A Strange Campaign
The Battle for Madagascar
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $14.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Henry Hyde
-
By:
-
Russell Phillips
About this listen
Madagascar provided the stunning backdrop for one of the strangest conflicts of the Second World War - when Britain went head to head against one of its closest allies.
When British forces landed on the island in 1942, the enemy they faced wasn’t German, Japanese, or even Italian, this time the opposing forces were French.
Concerned that Japan might use Madagascar as a strategic base to disrupt the supply line to India, Britain was keen to take control of the island. However, the Vichy forces were keen to defend the French colony and prevent it becoming part of the British Empire.
A Strange Campaign: The Battle for Madagascar gives a detailed account of this fascinating, but little-known period of military history. Even at the time, the conflict was a controversial one, pitting two colonial empires against each other.
However, it was also ground-breaking as it was the first time Allied forces had staged a major amphibious invasion. The lessons learned on the shores of Madagascar would prove to be invaluable two years later during the D-day landings in Normandy.
Military historian Russell Phillips examines the tactics used in the battle for Madagascar, which included secret agents, dummy paratroopers and attempted bribery.
But just how did the British finally break down months of resistance by the French? And how did a tug-of-war over an island in the middle of the Indian ocean influence the rest of the Second World War?
©2021 Russell Phillips (P)2021 Russell PhillipsListeners also enjoyed...
-
Three Days in June
- The Incredible Minute-by-Minute Oral History of 3 Para's Deadly Falklands War Battle
- By: James O'Connell, Lieutenant General Sir Hew Pike - foreword
- Narrated by: Brian Bowles, Colin Mace, Elliot Fitzpatrick, and others
- Length: 18 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When 3 Para began their assault under cover of darkness on Mount Longdon in June 1982, nobody knew what to expect. The three platoons of B Company each approached the mountain silently, treading carefully through a series of defensive minefields. But following an explosion, fighting quickly escalated with shocking speed and severity, resulting in some of the bloodiest close hand fighting, terrible injuries and shocking loss of life experienced by British troops since the Korean war.
-
-
Absolutely Fantastic
- By A on 12-26-21
By: James O'Connell, and others
-
The Third Reich in Power
- By: Richard J. Evans
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 31 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The definitive account of Germany's malign transformation under Hitler's total rule and the implacable march to war. This magnificent second volume of Richard J. Evans's three-volume history of Nazi Germany was hailed by Benjamin Schwartz of The Atlantic Monthly as "the definitive English-language account... gripping and precise." It chronicles the incredible story of Germany's radical reshaping under Nazi rule.
-
-
Great book, annoying narrator
- By Maria on 08-14-10
By: Richard J. Evans
-
Fire and Steel
- The End of World War Two in the West
- By: Peter Caddick-Adams
- Narrated by: Mike Cooper
- Length: 19 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Here is Peter Caddick-Adams's third volume in his trilogy about the final year of the Western front in World War Two. Fire & Steel covers the war's final 100 days—beginning in late January 1945 and continuing until May 8, 1945, when the German high command surrendered unconditionally to all Allied forces. Caddick-Adams's previous two volumes in the acclaimed series—Sand & Steel, which covers the invasion of Normandy in June 1944, and Snow & Steel, the definitive study of the Battle of the Bulge—have set the stage for this concluding volume.
-
-
Comprehensive account of Allied Army operations at the end of World War III
- By Stephen Veal on 06-29-24
-
The Garden of Mars
- Madagascar, an Island Story
- By: John Gimlette
- Narrated by: Mark Elstob
- Length: 13 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An improbable world beckons. We think we know Madagascar, but it's too big, too eccentric and too impenetrable to be truly understood. If it was stretched out across Europe, the islands would reach from London to Algiers, and yet its road network is barely bigger than tiny Jamaica's. There is no evidence of any human life until about 10,000 years ago, and, when eventually people settled, it was migrants from Borneo - 3,700 miles away - who came out on top.
