Second World War Books

Book SynopsisOn the afternoon of 17 September 1944, Lieutenant Joseph Enthammer, a Wehrmacht artillery officer based in Arnhem, gazed up to the clear skies, hardly believing what he saw. White ''snowflakes'' appeared to hang in the air. ''That cannot be'' he thought. ''It never snows in September! They must be parachutists!''They were. He was witnessing the first wave of the British parachute assault on Arnhem. The war had reached the Reich. The blow moreover had come as a total surprise. The Allies had expected operation Market-Garden to bring the collapse of the Wehrmacht in the West and shorten World War II. But the Germans resolved to fight.This ground-breaking military study uniquely chronicles this period of the war through the eyes of the ordinary German soldier and analyses the reasons for the eventual outcome. A major work of military history, this new paperback edition is certain to stimulate renewed debate about one of the most controversial operations of World War II.

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Book SynopsisThe perfect stocking filler for anyone who imagines themselves flying a spitfire . . . Drop your visiting cards, put aside your beer-lever, stop being a half-pint hero and discover the gloriously funny slang which was part of everyday life in two world wars. Passion-killers: Airwomen''s service knickers, whether twilights (the lighter, summer-weight variety) or black-outs (the navy-blue winter-weights). A wise directive has purposely made them as unromantic in colour and in design as a wise directive could imagine. Thanks to the work of Eric Partridge in 1945, the hilarious slang of the Royal Air Force during the first two World Wars has been preserved for generations to come. While some phrases like ''chocks away!'' have lasted to this day, others deserve to be rediscovered . . . Beer-lever: From pub-bars, meaning the ''Joystick'' of an aircraft. Canteen cowboy: A ladies'' Trade ReviewDrop your visiting cards, put aside your beer-lever, stop being a half-pint hero and discover the gloriously funny slang which was part of everyday life in the RAF during two world wars in this classic book. * from the publisher's description *

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Book SynopsisThe incredible, heart-breaking and poignant diary of a woman searching for her niece and nephew in the aftermath of the Hiroshima bomb.

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Book SynopsisMany studies have covered aspects of military intelligence available to Britain and her allies during the Second World War. This distinguished book provides a succinct and authoritative survey of the vital role Ultra played in achieving final victory., When war began Britain was as ill-prepared in intelligence as armaments. Civilian scientists had discovered the principle of radar in the mid-1930s, but everything had to be learned from scratch in the heat of emergency. First signs of improvement came in mid-1941, when Ultra targeted naval vessels and bomber aircraft onto so many of Rommel's supply ships that the Africa Corps almost withered on the vine. From then on intelligence played an increasingly indispensable part in final victory. Ultra won the Battle of the Atlantic, driving U-boats back to coastal waters by June 1943. Ultra confirmed the whereabouts of the German tanks as Montgomery planned the breakthrough to Alamein. Only 'Bomber' Harris refused to give intelligence the credit it deserved; on the basis of new evidence this fascinating book strongly reinforces criticism this costly mistake.Table of ContentsList of Maps Preface to New Edition Acknowledgements Introduction 1. 1939: Thick Darkness Brooding 2. 1940-1941: First Rays of Light 3. 1941-1943: A Brighter Prospect in the Mediterranean 4. 1939-1945: Ten-Tenths Cloud Cover: Intelligence and Bomber Command 5. 1941-1945: Shadow and Sunlight Over the Atlantic 6. 1943-1945: Clear Skies in Italy, Storm Over the Balkans 7. 1944-1945: Set Fair in the West, then Autumn Showers Appendix I: Enigma and Ultra Appendix II: The Controversy Over Crete Appendix III: Harris and Intelligence Appendix IV: Signals to Command Abroad Appendix VI: How It Was Done Appendix VII: Illustrations of Ultra Reference Notes Select Bibliography Main Events 1939-1945 Abbreviations Index

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Book SynopsisFrom the bestselling author of Stalingrad, Berlin and D-Day comes the story of the German''s ill-fated final stand.''Rich in detail and drama. Enthralling'' Mail on Sunday ______________On 16 December, 1944, Hitler launched his ''last gamble'' in the snow-covered forests and gorges of the Ardennes. He believed he could split the Allies by driving all the way to Antwerp, then force the Canadians and the British out of the war. Although his generals were doubtful of success, younger officers and NCOs were desperate to believe that their homes and families could be saved from the vengeful Red Army approaching from the east. Many were exultant at the prospect of striking back. The Ardennes offensive, with more than a million men involved, became the greatest battle of the war in western Europe. American troops, taken by surprise, found themselves fighting two panzer armies. Belgian civilians fled, justifTrade ReviewThis is World War II as Tolstoy would have described it - the great and the small * Washington Post (on 'The Second World War') *Rightly deserves its place on the shelves of any serious historian of the Second World War. Powerful and authoritative . . . Beevor weaves a masterful narrative based on the viewpoints of a vast range of people. Marshalling a coherent narrative out of an unwieldy sequence of localised attacks, counterattacks, deceptions, and feints demands the attention of a master military historian. In Antony Beevor, the Ardennes offensive has found one * Military History Monthly (Book of the Month) *What leaves a lasting impression is the huge power the American army as a whole mustered to smash back the Germans. A superpower was being born * Bookseller, Interview with Antony Beevor *Unflinching. As Ardennes 1944 makes clear, Hitler misjudged the strength and resilience of the US army. It was his last gamble and it failed * Prospect *What stands out most . . . is the effects of violent warfare. By the end of the counteroffensive the snowfields were littered with frozen corpses and the wreckage of hundreds of tanks and armoured vehicles * Literary Review *A superb addition to the canon which has taken us from Stalingrad to Normandy in 1944 and the final gruesome battle for Berlin, not forgetting the masterly single-volume history of the entire war. It is written with all of Beevor's customary verve and elegance. His remarkable and trademark ability is to encompass the wide sweep of campaigns yet never forget the piquant details of what happened to the individual . . . He focuses brilliantly on the key moments that turned the battle * Evening Standard *As impeccably researched, insightfully observed and superbly written as its bestselling predecessors -- Charlotte Heathcote * Sunday Express *If there's one thing that sets Beevor apart from other historians - beyond his gifts as a storyteller - it's that he is not afraid to look at the most uncomfortable, even frightening subjects, but does so in a way that doesn't threaten the reader. It's like having Virgil there to lead you through the underworld: he doesn't leave you stranded amid the horror but leads you back again, a wiser person for having undergone the journey -- Keith Lowe * Daily Telegraph *An indispensable book. It is a great strength of Beevor's writing that he takes time to explain how small pieces of knowledge - the kind of thing passed on by battle-hardened soldiers themselves - could make the difference between survival and a futile death -- David Aaronovitch * The Times *A portrait of war . . . startling in its detail. Beevor has the art of preserving the individual perspective on the battlefield while placing it among the perspectives of platoon, regiment, division, commanders, politicians and civilians. This book clarifies, without simplifying, the human experiences and political stakes of the battle for the Ardennes Forest, bringing realism to the battlefield and coherence to the larger history of the war -- Timothy Snyder * Guardian *Formidable . . . Beevor is a field marshal of facts. Under his brisk control the story of Hitler's final gamble is another example of the kind of action-packed, densely informed narrative that has proved such a formidable model -- Nicholas Shakespeare * Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisIn the last years of the Second World War the Sturmgesch tz III (StuG III) and Sturmgesch tz IV (StuG IV) played a vital role as assault guns during the German army's struggle to block the Allied advance on the Western Front. As the Wehrmacht's tank forces declined, these armoured vehicles were thrown into every defensive operation. They are not as well known as the Tigers and Panthers, but German resistance would have been much weaker without them. They were also among the most frequently encountered German armoured vehicles on the battlefields, which is why they are such a fascinating subject for Dennis Oliver in this volume in the TankCraft series He uses archive photos and extensively researched colour illustrations to examine the StuG III and StuG IV deployed by the German army and the Waffen-SS during these doomed campaigns. A key section of his book displays available model kits and aftermarket products, complemented by a gallery of beautifully constructed and painted models in various scales. Technical details as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field are also examined providing everything the modeller needs to recreate an accurate representation of these historic armoured vehicles.

