Expeditionary

Description

About the book

December 1st, 1943, Tehran, Iran; a hesitant Winston Churchill signs a document, with the forgotten horrors of Gallipoli haunting him from his past. The document sets in motion the largest seaborne invasion in world history code-named Operation Overlord. June 6th, 1944, Normandy, France; 156,000 anxious eyes fill the coast of the English Channel; young men who will be seeing combat for the first time in their lives, ignorant of what to expect. Guns blazing and clocks ticking, the world depends on these youth to overturn the Nazi tide in Europe. July 7th, 2015, Normandy, France; a wide-eyed 13-year-old history lover embarks upon a journey to Normandy, passing through various sites of the war, preserved for over seven decades, holding tight to the stories from that fateful day. Now, over 71 years later, what are the takeaways for our new generation from this historic operation? What did the sacrifices of the braves of this war leave us with? What makes a soldier function? Is it just sheer training? or does it also have something to do with their lessons from the past? Will this 13-year-old ever understand the realities of war? What would he take away in the end? Will it only be the thrilling vehemence of these battles? Or will it also be the realities behind the extraordinary courage of these men? The Expeditionary answers these questions, taking us through the twin expeditions of Normandy, set 71 years apart. One Expedition takes us into the battle of Normandy, diving into the stories of those who fought here on D-Day, exploring their war and the scars this war has left behind. The other Expedition travels with our 13-year-old author in the Norman streets of 2015, running parallel with his imagination of what the war would have been like through the stories he learns, going deeper into the lives of those who fought here.

About the author

Abhishek Kadiyala is a first-time writer, born on 29th December 2001 in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, and is presently pursuing his Undergraduate studies at St. Joseph’s College, Bangalore in International Relations, Public Policy, and Journalism. He possesses an abysmal passion for Society, military history, and politics, with publications in The Print digital news platform. The author also is a regular participant in Model United Nations conferences, winning several awards for his representations. The author’s trip to Normandy in 2015 had a significant impact on his development as a person, giving him a new perspective on various aspects of human life.