Here is the first combat history of the war in Europe in the words of the men themselves, and perhaps the most honest and brutal account of combat possible on the printed page. WWII as seen through the eyes of the men who saw the most intense action. O’Donnell focuses on the elite units of the war — the Rangers, Airborne, and 1st Special Service Force — troops that spearheaded the most dangerous operations and often made the difference between victory and defeat, including the unique story of the 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion. The history of the war in Europe from the first parachute drops in North Africa through the final battles in Germany. Remembering the infamous cliffs at Pointe-du-Hoc, bloody Omaha Beach, the bitter fighting at the Battle of the Bulge & Hill 400 in the Hurtgen Forest.