|
|
Post by connie on Mar 15, 2009 17:50:33 GMT -5
The Bitter Woods: The Battle of the Bulge
By John S D Eisenhower
I asked for and received this one for Christmas.
A veteran friend said that this was the only book on the war that his wife found readable. He then went on to say I probably would not learn anything new that I hadn't picked up elsewhere. This one, too, has a bookmark partly through it. (Right now life has intervened in a big way.) So, I have not finished it yet, and to get back into the flow I should begin again. But, I found it a compelling account of the Battle of the Bulge. And, while some information doesn't change from one book to the next, this one viewed things through a different lens. The major aim is to look at the command, which it does well. But, it begins with the account of a newspaper reporter's day preceding the Bulge. It is not limited to command. I am finding it to be solid, well documented, and readable. What do you think?
|
|
|
|
Post by Larry Heider on Mar 18, 2009 19:33:00 GMT -5
While skimming over "A Blood-Dimmed Tide", I happened to land on a page that might add an interesting slant on your take on "The Bitter Woods." The author, Gerald Astor, quoted John Kline, currently the 106th Association Membership Chairman, as saying: "We received some very bad press after the war. The British writers were the cruelest, made us out to be cowards. I've talked to guys who said they would walk into a Legion club to have a drink and somebody would say, 'Oh, you were with the 106th? You were one of those guys who let the Germans through the Bulge.'
"Self serving memoirs from some other outfits denigrated the performance of the 106th and these served as research for still more books. In 1980 author Charles Whiting published "Death of a Division", which, in essence, painted the 106th troops as not only green but also cowards who panicked and bugged out, creating a gridlock that prevented the 7th Armored from saving them. John Eisenhower's "The Bitter Woods" relied on the same derogatory sources."
In "A Time for Trumpets", Charles MacDonald placed the unhappy story of the 106th Division in a reasonable context and scrubbed off much of the opprobrium smeared on the Golden Lions.
"MacDonald's report revived the drooping spirits of men like John Kline. 'The book shows that the Germans took three days to chew us up, and in those three days they lost their impetus. They used up a lot of gas and men.' From the moment he came across "A Time for Trumpets", Kline began to search for others from the division. He joined the 106th Association and became editor of its quarterly magazine."
*p. 489-491 "A Blood-Dimmed Tide"
Having read all of the above mentioned books, including Whiting's, I have to say that while John Eisenhower's "The Bitter Woods" gets the facts of the Battle of the Bulge fairly straight, his interpretation of the outcome is not one that represents the realities of the 106th's experiences. As for Charles Whiting, in my opinion, his talent for fiction overcame his need for facts. Unfortunately, in our search for information about our friends and family of the Golden Lions we must always be on the lookout for historical misinformation, intended or otherwise.
|
|
|
|
Post by wjcolxfile on Feb 17, 2010 15:03:08 GMT -5
Hello, I am a new member, I know of these missleading and some time vicous lies about the 106th ID,, including one about my Father,,and now, that I am on board I will do my best to dispell any of this BS.
Comments please
Posted message yesterday.
Thanks
Bill Colantuoni
UN: wjcolxfile
|
|
|
|
Post by Larry Heider on Feb 27, 2010 1:09:44 GMT -5
Welcome to the MB Bill. You are in good company on this topic. What would you say is the most untrue lie about the men of the 106th?
|
|
|
|
Post by connie on May 25, 2010 12:08:09 GMT -5
Hi, Hopefully you've discovered the notes under For The Record subset: Setting the Record Straight that begins to deal with the issues brought up by this book and other reports: 106thdivision.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=record&action=display&thread=222I think most of the readers of this site have done enough research to know that there was some early misplaced blame going around. Once this went into print it became a source. Getting into After action reports, etc. will help separate the real story from armchair speculation. Thanks for the caring. Connie |
|
