SAR 18#6

BOOK
REVIEW
The Americans on D-Day:
A Photographic History of the
Normandy Invasion
By Martin K. A. Morgan
Hardcover, 240 pages
190 color and 360 b&w photos
Size: 10 x 12.25
Published by Zenith Press, 2014
$45 US, £30 UK, $50 CAN
Reviewed by Robert G. Segel
With 2014 being the 70th anniversary
of D-Day, the June 6, 1944 Allied
invasion of Europe through Normandy,
France, there are numerous media venues
being used to commemorate this
monumental historic event: television,
newspapers, magazines, bloggers,
online sites and books. Among the
many books published during this 70th
anniversary, though visually appealing,
most tend to repeat familiar photos and
rehash stock story lines. But this book,
The Americans on D-Day: A Photographic
History of the Normandy Invasion
by Martin K. A. Morgan stands out
as an exceptional volume both in terms
of photographic content and text.
D-Day, June 6, 1944, was the most
complicated and pivotal amphibious
landing operation of the Second World
War. Although it took a multinational
coalition to conduct the landings, the
U.S. military made a major contribution
to the operation that created the mighty
American legends and unforgettable
heroes. In The Americans on D-Day: A
Photographic History of the Normandy
Invasion, World War II historian Martin
Morgan presents 450 of the most compelling
and dramatic photographs captured
in northern France during the first
day and week of its liberation.
The way that the battle unfolded
in the sectors where the U.S. military
fought was documented by hundreds of
photographs – images that captured the
intensity of World War II combat from the
landing beaches to the drop zones and
hedgerows. Wherever the battle raged,
photographers were there to snap still
pictures of what was happening and
who was fighting. The majority of these
images were taken by U.S. Army, Navy
and Coast Guard photographers – men
who went to war with cameras in their
hands. But personal cameras also
recorded a more intimate side of the
fighting in Normandy and beyond.
With eight chapters of place-setting
author introductions, riveting period imagery,
and highly detailed explanatory
captions, Morgan offers anyone interested
in D-Day a fresh look at a campaign
that was fought seven decades ago yet
remains the object of unwavering interest
to this day. While some of these
images are familiar, they have been
treated anonymously for far too long and
haven’t been placed within the proper
context of time or place. Many others
have never been published before. Together,
these photographs reveal minute
details about weapons, uniforms, and
equipment, while simultaneously narrating
an intimate human story of triumph,
tragedy, and sacrifice. From Omaha
Beach to Utah, from Sainte-Mère-Église
to Pointe du Hoc, The Americans on
D-Day is a striking visual record of the
epic air, sea, and land battle that was the
Normandy invasion.
The author, Martin K. A. Morgan, is
a historian and expert on the American
experience in World War II authoring
and contributing to a number of publications
and appearing regularly on numerous
TV programs such as Discovery,
National Geographic, History, H2,
Outdoor Channel and the History Channel.
He has worked as a park ranger
and museum professional, worked for
the Alabama Historical Commission at
Fort Morgan Historic Site, and served
as historian-in-residence at the National
World War II Museum in New
Orleans, Louisiana.
SAR Vol. 18, No. 6 100 Nov., Dec. 2014