2006年VOA标准英语-D-Day Book Chronicles Historic Amphibious

By Mike O'Sullivan
Los Angeles
05 June 2006

June 6 is the anniversary of D-Day, when, in 1944, a massive Allied¹ armada landed in Normandy to fight a battle that turned the course of the Second World War. A new book, The Secrets of D-Day by Larry Collins, intends to lift the veil of secrecy² from the invasion.

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The Secrets of D-Day by Larry Collins reads like a spy thriller³, says Michael Teilmann, who now runs the Bob Hope USO, a club for service members at the Los Angeles airport.

The books' author, Larry Collins, died in France last year, but Michael Teilmann calls himself an avid⁴ fan.

Teilmann had a long career in the army and National Guard, and achieved the rank of Brigadier General in the South Carolina State Guard.

He says U.S., British and Canadian troops, with the Free French and others, came together for the biggest amphibious assault in history. Paratroopers landed before dawn, and then the main force landed.

"It was the largest armada of ships, with 5,000 ships, tens of thousands of aircraft, 150,000, plus troops landing on the beach in one invasion that they kept secret," said Michael Teilmann. "And, how they did that was one of the great mysteries of military science."

Called Operation Overlord, the invasion of Nazi-occupied France relied on secrecy and deception⁵. The story, including the vital role of a Spanish double-agent code-named Garbo, is chronicled in the book.

The Germans thought the invasion would take place near a coastal⁶ city in the Pas de Calais region, and the Allies did everything they could to suggest this would happen. The planning involved a million-man fake army.

"The supposed United States First Army group, commanded by Lt. General George S. Patton Junior, turned out to be rubber tanks, cardboard tents, no people at all. But the Germans were led to believe, and firmly believed that there was another full army out there," he said.
 

Michael Teilmann (l) with California's Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
  
  
The amphibious landing was spread out along five beaches. Losses were heavy, especially on the beach code-named Omaha. Michael Teilmann says the bravery of those who landed was just as important to the mission as the elaborate planning.

"The heroism⁷ that existed, the guys helping⁸ their wounded comrades and bringing them ashore⁹, and still firing their weapons and trying to get the job done - it's history and it's brilliant," noted¹⁰ Michael Teilmann.

Allied troops suffered 10,000 casualties, including at least 2,500 dead. The Germans are thought to have suffered up to 9,000 casualties.

The so-called Battle of Normandy continued through August, as Allied troops fought the Germans back through France, in battles that left more than 400,000 injured, dead or missing on both sides.

Michael Teilmann has spent many years helping boost the morale¹¹ of troops stationed overseas through the USO, which was created in 1941 as the United Service Organizations. He says armed forces in any conflict face uncertainty¹² and fear, and that those who landed on D-Day on the dark beaches of Normandy sealed the fate of the Nazis¹³. By May 8, 1945, less than one year after D-Day, the war in Europe was over.

1 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

2 secrecy   

n.秘密，保密，隐蔽

参考例句：

• All the researchers on the project are sworn to secrecy.该项目的所有研究人员都按要求起誓保守秘密。
• Complete secrecy surrounded the meeting.会议在绝对机密的环境中进行。

3 thriller   

n.惊险片，恐怖片

参考例句：

• He began by writing a thriller.That book sold a million copies.他是写惊险小说起家的。那本书卖了一百万册。
• I always take a thriller to read on the train.我乘火车时，总带一本惊险小说看。

4 avid   

adj.热心的；贪婪的；渴望的；劲头十足的

参考例句：

• He is rich,but he is still avid of more money.他很富有,但他还想贪图更多的钱。
• She was avid for praise from her coach.那女孩渴望得到教练的称赞。

5 deception   

n.欺骗，欺诈；骗局，诡计

参考例句：

• He admitted conspiring to obtain property by deception.他承认曾与人合谋骗取财产。
• He was jailed for two years for fraud and deception.他因为诈骗和欺诈入狱服刑两年。

6 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

7 heroism   

n.大无畏精神，英勇

参考例句：

• He received a medal for his heroism.他由于英勇而获得一枚奖章。
• Stories of his heroism resounded through the country.他的英雄故事传遍全国。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 ashore   

adv.在(向)岸上，上岸

参考例句：

• The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。
• He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

12 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

13 Nazis   

n.（德国的）纳粹党员( Nazi的名词复数 )；纳粹主义

参考例句：

• The Nazis worked them over with gun butts. 纳粹分子用枪托毒打他们。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Nazis were responsible for the mass murder of Jews during World War Ⅱ. 纳粹必须为第二次世界大战中对犹太人的大屠杀负责。 来自《简明英汉词典》