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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
Super interesting read about an aspect of WWII that I didn't know about - the race to develop an atomic bomb by the Germans using heavy water from Norway.
Great book! Informative and well-researched but compelling to read.
Thrilling account of a slice of WWII history that plays into the what if.
Oh man. This book was spectacular!!! I've studied a lot about World War II, but I've never really studied much about Norway's involvement. Which is extremely sad because the sacrifices and everything that the country went through is insane! The guys involved with Operation Freshmen, Grouse/Swallow, and Gunnerside are the most amazing heroes I've ever heard of. The struggles they faced and the hardships that they went through, all in the name of freeing their beloved country. It's moving. Bascomb did an excellent job of laying out the history and science of all involved, and really did a fantastic job describing the trials those men faced. I highly recommend this book. It's so worth the read.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
I had a little trouble getting into the book initially, the author seemed to jump around a lot and it wasn’t totally clear to me if things were chronological or related. However, once things got moving with the commando operations, I was blown away.
It’s inconceivable that this story hasn’t been made into a movie. It’s got everything for a real life Where Eagles Dare/Guns of Navarone. The Germans are building a potentially war winning weapon at an impenetrable fortress and only a small band of plucky Norwegian commandos can stop it. Except it’s all real, and incredible. I feel ashamed I’d never heard of any of this before and am so glad I read this book.
It’s inconceivable that this story hasn’t been made into a movie. It’s got everything for a real life Where Eagles Dare/Guns of Navarone. The Germans are building a potentially war winning weapon at an impenetrable fortress and only a small band of plucky Norwegian commandos can stop it. Except it’s all real, and incredible. I feel ashamed I’d never heard of any of this before and am so glad I read this book.
I really enjoyed this narrative about a really difficult mission in Norway that appears to have been quite important in the Allies winning WWII. What a lot of work to go through all the documents to produce this book.
“The Winter Fortress” tells the story of the oft-dubbed heroes of Telemark. 1942, enabled by the British RAF and several secret organizations, nine Norwegian saboteurs committed the first of several destructive defense acts to limit the German production and usage of heavy water in Norway. Over the coming years, several additional attacks continued the effort, slowing the production efforts for a German atomic bomb during WWII. Neal Bascomb manages to tell this tale with engaging excitement and homage to the story’s many heroes without compromising the sanctity of the facts for authorial interjection.
I found this a bit of a slog in the beginning and nearly gave up several times, so 4 stars feel a bit too high a review, but I liked the story once I got into it, more than I liked books I've rated 3 stars. It was hard to follow who everyone was, especially in the beginning, and I often felt there was more detail than necessary, but it was still a good story overall.
After seeing Erik Larson speak last month, I needed a good dose of narrative fiction. Bascomb delivered with this book.
The Winter Fortress tells a small part of Norway's involvement in World War II. Unfortunately for Norway, they had one of the only places on earth that produced "heavy water." Hitler wanted this heavy water as part of his goal to create an atomic bomb.
The book follows several Norwegians exiled in England during the war, and their efforts to sabotage the production facility of heavy water. We follow all the planning, the failed missions, until finally the successful mission. The successful mission is just amazing. Some spies hide in cabins for months waiting for the exiled Norwegian soldiers who are trained in England to arrive. One mission involved gliders that crashed and saw the soldiers captured, tortured, and killed by the nazis. The successful mission destroyed the production of heavy water and didn't require the firing of a single shot.
Later, after the German's rebuild, the heavy water is set to be transported to Germany. The mission to destroy this water is somewhat anti-climatic. Not Bascomb's fault, it seems the nazis had sort of just given up.
Overall a great book. An equal to Larson's best work.
The Winter Fortress tells a small part of Norway's involvement in World War II. Unfortunately for Norway, they had one of the only places on earth that produced "heavy water." Hitler wanted this heavy water as part of his goal to create an atomic bomb.
The book follows several Norwegians exiled in England during the war, and their efforts to sabotage the production facility of heavy water. We follow all the planning, the failed missions, until finally the successful mission. The successful mission is just amazing. Some spies hide in cabins for months waiting for the exiled Norwegian soldiers who are trained in England to arrive. One mission involved gliders that crashed and saw the soldiers captured, tortured, and killed by the nazis. The successful mission destroyed the production of heavy water and didn't require the firing of a single shot.
Later, after the German's rebuild, the heavy water is set to be transported to Germany. The mission to destroy this water is somewhat anti-climatic. Not Bascomb's fault, it seems the nazis had sort of just given up.
Overall a great book. An equal to Larson's best work.