Exit Rommel: The Tunisian Campaign, 1942-43 (Stackpole Military History)
by Bruce Allen Watson
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Book Summary Information
Author: Bruce Allen WatsonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-12-13
ISBN: 0811733815
Number of pages: 240
Publisher: Stackpole Books
Book Reviews of Exit Rommel: The Tunisian Campaign, 1942-43 (Stackpole Military History)
Book Review: Amateurish - only moderately interesting
Summary: 3 Stars
I originally purchased this book because I wanted to learn more about the events of the fighting in North Africa after the German/Italian defeat at El Alamein. As Dr. Watson so clearly states in the introduction, most accounts of the North African war gloss over the last six months of the fighting, with the exception of an interlude about Kasserine Pass. What choices did Rommel, Montgomery, and Eisenhower make that led to the rapid German collapse around Tunis/Bizerte in May, 1943? Should the Germans have completely pulled out of North Africa after El Alamein, or should they have reinforced Rommel even further and tried to make a more determined stand? In spite of the other glowing reviews for this work, the answers to these questions remain only partially answered after reading this book. This is more a book about Rommel's leadership in the Tunisian Campaign and less about the campaign itself. As a primer solely on the Tunisian campaign, this book is severely lacking.
This book is divided into two large section. In the first half of the book, Watson describes the fighting around El Alamein, the German withdrawal across Libya, Torch, and the fighting in Tunisia. There is some description of the fighting, but much the description centers on Rommel's role in the decision making and his bureaucratic fights with Kesselring, von Arnim, the Italian Supremo Commando. The second half is essentially a summary of the fighting characteristics, equipment, etc. of the major combatants and a discussion of Rommel's generalship, particularly as it pertains to the withdrawal after El Alamein. The key question that Watson is trying to answer is 'was Rommel a brilliant strategist or an overrated defeatist, and how do the events of the retreat into Tunisia weigh in this assessment?'
In the end, the author makes a number of interesting points both about Rommel and the campaign more generally, and I certainly learned quite a bit about the fighting in North Africa after El Alamein. I think Watson makes a pretty clear case that the Germans and Italians should have completely abandoned North Africa after El Alamein. They lost, and they were just throwing resources away in Tunisia that would have been better allocated in Sicily or Italy. The material in this book is not, however, tied together well and is really less than the sum of its parts. The maps in particular are poor (I'll go so far as to say a disgrace), and it is virtually impossible to follow Watson's accounts of the various battles using the maps in the book. Editorially, there are large numbers of typos throughout giving the book a real amateurish feel. The bibliography at the end lists several works by Edwin Rommel. I think some of the other glowing reviews overrate the value/interest of this book. If you are a serious student of the era, you might want to add this your collection, but I personally probably won't return to this again and again. For a less than serious student, I wouldn't spend my $15 here.
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