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GtrsRGr8 · 10-19-2015, 04:50 AM

I see that I got your attention. ha

Here's what it is. The ebook is marked way down, to $1.99. The Audible audio is apparently normally priced at a low (maybe extremely low, if it covers the entire ebook (see below)) $2.95. If it were a Whispersync deal, it would be $4.94.

The ebook is All the Way to Berlin: A Paratrooper at War in Europe, by James Megellas. It is rated 4.7 stars, from 69 reviews and, again, is marked down to $1.99.

The book description:
In mid-1943 James Megellas, known as “Maggie” to his fellow paratroopers, joined the 82d Airborne Division, his new “home” for the duration. His first taste of combat was in the rugged mountains outside Naples.

In October 1943, when most of the 82d departed Italy to prepare for the D-Day invasion of France, Lt. Gen. Mark Clark, the Fifth Army commander, requested that the division’s 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Maggie’s outfit, stay behind for a daring new operation that would outflank the Nazis’ stubborn defensive lines and open the road to Rome. On 22 January 1944, Megellas and the rest of the 504th landed across the beach at Anzio. Following initial success, Fifth Army’s amphibious assault, Operation Shingle, bogged down in the face of heavy German counterattacks that threatened to drive the Allies into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Anzio turned into a fiasco, one of the bloodiest Allied operations of the war. Not until April were the remnants of the regiment withdrawn and shipped to England to recover, reorganize, refit, and train for their next mission.

In September, Megellas parachuted into Holland along with the rest of the 82d Airborne as part of another star-crossed mission, Field Marshal Montgomery’s vainglorious Operation Market Garden. Months of hard combat in Holland were followed by the Battle of the Bulge, and the long hard road across Germany to Berlin.

Megellas was the most decorated officer of the 82d Airborne Division and saw more action during the war than most. Yet All the Way to Berlin is more than just Maggie’s World War II memoir. Throughout his narrative, he skillfully interweaves stories of the other paratroopers of H Company, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment. The result is a remarkable account of men at war.

From the Hardcover edition.

One very nice feature of the ebook, at least, is that it has some very nice black-and-white line-drawing maps. I really like those when I'm reading a historical text like this one.

Here's something odd, that I don't know how to explain. The ebook is supposedly 402 pages long. But the audio length is supposedly only 2 hours and 34 minutes long. I've posted enough "Whispersync deals" to know that the audio should be much, much longer than that if there is narration of the entire 402 pages (I estimate about 10-15 hours). I listened to the complete sample of the audio--there is nothing unusual about the speed of the narration (it couldn't account for the difference anyway). So, I don't know what's going on with that.

By the way, the narrator (who is not one and the same as the author) has a nice, distinctive voice, and something about his narration makes me think that it is the author himself who is narrating it. I like that quality. Maybe I'm in the minority, though, because the audio garners a significantly lower rating (3.9 stars, from 23 ratings) than the ebook.

Here are the relevant links:
To the ebook, at Amazon.
To the audiobook, at Audible.

So, buy the ebook, buy the audiobook, or buy neither one of them. It is up to you. Unfortunately, since it is not a Whispersync deal, however, if you buy both you'll have to do the sync'ing for yourself.

UPDATE: I finally learned what is up with the audio length. I saw, in one place, in tiny letters, that the audio is abridged. I thought about that possibility but I didn't give it much thought--I suppose because we rarely see abridgments from Audible (I have often wished that there were many more abridgments available). That also may be one reason that there isn't a Whispersync deal available, although I can picture sync'ing, in a way, being possible.

Well, I see that I spent a lot of space/time on this post. But I am really keen on this book/audiobook and, so, wanted to let you guys know all about them.

10-19-2015, 04:50 AM	#1207
GtrsRGr8 Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,334 Karma: 27815322 Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Southeastern U.S., ya'll Device: Kindle; Kindle (10.1.1) for PC; Kindle Cloud Reader	NOT(!) a Whispersync Deal--All the Way to Berlin: A Paratrooper at War in Europe. I see that I got your attention. ha Here's what it is. The ebook is marked way down, to $1.99. The Audible audio is apparently normally priced at a low (maybe extremely low, if it covers the entire ebook (see below)) $2.95. If it were a Whispersync deal, it would be $4.94. The ebook is All the Way to Berlin: A Paratrooper at War in Europe, by James Megellas. It is rated 4.7 stars, from 69 reviews and, again, is marked down to $1.99. The book description: In mid-1943 James Megellas, known as “Maggie” to his fellow paratroopers, joined the 82d Airborne Division, his new “home” for the duration. His first taste of combat was in the rugged mountains outside Naples. In October 1943, when most of the 82d departed Italy to prepare for the D-Day invasion of France, Lt. Gen. Mark Clark, the Fifth Army commander, requested that the division’s 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Maggie’s outfit, stay behind for a daring new operation that would outflank the Nazis’ stubborn defensive lines and open the road to Rome. On 22 January 1944, Megellas and the rest of the 504th landed across the beach at Anzio. Following initial success, Fifth Army’s amphibious assault, Operation Shingle, bogged down in the face of heavy German counterattacks that threatened to drive the Allies into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Anzio turned into a fiasco, one of the bloodiest Allied operations of the war. Not until April were the remnants of the regiment withdrawn and shipped to England to recover, reorganize, refit, and train for their next mission. In September, Megellas parachuted into Holland along with the rest of the 82d Airborne as part of another star-crossed mission, Field Marshal Montgomery’s vainglorious Operation Market Garden. Months of hard combat in Holland were followed by the Battle of the Bulge, and the long hard road across Germany to Berlin. Megellas was the most decorated officer of the 82d Airborne Division and saw more action during the war than most. Yet All the Way to Berlin is more than just Maggie’s World War II memoir. Throughout his narrative, he skillfully interweaves stories of the other paratroopers of H Company, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment. The result is a remarkable account of men at war. From the Hardcover edition. One very nice feature of the ebook, at least, is that it has some very nice black-and-white line-drawing maps. I really like those when I'm reading a historical text like this one. Here's something odd, that I don't know how to explain. The ebook is supposedly 402 pages long. But the audio length is supposedly only 2 hours and 34 minutes long. I've posted enough "Whispersync deals" to know that the audio should be much, much longer than that if there is narration of the entire 402 pages (I estimate about 10-15 hours). I listened to the complete sample of the audio--there is nothing unusual about the speed of the narration (it couldn't account for the difference anyway). So, I don't know what's going on with that. By the way, the narrator (who is not one and the same as the author) has a nice, distinctive voice, and something about his narration makes me think that it is the author himself who is narrating it. I like that quality. Maybe I'm in the minority, though, because the audio garners a significantly lower rating (3.9 stars, from 23 ratings) than the ebook. Here are the relevant links: To the ebook, at Amazon. To the audiobook, at Audible. So, buy the ebook, buy the audiobook, or buy neither one of them. It is up to you. Unfortunately, since it is not a Whispersync deal, however, if you buy both you'll have to do the sync'ing for yourself. UPDATE: I finally learned what is up with the audio length. I saw, in one place, in tiny letters, that the audio is abridged. I thought about that possibility but I didn't give it much thought--I suppose because we rarely see abridgments from Audible (I have often wished that there were many more abridgments available). That also may be one reason that there isn't a Whispersync deal available, although I can picture sync'ing, in a way, being possible. Well, I see that I spent a lot of space/time on this post. But I am really keen on this book/audiobook and, so, wanted to let you guys know all about them. Last edited by GtrsRGr8; 10-19-2015 at 05:03 AM.