Brooks, Victor

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Brooks, Victor

(Victor D. Brooks)

PERSONAL: Male. Education: La Salle College, B.A., 1974; University of Pennsylvania, M.S., 1969, Ed.D., 1974.

ADDRESSES: Office—Department of Education and Human Services, Villanova University, St. Augustine Center, 800 Lancaster Ave., Rm. 302, Villanova, PA 19085. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Historian, educator, and writer. Villanova University, Villanova, PA, professor of education.

WRITINGS:

"GREAT CAMPAIGNS" SERIES

The Boston Campaign: April 1775–March 1776, Combined Publishing (Conshohocken, PA), 1999.

The Fredericksburg Campaign: October 1862–January 1863, Combined Publishing (Conshohocken, PA), 2000.

The Normandy Campaign: From D-Day to the Liberation of Paris, Da Capo Press (Cambridge, MA), 2002.

"UNTOLD HISTORY OF THE CIVIL WAR" SERIES

Civil War Forts, Chelsea House (Philadelphia, PA), 1999.

Secret Weapons in the Civil War, Chelsea House (Philadelphia, PA), 1999.

African Americans in the Civil War, Chelsea House (Philadelphia, PA), 1999.

(With Albert A. Nofi) Spies in the Civil War, Chelsea House (Philadelphia, PA), 1999.

MILITARY HISTORY

How America Fought Its Wars: Military Strategy from the American Revolution to the Civil War, Combined Publishing (Conshohocken, PA), 1999.

Honor the Brave: America's Wars and Warriors, Wiley (New York, NY), 2000.

Marye's Heights, Fredericksburg, Combined Publishing (Conshohocken, PA), 2001.

Hell Is upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific—Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944, Da Capo Press (Cambridge, MA), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS: History professor Victor Brooks specializes in American military history and has released a number of books on the subject, several of which focus on the Civil War and World War II. Among these have been numerous installments in the "Great Campaigns" series, including The Boston Campaign: April 1775–March 1776, The Fredericksburg Campaign: October 1862–January 1863, and The Normandy Campaign: From D-Day to the Liberation of Paris. The Fredericksburg Campaign, published in 2000, was Brooks's first book of Civil War history and it met with some criticism. Journal of Southern History reviewer James I. Robertson, Jr., cited a lack of new information or sufficient source documentation, and noted that "impartiality is rarely in evidence here." Conrad Crane, in a History: Review of New Books article, concurred that Brooks has little new information to add to existing scholarship. Crane conceded, however, that the author "does a solid job describing the events" that led to General Burnside's appointment as commander of the Army of the Potomac.

The Normandy Campaign follows a format similar to that of its predecessor, tracing the World War II battles of then-General Dwight D. Eisenhower's army during the summer of 1944. In comments nearly identical to critics' concerns regarding The Fredericksburg Campaign, Parameters contributor James Jay Carafano pointed out a lack of new material and adequate bibliography, mentioning that the author did not make use of new research on important areas of the campaign. Carafano thus concluded that the book is "primarily a compilation of vignettes that students of the Normandy campaign will have read many times."

Brooks has also contributed to the young adult series "Untold History of the Civil War," which includes such titles as Civil War Forts, Secret Weapons in the Civil War, and Spies in the Civil War. This series met with more critical success than Brooks's "Great Campaigns" books. Indeed, School Library Journal critic Elizabeth M. Reardon remarked favorably on all three of the aforementioned books, noting that they "will be popular with those who have a new interest in the Civil War." Virginia R. La Juene, also writing in School Library Journal, found yet another book in the series, Brooks's African Americans in the Civil War, to be "dry" yet "competently written." Booklist contributor Carolyn Phelan was far more liberal in her praise, considering this work to present "solid introductory material … in an accessible and readable fashion."

Brooks has additionally written several standalone books, including Hell Is upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific—Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944, written about the United States Marine Corps' attempt to recapture the Marianas Islands during the summer of 1944. A contributor to the Curled Up with a Good Book Web site noted that despite the fact that the author can be repetitive in places, the book is "wonderful" and "an ideal book" for the novice interested in military history. The contributor summed up the review by calling Hell Is upon Us "well-researched" and adding that "Brooks makes the whole thing interesting." Jay Freeman, writing in Booklist, agreed with this assessment, regarding the book as "detailed but very readable," and observing that Brooks offers "a compelling portrait" of the admiral in charge of the operation. Freeman also called the book an overall "excellent account" of events.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, May 15, 2000, Carolyn Phelan, review of African Americans in the Civil War, p. 1739; November 15, 2005, Jay Freeman, review of Hell Is upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific—Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944, p. 16.

History: Review of New Books, fall, 2000, Conrad Crane, review of The Fredericksburg Campaign: October 1862–January 1863, p. 12.

Journal of Southern History, February, 2002, James I. Robertson, Jr., review of The Fredericksburg Campaign, p. 190.

Parameters, spring, 2003, James Jay Carafano, review of The Normandy Campaign: From D-Day to the Liberation of Paris, p. 156.

School Library Journal, June, 2000, Virginia R. La Juene, review of African Americans in the Civil War, p. 160; July, 2000, Elizabeth M. Reardon, reviews of Civil War Forts, Secret Weapons in the Civil War, and Spies in the Civil War, p. 113.