Excellent coverage of a WWII campaign that got overshadowed in history by the D-Day invasion.....but also played such a big role in D-Day's success. Once again, I've learned so much from James Holland's telling of this part of WWII history. He tells about the many forces/armies that joined the effort, the extreme terrain that had to be overcome, the extreme weather. He's very good at describing the awful gruesomeness of battle, vivid descriptions of war & battle injuries, the total sense of disorientation, sounds of machine guns, smoke & stench of burning.......the sights, smells, & sounds......he brings this story to life.....& it's not glamorous....it's war.
As with other books of his that I've read, I found the Postscript at the end to be a good ending, telling a bit more about some of the people read about in the book, & the 'Timeline of Events' also a good review. A novice reader interested in WWII history would be able to enjoy this, but might find it a challenge coping with all the Italian names, & different country's spellings of the military units. A well studied reader of WWII history will appreciate Holland's complete account. The book's title is appropriate. It's a serious read, but it's worth it....probably deserves a 5th star, for the educational value!
I received an ARC of the book to read in exchange for an honest review from publisher Atlantic Grove/Atlantic Monthly Press via NetGalley.

"Cassino '44: The Brutal Battle for Rome" is James Holland's most recent military history and a follow up volume to his much acclaimed "Savage Storm" which addresses the earlier portions of the Allied Campaign on the Italian peninsula. Together, they are a formidable addition to Holland's impressive canon. This volume will be published by Grove Atlantic, who have been kind enough to provide me with an ARC for the purposes of this review. In "Cassino '44," his focus is on the protracted battle for the City of Rome and its consequences. I stress that this is a study of a military campaign comprised of many battles, most notably, the battle for Monte Cassino and the Allied assault on Anzio. Necessarily, a study of this type is comprehensive in its overview, and it is in developing this overview that Holland's talents shine most clearly. It is futile to look at this titanic struggle marked by savage warfare on both sides without keeping in mind the role that it played in stretching Nazi Germany's resources, both in men and treasure, at precisely the time when they were preparing to face the Allied invasion of France. This critical point is one often overlooked in limited examinations of individual battles within the larger Italian campaign. Don't misunderstand me, there are many fine books that have been written on various aspects of this campaign. My point is that few of them even begin to contextualize them into a larger picture of the overall events which both propelled and restricted events with often tragic battlefield consequences. Overall, Holland does a good job of evaluating both Axis and Allied leadership (although I still take issue with his persistent sympathy for Mark Clark, who bears, in my mind, much of the responsibility for the War of Attrition that the Italian campaign exemplified). Nonetheless, this is required reading for anyone looking for an informed look at events that did much to shape the world we live in. I recommend the book without qualification. Bring an open mind, and see for yourself what happened in Italy . and how it might have been handled differently, There is a wealth of new material and analysis made available here in one place.