First Across the Rhine: The 291st Engineer Combat Battalion in France, Belgium, and Germany

After hearing about Col Pergrin in the Philly news (WWII anniversary) I was hoping to find a book about his unit. This book is such a must for any WWII historian. It is quite readable, in spite the rich detail it goes into. The section (about 1/3 of the book) on the units exploits during the Battle of the Bulge, must rank among some the best first person accounts ever written! After reading that section I can see how "Those damned Engineers" ruined Hitler's winter offensive. The section on the bridging of the Rhine is another epic. I knew prior to reading this book that they did build the bridge, I was still hanging on every page, as if I was reading a novel. Col Pergrin's love and compassion for his troops is also well noted, he seems like a great leader (I wish we still had a few like him). One problem I had (very minor) was my lack of knowledge of the various types of bridges, which does not take away from this book, but if included would add so much to it. Overall I loved it!

This book is a must read for anyone interested in combat engineering. COL Pergrin tells his story of forming and then leading a combat engineer battalion in World War II in Europe. The 291st had a huge reputation as an outstanding engineer unit, and as you read the Battalion Commander's recollections, you have no trouble understanding why. An interesting comment on the quality of officers that were grown in the two-three years prior to the invasion of France. COL Pergrin was a typical example of the quick assessment and then promotion of the true leaders. This book is enjoyable for those with some background in comabt engineering tasks. As an engineer officer, I learned much about the history and achievements of a great combat engineer unit.