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The Bitter Road to Freedom: A New History of the Liberation of Europe Audiobook
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(3.08) - 116 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Americans are justly proud of the role the United States played in liberating Europe from Nazi tyranny. For many years, we have celebrated the courage of the Allied soldiers, sailors, and aircrews who defeated Hitler's regime and restored freedom to the continent. But in recounting the heroism of the "greatest generation," Americans often overlook the wartime experiences of European people themselves—the very people for whom the war was fought.
In this brilliant new book, historian William I. Hitchcock surveys the European continent from D-Day to the final battles of the war and the first few months of the peace. Based on exhaustive research in five nations and dozens of archives, Hitchcock's groundbreaking account shows that the liberation of Europe was both a military triumph and a human tragedy of epic proportions.
Hitchcock gives voice to those who were on the receiving end of liberation, moving them from the edge of the story to the center. From France to Poland to Germany, from concentration camp internees to refugees, farmers to shopkeepers, husbands and wives to children, the experience of liberation was often difficult and dangerous. Their gratitude was mixed with guilt or resentment. Their lives were difficult to reassemble.
This strikingly original, multinational history of liberation brings to light the interactions of soldiers and civilians, the experiences of noncombatants, and the trauma of displacement and loss amid unprecedented destruction. This book recounts a surprising story, often jarring and uncomfortable, and one that has never been told with such richness and depth.
Today, with American soldiers once again waging wars of liberation in faraway lands, this book serves as a timely and sharp reminder of the terrible human toll exacted by even the most righteous of wars.
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"A very important and depressing book. After living under Nazi oppression, the allies were none to quick to help the displaced persons return home. The English treatment of the Jews was particularly despicable, as was selling out poland to the Russian. We all acted horribly."
— Adam (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“The first book I have read that explicitly addresses the plight of civilians during the ‘crusade for Europe’…This tale vividly demonstrates that there was no cause for triumphalism in the condition of Europe following the defeat of Hitler.”
— Sunday Times (London) -
“A powerful and important new work of history…A thorough, passionate corrective to any simple telling of the terrible last year of this war.”
— Financial Times -
“Remarkable…Underlines that the liberation of Europe was both a major military triumph and a human tragedy of epic proportions.”
— Irish Times (Dublin)
The Bitter Road to Freedom Listener Reviews
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" I highly recommend this book to any WWII buff and student. It is not a topic you read or hear much about. Hitchcock is an excellent writer and some of theses chapters are hard to read, but important. "
— Bryan, 10/23/2013 -
" Didn't like enough to finish. Note the title- "A New History"... no thanks. "
— Dan, 7/11/2013 -
" An excellent book. The perspective is to show the situation of the civilian population of Europe and the millions of refugees from the time of the invasion of Normandy to several years after the end of WWII. The story was well told. I learned a great deal. "
— Gail, 7/17/2012 -
" I learned a lot about WWII that I wasn't aware of. This book looks at the end of the war from the perspective of the people living in Europe. The descriptions were so horrific and really shows the human cost of war. "
— Twoster, 9/22/2010 -
" I learned a lot about the immediate post WWII period in Europe from this book, but it wasn't that well written and somehow felt wanting. I did not get a real feeling for thw refugees and DP's, I guess. "
— Carolyn, 9/15/2010 -
" Slow at first, but pretty fascinating by the end. "
— Kirsten, 8/4/2010 -
" Slow at first, but pretty fascinating by the end. "
— Kirsten, 8/22/2009 -
" I learned a lot about WWII that I wasn't aware of. This book looks at the end of the war from the perspective of the people living in Europe. The descriptions were so horrific and really shows the human cost of war. "
— Twoster, 5/13/2009 -
" An excellent book. The perspective is to show the situation of the civilian population of Europe and the millions of refugees from the time of the invasion of Normandy to several years after the end of WWII. The story was well told. I learned a great deal. "
— Gail, 2/26/2009
About William I. Hitchcock
William I. Hitchcock is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Age of Eisenhower and The Bitter Road to Freedom, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. A graduate of Kenyon College and Yale University, he is a professor of history at the University of Virginia and the Randolph Compton Professor at the Miller Center for Public Affairs.