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siobhanward's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
3.5
I didn't intentionally read this on the 80th anniversary of D-Day, but it was a cool coincidence. This was a dense read, as Edsel had a lot to cover in a single book. Despite the book only covering a few years of time, there's so much context to everything and a lot happening, and Edsel did a great job covering it all. At some points I found it challenging to follow what was happening, but that could definitely be on me since I don't know a huge amount about that period of WWII. This was a really cool story and I'm glad Edsel told it.
dhelwagen's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
4.5
Such a good read for a little known section of WWII. Highly recommend!
lauraborkpower's review against another edition
3.0
Please add a half star to this rating.
I started out slowly with this book, and I know why: I downloaded the e-book from the library, and the text copy includes breakdowns of each major character (there are a lot) at the start of the book, before the story begins. This was daunting; I felt that I needed to memorize all of the names and bios before I could even start the story. I finally got about halfway through (thanks to being stopped on the Metra for two hours one night in December and having ample reading time) but then put it down during the holidays.
And there it sat, unread, for weeks, until a couple of weeks ago I made the decision (after finishing The Caine Mutiny and being in the listening mood for more WWII drama) to start over with the audiobook. And this was the best choice for me. The audiobook leaves out all of the clumsy bios and just starts the story. And it is really a good story.
There are a lot of characters, but getting them in context rather than in an isolated list makes a huge difference. It's not really a thriller, but an academic adventure with elements of mystery and, of course, war. I loved getting first hand accounts through the men's letters home, and it was exciting to imagine each of them plodding across Europe to track down these treasures. The narrator, Jeremy Davidson, does a solid job and doesn't try too hard to make each character too distinct, which would have ended up with too many put-on and fake voices. His English accent, though, is weak, so luckily there are only a couple minor English characters.
It's an emotional but quiet kind of adventure. I'm nervous that the movie will turn it into a wartime Ocean's Eleven and sex it up (this is not a sexy story). But I'll still watch it and laugh at Goodman chewing scenery.
I started out slowly with this book, and I know why: I downloaded the e-book from the library, and the text copy includes breakdowns of each major character (there are a lot) at the start of the book, before the story begins. This was daunting; I felt that I needed to memorize all of the names and bios before I could even start the story. I finally got about halfway through (thanks to being stopped on the Metra for two hours one night in December and having ample reading time) but then put it down during the holidays.
And there it sat, unread, for weeks, until a couple of weeks ago I made the decision (after finishing The Caine Mutiny and being in the listening mood for more WWII drama) to start over with the audiobook. And this was the best choice for me. The audiobook leaves out all of the clumsy bios and just starts the story. And it is really a good story.
There are a lot of characters, but getting them in context rather than in an isolated list makes a huge difference. It's not really a thriller, but an academic adventure with elements of mystery and, of course, war. I loved getting first hand accounts through the men's letters home, and it was exciting to imagine each of them plodding across Europe to track down these treasures. The narrator, Jeremy Davidson, does a solid job and doesn't try too hard to make each character too distinct, which would have ended up with too many put-on and fake voices. His English accent, though, is weak, so luckily there are only a couple minor English characters.
It's an emotional but quiet kind of adventure. I'm nervous that the movie will turn it into a wartime Ocean's Eleven and sex it up (this is not a sexy story). But I'll still watch it and laugh at Goodman chewing scenery.
jenmangler's review against another edition
3.0
No matter how much I learn about the Nazis, I am constantly surprised by their depravity. It is breathtaking. This one sentence from the book really hits home: "More than anything, the Nazis robbed families: of their livelihoods, their opportunities, their heirlooms, their mementos, of the things that identified them and defined them as human beings."
I had known a bit about the Monuments Men before reading this book, but I'm ashamed to say that I didn't appreciate just how important they were. I took it for granted that most of the artwork had been found and, whenever possible, returned to the rightful owner. But that was not a given. These extraordinary men and their allies, so principled and determined to preserving culture, sacrificed to make that true. The world is a better place because of that sacrifice, and yet most of us know nothing about them. It's shameful. We need to know and remember these events. And we need to learn from them.
I had known a bit about the Monuments Men before reading this book, but I'm ashamed to say that I didn't appreciate just how important they were. I took it for granted that most of the artwork had been found and, whenever possible, returned to the rightful owner. But that was not a given. These extraordinary men and their allies, so principled and determined to preserving culture, sacrificed to make that true. The world is a better place because of that sacrifice, and yet most of us know nothing about them. It's shameful. We need to know and remember these events. And we need to learn from them.
martalisa's review against another edition
dark
informative
medium-paced
4.5
I really enjoyed learning about a part of ww2 history I had never heard of before
manx's review against another edition
4.0
This was a fascinating read about a not well known part of World War II. My one complaint is that the author added commentary and or conversations based on actual communications between people. This book is a historical book that is interesting enough that it didn't need to be made easier to read by turning it into a mix of historical fiction and non-fiction.