Day of Battle

I just finished my review of Rick Atkinson's "Day of Battle. This is the second book in the "Liberation Trilogy". The first, An Army At Dawn, is a great work treating the African Campaign in World War II. But it was written before the Iraq War. Between the first two books of the "Liberation Trilogy" Atkinson wrote a very negative screed regarding his feelings about U.S. involvement in Iraq. Ever since, I have had a skeptical opinion of his work.

For this reason I was nit-picking as I read "Day of Battle". I found "Day of Battle" fascinating, even riveting. But I did pick up a few nits. I felt that it may have dwelt perhaps too long on the errors committed on the side of the allies. I thought Atkinson let the German's off a bit light. I thought I could discern a faint coloring as though Atkinson was now viewing the Second World War through a prism colored by his thoughts on the struggle in Iraq.

Now the "Catch 22". Am I seeing this change in Atkinson's treatment of WWII only because my view of Rick Atkinson has changed? I am now looking for leftist dogma twisting his history out of context all because his "In the Company of Soldiers" was filled with misguided political posturing from the left.

I have finally come to the conclusion that Atkinson does indeed paint the Allied campaign in the Mediteranean in very dark colors. But I think this ultimately serves a positive purpose in revealing not just the horrors of war, but the justified sacrifice that was made to free the world from cruelty and injustice. The book is very good. I highly recommend it.