Status
Available
Call number
Series
Collection
Publication
Macmillan Audio (2014), Edition: Unabridged, 7 pages
Description
General George S. Patton, Jr. died under mysterious circumstances in the months following the end of World War II. For almost seventy years, there has been suspicion that his death was not an accident--and may very well have been an act of assassination. "Killing Patton" takes readers inside the final year of the war and recounts the events surrounding Patton's tragic demise, naming names of the many powerful individuals who wanted him silenced.
User reviews
LibraryThing member Renzomalo
Bill O’Reilly’s “Killing Patton” is a surprisingly fluent read, written in a narrative style reminiscent of O’Reilly’s on-air summations. But in “Killing Patton” O’Reilly not only covers General Patton’s flamboyant command style and overall audacity but also his relationships
The narrative is factually accurate with numerous footnotes and cross-references cited to justify its claims and suppositions. In it, O’Reilly illuminates Patton the military genius, Patton the renegade, and Patton the audacious. But more importantly he reveals Patton the insubordinate. And it would be this insubordination that would lead to his undoing.
And while his audacious genius for battle repeatedly rescued allied armies in the throws of either stalemate or defeat, his penchant for disobeying orders strikes fear into the Germans but angers his superiors. To the Allies, he is a necessary evil; to the Axis powers, he is their most feared adversary. And while it is not surprising that the Germans want him dead, it is Joseph Stalin who fears him most. For it is Patton, like Churchill, who peers through the political fog of Potsdam and Yalta and sees “Uncle Joe” (Stalin) for who he is and what his intentions are. But unlike Churchill, Patton doesn’t keep his opinions to himself, and Ike and the Allies aren’t happy.
Although O’Reilly and Dugard give us ample insight into Patton’s thoughts about Stalin’s Russia, they would have done well to have followed Ladislas Farago’s lead in "Patton: Ordeal and Triumph" and ended this book with Patton’s predictions of the post-WWII Europe in the shadow of the burgeoning Soviet Union, a prediction that reads more like history than prophesy. Instead, O’Reilly ends with a reprint of Patton’s speech to the Third Army, the same speech that was condensed for the opening of the Movie “Patton” starring George C. Scott. All in all, four and a half stars for “Killing Patton.”
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with the world’s most significant players in the waning days of World War Two’s European theatre. And it is this well drawn backdrop of conflicting personalities and historical clashes that provides the plausible rationale for General Patton’s alleged assassination.The narrative is factually accurate with numerous footnotes and cross-references cited to justify its claims and suppositions. In it, O’Reilly illuminates Patton the military genius, Patton the renegade, and Patton the audacious. But more importantly he reveals Patton the insubordinate. And it would be this insubordination that would lead to his undoing.
And while his audacious genius for battle repeatedly rescued allied armies in the throws of either stalemate or defeat, his penchant for disobeying orders strikes fear into the Germans but angers his superiors. To the Allies, he is a necessary evil; to the Axis powers, he is their most feared adversary. And while it is not surprising that the Germans want him dead, it is Joseph Stalin who fears him most. For it is Patton, like Churchill, who peers through the political fog of Potsdam and Yalta and sees “Uncle Joe” (Stalin) for who he is and what his intentions are. But unlike Churchill, Patton doesn’t keep his opinions to himself, and Ike and the Allies aren’t happy.
Although O’Reilly and Dugard give us ample insight into Patton’s thoughts about Stalin’s Russia, they would have done well to have followed Ladislas Farago’s lead in "Patton: Ordeal and Triumph" and ended this book with Patton’s predictions of the post-WWII Europe in the shadow of the burgeoning Soviet Union, a prediction that reads more like history than prophesy. Instead, O’Reilly ends with a reprint of Patton’s speech to the Third Army, the same speech that was condensed for the opening of the Movie “Patton” starring George C. Scott. All in all, four and a half stars for “Killing Patton.”
