The Battle of the Atlantic
How the Allies Won the War
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The Battle of the Atlantic
Buy Now for £16.99
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Narrated by:
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Jonathan Dimbleby
About this listen
Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable, audiobook edition of The Battle of the Atlantic, written and read by Jonathan Dimbleby.
The Battle of the Atlantic was - though often overlooked - crucial to victory in the Second World War. If the German U-boats had prevailed, the maritime artery across the Atlantic would have been severed. Mass hunger would have consumed Britain, and the Allied armies would have been prevented from joining in the invasion of Europe. There would have been no D-Day.
Through fascinating contemporary diaries and letters, from the leaders and from the sailors on all sides, Jonathan Dimbleby creates a thrilling narrative that uniquely places the campaign in the context of the entire Second World War. Challenging conventional wisdom on the use of intelligence and on Churchill's bombing campaign, The Battle of the Atlantic tells the epic story of the decisions that led to victory, and the horror and humanity of life on those perilous seas.
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Critic reviews
Winston Churchill famously described the Battle of the Atlantic as 'a war of groping and drowning, a war of ambuscade and stratagem, a war of science and seamanship' and no book depicts all of those myriad aspects better than Jonathan Dimbleby's majestic overview. His judgments can sometimes be harsh and are bound to be controversial, but they are backed up with wide reading, diligent scholarship and cogent argument. This is a truly gripping account of a campaign that the author rightly puts epicentral to the Allied victory in the Second World War.
Dimbleby’s pronunciation of many German names and words is both inconsistent and incorrect.
Having lived in Germany this anglicised pronunciation does grate with the listener.
Dimbleby Should Use A Narrator
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Very insightful
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He weaves this story masterfully into the tapestry of all the other major encounters of the War, frequently quoting other esteemed authors.
This is a long book, but worth every minute of the time it will take to listen to the story.
The only area I felt Dimbleby slipped up on was his assertion that the mutual reading of each others signal traffic by Bletchley and B-Dienst “cancelled each other out”. It didn’t.
What it did do was to act as a positive feedback loop that catalysed each sides next move.
Other than that (excepting a few unusual pronunciations by JD) the book is an exceptional read.
A superb retelling of an epic battle.
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Fantastic!
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Dimbleby reads very well as one would expect from a professional broadcaster for many years. He has a mellifluous voice that manages to convey the obvious enthusiasm he has for his subject. There are one or two occasions when you can hear him clearing his throat or taking a sip of water which you think could easily have been edited out but it’s not enough to detract from the listening experience in my opinion (although other reviewers obviously thought differently).
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and can heartily recommend it.
Excellent
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