The Force

By: Saul David

Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

In December of 1943, as Nazi forces sprawled around the world and the future of civilization hung in the balance, a group of highly trained U.S. and Canadian soldiers from humble backgrounds was asked to do the impossible: capture a crucial Nazi stronghold perched atop stunningly steep cliffs. The men were a rough-and-ready group, assembled from towns nested in North America's most unforgiving terrain, where many of them had struggled through the Great Depression relying on canny survival skills and the fearlessness of youth. Brought together by the promise to take part in the military's most elite missions, they formed a unique brotherhood tested first by the crucible of state-of-the-art training–including skiing, rock climbing, and parachuting–and then tragically by the vicious fighting they would face.

The early battle in the Italian theatre for the strategic fort cost the heroic U.S.-Canadian commando unit–their first special forces unit ever assembled–enormous casualties. Yet the victory put them in position to continue their drive into Italy, setting the stage for the Allies' resurgence toward victory in WWII. The unit, with its vast range of capabilities and mission-specific exercises, became a model for the "Green Berets" and other special forces groups that would go on to accomplish America's most challenging undertakings behind enemy lines.

Knitting first-hand accounts seamlessly into the narrative-drawing on interviews with surviving members and their families; the memoirs, letters, and diaries of Forcemen; and declassified documents in the American, Canadian, British, and German archives -The Force tells a story that is as deeply personal as it is inspiring.

©2024 Saul David (P)2024 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

‘A very fine book…Saul David has both a knack with the pen and a nose for a thrilling tale….Masterly [in] style…Readers should exult in The Force, whose heroic subjects deserve to be forever remembered’ Alexander Rose, Wall Street Journal

‘A mesmerizing read that blends strategy with tactics and traditions, narrating in gritty detail the 1943 mountain battle by a small, dauntless American-Canadian force. This was the battlefield birth of our special Operations Forces. A compelling tale of human valor, doubts, mistakes, and victory, honestly told’ Bing West, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense, New York Times bestselling author of The Village and coauthor with Jim Matthis of Callsign Chaos

‘Compelling and well-researched, The Force is an uplifting story of bravery, duty, and honor, an account of men who found the courage to take on an impossible mission – and prevail against all odds’ Howard Blum, New York Times bestselling author of Dark Invasion and The Last Goodnight

‘The Force provides incredible insight into the formation, development, and performance of the U.S. Army Special Forces Group, which traces its lineage to these fearless men. With his incomparable gift for storytelling, Saul David captures the brotherhood forged in war, the tragedy and chaos of battle, and the rich tradition of American tactical brilliance that these elite soldiers helped to launch’ David M. Reel, Executive Director, West Point Museum

‘Every chapter is filled with harrowing adventure, life and death struggle, and bedrock patriotism. The amount of new cutting-edge research is impressive. A monumental achievement!’ Douglas Brinkley, #1 New York Times bestselling author of American Moonshot: John F.Kennedy and the Great Space Race