Tank Action: An Armoured Troop Commander's War 1944–45

Tank Action is a very good read for a view from the turret during WWII. In this case, the view is from the commander's hatch in a British Sherman from Normandy through Holland into Germany. The author had me hooked when he explained how he bore-sighted his Sherman's main gun after his gunner refused to do it. It was the same way that tankers have always done using string and a target. I did this on both M60's and M1A1's, though the latter had the boresight device that made I much easier.Back to the book. I thought it was very well written explaining his insights into his crew and other soldiers in his unit, particularly the effects of combat fatigue, which he experienced, too. He does a wonderful job of describing the Sherman both the pluses and minuses. Especially interesting to me was how his unit used tactics to overcome the Sherman's shortcomings to successfully engage Panthers, Mark IV's and even a Tiger!If you are interested in WWII armor combat experiences and the human side of a Sherman crew, I highly recommend this book.

Well written book about a tank (and troop) commander's experience in a Sherman tank in the days/weeks after D-Day 1944. The writing is really top-notch as the experiences and recollections of just a normal, everyday young British soldier are brought to life. This is not a book of grand strategy in the annals of WWII. It is the personal and small unit experiences of A Squadron, 5 Troop of the British Sherwood Rangers employing Sherman tanks to engage their German enemy across the bocage country of France and the fields of Holland. A delight to read.

Truly outstanding account of the campaign in northern France from the tank commander’s perspective. Helps you understand the little things that impacted whether one lived or died, won or lost. It also brought home the difficulty of maintaining cohesion in the unit when casualties led to replacements constantly entering the picture. Though I’ve studied much about WWII, I learned something new from this riveting book. Definitely recommend.

Very well told. You can almost smell the fumes and the fear. First hand accounts of this calibre really bring home the reality of war and the relentless nature of combat. He was lucky to survive and leave us with such a vivid account of that particular hell, combat in a Sherman!

Essentially a memoir written long after the events described, the lapse of time has lost the immediacy of front line life and despite bravery and death it feels rather remote. An interesting account of what tank life was like, advancing against a courageous enemy.

Great detail of experiences in the front line of the war in Europe. Highly recommended as a colourful and accurate depiction of life in the tank corp

Very well written. Once I got it it was my main reading for the next two weeks.

Very good, these memoirs should be treasured as a voice of a drying generation who gave so much

I read this after D DAY Through German Eyes - The Hidden Story of June 6th 1944 D DAY Through German Eyes - Book 2 - More hidden stories from June 6th 1944which I recommend, simply because, within the space of a few days, you see the action from the perspective of both sides. Davids prose is a bit dry and clinical, but he doesn't shy away from the reality of life in a "Tommy Cooker'", nor his contempt for some staff officers. He describes tank tactics very well, and also the problems faced when coming from the classic tank fields of North Africa, to the close in fighting of Normandy and western Germany. So why drop a star? Well, if you read Eckhertz, although he is clinical, because he's a reporter, the people he's interviewing are definitely not, so you see the real human side of what Render is tearing down. The Atlantic Wall.A damn good read, and no mistake, but in my opinion lacks a bit of humanity, Render is almost too much of an officer. However, if you like this sort of stuff, you can't go wrong, and his description of how to fight a Tiger in close quarters is terrifying...In John Semken’s words, the key was to ‘never hesitate’ but to ‘fire first’ and ‘keep firing’.,,,Within less than a minute, Semken’s gunner had pumped six rounds into the Tiger, forcing it close into the wall of a large farm building and filling the road with the smoke from the phosphorous tracer element in the back of the AP rounds. The crews of both tanks were unable to see for the obscuring smoke, but Semken had got his shot in first and with the target acquired he ordered his gunner to keep firing until they had expended ten rounds. They stopped when a report came over the radio that the crew of the Tiger had been spotted bailing out...

I simply could not put this book down, and it is possibly the best personal memoir of service at the 'sharp end' that I have ever read. With great honesty and with an absence of hubris or excessive sentimentality, the author tells of his experience from initial induction and training to the capitulation of Germany - and a little beyond. This is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand what it meant to see combat in the fields and towns of north-western Europe from June 1944 to May 1945.

I started reading this after hearing David Render speaking on Radio 4 in the morning - and have been immersed in it ever since. It is a gripping, meticulously detailed and frighteningly authentic account of the fighting from Normandy through Europe and into Nazi Germany.In fact, this is about as close to the fighting as anybody would really want to get and tells a complete story from the differing perspectives of accurate military history, grim details of battle and also gives a window into the personal relationships and losses suffered all those years ago.I realised halfway through that it's Stuart Tootal who also wrote Danger Close and is a great writer and also a soldier. If you like this then read danger close and 'an ordinary soldier' - another great modern account of war.

This is an amazing read.I read a lot of military history and there are few books where it has just jumped off the page at me.I could really feel the tension of the men in the tank.The inexperienced young officer, newly arrived in this unit and the stresses placed on him.The veterans serving with him, the need to be the leader, the stress must have been immense.It’s not just him, it’s the way that he covers the loss of life going on round him, the other officers he served with and the impact they made on him.Finally it lets you know what it was like stuck in an armoured can in the heat of battle.

A fabulous portrayal of what it was like to command a ww2 sherman at such a young age.Once i started reading,i couldnt put it down.What i really liked was the tactics of surviving in the Normandy bocage,and beyond,were clearly explained.Gives you a real incite into the tactics developed,to keep these vulnerable machines alive against a determined,battle hardened enemy.If you have even a remote interest in tanks..Give this one a go,you wont be disappointed.