Bitter Victory

Book excerpt: ‘A sorry tale of war, superbly told’ Max Hastings‘Fills an important gap in this history of the Second World War’ Times Literary SupplementThe fighting in Sicily in the summer of 1943, sandwiched between greater events in Normandy and Italy, has been almost forgotten by military historians. But the decision to invade Italy was one of the major Allied decisions of the European war. For 38 days during the summer of 1943 the attention of the world centred upon Sicily where yet another chapter in the island’s violent history was written by modern warriors. This is the story of how the battle for Sicily was conceived, planned and carried out by the Allies, and how the Germans and their reluctant Italian ally succeeded in turning what ought to have been great triumph into a bitter victory. Mixing flawless research, drama and combat with a brilliant narrative voice, Carlo D’Este excellent Bitter Victory is the first and only book on this critical campaign. It has been hailed as a classic military title and it is now available in this new edition.‘A masterly and vivid account which is hard to put down’ ScotsmanCarlo D’Este is a retired lieutenant colonel from the US army, having served in Germany, England and Vietnam. His many books include the acclaimed studies of the Anzio and Normandy campaigns. He lives in Massachusetts.