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Book SynopsisLONGLISTED FOR THE 2015 SAMUEL JOHNSON PRIZE We have come to see the Holocaust as a factory of death, organised by bureaucrats. Yet by the time the gas chambers became operation more than a million European Jews were already dead: shot at close range over pits and ravines. They had been murdered in the lawless killing zones created by the German colonial war in the East, many on the fertile black earth that the Nazis believed would feed the German people.It comforts us to believe that the Holocaust was a unique event. But as Timothy Snyder shows, we have missed basic lessons of the history of the Holocaust, and some of our beliefs are frighteningly close to the ecological panic that Hitler expressed in the 1920s. As ideological and environmental challenges to the world order mount, our societies might be more vulnerable than we would like to think.Timothy Snyder’s Bloodlands was an acclaimed exploration of what happened in eastern Europe between 1933 and 1945, when Nazi and Soviet policy brought death to some 14 million people. Black Earth is a deep exploration of the ideas and politics that enabled the worst of these policies, the Nazi extermination of the Jews. Its pioneering treatment of this unprecedented crime makes the Holocaust intelligible, and thus all the more terrifying.Trade ReviewTimothy Snyder's bold new approach to the Holocaust links Hitler's racial worldview to the destruction of states and the quest for land and food. This insight leads to thought-provoking and disturbing conclusions for today's world. Black Earth uses the recent past's terrible inhumanity to underline an urgent need to rethink our own future -- Ian KershawA wholly readable and utterly persuasive attempt to get us to look at the Holocaust in a different light. I read it twice, aghast but gripped by the moral abyss into which I was plunged on each page * Observer *Black Earth is provocative, challenging, and an important addition to our understanding of the Holocaust. As he did in Bloodlands, Timothy Snyder makes us rethink those things we were sure we already knew -- Deborah LipstadtPart history, part political theory, Black Earth is a learned and challenging reinterpretation -- Henry A. KissingerIn this unusual and innovative book, Timothy Snyder takes a fresh look at the intellectual origins of the Holocaust, placing Hitler's genocide firmly in the politics and diplomacy of 1930s Europe. Black Earth is required reading for anyone who cares about this difficult period of history -- Anne Applebaum

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Book SynopsisADLERTAG. Eagle Day, Operation Eagle Attack, 13 August 1940. Hitler has ordered the destruction of the RAF in preparation for the invasion of Britain.

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Book SynopsisNames like Ben-My-Chree, Tynwald and Lady of Mann are synonymous with the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, the world's oldest shipping line that is still in existence. In its long history, there can have been no greater test of the company's ships or its men than the Second World War. As well as maintaining a crucial link to the Isle of Man (in spite of U-boats and mines), the vessels and their compliments saw vital service as troop carriers at Dunkirk, on D-Day and elsewhere. For the first time, this book explores what it was really like to crew these ships, often under fire, and frequently in danger. Using previously unreleased archive material, and sometimes forgotten personal accounts, this book weaves a gripping narrative of what was arguably the Isle of Man's greatest contribution to victory in the Second World War its fleet.

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Book SynopsisThe story of the sinking of the HMS Royal Oak by a German submarine which cost the lives of 833 Royal Navy sailors.Trade ReviewCompulsive reading' * ROYAL OAK ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER *A new perspective on the tragedy' * SCOTTISH MEMORIES *Compelling... a window into a lost world' * DIVE MAGAZINE *A poignant story, giving a lot of personal accounts of the events by those who survived. Highly recommended.'. * THE NAUTICAL MAGAZINE *

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Book SynopsisNew B-format paperback edition - Did Sgt Salvatore âBudâ Walcott, an American who served as a Spitfire pilot with the RAF in 1942, avoid flying to Malta, the most bombed place on earth - did he desert?

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Book SynopsisInitially published as No Place to Lay One's Head - the unforgettable story of one woman's struggle to survive persecution in wartime France In 1921, Françoise Frenkel-a Jewish woman from Poland-opens Berlin's very first French bookshop. It is a dream come true. The bookshop attracts artists and diplomats, celebrities and poets. It brings Françoise peace, friendship and prosperity. Then, in the summer of 1939, the dream ends and Françoise's desperate, headlong flight from Nazi persecution begins. Unfolding in Berlin, Paris and against the romantic landscapes of southern France, A Bookshop in Berlin is a heartbreaking tale of human cruelty and unending kindness; and of a woman whose lust for life refuses to leave her, even in her darkest hours.Trade Review'It has massive potential to connect with readers as an eyewitness testimony to the creep of oppression and hatred alongside its moral defence of literature, art and freedom' -The Bookseller, Editor's Choice