-
-
Review
- By Dorothy on 06-05-23
By: John Gimlette
-
Snow & Steel
- The Battle of the Bulge 1944-45
- By: Peter Caddick-Adams
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer, Tim Reynolds
- Length: 31 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Between December 16, 1944 and January 15, 1945, American forces found themselves entrenched in the heavily forested Ardennes region of Belgium, France, and Luxembourg defending against an advancing German army amid freezing temperatures, deep snow, and dense fog. Operation Herbstnebel - Autumn Mist - was a massive German counter-offensive that stunned the Allies in its scope and intensity.
-
-
fascinating and thorough, painful narration
- By richard on 01-05-15
-
Crimea
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Malk Williams
- Length: 20 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The terrible conflict that dominated the mid-19th century, the Crimean War, killed at least 800,000 men and pitted Russia against a formidable coalition of Britain, France and the Ottoman Empire. It was a war for territory, provoked by fear that if the Ottoman Empire were to collapse then Russia could control a huge swathe of land from the Balkans to the Persian Gulf. But it was also a war of religion, driven by a fervent, populist and ever more ferocious belief by the Tsar and his ministers that it was Russia's task to rule all Orthodox Christians and control the Holy Land.
-
-
Outstanding History of the Crimean War
- By Rick Sailor on 11-08-18
By: Orlando Figes
-
Three Days in June
- The Incredible Minute-by-Minute Oral History of 3 Para's Deadly Falklands War Battle
- By: James O'Connell, Lieutenant General Sir Hew Pike - foreword
- Narrated by: Brian Bowles, Colin Mace, Elliot Fitzpatrick, and others
- Length: 18 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When 3 Para began their assault under cover of darkness on Mount Longdon in June 1982, nobody knew what to expect. The three platoons of B Company each approached the mountain silently, treading carefully through a series of defensive minefields. But following an explosion, fighting quickly escalated with shocking speed and severity, resulting in some of the bloodiest close hand fighting, terrible injuries and shocking loss of life experienced by British troops since the Korean war.
-
-
Absolutely Fantastic
- By A on 12-26-21
By: James O'Connell, and others
-
The Third Reich in Power
- By: Richard J. Evans
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 31 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The definitive account of Germany's malign transformation under Hitler's total rule and the implacable march to war. This magnificent second volume of Richard J. Evans's three-volume history of Nazi Germany was hailed by Benjamin Schwartz of The Atlantic Monthly as "the definitive English-language account... gripping and precise." It chronicles the incredible story of Germany's radical reshaping under Nazi rule.
-
-
Great book, annoying narrator
- By Maria on 08-14-10
By: Richard J. Evans
-
Fire and Steel
- The End of World War Two in the West
- By: Peter Caddick-Adams
- Narrated by: Mike Cooper
- Length: 19 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Here is Peter Caddick-Adams's third volume in his trilogy about the final year of the Western front in World War Two. Fire & Steel covers the war's final 100 days—beginning in late January 1945 and continuing until May 8, 1945, when the German high command surrendered unconditionally to all Allied forces. Caddick-Adams's previous two volumes in the acclaimed series—Sand & Steel, which covers the invasion of Normandy in June 1944, and Snow & Steel, the definitive study of the Battle of the Bulge—have set the stage for this concluding volume.
-
-
Comprehensive account of Allied Army operations at the end of World War III
- By Stephen Veal on 06-29-24
-
The Garden of Mars
- Madagascar, an Island Story
- By: John Gimlette
- Narrated by: Mark Elstob
- Length: 13 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An improbable world beckons. We think we know Madagascar, but it's too big, too eccentric and too impenetrable to be truly understood. If it was stretched out across Europe, the islands would reach from London to Algiers, and yet its road network is barely bigger than tiny Jamaica's. There is no evidence of any human life until about 10,000 years ago, and, when eventually people settled, it was migrants from Borneo - 3,700 miles away - who came out on top.
