Big block of book reviews

[Snapper]

Hello. I should explain that I am fortunate to have access to a range of military history books thanks to my full time work and because I am always hunting for something to read for my commute to work etc. I am not specifically interested in MV books, being more interested in people and histories. I am do not confine myself to WW1 or WW2.

I hope you don't mind me sharing these thoughts:

 

McCRAE'S BATTALION by Jack Alexander. Available on the internet from Mainstream. As said elsewhere, this is a masterpiece. Band of Brothers for WW1 with a bit of football thrown in. Don't let that put you off. They were corinthian times not fed by greed.

 

MY WAR - KILLING TIME IN IRAQ by Colby Buzzell. This is an amazing book born out of blogs Buzzell posted during his time in Iraq and based from his period of recruitment and training. What you have is a confessed no-hoper skater dude turning himself into a bit of a star thanks to a love affair with a machine gun.

 

SQUADDIE by Steven McLaughlin will be seen as a British attempt at Buzzell's book. McLaughlin is clearly a brilliant bloke whose efforts to get into the army at a late age are incredible. But this book lacks oomph and is dull. I didn't finish it.

 

BOY SOLDIERS OF THE GREAT WAR by Richard Van Emden is doing the rounds. It is a very interesting book full of details and bits of injustices that can make you angry. If you've ever been to a boy soldier's grave you will feel even stronger about the issues.

 

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT by Tim Collins. The man shafted by the MoD. I found myself in the bizarre situation of meeting him at Beltring. God knows what he made of it all. This book is fantastic. No battles, no gung ho crap. but the eloquence of the man is inspiring. The army made a massive mistake screwing him.

 

BLOODY APRIL - SLAUGHTER IN THE SKIES OVER ARRAS 1917 - by Peter Hart. This is brilliant. All that Twenty Minuters stuff from Blackadder writ large. The courage of the air crews is incredible - British and German.

 

FIELD MARSHAL HENRY WILSON by Keith Jeffrey recounts the life of the Ulsterman who is widely blamed with taking Britain to war in 1914. He was director of war plans and was very keen to see things done properly. He was an avowed Francophile and did not get on with Sir John French, but who did? Wilson was assassinated by the IRA in London in 1922 when he was CIGS.

 

THE OLD CONTEMPTIBLES/ THE DIEPPE RAID/ THE BATTLE FOR THE RHINE. Three books by Rob Niellands. This bloke can write. He is not afraid to challenge carefully crafted legends surrounding events and with the Rhine book he makes a solid point of blaming American anglophobia and ineptitude for many of the problems typically dumped at the door of Monty. In the Dieppe book he is scathing of the British and Canadian military command - not the troops or their combat leaders. Mountbatten gets a hammering.

 

THE BIG SHOW by Pierre Clostermann is back in the bookshops. This book was written in 1951 by the great French air ace. It is a great little book. Clostermann ended up living in Argentina and caused a stink when he congratulated Argie pilots in 1982 for their bravery. Why shouldn't he have? They were brave.

 

ZEEBRUGGE by Barrie Pitt. This is a stunning book covering the events of st George's Day 1918 and "Eleven VCs before breakfast". No Speilberg style blockbuster of this one ...yet. But there were no Yanks involved..funny, that. Barrie Pitt died this year and was editor of Purnell's History of the Second World War partwork of the 1970s.

 

TOGETHER WE STAND by James Holland is excellent reading about the north African campaign and the beginnings of Anglo-American co-operation. There is a lot of info in here. The stuff about the Torch landings and events involving the British Airborne is toe curling. Those paras were tough buggers.

 

BLITZ by MJ Gaskin compares nicely with the old classic THE CITY THAT WOULDN'T DIE by Richard Collier. The former covers the great raid on London on 29.12.40 while the latter is about similar events on 10-11.05.1941. These are brilliant books. Loads of detail and atmosphere with the people brought to life. Ordinary people. The difference is styles between 1959 and 2005 are marked.

 

Hope you didn't mind me sharing this lot with you. I've got loads more squirrelled away.

 

 

 

 

[AlienFTM]

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT by Tim Collins. The man shafted by the MoD. I found myself in the bizarre situation of meeting him at Beltring. God knows what he made of it all. This book is fantastic. No battles, no gung ho crap. but the eloquence of the man is inspiring. The army made a massive mistake screwing him.

 

ONE man shafted by the MOD. For another, see Soldier Five, by an unsung hero of the Bravo Two Zero mission. Name escapes me. Shame on me. IIRC he is the New Zealander.

 

He went to publish the true story of B20 (in NZ IIRC), and the MOD injuncted him. He spent five years proving that his book contained nothing that wasn't already in the public domain. IIRC the last chapter of the book describes his battle with the MOD in as much detail as the rest of the book describes the Pimmelauf that was B20.

 

As for Tim Collins: a typical CO of a combat unit and if I found myself under his command I'd march into Hell for him. I have served under a few COs to whom I could not give this accolade.

 

(Doffs cap.)