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Omar Bradley: General at War by Jim DeFelice Washington, DC: Regenry History, 2011 400 pages $29.95
Admit it, the first images that come to mind when you hear the name Omar Bradley are either of a wire-rimmed glasses-wearing, bookish-looking math teacher or actor Karl Malden portraying the greatly admired general in the movie Patton. Jim DeFelice's book, Omar Bradley: A General at War provides the reader with an excellent resource for understanding who the GI general was, how he evolved into a wartime leader, and the critical relationships and challenges he faced throughout World War II. The reader will certainly gain a greater understanding of who this distinguished general was, how he made decisions, and how he led.
As DeFelice explains, this book fills a perceived void-that of an "imp- artial, easily accessible summary and evaluation of [General Omar Bradley's] life . . . ." Opining that historians have either "forgotten or miscast" Bradley, the author endeavors to explain why this general should be hailed as one of the architects of success in Europe. Finally, DeFelice believes we cannot understand our victory in Europe without understanding Bradley.
To help with his cause, the author draws upon a number of original sour- ces in the presentation of his assertions....