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American Heritage Junior Library
The Battle of the Bulge
In the middle of December 1944, at a time when most people thought Germany was finished, the German army launched a surprise attack against the American army in Belgium. Thousands of crack troops and large numbers of tanks breached the thin American lines and drove deep into Belgium. The Battle of the Bulge would be a brutal, bloody struggle in a dismal winter landscape against an enemy imbued with Adolf Hitler's fanatic conviction that victory could be snatched from defeat. Before it ended, the Battle of the Bulge would involve over a million men and thousands of guns, tanks and other fighting vehicles. In that dark December, fighting both bitter winter storms and a grim and determined enemy, the American soldier faced his greatest challenge in the European war.
119 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1969
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128 people want to read
About the author
Stephen W. Sears
64 books225 followersStephen Ward Sears is an American historian specializing in the American Civil War.
A graduate of Lakewood High School and Oberlin College, Sears attended a journalism seminar at Radcliffe-Harvard. As an author he has concentrated on the military history of the American Civil War, primarily the battles and leaders of the Army of the Potomac. He was employed as editor of the Educational Department at the American Heritage Publishing Company.
Sears resides in Norwalk, Connecticut.
A graduate of Lakewood High School and Oberlin College, Sears attended a journalism seminar at Radcliffe-Harvard. As an author he has concentrated on the military history of the American Civil War, primarily the battles and leaders of the Army of the Potomac. He was employed as editor of the Educational Department at the American Heritage Publishing Company.
Sears resides in Norwalk, Connecticut.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 31, 2018
Nothing on the cover or inside the jacket of the copy I purchased indicated it was intended for younger readers. It is. I could have accepted that, as I often pass my books on to kids, but not this one.
The book has numerous unforgivable errors and downright fictions concerning the battle. Understand that this the eighth book I've read in the last year dealing exclusively with the Battle Of The Bulge, and I was touring the battlefield last month with a Belgian tour guide who was extraordinarily well read on the topic (and who witnessed the battle as a child).
Factual errors:
Page 42-43. The author attributes the "meat grinder" line to Patton during his initial meeting with Eisenhowerand his generals in the first days of the battle. He said this later in the counterattack to Bradley.
Page 38. The 57 mm gun used by the 51st Engineers at Trois Pont did not hold the German attack up for fifteen minutes. It did not blow up a Panther tank. It disabled the track of the lead tank and was almost instantly destroyed.
Page 38-39. SS Kampfgruppe Peiper didn't initiate reprisals against 25 civilians of Trois Pont, as they never took the town. It lies on the southwest side of the bridges the Americans destroyed, denying the town to Peiper. The SS murdered civilians throughout the Ambleve valley, primarily around Stavelot...134 people. The youngest was nine months old. I've visited the memorial in Stavelot and seen the names of the victims.
Page 30. The account of the "Malmedy Massacre" states there were 86 fatalities and four survivors. The number of prisoners initially taken was around 120. 84 were killed and the rest escaped. The victims names are at a memorial at Baugnez crossroads, the site of the massacre.
The accompanying photos say 101 Americans were killed at Malmedy (what happened to the number 86?) and states that Kampfgruppe Peiper captured Malmedy. It did not. It turned south at Baugnez crossroads, the site of the massacre, and drove to Ligneuville and then Stavelot. It never captured Malmedy. One of the photos states that the town was recaptured by the Americans. U.S. troops held Malmedy throughout the battle.
I've seen the memorial, driven the route of Kampfgruppe Peiper...even had lunch in Malmedy. Boy did this book get it wrong.
This work is completely unsourced, with no references or index. It lists S.L.A. Marshall as the historical consultant for the work. Marshall has been discredited as an historian since the initial publication of this book. I've read most of his books, and they're very entertaining...but some he interviewed suggest that he wouldn't let facts get in the way of a good story. This might explain the fictions in the account of the battle of Trois Pont found in this book.
Avoid this. Don't pass it on to younger people. There have to be better books on the topic for young adults.