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Book SynopsisThis is the remarkable story of one of the Second World War's most unusual animal heroes - a 14-stone St Bernard dog who became global mascot for the Royal Norwegian Forces and a symbol of freedom and inspiration for Allied troops throughout Europe. From a happy and carefree puppyhood spent as a family pet in the Norwegian fishing town of Honningsvag, the gentle giant Bamse followed his master at the outbreak of the war to become a registered crew member of the mine-sweeper Thorodd. Often donning his own steel helmet as he took his place in the Thorodd's bow gun turret, Bamse cut an impressive figure and made a huge contribution to the morale of the crew, and he gallantly saved the lives of two of them. After Norway fell to the Germans in 1940, the Thorodd operated from Dundee and Montrose, where Bamse became a well-known and much-loved figure, shepherding the Thorodd's crew-members back to the boat at pub closing time, travelling on the local buses, breaking up fights and even taking part in football matches. Mourned both by locals and Norwegians when he died in 1944, Bamse's memory has been kept alive both in Norway, where he is still regarded as a national hero, and in Montrose, where a larger-than-life statue of him was unveiled in 2006 by HRH Prince Andrew. Written from extensive source material and eyewitness accounts, Sea Dog Bamse is a fitting tribute to the extraordinary life of an extraordinary dog.Trade Review'This story should have been told ages ago ... a magnificent book about one of the most unusual war heroes to come from Norway. It isn’t a second too late' * Maritime Logg Norway *'Why all this fuss for a dog? You’ll find the answer in an entertaining ... touching story' * The Scots Magazine *'Prepare to read this fantastic story in one sitting. Very highly recommended' * Sea Breezes *'A well-researched, carefully crafted and hugely enjoyable account of one of the most remarkable animals to play a part in World War II' * Aberdeen Press & Journal *'a highly readable book, a useful piece of living local history … the best possible memorial’‘a lively and affectionate account of Bamse’s life' * Montrose Review *'a fitting tribute to the extraordinary life of and extraordinary dog' * SCOTS: The Journal of the Scots Heritage Society *'A stirring memorial to a pet who inspired two war torn nations' * The Mail on Sunday *'Angus Whitson and Andrew Orr have succeeded in piecing together fact and folklore to give as full an account as possible of the life of a singular animal. This is a well researched, carefully crafted and hugely enjoyable account of one of the most remarkable animals to play a part in World War II' * Press & Journal *'Bamse’s extraordinary life is told … by the people who knew and loved him' * PDSA Companions Magazine *'It is a great story, easy to read, with an excellent index' * The Naval Review *'It tells the tale of how he raised the morale of the Norwegian Navy and recounts his extraordinary interactions with the sailors and civilians who knew him' * The Times Daily Universal Register *'New literary tribute to the Norwegian dog who captured Scottish hearts' * Sunday Herald *'The British love a heroic dog, none more so than Bamse … Charming' * Scottish Legion News *'This fascinating book tells not just the story of a remarkable dog – it also gives an insight into life during the war' * Dundee Courier *'One of the most charming, enterprising, and charismatic characters in the story of World War II' -- Jilly Cooper

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Book Synopsis''Meticulous... Probably the most disturbing portrait of Hitler I have ever read'' Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday TimesBy the summer of 1939 Hitler was at the zenith of his power. Yet despite initial triumphs in the early stages of war, the Führer''s fortunes would turn dramatically as the conflict raged on. Realising that victory was lost, and with Soviet troops closing in on his Berlin bunker, Hitler committed suicide in April 1945; one week later, Nazi Germany surrendered. His murderous ambitions had not only annihilated his own country, but had cost the lives of millions across Europe. In the final volume of this landmark biography, Volker Ullrich argues that the very qualities - and the defects - that accounted for Hitler''s popularity and rise to power were what brought about his ruin. A keen strategist and meticulous military commander, he was also a deeply insecure gambler who could be shaken by the smallest setback, and was quick to blame subTrade ReviewSmoothly written and splendidly translated, Ullrich’s book gives us a Hitler we have not seen before, at once cold-blooded and idealistic, chillingly narcissistic and cloyingly sentimental. And precisely because he seems so much like the rest of us, it is probably the most disturbing portrait of Hitler I have ever read -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times *Ullrich is a fine writer -- David Aaronovitch * The Times *The reader who plunges in is rewarded with insight, understanding, fine judgements and read-me narrative drive... [This] biography of Hitler makes essential reading, especially one as deeply researched, beautifully written and finely judged as this one -- Tony Rennell * Daily Mail, *Book of the Week* *Ullrich’s work is much more than just a biography. It is a work of synthesis, certainly, but a thorough and thoroughly readable one nonetheless, which stands muster alongside Hitler’s most significant earlier biographers: Bullock, Toland, Fest and Kershaw. Elegantly written, engaging and insightful, it is a new standard work on its subject -- Roger Moorhouse * BBC History *A fine and meticulous historian with a true command of archives and secondary sources… Ullrich has his own angle, and that is to recover the personality of the man… this is one of the most impressive Hitler biographies…you will find it compelling -- Anthony Cummins * Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisListed as one of the Guardian's 100 Best Nonfiction Books of All Time. In September 1945 the fate of Adolf Hitler was a complete mystery. He had simply disappeared, and had been missing for four months. Hugh Trevor-Roper, an intelligence officer, was given the task of solving the mystery. His brilliant piece of detective work not only proved finally that Hitler had killed himself in Berlin, but also produced one of the most fascinating history books ever written. The Last Days of Hitler tells the extraordinary story of those last days of the Thousand Year Reich in the Berlin Bunker. Besieged in the shattered capital, but still dominating the remains of his court, Hitler reiterated the original alternative of Nazism: either total victory or annihilation. This book is the record of that carefully prepared, ceremonious finale to a terrible chapter of history.'Brilliantly written and researched, The Last Days of Hitler remains the mosTrade ReviewBrilliantly written and researched, The Last Days of Hitler remains the most vivid account of the final Wagnerian chapter of Hitler's tyranny. -- Max HastingsSome books simply exude excitement and self-confidence, as if the writer is on fire with ideas, or intoxicated with information. This is one of those titles...remains unsurpassed. -- Robert McCrum * Guardian *This is an incomparable book, by far the best written on any aspect of the second German war: a book sound in scholarship, brilliant in its presentation . . . No words of praise are too strong. -- A. J. P. Taylor * New Statesman *A masterpiece. * The Times *A brilliant study. * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis'Human and curious . . . an admirable family memoir of migration' (Guardian) from Sunday Times journalist Jonathan Dean.Trade ReviewJonathan Dean's remarkable family saga would make the producers of Who Do You Think You Are? weak at the knees. -- Tarquin Hall * SUNDAY TIMES *Humane and curious... an admirable family memoir. -- Steven Poole * GUARDIAN *Against the shocking news stories of the last couple of years, Jonathan Dean's very human take on the journey of a refugee has fresh resonance. Examining the lives caught in the crossfire as Europe twice fragmented in world war makes this a must read now. -- Emily Phillips * GRAZIA *Get a copy for your Brexit-voting uncle. -- Clare Pennington * GRAZIA *He explores complex subjects accessibly, and his book is all the more powerful for it. -- Max Liu * I PAPER *