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LibraryThing member thewanderingjew
I have listened to a couple of other Bill O’Reilly books. They were all read by him, and he did a pretty good job. However, this one disappointed me. He has a speech impediment which I never realized before, and it was distracting. Also, his pronunciation of some words was off as was his emphasis
The narrative’s timeline began at the end and then filled in the missing spaces, but often it was choppy and confusing because he bounced around from time frame to time frame, country to country and battle to battle. There were some interesting anecdotes that I had not heard before, but for the most part, it was information that was “old hat”. Eisenhower, Marshall, Montgomery, MacArthur, and Rommel were among those featured in the book along with Patton.
The title of the book “Killing Patton” did not fulfill its promise. It could easily have been called “Killing Hitler”, if you consider the amount of time spent on both men. It was a detailed investigation of several battles fought during the war, some with Patton at the head, and some with Patton’s absence. Patton had a somewhat tarnished reputation because of his violent treatment of soldiers who didn’t fit his ideal mold, who didn’t seem to be courageous or brave enough to meet his standards. He was a harsh and angry taskmaster, but those that believed in him respected him and loved him. He was brave and he was a patriot, dedicated to the war and his country. Although he remained married to a wife that adored him, he was not loyal. Apparently, neither was Eisenhower. He and Mamie were married for decades, but he, too, had a mistress.
History aficionados will have an easier time following the battles, geographic areas and timeline, but anyone who is not completely familiar with WWII and its various battlegrounds will have a harder time. Because Patton served during WWII there was a great deal of information provided about the battles fought and the tragedy of the Holocaust and its victims. Then the book covered the negotiations between the major powers, Roosevelt and Stalin, carving up Europe, Churchill being largely excluded, Truman rising to the Presidency and handling the helm well.
The best part of the book was the end, both the afterward and the summing up which provided the most important information about all of the people mentioned in the book. The attempts on Patton’s life, and the possibility that he was murdered, were explained more carefully, clearing up some of the confusion as a result of the disjointedness of the book, but no actual proof was offered to show if he was truly murdered, but the innuendo is there and points the reader in that direction. Using journals and letters and other written evidence, there are some conclusions drawn that are not totally credible.
In the end, the book seemed more about the battles, the other generals and the victims of the war, rather than Patton, alone. It was too light, too thin to truly engage my interest. It was enjoyable, but it was not very enlightening.
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in some places. For this book, he should have had an outside reader.The narrative’s timeline began at the end and then filled in the missing spaces, but often it was choppy and confusing because he bounced around from time frame to time frame, country to country and battle to battle. There were some interesting anecdotes that I had not heard before, but for the most part, it was information that was “old hat”. Eisenhower, Marshall, Montgomery, MacArthur, and Rommel were among those featured in the book along with Patton.
The title of the book “Killing Patton” did not fulfill its promise. It could easily have been called “Killing Hitler”, if you consider the amount of time spent on both men. It was a detailed investigation of several battles fought during the war, some with Patton at the head, and some with Patton’s absence. Patton had a somewhat tarnished reputation because of his violent treatment of soldiers who didn’t fit his ideal mold, who didn’t seem to be courageous or brave enough to meet his standards. He was a harsh and angry taskmaster, but those that believed in him respected him and loved him. He was brave and he was a patriot, dedicated to the war and his country. Although he remained married to a wife that adored him, he was not loyal. Apparently, neither was Eisenhower. He and Mamie were married for decades, but he, too, had a mistress.
History aficionados will have an easier time following the battles, geographic areas and timeline, but anyone who is not completely familiar with WWII and its various battlegrounds will have a harder time. Because Patton served during WWII there was a great deal of information provided about the battles fought and the tragedy of the Holocaust and its victims. Then the book covered the negotiations between the major powers, Roosevelt and Stalin, carving up Europe, Churchill being largely excluded, Truman rising to the Presidency and handling the helm well.
