In December 1944, the Ardennes Forest on the German-Belgium border was considered a "quiet" zone where new American divisions, fresh from the States, came to get acclimated to "life at the front." No one in Allied headquarters knew that the Ardennes had been personally selected by Hitler to be the soft point through which over 250,000 men and hundreds of Panzers would plunge in the Third Reich's last-gasp attempt to split the Americans and British armies and perhaps win a negotiated peace ...

A concise guide to the Normandy invasion with facts, maps, historical significance, strategies, and more.Operation Overlord, commonly referred to as "D-Day," was the Allied invasion to secure a foothold in northern France to enable the final offensive into Germany. The Normandy invasion would be the largest combined air-sea assault landing in history. This massive feat would finally enable the Allies to deploy forces on the continent, of sufficient size and scale, t...

Operation Husky, the combined American and British air and sea invasion of Sicily in July 1943, was one of World War II’s most critical campaigns with General George S. Patton Jr., inarguably America’s most dynamic, courageous, and controversial commander of World War II, at the center. In this new work, author Flint Whitlock covers the history of Operation Husky as it unfolded, with much of the Allied leadership facing internal conflict.The largest amphibious assa...

The Fighting First tells the untold story of the 1st Infantry Division's part in the D-Day invasion of France at Normandy. Using a variety of primary sources, official records, interviews, and unpublished memoirs by the veterans themselves, author Flint Whitlock has crafted a riveting, gut-wrenching, personal story of courage under fire. Operation Overlord - the Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944 - was arguably the most important battle of World War II, and Omaha Beach was...

The largest amphibious assault to date came at a crucial moment, and the planning and execution presented many conflicts for the Allies. Despite the success of Operation Torch in North Africa, the United States was still considered not fully tested or trusted by their British partners, and Stalin was clamoring for the Allies to open a second front to take the pressure off his Soviet Union.Patton's dreams of martial glory and his desire to best his chief Allied rival, General Bernar...

Irma Grese was among the Nazi war criminals tried and found guilty at the Lueneburg, Germany trial held from September-November 1945. Grese aspired to be a nurse but was assigned to concentration camp work by the government labour exchange. She admired Adolf Hilter, as did many German youths, and eventually she joined the SS. Irma has been described as among the most unyielding and uncompassionate of those who presided over the Nazi death camps. She was directly under the supervision of Jo...

At last, the everyday fighting men who were the first Americans to know the full and horrifying truth about the Holocaust share their astonishing stories. Rich with powerful never-before-published details from the author’s interviews with more than 150 U.S. soldiers who liberated the Nazi death camps, The Liberators is an essential addition to the literature of World War II—and a stirring testament to Allied courage in the face of inconceivable atrocities.Taking us from the beginni...

What was it like for a 10-year old Jewish girl to experience the Nazi Holocaust in 1945? Or, to face suicide, adjusting to a new life in America, an unhappy marriage, epilepsy, and losing 7 of 8 children? The author has coaxed out all the heart-wrenching stories from Ursula Caffey in explicit detail, and on this journey you will discover the secret to her survival grit and conquering spirit. This is a story of unbelievable pain replaced by hope, redemption, and victory.

This is the extraordinary true story of a plucky young woman and her dramatic escape from a German-run internment camp in Occupied France. Written in Rosemary's own words and completed by her daughter and son-in-law after her death, it includes photographs and documents from Rosie's incredible journey.

"This is a beautifully written, insightful chronicle of a young girl's Holocaust survival. Though very private and personal, it nevertheless captures the common torments of children living through this disastrous civilizational breakdown.What makes this book unique is that the author pulls the reader into the story. We get to know her parents and other memorable characters for the kind of people they were. There is an immediacy in the writing that almost makes the reader a particip...

Since childhood, author Fiona Gold Kroll has been drawn to a photograph of her great-uncle, Benjamin Albaum, a Jewish man who disappeared from Paris at the beginning of World War II. A Stone for Benjamin is the compelling story of Fiona’s quest to discover his fate. Chasing Holocaust shadows across Europe and beyond, Fiona begins her powerful journey searching for clues with nothing more than a misspelled name, old photographs and family stories. Determined to uncover the truth about Benja...

April 1965. After struggling for twenty years to suppress his nightmare memories of the Nazis’ Final Solution, fifty year old London diamond merchant Samuel Baruch learns he has cancer. He decides to devote all his energies to pursuing Giessler, the man he blames for the death of his young wife amid the horrors of the Holocaust.Samuel’s quest takes him to Vienna, where he meets private detective Esther Szabo, and together they set out to unravel the mystery of Giessler’s disappeara...