The book has numerous unforgivable errors and downright fictions concerning the battle. Understand that this the eighth book I've read in the last year dealing exclusively with the Battle Of The Bulge, and I was touring the battlefield last month with a Belgian tour guide who was extraordinarily well read on the topic (and who witnessed the battle as a child).
Factual errors:
Page 42-43. The author attributes the "meat grinder" line to Patton during his initial meeting with Eisenhowerand his generals in the first days of the battle. He said this later in the counterattack to Bradley.
Page 38. The 57 mm gun used by the 51st Engineers at Trois Pont did not hold the German attack up for fifteen minutes. It did not blow up a Panther tank. It disabled the track of the lead tank and was almost instantly destroyed.
Page 38-39. SS Kampfgruppe Peiper didn't initiate reprisals against 25 civilians of Trois Pont, as they never took the town. It lies on the southwest side of the bridges the Americans destroyed, denying the town to Peiper. The SS murdered civilians throughout the Ambleve valley, primarily around Stavelot...134 people. The youngest was nine months old. I've visited the memorial in Stavelot and seen the names of the victims.
Page 30. The account of the "Malmedy Massacre" states there were 86 fatalities and four survivors. The number of prisoners initially taken was around 120. 84 were killed and the rest escaped. The victims names are at a memorial at Baugnez crossroads, the site of the massacre.
The accompanying photos say 101 Americans were killed at Malmedy (what happened to the number 86?) and states that Kampfgruppe Peiper captured Malmedy. It did not. It turned south at Baugnez crossroads, the site of the massacre, and drove to Ligneuville and then Stavelot. It never captured Malmedy. One of the photos states that the town was recaptured by the Americans. U.S. troops held Malmedy throughout the battle.
I've seen the memorial, driven the route of Kampfgruppe Peiper...even had lunch in Malmedy. Boy did this book get it wrong.
This work is completely unsourced, with no references or index. It lists S.L.A. Marshall as the historical consultant for the work. Marshall has been discredited as an historian since the initial publication of this book. I've read most of his books, and they're very entertaining...but some he interviewed suggest that he wouldn't let facts get in the way of a good story. This might explain the fictions in the account of the battle of Trois Pont found in this book.
Avoid this. Don't pass it on to younger people. There have to be better books on the topic for young adults.
January 11, 2013
I have read about the Battle of the Bulge before and this book does an average level of describing it. I feel it was missing some side details about the fight. It still did a pretty good job of what happened overall through the battle. The story had a good background of what happened before the battle. Its description of allied commander tactics was pretty good but it fell short on the Nazi side of the fight. I felt as if Stephen could have incorporated more stories from people in the warfront instead of a commander's view. This would have added more life to the story instead of all of the statistics he stated. I would recommend it to anyone that wants a quick read on the Battle of the Bulge.
October 23, 2012
I picked this up from a library e-book search. I was disappointed in it. It felt like something for high school students. And when I went to add it to Goodreads, I found it was an American Heritage Junior title. If you've read anything about the Battle of the Bulge, skip this one. If all you have seen is the Band of Brothers, this would be a good introduction to what else was happening with the Bulge.
March 8, 2018
interesting and thought provoking as every book on war is for me....
October 28, 2022
Superb rendering of an additional horrific part of World War II!!! Amazing!!!
February 20, 2013
This book is not for the "historian". It is not filled with the details that one doing research would be looking for. However, it does have its merits and I don't think you'd be disappointed in the read. It is an easily digestible work for someone who is looking for a casual read that broadens the perspective of arguably one the toughest battles in the history of the US Army.
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May 12, 2014An excellent introduction to this epic battle late in World War II. I read the Kindle version, which could have benefitted from some maps. I would recommend having a battlefield map handy to help understand the overall scope of the Ardennes Offensive. Also, a bibliography or author's note would be helpful for further reading into the topic, but overall a fascinating book.
June 5, 2011
There are much better books about the Ardennes battle. This was one of Sears' first books and it shows; it does not have the maturity of voice of a Chancellorsville or a Gettysburg.
July 11, 2012
Quick read
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews