The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History - Hardcover

Edsel, Robert M

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1599951495 ISBN 13: 9781599951492

Publisher: Center Street, 2009

Synopsis

At the same time Adolf Hitler was attempting to take over the western world, his armies were methodically seeking and hoarding the finest art treasures in Europe.

The Fuehrer had begun cataloguing the art he planned to collect as well as the art he would destroy: "degenerate" works he despised.
In a race against time, behind enemy lines, often unarmed, a special force of American and British museum directors, curators, art historians, and others, called the Momuments Men, risked their lives scouring Europe to prevent the destruction of thousands of years of culture.

Focusing on the eleven-month period between D-Day and V-E Day, this fascinating account follows six Monuments Men and their impossible mission to save the world's great art from the Nazis.

About this title

Review:

"After World War Two I served as a British member of the 'Monuments' section in Germany. Our task, I believe, was truly important - we were restoring to Europe evidence of its own civilization, which the War seemed virtually to have destroyed - and I was lucky to have had a chance to participate. It is excellent that Mr Edsel has now recorded this remarkable episode, and I am grateful to him for devoting so much energy to telling the stories of those involved" (Anne Olivier Bell )

"In the great storytelling tradition of my longtime friend, Stephen Ambrose, Monuments Men is a marvelous addition to the many great books on World War II and is a reminder that we fought to save western civilization as well as our freedom. Robert Edsel's brilliant work tells the story of how a small unit of American soldiers raced across the front lines in Europe to rescue the art treasures of western culture that had been stolen by the Nazis. Edsel's book is a thriller, in the style of Indiana Jones, but in this case it's all fact and great history. I read the book from cover to cover - couldn't put it down!" (Dr. Gordon 'Nick' Mueller, CEO/President and co-founder of the National World War II Museum )

"Highly Readable . . . a remarkable history" (Washington Post )

"Engaging and inspiring" (Publishers Weekly ) --Publishers Weekly

Book Description:

Now a major film starring GEORGE CLOONEY, MATT DAMON, CATE BLANCHETT, BILL MURRAY, JOHN GOODMAN, HUGH BONNEVILLE, BOB BALABAN, JEAN DUJARDIN and DIMITRI LEONIDAS.

What if I told you that there was an epic story about World War II that has not been told, involving the most unlikely group of heroes?

About this edition

• Publisher: Center Street
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1599951495
• ISBN 13: 9781599951492
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 496