-
-
Review
- By Dorothy on 06-05-23
By: John Gimlette
-
Snow & Steel
- The Battle of the Bulge 1944-45
- By: Peter Caddick-Adams
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer, Tim Reynolds
- Length: 31 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Between December 16, 1944 and January 15, 1945, American forces found themselves entrenched in the heavily forested Ardennes region of Belgium, France, and Luxembourg defending against an advancing German army amid freezing temperatures, deep snow, and dense fog. Operation Herbstnebel - Autumn Mist - was a massive German counter-offensive that stunned the Allies in its scope and intensity.
-
-
fascinating and thorough, painful narration
- By richard on 01-05-15
-
Crimea
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Malk Williams
- Length: 20 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The terrible conflict that dominated the mid-19th century, the Crimean War, killed at least 800,000 men and pitted Russia against a formidable coalition of Britain, France and the Ottoman Empire. It was a war for territory, provoked by fear that if the Ottoman Empire were to collapse then Russia could control a huge swathe of land from the Balkans to the Persian Gulf. But it was also a war of religion, driven by a fervent, populist and ever more ferocious belief by the Tsar and his ministers that it was Russia's task to rule all Orthodox Christians and control the Holy Land.
-
-
Outstanding History of the Crimean War
- By Rick Sailor on 11-08-18
By: Orlando Figes
-
StuG III Brigade 191, 1940-1945
- The Buffalo Brigade in Action in the Balkans, Greece and from Moscow to Kursk and Sevastopol
- By: Bruno Bork, Anthony Tucker-Jones - foreword
- Narrated by: Bruce Mann
- Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Based on their experiences during the First World War, the Reichswehr decided that the infantry support gun of the future should be an armored, motorized vehicle: the Sturmgeschütz III. The weapon was used in the 'fire brigade role' at hotspots along the Front, where it was much feared by enemy forces. This book tells the tale of Brigade 191, aka the 'Buffalo Brigade', who used the Sturmgeschütz III as they took part in Operation Barbarossa in the Ukraine, saw action during the fight for Greece and were deployed to the areas of heaviest fighting in the campaign against the Soviet Union.
-
-
Ruined by awful narrator
- By MortonC on 01-19-24
By: Bruno Bork, and others
-
Brothers in Arms
- One Legendary Tank Regiment’s Bloody War from D-Day to VE-Day
- By: James Holland
- Narrated by: Al Murray
- Length: 16 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One of the last cavalry units to ride horses into battle, the Sherwood Rangers were transformed into a “mechanized cavalry” of tanks in 1942. After winning acclaim in the North African campaign, they spearheaded one of the D-Day landings in Normandy and became the first British troops to cross into Germany. Their courage, skill, and tenacity contributed mightily to the surrender of Germany in 1945.
-
-
All the details
- By GY on 01-03-22
By: James Holland
-
The Peking Express
- The Bandits Who Stole a Train, Stunned the West, and Broke the Republic of China
- By: James M. Zimmerman
- Narrated by: David Shih
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1923 Shanghai, native and foreign travelers alike are enthralled by the establishment of a new railway line to distant Peking. With this new line comes the Peking Express, a luxurious express train on the cutting edge of China’s continental transportation. Among those drawn to the train are oil heiress Lucy Aldrich, journalist John Benjamin Powell, and vacationing Army Majors Roland Pinger and Robert Allen, wives and children in tow. All anticipate an idyllic overnight journey in first class. But the train’s passengers are not the only ones enchanted by the Peking Express.
-
-
Might be better to read physically than listen to
- By Peggy Mason on 04-16-23
-
Killing the Bismarck
- Destroying the Pride of Hitler's Fleet
- By: Iain Ballantyne
- Narrated by: Traber Burns
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In May 1941 the German battleship Bismarck, accompanied by heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen, broke out into the Atlantic to attack Allied shipping. The Royal Navy's pursuit and subsequent destruction of the Bismarck was an epic of naval warfare. In this new account of those dramatic events at the height of the Second World War, Iain Ballantyne draws extensively on the graphic eyewitness testimony of veterans to construct a thrilling story, mainly from the point of view of the British battleships, cruisers, and destroyers involved.
