How did Germans describe fighting Americans in World War II? Are there any interesting accounts from the German perspective?

Hello, I've read a couple of memoirs from soldiers in the 6th SS Mountain Division Nord, namely Seven Days in January With the 6th SS-Mountain Division in Operation NORDWIND by Wolf T. Zoepf and Black Edelweiss by Johann Voss (which I believe is a pseudonym). The interesting case is both are also veterans of the Eastern Front, and while they didn't experience the air attacks on civilian populaces (since they were usually at the front) like OP they spoke relatively well of their Americans, especially in light of what happened out East.

After all (going off on a tangent, will return to the experiences of the Gebirgsjäger ASAP, since it is the most interesting IMHO), near the end of the war, we saw many German units all try to rush west to try to surrender to the Americans and British instead of the vengeful Soviets in the east. One key example was the Walther Wench's 12th Army, where it is described in Beevor's Berlin - The Downfall 1945 to use its final operation to help Germans, soldiers or civilians to escape west of Berlin into the Americans.

Now to get back to the bombing point, I have a book that probably most everyone knows - A Higher Call by Adam Makos. You know the story, Franz Stigler in a mean ass Bf 109 spares a crippled American B-17, the very plane that was killing women and children back home. And this was even after the terrible Operation Gomorrah over Hamburg. Of course, Stigler doesn't show his respect in that one action. One anecdote in the book shows him flying a wee little Storch to check on a downed B-17 in a field, and he feels relieved that the farmer told him that the entire crew was taken captive by the Luftwaffe. Makos also makes an interesting claim in a footnote, saying that when he "talked to American bomber crewmen who had been taken prisoner, almost to a man they would admit, 'I was never so glad to see the Luftwaffe' when a German pilot showed up to take them prisoner, as opposed to the alternative, who often wanted their heads." He notes how civilian populaces and not surprisingly the SS weren't to nice to downed fliers, who could be lynched. Another anecdote saw an officer, Werner Roell, from the ad hoc JV-44 chase an SS officer away from trying to execute a downed American airmen. Makos later describes yet another JV-44 member, Hannes Trautloft, back in 1944 when he was the inspector of the day fighters apparently found out from an American officer held in Buchenwald that there were about 160 Allied airmen imprisoned at the camp. So being a nice guy and having a high rank, managed to transfer all the airmen out of the camp into a standard Luftwaffe camp, apparently a week or so before their scheduled execution. At the very end, it is also stated Adolf Galland also has a plan to fly as many beautiful Me 262s out west so they can be more likely captured by the Americans instead of the Soviets. Altogether while A Higher Call presents a nice personal view, in my limited knowledge it seems relatively idealistic. But we can kinda guess that German airmen, who experience the dangers and witness the losses in the sky have more respect for western airmen (after all they bombed Warsaw and London early on) than some German civilian. To further this point, I don't recall exactly where I saw it, perhaps it was Beevor's Berlin - The Downfall 1945 that there was a saying among German women that it was "Better to have a Russian on your belly than an American over your head."

Anyway, I think I would now like to present the Gebirgsjäger perspective. In Voss's Black Edelweiss he describes a conversation before he joined with an older friend already in the Waffen SS. His older friend tells him about how the Soviets out east destroyed much of traditional European culture and millions of lives, and are trying to subjugate the rest of Europe as well. He envisioned a Waffen SS that would include volunteers from all parts of Europe, including enemies like France, that would band together and fight the Red menace. This is certainly some dreamy thoughts, but it is the thoughts of a real human being. Many Germans, and others, fought for the Nazis because they feared communism, not because they didn't like Americans or burgers or something. After being transferred from the Eastern Front west, Voss fought the Americans during Operation Nordwind. One time he saw how the Americans sent out medics and an ambulance to rescue the wounded during combat, likely hoping that the Germans wouldn't fire upon them. Voss exclaims "Nothing like that would have happened at the Eastern Front, but here, some of the rules of war seemed still to be in force, valid for both sides...This first encounter seemed to support our general feeling that these Amis couldn't be regarded as mortal enemies." Later he also mentions that at times soldiers from his regiment (SS Mountain Infantry Regiment 11) would praise captured Americans and allegedly even (to the nuisance of some hungry Gebirgsjäger) share chocolate with them. The editor of Black Edelweiss claims that over 100 interviews conducted by Lt. Col. Hugh Foster from the US Army substantiates Voss's statements of honor and rations). Voss also had an encounter with the famous Felix L. Sparks of the US Army, in an episode where the Gebirgsjäger witnessed a two American tanks fall into a Panzerfaust trap. The first one was hit, and the wounded crew crawled out into cover. Then, the plucky Sparks climbs out of the second tank, exposed, gets the wounded Americans onto the second tank, and hop back in to drive away safely. Apparently the Gebirgsjäger didn't fire a single shot out of honor. Sparks got a Silver Star. In Zoepf's Seven Days in January, the small yet ferocious Battle of Wingen is described. Basically the gist is two battalions from the 6th SS snuck through American lines during Nordwind to take a small yet somewhat strategic town lightly defended by Americans, but were ultimately cut off since communications broke. In a captured school, they Gebirgsjäger discovered over a dozen American medical personnel. During the course of the battle, even as the Germans were slowly driven out, even when the Americans unwittingly fired into the school turned hospital, the American and German medical teams worked together to save the lives of soldiers from both sides. One time, the Germans even sent a medic out in a jeep with a white flag to American lines and came back with more needed medical supplies to Wingen, as well as knowledge of fair American treatment of German POWs. Zoepf claims that one Jewish American soldier, Howard Sylvester, said that as he lay injured, he was rescued by German soldiers in Wingen and treated, along with complimentary beer. In turn, Sylvester vouched for the wounded Germans who had to be left behind as the rest retreated, to which the German medic said "God bless you!" While these are incredibly specific accounts made by likely biased sources, there still seemed to be great respect between the Gebirgsjäger of the 6th SS and the Americans. Interestingly enough, the SS are painted in a good light by their veterans while the Luftwaffe guys apparently didn't like them. Maybe it's the difference between different Waffen SS Divisions, perhaps the 6th was just a very well behaved one.

Another famous figure, while I haven't seen any books on, but there are certainly many internet resources on, would be Günter Stüttgen and the "Miracle of the Hürtgen Forest." Apparently, Stüttgen saved many lives from both sides during the bloody Battle of the Hürtgen Forest, and there are memorials to the actions. Another honorable mention would be Friedrich Heydte, whom I haven't read any literature on but there are stories of him and his Fallschirmjäger praising captured American soldiers, treating their injuries, as well as organizing truces to exchange and look for wounded.

EDIT: Since I was kinda thinking relative to the Eastern Front, I completely disregarded stuff like Kampfgruppe Peiper's Malmedy Massacres and others, which I don't have too much info on. It would be great if someone else could fill in on those and their motivations.

FUN EDIT: Also a note that many German soldiers praised American rations and grudgingly accepted the American material advantage near the end of the war. :D

Anyway, this is just my 2 cents, and of course isn't perfect research, rather it is kinda specific but certainly can provide some insight. I did this kinda in a hurry, so it might not be the most clear but I hope the general message is there. Please also look for factual errors I have made since like I said I did this messily. Thanks.