Reporter and historian Garrett M. Graff has created a remarkable oral retelling of the D-Day saga, when 160,000 troops stormed the beaches of Normandy in World War II. As Andy Rooney, then a correspondent for Stars and Stripes, said, “There have only been a handful of days since the beginning of time on which the direction the world was taking has been changed for the better in one 24-hour period by an act of man. June 6th, 1944, was one of them.”

Claiming to have reviewed 5,000 personal stories, memoirs and histories, Graff has whittled down his quoted sources to a still-impressive 700 voices. All of these are compiled into a narrative flow as one person after another provides readers with a first-person view of D-Day.

"For those familiar with the events surrounding D-Day, WHEN THE SEA CAME ALIVE provides a granular view of what happened before, during and after the morning of June 6th. Those who only know the broad outlines will find it to be a very useful, often riveting primer."

Graff begins with a review of how the war began and progressed until 1943, when the Allies determined that an invasion of the Continent was necessary in order to retake the countries overrun by Nazis. How the plans evolved and training ensued is told from various perspectives, with the author providing the necessary narrative bridge to ensure a coherent chronology.

All the while, Graff reminds readers of what could go wrong with this ambitious operation --- from rough seas, to German intelligence discovering the landing sites, to a strong counteroffensive. It’s interesting but also horrifying to read about the landing itself, with its appalling number of Allied casualties. Often the stories end there, but Graff points out that the fighting continued along the beaches for days after the landing.

While well-known voices such as those of Eisenhower, Churchill and Averell Harriman are scattered throughout, as the action gets closer to June 1944, the focus turns to the soldiers themselves. Interspersed between the comments from the mostly American, British and Canadian troops are poignant quotes from the German soldiers and French locals.

Alexandre Reynaud, the mayor of Sainte-Mère-Église, one of the first towns that was liberated, describes seeing the American soldiers: “Their wild, neglected look reminded us of Hollywood movie gangsters. Their helmets were covered with a khaki coloured net, their faces were, for the most part, covered with grime, like those of mystery book heroes.” The mayor proceeds to accompany the Americans to where the German commander usually spent his time, but he “together with his entire anti-aircraft unit, had taken off.”

For those familiar with the events surrounding D-Day, WHEN THE SEA CAME ALIVE provides a granular view of what happened before, during and after the morning of June 6th. Those who only know the broad outlines will find it to be a very useful, often riveting primer.