WORLD WAR II - NONFICTION

"The Road to Arnheim" by Donald R. Burgett

Burgett follows up his excellent "Curahee! A Screaming Eagle at Normandy" with another great WWII combat tour de force. This book not only covers his individual actions during Operation Market-Garden, but gives great account of the overall operation which included the 82nd Airborne, the British 1st Parachute Division, the Polish Parachute Brigade, and the British Guards Armored Division.

Operation Market-Garden was the brain child of Field Marshal Montgomery. The plan was to drop paratroopers into the Netherlands behind German lines and capture key highways and bridges and hold them until an armored column could relieve them. This operation was intended to surprise the Germans and shorten the war by putting the Allies on the German border within striking distance to the German Heartland. It was a huge gamble and things went drastically wrong. Monty ignored intelligence and the two SS Panzer divisions in the area tore up the British paratroopers. It also didn't help that the British armored units showed no sense of urgency in achieving their objectives and saving their 1st Parachute Division.

The 82nd and 101st suffered heavy casualties, but nowhere near the casualties of the British and Polish paratroopers who were almost wiped out. To add insult to injury, after the operation was a bust, Monty kept the 82nd and 101st and used these elite forces and regular infantry without proper support. The Americans spent over 70 days in continuous combat.

Burgett's books are some of the best books on infantry fighting in World War II.

Reviewed by Kenneth S. Smith
10/09/2001

Available from:

Presidio Press, Inc.
505B San Martin Drive, Suite 300
Novato, CA  94945-1340
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