Just finished Alistaire Horne's The Price of Glory, Verdun 1916, and enjoyed it very much. Is there a similar work on the Somme?
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At Rathau on the Aller, the CO of 5th Royal Tanks advanced on foot to take a cautious look into the town before his tanks moved in. He encountered one of his own officers, a huge Welshman named John Gwilliam who later captained his country's rugby team, 'carrying a small German soldier by the scruff of his neck, not unlike a cat with a mouse.' The Colonel said: 'Why not shoot him?' Gwilliam replied in his mighty Welsh voice: 'Oh no, sir. Much too small.' -
the"first day on the somme "by martin middlebrook, great and moving read
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Somme Books
For me, the most comprehensive and well-balanced book is "The Somme" by Peter Hart (ISBN 9780304367351, published 2006) which is still in print and readily availible from most bookshops.
Unlike many books it covers the whole duration of the battle, from July-November 1916, rather than just looking at one phase. Hart runs the sound archive at the Imperial War Museum in London, and there's an excellent balance between first-hand veteran accounts and analysis of the bigger picture and the political and strategic background to the battle.
Middlebrook's "The First Day on the Somme" is absolutely superb and was a groundbreaking book in it's day, but -as the name implies- is limited in that it only covers July 1st....the emphasis is obviously on heavy casualties and lost opportunities and it doesn't address the learning curve the British Army went through or the fact that the British Army at the end of the battle was in many ways radically different and was, as one of it's soldiers said, starting to develop into a war-winning instrument.
Lyn MacDonald's books are excellent in the sense that they present a mass of first-hand veteran accounts, but the supporting text giving the context and background is, I think, quite superficial. Also, some of the accounts are a little doubtful...in her "Somme" book an account of a disasterous cavalry charge at High Wood has been totally debunked by research in the relevant war diaries. Many of her books were written when military history was produced with a less scholarly approach ni terms of citing footnotes and sources, and they seem a little dated now.
All three books would be good additions to any general WWI library, but for me Hart's books is the most comprehensive, well-balanced and atmospheric in terms of giving a view of the Somme from all levels and arms of service.
If you want the view from the other side of the hill, Jack Sheldon's "The German Army on the Somme", consisting of large numbers of accounts taken from German regimental histories, and Richard Baumgartens "This Carnival of Hell" (German veteran accounts of the Somme) are both essential, well researched and very readable.
Hope this is of some help, all the best
Paul.Comment
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Read Four
As a prelude
MacDonald "1915"
Middlebrook's "The First Day on the Somme"
Laffin "British Butchers and Bunglers of World War One" (A personal summation of the crackpot 'Cavalry' generals)
Baumgartner "This Carnival of Hell"
Finish off with two:
"True World War 1 Stories" told by Vets: introduction by Jon E. Lewis
Gregory "The Last Great War" about the Wars' impact and how British society was changed forever, or not.
EricComment
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I would highly recommend Jack Sheldon's German army on the Somme 1914-1916.
http://www.amazon.com/German-Army-So...ref=pd_sim_b_7Comment
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