An Army At Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943 by Rick Atkinson

An Army At Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943 by Rick Atkinson



An Army At Dawn is a history novel that focuses on the actions of the Allied forces in the beginning of the United States involvement in World War II. It explains the actions of both President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in choosing to attack North Africa instead of Western Europe in efforts to oust the Germans and win the war. This novel thoroughly examines the movements of the Allies and includes excerpts from the diaries of General Eisenhower and General Patton as well as many other officers on the Allied and Axis sides. We follow the campaign from the planning phases, through the first attacks in the fall of 1942 through victory in Tunisia in May of 1943.
                This book is Volume One of the Liberation Trilogy written by Atkinson. It is obvious that he is preparing the reader to follow him on a journey throughout the conclusion of World War II. In the opening of the novel he stresses how essential it is to understand this first victory in order to appreciate the completion and success of the Allied forces in winning World War II. The amount of information is overwhelming but delivered beautifully. Atkinson made sure to be as clear and concise as possible in presenting the information to the reader and for that I am thankful. In my opinion you could easily spend a semester just going over the amount of information listed in this one novel for which Atkinson won a Pulitzer Prize.
                I enjoyed and will without a doubt recommend this novel to anyone interested in the history of World War II. After reading this first volume, I feel compelled to finish the journey and complete the trilogy through the words of Atkinson. This was definitely an eye opening experience. It is only through the amount of detailed delivered through authors like Rick Atkinson that one can even begin to imagine the horrors of the war, the amount of planning and soul searching that goes into the decision making process and the true courage of those who fought.

                I give this novel 5 out of 5 stars. I only recommend this to those who are extremely interested in the history of World War II. I would in no shape, way or form consider this light reading but it will definitely hold the attention of anyone who wishes to be educated on the topic. 

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