Battle

Compared to Macdonald’s tome, Toland’s book is a far more succinct account of the Battle of the Bulge (If you could call 444 pages succinct!). Toland doesn’t spend a lot of time on exposition. He dives right into the battle after the first twenty pages, which is refreshing because too many authors and historians spend too much time, writing about the build-up before the battle. Before you know it, you’re already halfway through the book and it’s only December 16. Toland avoids that pitfall. His prose is simple and straightforward. If you can’t read a 900-page book about the Bulge,… show more.

Toland was a veritable genius at long-form historical storytelling. His books read like sweeping, epic novels. When he researched this book in the 1950s, he did not have the benefit of access to massive amounts of unclassified Army records that World War II historians of our time take for granted. But he did enjoy the advantage of proximity to the event and he used that asset to the hilt. He practiced immersion-style research, embedding himself on the ground for long stretches of time, forging relationships with civilians and combatants of both sides, from all ranks and dispositions. Then he had… show more.