The best part of the book was the end, both the afterward and the summing up which provided the most important information about all of the people mentioned in the book. The attempts on Patton’s life, and the possibility that he was murdered, were explained more carefully, clearing up some of the confusion as a result of the disjointedness of the book, but no actual proof was offered to show if he was truly murdered, but the innuendo is there and points the reader in that direction. Using journals and letters and other written evidence, there are some conclusions drawn that are not totally credible.
In the end, the book seemed more about the battles, the other generals and the victims of the war, rather than Patton, alone. It was too light, too thin to truly engage my interest. It was enjoyable, but it was not very enlightening.
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LibraryThing member jeanmadison
Skipped the war part. Parts about Hitler in bunker, Patton's thoughts and his dealing with other Generals, Russia first to get to Berlin and the death of Patton war particularly interesting
LibraryThing member 66usma
Really enjoyed this book. Authors provided an interesting insight into the politics of the lead general officers in WWII. Leaned a lot of military historical fact relating to the conclusion of WWII. Make sure you read footnotes which contain a lot of historical information at conclusion of work.
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Look forward to reading other O'Reilly works. Show Less
LibraryThing member RTS1942
Less about Patton's death than a detailed narrative of his activities from October 1944 on. Vivid tales of Metz, the Battle of the Bulge including the relief of Bastogne, and the crossing of the Rhine. Very readable prose.
LibraryThing member Narilka
Killing Patton is the fourth entry in Bill O 'Rielly's Killing series. It covers the end of WW II in Europe and the role General Patton played in the events leading up to the Allies final victory over Germany. Based on the subtitle I was a bit disappointed in the book. 2/3rds of the book's focus
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was on other players involved in the war rather than Patton. The odd coincidences around his death are touched on in the prologue and then not mentioned again until almost the very end. Full details and minor speculation on the circumstances of Patton's death weren't talked about at all until the book's Afterward and then only briefly. What the book does a great job on describing the Battle of the Bulge as well as giving a general overview of events going on in the region and what led to Germany's downfall. The details about all the other main players and their histories is fascinating. As a book about Patton, it leaves a lot to be desired. As a book focused on the ending of WW II in Europe, it does a great job of giving the highlights in a factual, well written manner. Show Less
LibraryThing member flourgirl49
I haven't read much about World War II, and it was interesting to read about the portions of the war that were covered in this book. My main knowledge of General George S. Patton comes from the movie(!) starring George C. Scott (for which he won an Academy Award) - therein, he was portrayed as a
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hard-charging, no-nonsense, irascible commander, which is certainly backed up in this account. The book is very easy to read and moves along swiftly, although many parts of it do not even pertain to Patton, and his "mysterious" death is dealt with only briefly at the end, making the title "Killing Patton" kind of a misnomer. Still, I enjoyed the story, and if some author could actually dig up more information or proof about the accident that killed Patton that actually supports a conspiracy theory, I would be interested in reading that book. Show Less
LibraryThing member starkravingmad
4th in and least interesting in the "Killing..." series by Bill O'Reilly. Fast paced and well-written but much more about the last few months of WWII than about a plot on Patton. There are some very good insights to Patton and other major characters of the era. This is a book best approached as
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history of the end of Nazi Germany than it is about anything else. Though stories on Patton do make him seem larger than life. Show Less
LibraryThing member coffyman
Fascinating account of not only Patton's life, but also of events which occurred during world war II.
LibraryThing member branjohb
I liked this book. I was amazed how many of the stories about Patton in this book were also in the movie. The book went by fast with very few slow spots. Two thumbs up.
LibraryThing member dpappas
After finishing this I feel like the title is a bit misleading. While O'Reilly and Dugard do briefly discuss Patton's death they don't really discuss in detail what they think happened until the afterword. I wasn't expecting this big conspiracy theory book but for the title they gave the book I
Other than that I did enjoy reading this book. This book did a good job at following Patton throughout the war. Not only did I learn more about Patton but also about other major players during WWII (especially Stalin, who I didn't know much about).