-
-
1960 a young boy became awed
- By torpedo alley on 10-02-19
By: Iain Ballantyne
-
Sicily '43
- The First Assault on Fortress Europe
- By: James Holland
- Narrated by: Al Murray
- Length: 19 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On July 10, 1943, the largest amphibious invasion ever mounted took place, larger even than the Normandy invasion 11 months later: 160,000 American, British, and Canadian troops came ashore or were parachuted onto Sicily, signaling the start of the campaign to defeat Nazi Germany on European soil. Operation HUSKY, as it was known, was enormously complex, involving dramatic battles on land, in the air, and at sea. Yet, despite its paramount importance to ultimate Allied victory, and its drama, very little has been written about the 38-day Battle for Sicily.
-
-
Great writing, great narration, interesting topic
- By ItalCali on 08-02-21
By: James Holland
-
Ten Days That Shook the World
- By: John Reed
- Narrated by: Adam Sims
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ten Days That Shook the World is John Reed's phenomenal firsthand account of the October Revolution, leading up to the storming of the Winter Palace and the assumption of power by the Bolsheviks in 1917.
-
-
Excellent Primary Account
- By Stephen F (SPFJR) on 07-26-24
By: John Reed
-
Lincoln's Lieutenants
- The High Command of the Army of the Potomac
- By: Stephen W. Sears
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 32 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The high command of the Army of the Potomac was a changeable, often dysfunctional band of brothers, going through the fires of war under seven commanding generals in three years, until Grant came east in 1864. The men in charge all too frequently appeared to be fighting against the administration in Washington instead of for it, increasingly cast as political pawns facing down a vindictive congressional Committee on the Conduct of the War.
-
-
Good, but not what I thought
- By Paul S. on 08-10-17
By: Stephen W. Sears
-
The Napoleonic Wars
- By: Alexander Mikaberidze
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 35 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Napoleonic Wars saw fighting on an unprecedented scale in Europe and the Americas. It took the wealth of the British Empire, combined with the might of the continental armies, almost two decades to bring down one of the world's greatest military leaders and the empire that he had created. Napoleon's ultimate defeat was to determine the history of Europe for almost 100 years. From the frozen wastelands of Russia, through the brutal fighting in the Peninsula to the blood-soaked battlefield of Waterloo, this book tells the story of the dramatic rise and fall of the Napoleonic Empire.
-
-
No description of battles
- By John Gaston on 01-15-21
-
Storm Clouds over the Pacific, 1931-1941
- War in the Far East Series, Book 1
- By: Peter Harmsen
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Storm Clouds over the Pacific begins the story long before Pearl Harbor, showing how the war can only be understood if ancient hatreds and long-standing geopolitics are taken into account. Harmsen demonstrates how Japan and China's ancient enmity led to increased tensions in the 1930s, which, in turn, exploded into conflict in 1937.
-
-
Interesting Story
- By Coach Mark on 03-25-23
By: Peter Harmsen
-
The War for the Seas
- A Maritime History of World War II
- By: Evan Mawdsley
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 28 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Command of the oceans was crucial to winning World War II. By the start of 1942 Nazi Germany had conquered mainland Europe, and Imperial Japan had overrun Southeast Asia and much of the Pacific. How could Britain and distant America prevail in what had become a "war of continents"? In this definitive account, Evan Mawdsley traces events at sea from the first U-boat operations in 1939 to the surrender of Japan. He argues that the Allied counterattack involved not just decisive sea battles, but a long struggle to control shipping arteries and move armies across the sea.