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Book Synopsis** SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER **'Astonishing' ANTONY BEEVOR 'One of the most promising young historians to enter our field for years' MAX HASTINGSA thrilling new history of the disastrous years of indecision, failed diplomacy and parliamentary infighting that enabled Hitler and the Nazis to dominate Europe.On a wet afternoon in September 1938, Neville Chamberlain stepped off an aeroplane and announced that his visit to Hitler had averted the greatest crisis in recent memory. It was, he later assured the crowd in Downing Street, 'peace for our time'. Less than a year later, Germany invaded Poland and the Second World War began. Drawing on previously unseen sources, Appeasing Hitler sweeps from the advent of Hitler in 1933 to the beaches of Dunkirk, and presents an unforgettable portrait of the ministers, aristocrats and amateur diplomats whose actions and inaction had devastating consequences. 'Brilliant and sparkling . . . Reads like a thriller. I couldn't put it down' Peter Frankopan 'Vivid, detailed and utterly fascinating . . . This is political drama at its most compelling' James Holland 'Bouverie skilfully traces each shameful step to war . . . in moving and dramatic detail' Sunday TelegraphTrade ReviewAppeasing Hitler is an astonishingly accomplished debut. Bouverie writes with a wonderful clarity and we will no doubt hear a lot more of his voice in future -- Antony BeevorA brilliant and sparkling debut by an outstanding young historian. Tim Bouverie has written an account of the build-up to the Second World War that reads like a thriller. I couldn’t put it down. -- Peter FrankopanThis is the debut of an unusually talented writer, one of the most promising young historians to enter our field for years -- Max HastingsEvery so often I've been escaping to the corner of my garden and losing myself in Tim Bouverie's brilliant Appeasing Hitler. It's a compelling read that combines detailed research with a flair for narrative -- Nick Robinson * Radio Times *Drawing on an impressive and interesting range of sources and characters, Tim Bouverie has written a fascinating and scholarly portrait of a decade when credulity, self-interest and poor judgement prevailed tragically and inexorably over morality and good sense: this is the reporting of history at its best -- Caroline MooreheadAppeasing Hitler is the stunning debut of a major new narrative historian. A riveting and depressing story which has resonance today as the democracies again face dictatorships -- Professor Margaret MacmillanIn meticulous detail and with moments of novelty and insight… [Appeasing Hitler] should become a standard text on this inglorious episode… an exceptionally promising debut. He has great narrative abilities and his research has been extensive -- Simon Heffer * Daily Telegraph *Sparkling and witty... The best account of the subject that I have ever read -- Professor Sir Michael HowardThis gripping book is…valuable because it illuminates some eternal truths -- Andrew Rawnsley * Observer *Tim Bouverie tells the story of appeasement with skill, verve and panache, using contemporary accounts to great effect in exploring the mentalities that lay behind the political decisions -- Ian KershawWith enormous flair and confidence, Tim Bouverie has brought his subject to life, elegantly drawing out the historical parallels while also presenting a gripping and well-paced narrative. Lively, nuanced, and full of surprising details, this is a stunning debut -- Henry HemmingWith tremendous narrative flair and impeccable judgement, Bouverie illuminates the wishful thinking, the gullibility and the appalling amateurishness that led us to the precipice -- Simon Griffith * Mail on Sunday *An eye-opening narrative which makes for exciting but at times uncomfortable reading as one reflects on possible lessons for the present -- Antonia FraserTruly impressive and enjoyable. Tim Bouverie writes with verve and wit, gives us an often moving and always human angle on the story, and removes the tarnish from the word ‘appeasement’ to make us look anew at one of the most important, and salutary, periods of modern times -- Roland PhilippsNo previous book on Appeasement has managed to cast such a vivid, detailed and utterly fascinating light on the incredible political machinations that were being played out in the late 1930s. Tim Bouverie has brilliantly brought alive the tension, political brinkmanship and immense drama of those days... This is political drama at its most compelling, and one whose relevance sits with the reader long after the book has been put down. Superb. -- James HollandTim Bouverie breathes new life into this familiar story. His vivid narrative is compelling, even exciting, as it hurtles towards its tragic conclusion. This is a superb book that deserves to be widely read -- Adam Sisman * Literary Review *Vivid, engaging... pacy, personality driven -- Susan Pedersen * Guardian *Bouverie… retells [the story of appeasement] with gusto -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times *Bouverie gives a lucid account… [and] skilfully traces each shameful step to war… which he describes in moving and dramatic detail -- Lewis Jones * Sunday Telegraph *Gripping.. Bouverie has written a searching, wide-ranging, and above all readable chronology of a shameful era of British history… a very cautionary tale -- Nigel Jones * Spectator *[An] impressive and very readable account -- Tony Rennell * Daily Mail *Tim Bouverie’s first historical work… is a well-argued, lucid case for the prosecution of the appeasers -- David Aaronovitch * The Times, *Book of the Week* *So assured is Bouverie’s writing, and so sound his judgments, that it is hard to believe that Appeasing Hitler is his first book. It is a wonderful debut that marks the arrival of a young historian to watch -- Saul David * Evening Standard, *Book of the Week* *[An] accomplished and lucid account -- Josh Ireland * Prospect *Bouverie’s well-written Appeasing Hitler aims to provide a timeless lesson on the challenges of standing up to aggression. -- Jo Johnson * Financial Times *Bouverie has mined an impressive range of sources and quotes from them judiciously. His narrative is lucid, his prose efficient, his put-downs witty… [he] tells an important story well. -- Lucy Hughes-Hallett * New Statesman *The skill with which Tim Bouverie navigates here through the worlds of politics, officialdom and diplomacy is quite exemplary… his explanations of complex issues are always lucid; his narrative style is thoughtful, unshowy and always a pleasure to read… This is, quite simply, the best book ever to have appeared on this whole subject -- Noel Malcolm * Oldie *Bouverie’s Appeasing Hitler provides a meticulous picture of a Britain that faced very different problems from our own -- Thelma Lovell * Catholic Herald *Scrupulously fair, [and a] readable account… [an] excellent book -- Marcus Tanner * Tablet *Appeasing Hitler…is a staggeringly good account of the build-up to the Second World War… gripping, dramatic and revelatory -- Christian May * City AM *Bouverie’s prose is fluent and assured throughout. Those in search of an entertaining read will find one… an admirable retelling of traditional history -- Robert Crowcroft * History Today *An enthralling, nuanced tale… the narrative is absolutely compelling * Times Literary Supplement *An elegantly written account by a rising young historian * The Times, *Summer reads of 2019* *This is a gripping account of the wishful thinking that led us to the precipice -- Neil Armstrong and Hephzibah Anderson * Mail on Sunday, *Summer reads of 2019* *There is a sure command of narrative and judgment in faultlessly lucid prose, with subtexts of pathos -- Bruce Anderson * Spectator *A fascinating narrative on the politics of wishful thinking and the law of unintended consequences in international relations -- Ali Ansari * History Today, *Books of the Year* *[A] finely researched and well-argued book * Daily Mail, *Books of the Year* *[A] phenomenal book -- William Keegan * Observer *Excellent -- Andrew Roberts * Wall Street Journal *Excellent and compelling -- William Leith * Evening Standard *

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Book SynopsisAn expert visual history of military personnel, with 600 images of uniforms and contextual analysis.