I would recommend this book to people interested in reading about WWII. You won't get the conspiracy theory book that you're probably expecting from this book but you will get an overview of Patton's actions during the war and brief glimpses at other major players.
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expected them to discuss Patton's death more than they did.Other than that I did enjoy reading this book. This book did a good job at following Patton throughout the war. Not only did I learn more about Patton but also about other major players during WWII (especially Stalin, who I didn't know much about).
I would recommend this book to people interested in reading about WWII. You won't get the conspiracy theory book that you're probably expecting from this book but you will get an overview of Patton's actions during the war and brief glimpses at other major players.
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LibraryThing member Zumbanista
Great concise history of WWII and the main personalities involved. A good jumping off point for further reading and study. Not much new here for the existing student of military history. Our main criticism is that the authors didn't make a convincing case for Patton's death being anything but
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accidental. Very readable but enjoyed the other books in the "Killing" series more than this one. Show Less
LibraryThing member hobbitprincess
As I have the other O'Reilly books I've read, I enjoyed this one also. I did get a little bogged down in all the WWII battles, but that's only because I was not familiar with some of them and am not a student of WWII history. As I always do in these books, I learned many things that I did not know,
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not only about Patton but also about other important figures in the WWII era in Europe. (I learned a new word, meteorism, which means having excessive flatulence. You'll have to read the book to find out who had this problem. I'll only say it wasn't Patton.) Show Less
LibraryThing member DeaconBernie
As told by O'Reilly and Dugard, it is hard not to conclude George Patton was murdered by person or persons unknown. This, of course, is not a new conclusion having been mentioned many times before. I can remember reading a book about the General sometime in the 50's that was not as pronounced as
Be that as it may, O'Reilly and Dugard have crafted a delightful book with fact data interspersed with much bridging material. As usual with O'Reilly's books, there are a lot of juicy tidbits. History is revealed in reactive and proactive way.
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O'Reilly's but left the reader with little else in the way of an explanation. That he was murdered is most probably true; the why is less clear. O'Reilly and Dugard present many plausible reasons but offers very little in the way of facts to support any theory.Be that as it may, O'Reilly and Dugard have crafted a delightful book with fact data interspersed with much bridging material. As usual with O'Reilly's books, there are a lot of juicy tidbits. History is revealed in reactive and proactive way.
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LibraryThing member santhony
This is a very simple and cursory overview of the final year of World War II, focusing on the European Theater and George Patton in particular. It also lays out the possibility that Patton was murdered, though with very flimsy and circumstantial evidence.
I say that it is simple and cursory, because
There is a very limited amount of time spent on a few fringe figures that touched the life of Patton, but by and large, this is as basic as basic gets. The case for a conspiracy which led to Patton’s murder is not completely out of the question, as Patton was not a popular fellow in many circles and the Soviets, in particular, were (and are) not averse to the practice of political assassination. The event that led to his death however (a low speed automobile accident), was such a non-event, that it is hard to believe that clandestine operatives of any competence would stage an automobile accident that was so insignificant that the five other occupants of the two vehicles did not even require the most basic medical treatment. Some drunken soldiers commandeered an army vehicle and crashed it; not exactly hard to believe.
In any event, if you have never seen the movie Patton, and have no historical background in the events and persons involved in World War II, I guess this could be an enlightening and educational read. Otherwise, it is old hat.
I say that it is simple and cursory, because
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if you saw the movie Patton, you already know much of what is in the book. Also, if you have ever even dabbled in the history of World War II, this book will be embarrassingly remedial. For example, it gives you the most basic information on such historical figures as Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Josef Stalin, Dwight Eisenhower and Adolf Hitler, as though you had never even heard of them.There is a very limited amount of time spent on a few fringe figures that touched the life of Patton, but by and large, this is as basic as basic gets. The case for a conspiracy which led to Patton’s murder is not completely out of the question, as Patton was not a popular fellow in many circles and the Soviets, in particular, were (and are) not averse to the practice of political assassination. The event that led to his death however (a low speed automobile accident), was such a non-event, that it is hard to believe that clandestine operatives of any competence would stage an automobile accident that was so insignificant that the five other occupants of the two vehicles did not even require the most basic medical treatment. Some drunken soldiers commandeered an army vehicle and crashed it; not exactly hard to believe.
