The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan

The Longest DayThe Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a great book looking at the events leading up to and including the Normandy invasion of June 6, 1944. It focuses mainly on the US effort but does cover the British and Canadian involvement as well, so we get a broader view of what happened on all the beaches as well as to the paratroopers dropped behind enemy lines.
We get a sense of the overwhelming odds from Ryan's work, but we also get a glimpse into the series of events that worked, ultimately in the favor of the Allies in gaining a strong foothold on the European mainland.
Cornelius Ryan's writing style was fairly easy to follow, with enough background to give you context to the events he writes about, but without so much detail that you wonder if he will ever get on with telling the story.
I have always enjoyed the history of World War II and "The Longest Day" does not disappoint.

Overall, a very good read, with the focus being on one event from a much larger series of events. I have found that it is good to look not only at the larger, overall picture, but to examine the individual battles and skirmishes that make up the war.
For anyone interested in World War II, I would recommend the book. And particularly if people are interested in D-Day as this gave a nice overview of that battle.

Favorite aspect: Cornelius Ryan writes a well balanced history of an event that has been covered extensively in previous books and popular movies, but still gives the reader something to consider. I also liked the coverage given to other Allied forces besides the US. It felt more international that way.

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