Hi guys.
I have recently started reading the book Route Nationale 7, by German pilote Georg Pemler. As far as I know, it only exists in German, making it difficult to read for me. I have only read about 100 pages out of about 300, but am so surprised, that I feel like writting this little review.
The book is a highly detailed day by day autobiographical text by a reconnaissance pilot named Georg Pemler, who was stationed near Toulon, southern France, when the southern France landings occured on August 15th 1944.
Many of you probably know next to nothing about the southern France campaign, and those who do probably know that casualties were "low", and part of it was dubed the "Champaign Campaign (spelling?)".
Well, Georg Pemler was on the Russian front , etc, and he said that those days of retreating after the invasion were the worste in the war for him.
The book is extremely detailed, and also extremely varied for an autobiography because the author was an officer and a Pilot. This means there are moments when he is engaged in arial combat, moments when he is engaged in ground combat and moments when he is in the presence of high ranking officiers: much more varied then what the average soldier was involved in.
In the first 100 pages there have already been scenes of field hospitals, dog fights, fighting with partisans, finding tortured bodies, women and children being killed, etc. A very painfull, varied and intersting picture.
I would highly recomend it to anyone, at least the first 100 pages I have read so far.
The only negative point is that although the other often violently critics the US troops and french partisans for breaking the laws of war, the author seems completely oblivious abut any German war crimes existing, and to the fact that places like Auschwitz existed on the German side. Maybe he will catch himself back before the end of the book.
JL
I have recently started reading the book Route Nationale 7, by German pilote Georg Pemler. As far as I know, it only exists in German, making it difficult to read for me. I have only read about 100 pages out of about 300, but am so surprised, that I feel like writting this little review.
The book is a highly detailed day by day autobiographical text by a reconnaissance pilot named Georg Pemler, who was stationed near Toulon, southern France, when the southern France landings occured on August 15th 1944.
Many of you probably know next to nothing about the southern France campaign, and those who do probably know that casualties were "low", and part of it was dubed the "Champaign Campaign (spelling?)".
Well, Georg Pemler was on the Russian front , etc, and he said that those days of retreating after the invasion were the worste in the war for him.
The book is extremely detailed, and also extremely varied for an autobiography because the author was an officer and a Pilot. This means there are moments when he is engaged in arial combat, moments when he is engaged in ground combat and moments when he is in the presence of high ranking officiers: much more varied then what the average soldier was involved in.
In the first 100 pages there have already been scenes of field hospitals, dog fights, fighting with partisans, finding tortured bodies, women and children being killed, etc. A very painfull, varied and intersting picture.
I would highly recomend it to anyone, at least the first 100 pages I have read so far.
The only negative point is that although the other often violently critics the US troops and french partisans for breaking the laws of war, the author seems completely oblivious abut any German war crimes existing, and to the fact that places like Auschwitz existed on the German side. Maybe he will catch himself back before the end of the book.
JL
Comment