D-Day Through German Eyes – Books 1 & 2
Holger Eckhertz publishes his grandfather’s frontline interviews with Atlantic Wall veterans, offering a rare German view of D-Day.
- Author
- Holger Eckhertz
- Reviewed by
- Chris Colussi
- Publisher
- DTZ History Publications
- Price
- Kindle £1.99
- Published
- 2017
D-Day Through German Eyes – Books 1 & 2 by Holger Eckhertz (Reviewed by Chris Colussi)
Holger Eckhertz draws on material collected by his grandfather, Dieter Eckhertz, a wartime journalist for magazines such as Signal and Die Wehrmacht. In the spring of 1944 Dieter toured the Atlantic Wall in Normandy, interviewing soldiers preparing for invasion. A decade later he located and re-interviewed many of them, recording their reflections on the landings and their aftermath. The transcripts lay dormant until his grandson brought them to light.
Originally intended as a single volume, the global response led to a second book. The interviews offer a rare glimpse into the minds of German defenders—men who were either very young or already veterans—revealing both their preparations and their shock at the Allied assault. For the reviewer, the accounts deepen understanding of D-Day far beyond the familiar Allied perspective.
D-Day Through German Eyes is available as a Kindle edition for £1.99 on Amazon and makes for absorbing reading.
Recommended viewing: John Harney suggests the short Vimeo film Into The Dark, an interview with SOE legend Vera Atkins drawn from the Imperial War Museum sound archives. Search for “Into the Dark – Vimeo – Vera Atkins” to watch.