfiction

"Eisenhower: A Soldier's Life" by Carlo D'Este

A decent biography and an honest look at the Allied commanders of WW II

Two things I learned from this book: 1) Mothers, Fathers and Wives that sent their men off to war thinking they were the best led and best equipped were mistaken; 2) The victors were those that screwed up the least and could best afford to absorb their mistakes.

This is a pretty decent biography but what I found fascinating about this book is the honest look at the men that ran the war and some of the petty and political reasons behind many of their command decisions. There were many monumental screw-ups and lost opportunities that could have saved lives and shortened the war and no shortage of incompetent leaders that should have been relieved.

The book starts with Eisenhower's early years growing up in a poor family in Abilene Kansas. Ike was a fighter from the start and would take on anybody that challenged him, his family, or friends. After high school, he worked at odd jobs helping his older brother through college before finally securing an appointment to West Point. There, he would meet many future generals and make friends and enemies. During WW1, Ike was stuck in the States doing training while many of his peers made it overseas and saw combat. After the war, he went from post to post with little recognition or promotions, spending 16 years as a major. I found his suffering under Generalissimo MacArthur in the Philippines interesting. Ike worked hard and was liked and respected. He was picked for staff work by Marshall by the recommendation of Mark Clark. With the war looming, Ike was in D.C. helping prepare the Army and the nation for the coming fight.

With the entry of the US into the war, Ike was picked by Marshall and Roosevelt to command operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa. There is where the US Army learned about modern warfare and the professionalism of the German Army. There were mistakes made and incompetent leaders to be replaced. After North Africa (the capture of Tunisia), the next big campaign was Sicily. Again there were many mistakes and lost opportunities. From Sicily, the Allies invaded Italy. The mistakes and incompetence and missed opportunities still persisted.

Ike left the Italian campaign and returned to England to be the Supreme Allied Commander for the upcoming operation, Overlord, the invasion of France. The landings went better than expected, but the Allies were bottled up in Normandy. Finally Patton arrived and the Allies made a spectacular breakout and were running wild until logistical problems brought them to a halt. The book then follows the Battle of the Bulge, Market Garden, and the drive across Germany. Ike was responsible for the decision not to take Berlin and leave it to the Russians (a good decision) but why he held up Patton and stopped him from taking Czechoslovakia I haven't a clue. The book ends with the unconditional surrender of Germany to the Allies, a ceremony Eisenhower refused to attend. He was infuriated with the Germans after visiting some of the worst concentration camps.

Eisenhower was not a combat commander and was at times accused of inaction, but in reality he preferred to let his subordinates do their jobs. Unfortunately, some of his subordinates were not up to the task and he failed to relieve them. But Ike believed an Allied effort was necessary to win the war and he was forced to make many compromises and questionable decisions to maintain Allied cooperation. Ike also had to deal with prima donnas such as Montgomery, Patton, and Bradley to keep the war effort focused, and worst of all he had to deal with the French who at times were more a hindrance than a help.

After finishing this book, my opinion changed about several of the key figures of WW2. On the negative side are generals Mark Clark, Omar Bradley, Harold Alexander (British), J. C. H. Lee (European logistics, should have been cashiered), and British leader Winston Churchill (who had his own agenda and was always interfering). On the plus side are Bernard Montgomery (planned the Normandy invasion), George Patton, Dwight Eisenhower, Lucien Truscott, and G. Simpson (9th Army commander). This book is a fascinating look at the performance of the just mentioned leaders and well worth the read to discover the actions of these people. There are many others not mentioned that played major roles that I never heard of that also makes this book worth reading and very educational.

Reviewed by Kenneth S. Smith 6/21/2002

Available from:
Henry Holt and Company, LLC
115 West 18th Street
New York, NY 10011

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