Clash of Steel
for Military History & Aviation enthusiasts

Search :

Review for 21 Days in Normandy


Author/Director : Angelo Caravaggio

Format : Book

A curate's egg of a book. I almost gave up on the first few chapters given the density of information about the twists and turns of Canadian Army politics and then the relationships between and within the overall command. But perseverance paid off and once the description of the actions, including their planning and execution, the book came alive for me.
My overall impression of the author's purpose in writing this book i.e. to change any negative view of the 4th Canadian Division is not wholly successful as he shows many failures to be the result of poor decisions by senior officers of the Division. But what it does spell out clearly is the bravery and determination of the lower echelons to get the job done in spite of the odds.
I would recommend it for anyone wanting greater knowledge of the early part of the Normandy campaign but start at chapter four and maybe come back to the earlier chapters later.

Published by : Pen & Sword Military. Pen & Sword \Books \Ltd., 2016
ISBN : 978-1-47387-07-1-0

Review last updated : 2017-02-23 10:17:05


See also : other "World War 2" reviews