Amiens 1918

[dave]

Not long borrowed this book from my local library, is there anyone else who has come across this book, if so what did you think of it ?

asking , as i cant seem to find any review on it, on the forum anywhere.

Is it that bad !?

[Justin Moretti]

I bought it because my (now ex) partner said (in her usual bibliophilic way) "Ooh, look, here's a new WW1 book; have you seen this one yet?" And of course I let myself be tempted.

I ended up being disappointed for some vague reason I can't recall (too many personal anecdotes, perhaps? Don't remember); whatever the case, I have been loath to go back to it. It seemed there was always something better on the bookshelf.

Mind you, I felt that Liaison 1914 had been a bit of a flat read the first time round too, but I changed my mind on that.

I will re-read it again this weekend and tell you what I think on the second go around.

[paul guthrie]

I think it's excellent, a weakness in WW1 books is maps but this one does that well enough.

[Justin Moretti]

Re-read it.

Good, BUT...

They tend to take the "Cavalry Generals" line, which may upset some of us here who have some regard for F.M. D.H.

They berate the BEF high command for not having the sense and wisdom to push on once they'd reached the Blue Line (the ultimate objective), stopping to consolidate instead of exploiting the rout in front of them, yet in the same breath they mention the experience the BEF had gained, that attacks are followed by vicious counter-attacks against which it is well to guard. They mention this, but overlook it as a valid reason for digging in. Yet at the same time they berate GHQ for being reckless in the past.

They berate GHQ for its 'dependence on roads and telephone lines' without stopping to take into account that the technological means to divorce themselves from both were either not available or not mature enough to tackle the scale of operations required.

So at times they seem to contradict themselves, or at least undermine their argument. That having been said, the book IS a reasonable read on the actual battle, and gets close to the 'up front and personal' level without becoming too bogged down in individual soldiers' anecdotes.

Definitely go for the softcover or a remaindered hardcover (unlike me).

[Andrew Hesketh]

This keeps floating to the top of my reading list and then gets knocked back by something else - most recently 'Pro Patria Mori' - so thank you for the above comments. I got it as a remaindered hardback so it seems as though I should be fairly happy!