By Tank into Normandy (Cassell Military Paperbacks)

This is a very good first hand look at WWII through the eyes of a british officer in the tank core. Hopefully, this is the last really big world wide war. We now just have proxy wars and wars like in Afganistan, war in Ukraine not withstanding. WWII was fought by soldiers on the ground. So different from any war we would fight next, with our air forces and drones. If we do have another war it wont as anticeptic as we think. Read this and remember - War is Hell - and dont let our politicians start one.

The book starts out slow and gets a little bogged down , but the story is excellent. The Author does a good job of telling what actions his unit was involved in and the price paid by his fellow tankers. He mentions the struggles tanks have in combat and what happens without infantry support. This is a must read for history buffs like me.

The historical accounts jibe with numerous other books I've read. Sometimes these first person recountings seem to veer from facts either from a desire to embellish or memories becoming muddled from the passage of time. This story has the added benefit of a highly educated central figure who also has highly developed literary skill and style. I suspect that this same linguistic flair is quite evident in his day to day conversations. Fine balances are achieved between pride and humility, humor and sorrow, strength and vulnerability as the authors share their exploits with unassuming confidence. Having read similar first person accounts from British, American, Canadian, and German tankers alike, I found that this book connected with those others in such a way to as to give real substance to the story of the final year of WWII in Europe. It is both interesting and ironic that the author's parents were imprisoned by the Japanese in Hong Kong throughout Stuart Hills' entire war experience. His near total lack of information about the fate of his parents perfectly parallels the near complete isolation of the European and Asian conflict zones. If you are interested in stories of this type I am confident will find this book well worth reading.

By Tank into NormandyStuart Hill’s account of tank warfare in 1944 and 1945 is well written and in fact very informative. As part of the Sherwood Rangers, Stuart was part of the Allied spearhead and his unit saw more action than many others.The writing has an old-English elegance to it, which at times made me smile and whilst I do not understand the cricket references I accept them as part of the author’s life. What really made this book interesting was the balance with which the author addressed his own feelings in response to the slaughter that he witnessed, first in Normandy, then in the chase of the retreating German forces. It is one thing to understand that a Sherman tank was vulnerable, it is a very different story when the author describes again and again how his friends burned up in their “Ronson lighters”. Frequently, the padre of the Sherwood rangers makes a cameo in Stuart’s book who had taken on the role of removing the bodies from the burned-out tanks. Between the author’s story and the voices of his friends and colleagues, I developed an intimate insight into those fateful months from June 1944 and May 1945. A really good read in my opinion.

A marvelous story well told by the author. As a young officer commanding a troop of Sherwood Rangers operating M4 Shermans with 75MM guns the author presents an up front and very personal look at ETO armored combat. The book really takes off once the D-Day Invasion starts. His experience in trying to bring a Sherman DD ashore, and failing as so many did, was harrowing to read. The loss of many comrades in the Holland and Northern Germany campaigns left the author with feelings that persisted decades later. The ever-present fear of German armor and infantry armed with the highly effective Panzerfaust anti-tank rocket permeates the book. His experiences in working with the US 82nd Airborne and 101st Airborne Divisions were favorable and he offered high praise for their professionalism.Had I been the editor I would have sharply reduced the writing spent on descriptions of his school days at a fine, upper crust British boarding school. The accounts of old school ties and cricket matches long ago will be tiresome for some USA readers. That minor criticism aside, I found the book to be immensely readable and worthwhile, particularly for those interested in ETO armored combat.

Good read - enjoyed and definitely recommend. I believe my only challenge was when it strayed from "By Tank" and was more on the authors overall time France. Regardless, enjoyed the book.

A 20 year old Lieutenant in charge of a Sherman! The author is unstinting in his honestly about the fears and horror of war. He lost many friends killed or wounded, some burned beyond recognition in the charnel houses that their tanks became. The book is written in the first person and describes his experiences, both good and bad. He recounts about the Padre, whose self appointed task was to be at the front lines, removing the often burnt beyond recognition bodies from the destroyed tanks and making sure the occupants received a proper burial. This gentleman deserves a book unto himself. A shrewd observer, the author recounts how his tank smelled after 4 days of continuous combat - I believe "rank" is the word he used, as well as the small pleasures and outright terror of being a junior officer, (and younger than the men he commanded). He had one crewman who would not leave the tank for four days while they were in a rest area. They called it "bomb happy". Eventually, he was taken off to hospital, never to be seen again. Such is the terror experienced. This is not Hollywood; it is reality. Highly recommended even if you are not an armour or WW2 buff.

I have never read first hand accounts of ww-2. I found it very interesting in it's day to day terror inter spaced with periods of utter caum,! I look back on my 20 years in The USAF working on all manner of various aircraft, nuclear missel combat silo's, as it at times like in the Cubin missel crisis "defcom 2 " war was evident In 12 hours,!

The interest in history especially that of WW2 has probably never been higher and that has meant some superb historical books as well as out and out fraudulent ones and some that are more blended. Elements of truth mixed with fictional prose and situations to make a more thrilling story. Sadly, most of the books written by those who fought on the German side are most circumspect and quite a few that have been mixed authorship ones between historians and the first person seem a bit suspicious.This book firmly falls into the first category of being a genuine book written by an actual person who really did fight. It avoids overly flowery writing, embellished tales of heroic actions and situations more like a Hollywood movie. It's also relatively short because it is a straight forward telling of the events the author experienced not a grander overlook of the early stages of fighting in France. The other telling thing for me is that the author reminded me of my own grandfather - albeit from a far posher background. His attitudes and world view were entirely convergent on those of my grandparents generation and which I remember extremely fondly.Being a book of an actual person his story is fascinating. In many ways the drama of the fighting is far less than one would think being a general series of short periods of extreme violence and sudden and random death followed by calm and routine. I found it thoroughly interesting to read about the daily activities and generally good natured way in which the British Army operated. It does come across as a human thing and whilst it is often said the British Army were not as good or as hard as the Germans and certainly displayed reluctance in throwing themselves into the fray at times, the overall picture is one of balance. It was not an army of extremists. It was an army of people who were generally decent civilians not men who thought they were a master race. The fact that a civilian army eventually prevailed through it's overall strategy of fighting using all means to win not just relying on fanatics demonstrates an underlying sense of rightness about the people of my grandparents era.Overall a wonderful book that I would recommend highly if one wants to read something genuinely from a person who fought on the front line during the Normandy Campaign.

A factual account of Hills’ war but writes with the skill to convey some of the stresses and emotions involved. Young men should read it to understand what might be demanded of them, and was given by Hills’ generation.

I have read a number of books about the Sherwood Rangers in World War 2. This one is another perspective from a young Stuart Hills his part in the Sherwood Ranger's battles through the war. Excellent.

Public school boy gets to command a tank, straight out of school. Sinks it on D Day and gets looked after. Some none specific stuff after great deal about his schooling.

This is my favorite book of the Normandy Invasion, a very good read.Only negative is that its an Officers view.The book brings home the day to day horrors of front line fighting, living on the edge day to day never knowing if it will all suddenly end in a blinding flash and inferno of a burning tank