The Normandy Landings of 6 June 1944 were a major and decisive episode
of the Second World War and have been, for more than sixty years, the
object of countless books, films, investigations, reports and television
series. However, is it known that D-Day was preceded by, on 27 April
1944, a tragic rehearsal that resulted in over nine-hundred deaths and
which remained a secret for decades? Is it known that the beautiful Lily
Sergueiev, an artist and great traveller, was considered by the Allies
as their best disinformation agent and by the Germans as their most
efficient agent in Great Britain? Or is it known that Lionel Crabb, the
Royal Navy's star frogman, was the inspiration for Ian Fleming's
character, James Bond? Is it known that the Germans' favourite song Lili
Marlene, was also very popular with the allied soldiers? These are some
of the surprising revelations contained in this book which is both
original and informative, based on over half a century of research
undertaken by Philippe Bauduin and which casts a new light on D-Day and
the Battle of Normandy.
Fascinated by new technology that he discovered during the summer of
1944, a time when he was still a teenager, Philippe Bauduin went on to
undertake a scientific career which notably led him to set up the GANIL
in Caen (Large Heavy Ion National Accelerator). He is the author of
seventeen books and numerous articles on various aspects of the
Landings.
Jean-Charles Stasi has worked as a journalist since 1985 and is the
author of twenty books, most of which deal with the Second World War. He
was awarded the Prix Grand Témoin 2007 and the Grand Prix de la Légion
d'Honneur 2008 for his book L'Épopée du Normandie-Niémen, co-written
with Roland de la Poype.