In any event, if you have never seen the movie Patton, and have no historical background in the events and persons involved in World War II, I guess this could be an enlightening and educational read. Otherwise, it is old hat.
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LibraryThing member nkmunn
This audio book kept my attention and I learned abt some sides of Patton's story I hadn't known before
LibraryThing member Kerrazyscott
Seemed more 'scattered' than the other Killing books. Less on Patton and more about what was going on throughout other areas of the war.
LibraryThing member DeaconBernie
It is interesting to revisit a book 4 years after first reading. The authors clearly make the case for a conspiracy. The way the story is told it is certainly at least a strong possibility. But, more than ever, one is struck by the unique nature of the man. Patton was clearly a warrior. As such, he
It is difficult to place him in the hierarchy of the warriors. He did wondrous things as a general but his strategic vision is suspect. There is no question but his evaluation of the Russians/Soviets was spot-on but one has to consider how much was real strategic thought and how much was warrior speak.
Perhaps it would be best to simply say he did his duty as he saw his duty and with remarkable success.
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revered in war and is an embarrassment when war is done.It is difficult to place him in the hierarchy of the warriors. He did wondrous things as a general but his strategic vision is suspect. There is no question but his evaluation of the Russians/Soviets was spot-on but one has to consider how much was real strategic thought and how much was warrior speak.
Perhaps it would be best to simply say he did his duty as he saw his duty and with remarkable success.
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LibraryThing member buffalogr
Although it contained information about Patton's contributions to the American WWII efforts, including the Battle of the Bulge, the book was simply filled with too much extraneous information...Hitler's dog, Eisenhower's mistress/driver, and Rommel's suicide, for example. Only the first and last
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few minutes (about 20%) contain information about the mysterious circumstances of his death and then only circumstantial speculation...no facts to back it up. Read the book if you're into WWII in a small way as it will educate. Show Less
LibraryThing member lamour
Having recently read Rick Atkinson's Guns of Last Light, this volume repeated some of the same information but also added details that Atkinson did not have in his book. Some reviewers have criticized the title as being misleading but if one wishes to understand why Patton was so controversial and
Since O'Reilly did so much research of diaries and journals, he was able to find many very personal details about Patton and others military leaders and politicians from all the countries involved including the Axis combatants. General Bernard Montgomery comes out badly in this volume as he does in other histories of this period of the war.
This was a fun read which while covering the history also included gossip much of what I heard or read before. He did find extra details that I had not seen before.
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had so many enemies which led some to believe he was assassinated, one must have the background on why this was believed by some which also means we must have the details about what the war and political situation was near the end of the war.Since O'Reilly did so much research of diaries and journals, he was able to find many very personal details about Patton and others military leaders and politicians from all the countries involved including the Axis combatants. General Bernard Montgomery comes out badly in this volume as he does in other histories of this period of the war.
This was a fun read which while covering the history also included gossip much of what I heard or read before. He did find extra details that I had not seen before.
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LibraryThing member JenniferRobb
Though the main story is about General Patton, I learned much about WWII and the other main figures in it in addition to learning about Patton. I think it's sad that his death is shrouded in so much mystery as to what really happened and that no one in authority has followed up on the
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inconsistencies in all the years since. Show Less
LibraryThing member Kerrazyscott
Seemed more 'scattered' than the other Killing books. Less on Patton and more about what was going on throughout other areas of the war.
Awards
Los Angeles Public Library Best of the Year (Non-Fiction — 2014)
Original language
English
Original publication date
2014
Physical description
6 inches
ISBN
9781427244215
Other editions
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