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Book SynopsisStephen Bungay’ s magisterial history is acclaimed as the account of the Battle of Britain. Unrivalled for its synthesis of all previous historical accounts, for the quality of its strategic analysis and its truly compulsive narrative, this is a book ultimately distinguished by its conclusions – that it was the British in the Battle who displayed all the virtues of efficiency, organisation and even ruthlessness we habitually attribute to the Germans, and they who fell short in their amateurism, ill-preparedness, poor engineering and even in their old-fashioned notions of gallantry. An engrossing read for the military scholar and the general reader alike, this is a classic of military history that looks beyond the mythology, to explore all the tragedy and comedy; the brutality and compassion of war.Trade Review‘Stephen Bungay delves into new ground. These threads have been woven together to form an eloquent and informative tapestry€¦ It will be difficult for a new work on this subject to add any more to our knowledge of those months in 1940’ ‘The magnitude and vital importance of the Battle of Britain has found a superb chronicler in Stephen Bungay, whose book is the best single-volume history to be published in over a decade’'A fascinating case history in illusion and reality. He dispels the myths and kills the cliches... Admirable''The most exhaustive and detailed account of the Battle of Britain that has yet appeared''A fascinating case history in illusion and reality. He dispels the myths and kills the cliches... Admirable'‘The magnitude and vital importance of the Battle of Britain has found a superb chronicler in Stephen Bungay, whose book is the best single-volume history to be published in over a decade’‘Stephen Bungay delves into new ground. These threads have been woven together to form an eloquent and informative tapestry… It will be difficult for a new work on this subject to add any more to our knowledge of those months in 1940’

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Book SynopsisThe terrible months between the arrival of the Red Army on German soil and the final collapse of Hitler's regime were like no other in the Second World War. The Soviet Army's intent to take revenge for the horror that the Nazis had wreaked on their people produced a conflict of implacable brutality in which millions perished. From the great battles that marked the Soviet conquest of East and West Prussia to the final surrender in the Vistula estuary, this book recounts in chilling detail the desperate struggle of soldiers and civilians alike. These brutal campaigns are brought vividly to life by a combination of previously untold testimony and astute strategic analysis recognising a conflict of unprecedented horror and suffering.Table of ContentsList of Illustrations /List of Maps /Author’s Note /Preface /Introduction: the Slavs and the Teutons /1 Fritz and Ivan: The Opposing Forces /2 Memel /3 Nemmersdorf /4 The Last Christmas /5 The House of Cards - the Great January Offensive /6 Cherniakhovsky and the Pregel Valley /7 Rokossovsky reaches the Coast /8 Encircled in East Prussia /9 Hannibal - The Baltic Evacuation Begins /10 The Riviera of Hades and the Fall of Pomerania /11 Heiligenbeil - Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea /12 Konigsberg /13 Danzig /14 The Last Command /15 The Long Road Home /Notes /Bibliography /Index

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Book SynopsisNow a major television event from Apple TV and Steven Spielberg, and companion to Band of Brothers and The Pacific. Now a major television event from Apple TV and Steven Spielberg (starring Austin Butler, Callum Turner and Anthony Boyle) and companion to Band of Brothers and The Pacific. 'Seconds after Brady's plane was hit, the Hundredth's entire formation was broken up and scattered by swarms of single-engine planes, and by rockets launched by twin-engine planes that flew parallel' Meet the Flying Fortresses of the American Eighth Air Force, Britain's Lancaster comrades, who helped to bring down the Nazis Historian and World War II expert Donald Miller brings us the story of the bomber boys who brought the war to Hitler's doorstep. Unlike ground soldiers they slept on clean beds, drank beer in local pubs, and danced to the swing music of the travelling Air Force bands. But they were also an elite group of fighters who put their lives on the line in the most dangerous role of all. Miller takes readers from the adrenaline filled battles in the sky, to the airbases across England, the German prison camps, and onto the ground to understand the devastation faced by civilians. Drawn from interviews, oral histories, and American, British and German archives, Masters of the Air is the authoritative, deeply moving and important account of the world's first and only bomber war.

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Book SynopsisThis book is a rare first-hand account by a ruthlessly efficient German sniper of life and death during the bitter conflict that followed the Nazi invasion of Russia. Josef 'Sepp' Allerberger was an Austrian conscript who qualified as a Wehrmacht machine-gunner and was drafted to the Southern sector of the Front in July 1942.After being wounded at Voroshilovsk, he experimented successfully with a captured Russian sniper-rifle whileconvalescing and returned to his unit as his regiment's only sniper specialist. In the gruelling months that followed, as the German Army was forced to withdraw under almost constant pressure from the Russians, Allerberger became the second most successful German sniper and one of the very few private soldiers to be awarded the coveted Knights Cross.This harrowing and graphic memoir provides a vivid insight to the atrocious conditions and brutal cruelty of this campaign. There was, we learn, no place for chivalry and few prisoners survived long after capture. Allerberger relates the cunning, discipline and fieldcraft that not only saw him survive during the near constant action but made him such a relentless assassin.Trade Review"...a very unique story and experience worth telling of an Eastern Front Sniper."--Sniper Central

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Book SynopsisThis is the inspiring and charming true story of one of the Second World War's most unusual combatants - a 500-pound cigarettesmoking, beer-drinking brown bear. Originally adopted as a mascot by the Polish Army in Iran, Wojtek soon took on a more practical role, carrying heavy mortar rounds for the troops and going on to play his part as a fully enlisted 'soldier' with his own rank and number during the Italian campaign. After the war, Wojtek, along with some of his Polish compatriots from II Corps, came to Berwickshire, where he became a significant member of the local community before subsequently moving to Edinburgh Zoo. Wojtek's retirement was far from quiet: a potent symbol of freedom and solidarity for Poles around the world, he attracted a huge amount of media interest that shows no sign of abating almost 50 years after his death.Trade Review 'It is both moving and amusing' -- Lord David Steel'hilarious and moving' * Scotsman *

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Book SynopsisThe actual course given to all secret agents in SOE before working behind enemy lines. It includes everything you needed to know to go undercover from documents, cover stories and how to live off the land to how to get through an interrogation.The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in occupied Europe against the Axis powers, and to aid local resistance movements.In late 1942, SOE was asked to increase the number of agents to aid the invasion of mainland Europe. Part of agent training was tradecraft' the practical details on how to be a clandestine agent behind enemy lines which every agent had to attend at various bases centred around Beaulie in Hampshire.The course was a set of lectures and this book contains the actual text of those lectures which were discovered in the National Archives this year. It is not only a fascinating insight into the workings of one of the Seco

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Book SynopsisFrom the outbreak of war, through the Blitz, to fighting on land, sea and in the air, the poems mirror each phase of action in every theatre from the front line to the Home Front.

