An Army At Dawn Book Review
An Army At Dawn Book Review
Griffin Duvall
AP US History: Book Review
November 20, 2014
An Army At Dawn. By Rick Atkinson. Picador: New York, 2002. ISBN 978-0-8050-8724-6. Bibliographical References. Index. Pp. 1, 681. $18.00.
Rick Atkinson took the gruesome story of World War II and turned it into a thrilling three volume tale. In the first volume, An Army At Dawn, Atkinson takes on the escapade into North Africa from the perspective of the Americans using only letters and documents from historical military figures. Atkinson uses this compelling story to prove that “from a distance of sixty years, we can see that North Africa was a pivot point in American history, the place where the United States began to act like a great power – militarily, diplomatically, strategically, tactically” (3). The prologue sets the stage for the war and gives a brief synopsis as to how the war started and how it is going so far; Atkinson then explains how the war made its way into Africa and why the US decided to follow it there, which was to draw out and drain Germany of its many resources. The US formulates a plan, codenamed TORCH, which would become the largest amphibious assault to date (17). TORCH eventually helps shape the attack on Normandy, which is another amphibious assault led by the US. After the decision upon TORCH, the book follows the Americans through Africa until the end of the war, explaining several important battles along the way such as the battles for Casablanca, Algiers, and Oran. The British had previously tried to formulate plans to land on the African coast in Algiers and Oran, which would have failed miserably, but were accomplished with the help of American troops. At the end, Atkinson proves that “along with Stalingrad and Midway, North Africa is where the Axis enemy forever lost the initiative in World War II” (3). Atkinson made the right decision when he chose to make a trilogy because it allows him to look at three separate
Griffin Duvall
AP US History: Book Review
November 20, 2014
An Army At Dawn. By Rick Atkinson. Picador: New York, 2002. ISBN 978-0-8050-8724-6. Bibliographical References. Index. Pp. 1, 681. $18.00.
Rick Atkinson took the gruesome story of World War II and turned it into a thrilling three volume tale. In the first volume, An Army At Dawn, Atkinson takes on the escapade into North Africa from the perspective of the Americans using only letters and documents from historical military figures. Atkinson uses this compelling story to prove that “from a distance of sixty years, we can see that North Africa was a pivot point in American history, the place where the United States began to act like a great power – militarily, diplomatically, strategically, tactically” (3). The prologue sets the stage for the war and gives a brief synopsis as to how the war started and how it is going so far; Atkinson then explains how the war made its way into Africa and why the US decided to follow it there, which was to draw out and drain Germany of its many resources. The US formulates a plan, codenamed TORCH, which would become the largest amphibious assault to date (17). TORCH eventually helps shape the attack on Normandy, which is another amphibious assault led by the US. After the decision upon TORCH, the book follows the Americans through Africa until the end of the war, explaining several important battles along the way such as the battles for Casablanca, Algiers, and Oran. The British had previously tried to formulate plans to land on the African coast in Algiers and Oran, which would have failed miserably, but were accomplished with the help of American troops. At the end, Atkinson proves that “along with Stalingrad and Midway, North Africa is where the Axis enemy forever lost the initiative in World War II” (3). Atkinson made the right decision when he chose to make a trilogy because it allows him to look at three separate