-
-
An Unengaging Survey that Disappoints
- By Scott Eckert on 08-06-20
By: Evan Mawdsley
-
Eagle Against the Sun
- The American War With Japan
- By: Ronald H. Spector
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 23 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Spector reassesses US and Japanese strategy and offers some provocative interpretations. He shows that the dual advance across the Pacific by MacArthur and Nimitz was less a product of strategic calculation and more a pragmatic solution to bureaucratic, doctrinal, and public relations problems facing the Army and Navy. He also argues that Japan made its fatal error not in the Midway campaign but in abandoning its offensive strategy after that defeat and allowing itself to be drawn into a war of attrition.
-
-
OK as an overview, but too little detail
- By Mike From Mesa on 03-21-22
-
The Third Reich at War
- By: Richard J. Evans
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 35 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Evans interweaves a broad narrative of the war’s progress with viscerally affecting personal testimony from a wide range of people - from generals to front-line soldiers, from Hitler Youth activists to middle-class housewives. The Third Reich at War lays bare the dynamics of a nation more deeply immersed in war than any society before or since. Fresh insights into the conflict’s great events are here, from the invasion of Poland to the Battle of Stalingrad to Hitler’s suicide in the bunker.
-
-
Masterful
- By Karen on 09-03-10
By: Richard J. Evans
Related to this topic
-
Eagle Against the Sun
- The American War With Japan
- By: Ronald H. Spector
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 23 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Spector reassesses US and Japanese strategy and offers some provocative interpretations. He shows that the dual advance across the Pacific by MacArthur and Nimitz was less a product of strategic calculation and more a pragmatic solution to bureaucratic, doctrinal, and public relations problems facing the Army and Navy. He also argues that Japan made its fatal error not in the Midway campaign but in abandoning its offensive strategy after that defeat and allowing itself to be drawn into a war of attrition.
-
-
OK as an overview, but too little detail
- By Mike From Mesa on 03-21-22
-
South Pacific Cauldron
- World War II's Great Forgotten Battlegrounds
- By: Alan Rems
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Unlike most other World War II accounts, this work covers the South Pacific operations in detail. The audiobook includes many now-forgotten operations that deserve to be well remembered. Significantly, the official Australian history of World War II correctly observed that Australia's part in the Pacific war is barely mentioned in American histories. This volume finally brings the major Australian contribution to the fore.
-
-
A little dry but informative
- By Damien on 02-20-15
By: Alan Rems
-
Blitzkrieg
- From the Ground Up
- By: Niklas Zetterling
- Narrated by: Roger Clark
- Length: 11 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The successes of the German Blitzkrieg in 1939-41 were as surprising as they were swift. Allied decision-makers wanted to discover the secret to German success quickly, even though only partial, incomplete information was available to them. The false conclusions drawn became myths about the Blitzkrieg that have lingered for decades.
-
-
An interesting perspective
- By OCreviewer on 09-11-19
-
The Mighty Endeavor
- American Armed Forces in the European Theater in World War II
- By: Charles B. MacDonald
- Narrated by: Traber Burns
- Length: 22 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the first landings at Casablanca straight through to the crossing of the Elbe River and V-E Day, this book tells the gripping story of the European theater of operations battles of World War II that American soldiers, sailors, and airmen took part in and of the strategy behind them. The book's core is its account of such famous and dramatic episodes as the landings in North Africa, Kasserine Pass, Salerno and Anzio; D-day; the liberation of Paris; the Battle of the Bulge; the crossing of the Rhine; and the race across Germany.
-
-
Great background on US Armed Forces in the ETO and MTO
- By Dan McGrew on 05-16-17
-
Battleground Prussia
- The Assault on Germany’s Eastern Front 1944-45
- By: Prit Buttar
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 23 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The terrible months between the arrival of the Red Army on German soil and the final collapse of Hitler's regime were like no other in the Second World War. The Soviet Army's intent to take revenge for the horror that the Nazis had wreaked on their people produced a conflict of implacable brutality in which millions perished. From the great battles that marked the Soviet conquest of East and West Prussia to the final surrender in the Vistula estuary, this book recounts in chilling detail the desperate struggle of soldiers and civilians alike.
