Solid readable account of the Dieppe Raid

Operation Jubilee or the Dieppe Raid was on 19 August 1942 (Operation Jubilee) and was intended to investigate how difficult it would be to capture a Channel port. The raid ended in high allied casualties, particularly for the Canadian troops involved.

Atkin wrote this book in the 1980s, however there were some significant eye witnesses still alive then and he makes good use of their first hand accounts.

The 1980s perspective does slightly date the book, it is readable and a worthy addition to the short list of books available on the Dieppe Raid. Atkin also argues some interesting points over blame.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and was not obliged to write a positive review.

Very interesting and well-written, covering the buildup, landings and aftermath from both sides. Lots of very relevant quotes from many participants help bring the events to life. My only criticism is a shortage of maps and photos to help properly visualise the operation across each of the landing zones - even photos of present-day Dieppe would help illustrate the geography of the town and beaches.

A well researched and fascinating book. To be honest, even though I am a military historian, I had very little prior knowledge of this disastrous event, The author was able to give a very detailed and exciting account of the action from both the Allied and German perspectives.

The events that took place were extremely badly planned by the British and Canadian High Command. The senior officers somehow escaped official retribution. The vignettes of the actions of the individual servicemen on the ground were extremely graphic and shocking. There were many acts of extraordinary bravery, as well as understandably, apparent cowardice. The author captures these individual stories very well, bringing the reader onto the front line of the action.

The author succinctly captures one of the only redeeming feature of the raid, the aspect of lessons learned for the Normandy invasion in July 1944. It is impossible to calculate the many thousands of lives that were saved in Normandy by more detailed planning, better equipment, specialist training, overwhelming resources and the use of heavy naval guns.

Ronald Atkin, also highlights the incredible compassion shown by the German troops in attending to the horrific injuries suffered by the Allies.

Without a doubt this is one of the best military history books I have read recently. In my opinion, the author ranks with Antony Beevor.