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Book SynopsisJuliet Gardiner''s critically acclaimed book - the first in a generation to tell the people''s story of the Second World War - offers a compelling and comprehensive account of the pervasiveness of war on the Home Front. The book has been commended for its inclusion of many under-described aspects of the Home Front, and alongside familiar stories of food shortages, evacuation and the arrival of the GIs, are stories of Conscientious Objectors, persecuted Italians living in Britain and Lumber Jills working in the New Forest. Drawing on a multitude of sources, many previously unpublished, she tells the story of those six gruelling years in voices from the Orkney Islands to Cornwall, from the Houses of Parliament to the Nottinghamshire mines.Trade ReviewJuliet Gardiner's 'Wartime' provides a marvellously rich, and often entertaining, recreation of life on the Home Front, 1939-45, drawing on an enormous range of oral testimony and memoir. * The Scotsman *From lost loves to crabby children to the sorrow of receiving the worst possible news, this is a remarkably personal picture of wartime life at home. * The Good Book Guide *Irresistably unputdownable * Scotland On Sunday (Angus Calder) *Danger, courage, deprivation, exhaustion, fear, humour and that old enemy 'boredom' were endured for six years. This exhilarating book is the voice of these people. * Despatches *humorous and deeply moving * Despatches *In a book replete with treasures, everyone will find a special jewel. * The Times Literary Supplement (David Stafford) *Juliet Gardiner's book is ...wonderfully readable * BBC History Magazine *after the torrents of film and forests of print devoted to her subject over the last four decades, it is exhilarating that Gardiner finds so many under-described aspects of the Home Front to document through her fresh witnesses. * BBC History Magazine *utterly gripping * The Spectator *Gardiner explores every aspect of the British home front, and presents these deeply moving moments superbly. I have no doubt that 'Wartime' will become the seminal work on Britain at war. * Daily Mail (Max Arthur) *Plenty of nostalgia and war-time spirit in this comprehensive account of life on the Home Front * The Veteran *

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Book SynopsisA rediscovered mountaineering classic and the extraordinary true story of a daring escape up Mount Kenya by three prisoners of war.When the clouds covering Mount Kenya part one morning to reveal its towering peaks for the first time, prisoner of war Felice Benuzzi is transfixed. The tedium of camp life is broken by the beginnings of a sudden idea - an outrageous, dangerous, brilliant idea.There are not many people who would break out of a P.O.W. camp, trek for days across perilous terrain before climbing the north face of Mount Kenya with improvised equipment, meagre rations, and with a picture of the mountain on a tin of beef among their more accurate guides. There are probably fewer still who would break back in to the camp on their return.But this is the remarkable story of three such men. No Picnic on Mount Kenya is a powerful testament to the human spirit of revolt and adventure in even the darkest of places.The hiTrade ReviewFelice Benuzzi's tale is a real joy. An extraordinary adventure written with a light, deft, humorous touch that makes it irresistibly readable. And it certainly shows that the British don't have a monopoly of eccentricity. -- Michael PalinBenuzzi's sketches and his glorious writing and humour make this an incomparable tribute to camaraderie and daring. -- Jane Manaster * San Francisco Book Review *

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Book SynopsisNew paperback edition - Reveals the human agony behind such statistics through the words of the Germans who were there: âYouâll regret this insulting, provocative and thoroughly predatory attack on the Soviet Union! Youâll pay dearly for it!â (Dekanazov, Soviet Ambassador in Berlin). The Germans did. But the butcherâs bill was huge for both sides.

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Book SynopsisIn this unprecedented series exploring the big story of the Battle of Britain, renowned historian Dilip Sarkar investigates the wider context and intimate details of the epic aerial conflict in the summer of 1940 from all sides. In so doing, he gives due acknowledgement to the roles of Bomber and Coastal Commands in addition to the fabled Few of Fighter Command.This unique narrative draws upon a lifetime of research, the author having enjoyed a long relationship with survivors and the relatives of casualties; his innumerable interviews and first-hand accounts collated, in addition to privileged access to personal papers, providing essential human interest to this inspirational story.In this the third volume, Battle of Britain: Attack of the Eagles, Dilip continues to examine the fighting on a day-by-day, combat-by-combat basis between 13 and 18 August 1940. This period began on Eagle Day' and the start of the Luftwaffe's Eagle Attack' on Fighter Command.This period of intense fighting

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Book SynopsisThis book will give you an insight into one of the greatest tyrant of this century, his political ideals, beliefs and motivation, and his struggle to consolidate Germany into one great nation.

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Book SynopsisLucid and damning an absorbing and infuriating tale of complicity, coverup and denial' PATRICK RADDEN KEEFE, author of EMPIRE OF PAINA groundbreaking investigation of how the Nazis helped German tycoons make billions from the horrors of the Third Reich and World War II and how the world allowed them to get away with it.In 1946, Günther Quandt patriarch of Germany's most iconic industrial empire, a dynasty that today controls BMW was arrested for suspected Nazi collaboration. Quandt claimed that he had been forced to join the party by his arch-rival, propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels, and the courts acquitted him. But Quandt lied. And his heirs, and those of other Nazi billionaires, have only grown wealthier in the generations since, while their reckoning with this dark past remains incomplete at best. Many of them continue to control swaths of the world economy, owning iconic brands whose products blanket the globe. The brutal legacy of the dynasties that dominated Daimler-Benz, cofounded Allianz and still control Porsche, Volkswagen and BMW has remained hidden in plain sight until now.In this landmark work, investigative journalist David de Jong reveals the true story of how Germany's wealthiest business dynasties amassed untold money and power by abetting the atrocities of the Third Reich. Using a wealth of untapped sources, de Jong shows how these tycoons seized Jewish businesses, procured slave labourers and ramped up weapons production to equip Hitler's army as Europe burnt around them. Most shocking of all, de Jong exposes how the wider world's political expediency enabled these billionaires to get away with their crimes, covering up a bloodstain that defiles the German and global economy to this day.Trade Review‘It is impossible to fault de Jong’s fierce indignation in his book. He must be right to urge that the descendants of Hitler’s tycoons should admit their ancestors’ criminality’Max Hastings, Sunday Times ‘Fascinating … de Jong tells the story with the brisk clarity of the good financial journalist he is and lets the fact speak for themselves. It leaves you awestruck at the power of greed’Daily Telegraph ‘The author cleverly weaves his astonishing facts and figures into human stories … Its fascinating detail and engaging style make Nazi Billionaires a forceful book, revealing to a wide audience a vital aspect of Germany’s ongoing discussion with itself’Spectator ‘Lucid, and damning, Nazi Billionaires unearths decades of family secrets and exposes the tainted origins of several of the world's most significant dynastic fortunes. As adept in the archive as he is on the page, de Jong draws on a vast wealth of historical evidence to tell an absorbing – and infuriating – tale of complicity, coverup, and denial, and to unearth the sordid war crimes behind some of today's most vaunted consumer brands’Patrick Radden Keefe, bestselling author of Empire of Pain ‘Eloquent, thorough, and profound, David de Jong’s brilliant debut illuminates a dark chapter of the past while also shining a stark and uncanny light onto our present, and, perhaps, our near future – showing how an insidious mix of capitalism and fascism can destroy democracy and countless lives. An absolute must-read’Norman Ohler, bestselling author of Blitzed ‘As riveting as it is disturbing. At times, it felt like reading the anti-Schindler's List: instead of secretly helping the Jews, Germany's most powerful tycoons brutally exploited their suffering for personal profit’Bradley Hope, bestselling co-author of Billion Dollar Whale