-
-
WW II Battleground Ignored by Western Historians
- By AJC on 12-16-19
By: Prit Buttar
-
Where the Iron Crosses Grow
- The Crimea 1941-44
- By: Robert Forczyk
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 13 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Crimea was one of the crucibles of the war on the Eastern Front, where first a Soviet and then a German army were surrounded, fought desperate battles, and were eventually destroyed. The fighting in the region was unusual for the Eastern Front in many ways, in that naval supply, amphibious landings, and naval evacuation played major roles, while both sides were also conducting ethnic cleansing as part of their strategy - the Germans eliminating the Jews and the Soviets purging the region of Tartars.
-
-
names, places,troop strength and commanders
- By richard on 02-19-15
By: Robert Forczyk
-
Eagle Against the Sun
- The American War With Japan
- By: Ronald H. Spector
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 23 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Spector reassesses US and Japanese strategy and offers some provocative interpretations. He shows that the dual advance across the Pacific by MacArthur and Nimitz was less a product of strategic calculation and more a pragmatic solution to bureaucratic, doctrinal, and public relations problems facing the Army and Navy. He also argues that Japan made its fatal error not in the Midway campaign but in abandoning its offensive strategy after that defeat and allowing itself to be drawn into a war of attrition.
-
-
OK as an overview, but too little detail
- By Mike From Mesa on 03-21-22
-
South Pacific Cauldron
- World War II's Great Forgotten Battlegrounds
- By: Alan Rems
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Unlike most other World War II accounts, this work covers the South Pacific operations in detail. The audiobook includes many now-forgotten operations that deserve to be well remembered. Significantly, the official Australian history of World War II correctly observed that Australia's part in the Pacific war is barely mentioned in American histories. This volume finally brings the major Australian contribution to the fore.
-
-
A little dry but informative
- By Damien on 02-20-15
By: Alan Rems
-
Blitzkrieg
- From the Ground Up
- By: Niklas Zetterling
- Narrated by: Roger Clark
- Length: 11 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The successes of the German Blitzkrieg in 1939-41 were as surprising as they were swift. Allied decision-makers wanted to discover the secret to German success quickly, even though only partial, incomplete information was available to them. The false conclusions drawn became myths about the Blitzkrieg that have lingered for decades.
-
-
An interesting perspective
- By OCreviewer on 09-11-19
-
The Mighty Endeavor
- American Armed Forces in the European Theater in World War II
- By: Charles B. MacDonald
- Narrated by: Traber Burns
- Length: 22 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the first landings at Casablanca straight through to the crossing of the Elbe River and V-E Day, this book tells the gripping story of the European theater of operations battles of World War II that American soldiers, sailors, and airmen took part in and of the strategy behind them. The book's core is its account of such famous and dramatic episodes as the landings in North Africa, Kasserine Pass, Salerno and Anzio; D-day; the liberation of Paris; the Battle of the Bulge; the crossing of the Rhine; and the race across Germany.
-
-
Great background on US Armed Forces in the ETO and MTO
- By Dan McGrew on 05-16-17
-
Battleground Prussia
- The Assault on Germany’s Eastern Front 1944-45
- By: Prit Buttar
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 23 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The terrible months between the arrival of the Red Army on German soil and the final collapse of Hitler's regime were like no other in the Second World War. The Soviet Army's intent to take revenge for the horror that the Nazis had wreaked on their people produced a conflict of implacable brutality in which millions perished. From the great battles that marked the Soviet conquest of East and West Prussia to the final surrender in the Vistula estuary, this book recounts in chilling detail the desperate struggle of soldiers and civilians alike.
-
-
WW II Battleground Ignored by Western Historians
- By AJC on 12-16-19
By: Prit Buttar
-
Where the Iron Crosses Grow
- The Crimea 1941-44
- By: Robert Forczyk
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 13 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Crimea was one of the crucibles of the war on the Eastern Front, where first a Soviet and then a German army were surrounded, fought desperate battles, and were eventually destroyed. The fighting in the region was unusual for the Eastern Front in many ways, in that naval supply, amphibious landings, and naval evacuation played major roles, while both sides were also conducting ethnic cleansing as part of their strategy - the Germans eliminating the Jews and the Soviets purging the region of Tartars.
