The Bridge at Remagen: The Amazing Story of March 7, 1945-The Day the Rhine River Was Crossed

Great for any History Buff out there , and especially for WWII History enthusiast.

"Definitive," is not a word to be used lightly, especially in published works of history and biography. Yet publishers still churn out books dealing with these two categories and use "definitive," quite lavishly. Despite the mostly brazeness with which the term is used, occasionally there comes along a book that covers its subject so well, so thoroughly that no other term but "definitive," can be used to describe it. "The Bridge at Remagen," is such a book. Ken Hechler's sole published work on World War II, is the first and last word of the U.S. Army's surprise capture of the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen, allowing the Allies to pierce the Rhine, the last natural barrier they had to overcome before moving on to the heart of Hitler's rapidly crumbling Third Reich. Hechler himself was uniquely qualified to write the book. He was near Remagen when the bridge was captured so he quickly went there and interviewed the key American participants. The war ended, Hechler went home and pursued a career in politics. During the 1950's, he found his notes and decided to get the rest of the story. He interviewed the German personnel involved (nearly a decade after the war's end) and published this book as a Ballantine original. It has never gone out of print since it's initial publication in 1957. What better testimony can there be of this book's accomplishment? As to the book itself, it's a tight, fast moving piece of historical writing. It's an even rarer work of military history: an actual page turner. Mr. Hechler is a superb narrator and lets the facts and the participants tell the story. He only offers his opinions near the end of the book where he tells the reader that the Ludendorff Bridge's capture certainly hastened the end of the war (in hindsight, how couldn't it?). His opinions are reasonably stated and well argued. I finished the book in two days. Had I not had a 2 year-old daughter, I would have read it in one. With his one book Hechler's "The Bridge at Remagen," is a rare achievment in World War II bibliography; an actual definitive account.