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Book Synopsis70th Anniversary Edition with a New Foreword by Sunday Times Bestselling Author Simon Sebag Montefiore''A classic'' Observer ''A legend'' Washington Post ''The best book you will read this year'' Colonel Tim CollinsPosted to Moscow as a young diplomat before the Second World War, Fitzroy Maclean travelled widely, with or without permission, in some of the wildest and remotest parts of the Soviet Union, then virtually closed to foreigners. In 1942 he fought as a founder member of the SAS in North Africa. There Maclean specialised in hair-raising commando raids behind enemy lines, including the daring and outrageous kidnapping of the German Consul in Axis-controlled Iraq. In 1943 he parachuted into German-occupied Yugoslavia as Winston Churchill''s personal representative to Josip Broz Tito and remained there until 1945, all enemy attempts to capture him proving unsuccessful.Eastern Approaches is Maclean''s classic, grippingTrade ReviewOne of the bravest men in the British army, and one of the funniestAn absorbing mixture of military adventure, political judgement, urbane wit, cool humour and surprising incidentA man of daring character

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Book SynopsisMoving from the Middle-Eastern campaigns of the First World War to bohemian Berlin in the 1920s, to the horror of the concentration camps and the trials in Belsen and Nuremberg, this book tells the story of two German men whose lives diverged, and intersected, in an unusual way.Trade ReviewThomas Harding has shed intriguing new light on the strange poison of Nazism, and one of its most lethal practitioners... Meticulously researched and deeply felt. -- Ben Macintyre * The Times, Book of the Week *Fascinating and moving...This is a remarkable book, which deserves a wide readership. -- Max Hastings * The Sunday Times *A gripping thriller, an unspeakable crime, an essential history. -- John Le CarréThis is a stunning book...both chilling and deeply disturbing. It is also an utterly compelling and exhilarating account of one man's extraordinary hunt for the Kommandant of the most notorious death camp of all, Auschwitz-Birkenau. -- James HollandOnly at his great uncle’s funeral in 2006 did Thomas Harding discover that Hanns Alexander, whose Jewish family fled to Britain from Nazi Germany in the 1930s, hunted down and captured Rudolf Höss, the ruthless commandant of Auschwitz, at the end of World War Two. By tracing the lives of these two men in parallel until their dramatic convergence in 1946, Harding puts the monstrous evil of the Final Solution in two specific but very different human contexts. The result is a compelling book full of unexpected revelations and insights, an authentic addition to our knowledge and understanding of this dark chapter in European history. No-one who starts reading it can fail to go on to the end. -- David Lodge

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Book SynopsisPublished to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE Day''[The] stories are every bit as dramatic as those from the front lines and Barrett and Calvi have done an incredible job. Their poignant, page-turning book, filled with tears and joy, reminds us innocents always suffer'' Daily Express''The 80th anniversary of VE Day takes place on Thursday 8 May and inspirational new book Blitz Kids captures the stories of some of the people who lived through, and still remember, that period'' Sunday Express''Betty heard the scream of bombs falling and the terrifying thud of explosions. Suddenly, there was a deafening bang, and her mother was thrown across the shelter. For a moment everything was lit up by a blood-red light. Then they were plunged into darkness...''When the Second World War began, there were 10 million children living in Britain. Many were evacuated to the countryside, but others stayed behind and witnessed the Blitz close-up in cities around the UK.Blitz Kids tells the remarkable true stories of children who spent their nights in cold, cramped air-raid shelters, hearing the rumble of planes and the crash of bombs overhead. Many woke up in the morning to find their homes and schools destroyed, their favourite toys buried beneath rubble, their pets lost and, in some cases, their families shattered. Yet amid the turmoil and tears, they found a way to enjoy their childhoods, collecting steaming-hot shrapnel, turning bombed-out houses into adventure playgrounds, and chasing American GIs for chocolate and chewing gum.From headstrong East-Ender Kitty to quick-witted Liverpudlian Christopher - and little Doreen, who survived the devastation of Coventry - Blitz Kids brings together the moving true stories of a remarkable generation now passing into history.

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Book SynopsisDuring World War II, Balck commanded panzer troops from the front line and led by example, putting himself in extreme danger when rallying his soldiers to surge forward. He fought battles that were masterpieces of tactical operations, utilizing speed, surprise and a remarkable ability to motivate his men to achieve what they considered to be impossible.We follow his journey through the fields of France, mountains of Greece and steppes of Russia. In Greece, through flair and innovative leadership, his soldiers overcame every obstacle to defeat determined Australian and New Zealand soldiers defending the narrow mountain passes. Balck personally led his men to victory in battles at Platamon Ridge on the Aegean coast and in the Vale of Tempe, before entering Athens.This is also the story of a cultured and complex man with a great love of antiquity and classical literature, who nevertheless willingly fought for Hitler's Third Reich while remaining strangely detached from the horrors around him. The book is the result of extensive research of primary and secondary sources, including Balck's battle reports and first-hand accounts written by Allied soldiers who opposed him, panzer division war diaries and campaign assessments, and declassified Pentagon documents.

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Book SynopsisNew York Times journalist and bestselling author Joe Drape takes us inside the modern-day process of the making of a saint -- part biography of a wartime adventurer Father Emil Kapaun, part detective story, and part journey of faith.