-
-
names, places,troop strength and commanders
- By richard on 02-19-15
By: Robert Forczyk
-
Retribution
- The Soviet Reconquest of Central Ukraine, 1943-44
- By: Prit Buttar
- Narrated by: Matthew Waterson
- Length: 17 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Making use of the extensive memoirs of German and Russian soldiers to bring their story to life, the narrative follows on from On A Knife's Edge, which described the encirclement and destruction of the German Sixth Army at Stalingrad and the offensives and counter-offensives that followed throughout the winter of 1942-43.
-
-
Solid, substantial military storytelling
- By Rodney W. Schmisseur on 12-21-19
By: Prit Buttar
-
War at the End of the World
- Douglas MacArthur and the Forgotten Fight for New Guinea 1942-1945
- By: James P. Duffy
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 14 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One American soldier called it "a green hell on Earth". Monsoon-soaked wilderness, debilitating heat, impassable mountains, torrential rivers, and disease-infested swamps - New Guinea was a battleground far more deadly than the most fanatical of enemy troops. Japanese forces numbering some 600,000 men began landing in January 1942, determined to seize the island as a cornerstone of the empire's strategy to knock Australia out of the war.
-
-
The WW2 New Guinea Campaign
- By William R. Todd-Mancillas (Name includes hyphen and capitalized M). on 09-26-18
By: James P. Duffy
-
Sand and Steel
- The D-Day Invasion and the Liberation of France
- By: Peter Caddick-Adams
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 37 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sand and Steel gives us D-Day, arguably the greatest and most consequential military operation of modern times, beginning with the years of painstaking and costly preparation, through to the pitched battles fought along France's northern coast, from Omaha Beach to the Falaise and the push east to Strasbourg.
-
-
Details, details, details
- By Mike From Mesa on 11-11-21
-
Leyte 1944
- The Soldiers' Battle
- By: Nathan N. Prefer
- Narrated by: Jones Allen
- Length: 14 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When General Douglas MacArthur arrived in Australia in March 1942, having successfully left the Philippines to organize a new American army, he vowed, "I shall return!" More than two years later he did return, at the head of a large U.S. army to retake the Philippines from the Japanese. The place of his re-invasion was the central Philippine Island of Leyte. Much has been written about the naval Battle of Leyte Gulf that his return provoked, but almost nothing has been written about the three-month long battle to seize Leyte itself.
-
-
Very well Researched..
- By jbnimble on 04-19-14
By: Nathan N. Prefer
-
Case Red
- The Collapse of France
- By: Robert Forczyk
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 14 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Even after the legendary evacuation from Dunkirk in June 1940 there were still large British formations fighting the Germans alongside their French allies. After mounting a vigorous counterattack at Abbeville and then engaging a tough defense along the Somme, the British were forced to conduct a second evacuation from the ports of Le Havre, Cherbourg, Brest, and St. Nazaire. Case Red captures the drama of the final three weeks of military operations in France in June 1940.
-
-
Not Forczyk's best offering
- By S.C. James on 01-30-18
By: Robert Forczyk
-
Inside the Nazi War Machine
- How Three Generals Unleashed Hitler's Blitzkrieg Upon the World
- By: Bevin Alexander
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 7 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Under orders of the Fuhrer, the German General Staff reluctantly drew up a lackluster plan of invasion for France. Yet it was the audacious scheme of three of Hitler’s top generals that brought down France’s military force, Rather than simply move troops to engage the enemy, for the first time they would unleash the tank and drive straight into the heart of their foe.
-
-
Good listen ..... however...
