[SampleMan]

One of the best books on WWII ever written. I highly recommend all of Cornelius Ryan’s books.

Sadly, I think the movies aren’t so good. The Longest Day being better by far (IMHO) than A Bridge Too Far.

Another Ryan book, The Last Battle, is a must read. It deals with the battle for Berlin.

From the book, A Bridge Too Far, a fantastic story is a P-51 pilot that was making repeated runs against a AAA gun, flying low over a paratroop landing zone. The AAA gun is out of sight from the paratroopers. The Mustang is hit and impacts the ground. When all the pieces come to a stop, the pilot jumps out of the largest piece and runs to a paratrooper. He demands a weapon, stating that he knows right where the bastards are at. All of his books are completely nonfiction, based on personal accounts.

[Vanders9]

Agree re Cornelius Ryan. Excellent popular history books.

I prefer the film "Bridge too Far" to "The Longest Day". I thought the latter was far too bitty.

[Joe 6-pack]

My "Bridge Too Far" dvd has a "Making Of" special feature. There's an interesting interview with Anthony Hopkins who played LTC (later MG) John Frost. The real Frost was a technical adviser on the set. In one scene, Hopkins makes a dash from the house he's using as his HQ at the Arnhem Bridge, across the street to a building that's been set up as an expedient casualty collection point. Hopkins stated that when they did the take, he ran and dodged across the street as though he was avoiding enemy fire.

Frost saw the take and told him that no British officer would do that lest he instill fear and panic in his men. Frost told him that he needed to walk smartly and briskly across the street.

The movie makers discarded Frost's "technical advice" fearing that no audience would find reality realistic.