- By Alan on 06-10-13
By: Bevin Alexander
-
Normandy '44
- D-Day and the Epic 77-Day Battle for France
- By: James Holland
- Narrated by: John Sackville
- Length: 24 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
D-Day, June 6, 1944, and the 76 days of bitter fighting in Normandy that followed the Allied landing, have become the defining episode of World War II in the west - the object of books, films, television series, and documentaries. Yet as familiar as it is, as James Holland makes clear in his definitive history, many parts of the OVERLORD campaign, as it was known, are still shrouded in myth and assumed knowledge.
-
-
Excellent account of Normandy but be weary...
- By S. H. Moore on 02-22-20
By: James Holland
-
Defeat into Victory
- Battling Japan in Burma and India, 1942-1945
- By: Field-Marshal Viscount William Slim, David W. Hogan Jr. - introduction
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 23 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Field Marshal Viscount Slim (1891-1970) led shattered British forces from Burma to India in one of the lesser-known but more nightmarish retreats of World War II. He then restored his army's fighting capabilities and morale with virtually no support from home and counterattacked. His army's slaughter of Japanese troops ultimately liberated India and Burma.
-
-
Excellent account of a theatre of ww2 that many Americans know little about of
- By Thomas W White on 01-06-24
By: Field-Marshal Viscount William Slim, and others
-
Okinawa
- The Last Battle
- By: Roy E. Appleman, James MacGregor Burns, Russell A. Gugeler, and others
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On 1 April, 1945, the largest amphibious assault of the Pacific Theater began. The battle for the island of Okinawa would last for the next 82 days. Through the course of this dramatic battle, over 20,000 Americans would lose their lives, and over 75,000 Japanese were killed in one of the bloodiest clashes of World War II. Okinawa: The Last Battle is a remarkably detailed account of this monumental event by four soldiers who witnessed the action first-hand.
-
-
Good Okinawa History
- By Derail on 03-10-20
By: Roy E. Appleman, and others
-
Rising Sun Victorious
- Alternate Histories of the Pacific War
- By: Peter G. Tsouras
- Narrated by: David Baker
- Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In war, victory can be held hostage to seemingly insignificant incidents - chance events, opportunities seized or cast aside - that can derail the most brilliant military strategies and change the course of history. What if the Japanese had conquered India and driven out the British? What if the strategic link between the United States and Australia had been severed? What if Vice Admiral Nagumo had launched a third attack on Pearl Harbor? What if the US Navy's gamble at Midway had backfired?
-
-
victorious
- By Amazon Customer on 05-17-16
By: Peter G. Tsouras
-
The Frozen Chosen
- The 1st Marine Division and the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir
- By: Thomas McKelvey Cleaver
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 15 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Frozen Chosen is an account of the breakout from the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea by the First Marine Division from November to December 1950, following the intervention of Red China in the Korean War. Fought during the worst blizzard in a century, it is considered by the US Marine Corps to be the Corps' finest hour. Fourteen Medals of Honor, a record for any American battle, and 85 Navy Crosses attest to the intensity of the battle.
-
-
Fascinating story, very bad narration
- By Mat J Monk on 03-31-17
-
Sicily '43
- The First Assault on Fortress Europe
- By: James Holland
- Narrated by: Al Murray
- Length: 19 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On July 10, 1943, the largest amphibious invasion ever mounted took place, larger even than the Normandy invasion 11 months later: 160,000 American, British, and Canadian troops came ashore or were parachuted onto Sicily, signaling the start of the campaign to defeat Nazi Germany on European soil. Operation HUSKY, as it was known, was enormously complex, involving dramatic battles on land, in the air, and at sea. Yet, despite its paramount importance to ultimate Allied victory, and its drama, very little has been written about the 38-day Battle for Sicily.
-
-
Great writing, great narration, interesting topic
- By ItalCali on 08-02-21
By: James Holland
What listeners say about A Strange Campaign
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Dorothy
- 04-02-24
It’s brevity
Thorough description of little known invasion of Madagascar. Easy to follow 4 more word 1
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!