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Book Synopsis‘The bravest of us all’ – Violette Szabo is probably the most famous female agent of the legendary SOE in the Second World War. Her extraordinary story is told here by her daughter

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Book SynopsisHarald Jähner (Author) Harald Jähner is a cultural journalist and former editor of the Berliner Zeitung. He was also an honorary professor of cultural journalism at the Berlin University of the Arts. His book Aftermath: Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich was shortlisted for the 2021 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction in the UK and won the Leipzig Book Fair Prize for Non-Fiction in his native Germany.Shaun Whiteside (Translator) Shaun Whiteside is an award-winning translator from French, German, Italian and Dutch. His most recent translations from German include Aftermath by Harald Jähner, To Die in Spring by Ralf Rothmann, Swansong 1945 by Walter Kempowski, Berlin Finale by Heinz Rein and The Broken House by Horst Krüger.Trade ReviewExemplary [and] important... This is the kind of book few writers possess the clarity of vision to write * Max Hastings, Sunday Times *A masterpiece * The Spectator *Magnificent... There are great lessons in the nature of humanity to be learnt here -- Rupert Christiansen * The Telegraph *Jähner is masterly in telling the tragic, despicable, comedic and uplifting stories of those who were there as he takes his readers on a fascinating tour through rubble-strewn postwar Germany * Katja Hoyer, The Times *Thought-provoking... Jähner's unflinching account is a reminder that historical truths are rarely simple and always nuanced * Daily Mail *Magisterial, fascinating, humane - a brilliant book of the greatest importance and achievement * Philippe Sands, bestselling author of East West Street and The Ratline *I thought I knew the essential story of Germany's immediate post-war years. This book brilliantly adds to, indeed changes, my understanding. One of the best historians and authors of contemporary Germany, Jähner paints an absorbing, human and surprising picture * John Kampfner, bestselling author of Why the Germans Do it Better *This panoramic journey through Germany in the ruins of the Third Reich is unforgettably thought-provoking [and] intensely moving * The Times (21 best history books 2021) *A reminder that the German experience will always stand apart * Economist *An extraordinary book of breathtaking scholarship. Jähner shines a light on a dark and almost forgotten period of German history to find it pulsating with life * Jack Fairweather, bestselling author of The Volunteer *Extraordinary... One of the most evocative pieces of carefully researched history that I have ever read. It's a remarkable piece of work * Misha Glenny, bestselling author of McMafia and The Balkans *What does total defeat mean? Germany 1945-55. Ten years of poverty, ruins, fear, violence, black markets, manic hard work, inventive sex - and always, always, silence about the murdered millions of the Third Reich. A fascinating read. * Neil MacGregor, author of Germany: Memories of a Nation *Absolutely extraordinary. Every page stops you dead with insight and revelation. * James Hawes, bestselling author of The Shortest History of Germany *Aftermath is that rare thing, a history book that turns what you knew completely on its head. It is testament to Harald Jähner's achievement that Aftermath is a book that I will never forget * Dominic Sandbrook *For those who want to understand the Germans, Aftermath is essential reading. An engrossing study on all counts, Jähner's analysis of people's response to the Nazis' monstrous crimes and how perpetrators and victims merged into a new nation is especially compelling. Anyone with even the slightest interest in history and the human condition should read this book. * Julia Boyd, bestselling author of Travellers in the Third Reich *A fascinating account of a forgotten moment in Europe's history, of utter desperation leading to tentative hope. * Simon Jenkins, bestselling author of A Short History of England *A fiercely compelling book that brings vivid illumination to an era of twilight and brutal ruins. Harald Jähner beautifully explores the hinterland of human nature in all its shades * Sinclair McKay, bestselling author of Dresden: The Fire and the Darkness *[Jähner] does double duty in this fascinating book, elegantly marshaling a plethora of facts while also using his critical skills to wry effect. Even though Aftermath covers historical ground, its narrative is intimate, filled with first-person accounts * Jennifer Szalai, New York Times *Aftermath is a transfixing account and subtle analysis. A scrupulous investigation of the past, it reads, constantly, like a prelude to what is still unfolding. * Geoff Dyer, New Statesman (Books of the Year 2021) *Aftermath captures brilliantly the atmosphere of everyday life in the destroyed cities of divided postwar Germany * Financial Times (Best Books of 2021) *Subtle, perceptive and beautifully written * Wall Street Journal *Many consider the years before 1945 to be the most crucial in understanding Germany and the Germans. Wait until you have read this book. * Norman Ohler, author of Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich *Harald Jähner's deeply researched, panoramic account of how Germany rebuilt and discovered itself from 1945-1955 is an eye-opening, thrilling read * Bernhard Schlink, bestselling author of The Reader *A magnificent overview of the astonishing decade in Germany that followed the defeat of Nazism * Daily Telegraph (Best Summer Reading) *Eye-opening and often moving... a sobering look at how societies rebuild * BBC History Magazine *Highly readable... Counter-intuitive but thoughtful * Peter Fritzsche, New York Times *[A] thoughtful narrative... filling the yawning gap on bookshop shelves between a growing number of modern German history texts and the oversupply of Nazi studies that end in Hitler's bunker * Irish Times *Aftermath takes in the immediate postwar years where Germany was administered by the Allies... Jähner excels * Giles MacDonogh, Financial Times *Fascinating... Books about Word War II continue to spill out by the ton, but there has been less attention paid to how Germans coped with the country's shameful Nazi past after the conflict was over * Irish Independent (Summer Reads) *Rarely has a non-fiction book so skilfully combined vividness, drama and eloquence. * From the Jury's reasoning for the Leipzig Book Fair Prize for Non-Fiction 2019 *Jähner's gripping 500-page X-ray-vision tale of an often overlooked and misperceived phase of German history reveals, like all great history books, as much about the first decade after the war as about today. * The German Times *Clearly written, full of empathy for everyday life, which is far too seldom taken into consideration... You devour it like a novel. * Welt am Sonntag *A popular work of non-fiction in the best sense. * Die Zeit *

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Book SynopsisGraphic, contemporary images show the bitter fighting in harsh terrain and winter conditions.

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE HWA NON-FICTION CROWN A TIMES AND SPECTATOR BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Britain's wartime story has been told many times, but never as cleverly as this.' Dominic Sandbrook In the bleak first half of the Second World War, Britain stood alone against the Axis forces. Isolated and outmanoeuvred, it seemed as though she might fall at any moment. Only an extraordinary effort of courage - by ordinary men and women - held the line. The Second World War is the defining experience of modern British history, a new Iliad for our own times. But, as Alan Allport reveals in this, the first part of a major new two-volume history, the real story was often very different from the myth that followed it. From the subtle moral calculus of appeasement to the febrile dusts of the Western Desert, Allport interrogates every aspect of the conflict - and exposes its echoes in our own age. Challenging orthodoxy and casting fresh light on famous events from Dunkirk to the Blitz, this is the real story of a clash between civilisations that remade the world in its image.Trade ReviewSimultaneously incisive but nuanced, and studded with sharp pen portraits, Britain at Bay offers a scholarly, invigorating and beautifully constructed tour d'horizon of perhaps the four most crucial years in our island story. -- David Kynaston, author of Austerity Britain, 1945-51Britain at Bay might be the single best examination of British politics, society and strategy in these four years that has ever been written ... beautifully written, thoroughly researched and cleverly presented. I put my copy down with deep satisfaction. * Wall Street Journal *Britain's wartime story has been told many times, but never as cleverly as this. Alan Allport begins with JRR Tolkien writing The Lord of the Rings, and moves on to the IRA bombing of Coventry in August 1939. Familiar stories such as Munich, Dunkirk and the Battle of Britain are here, but the social and cultural framing is always unexpected. ... A bracing, surprising, provocative book, and an enormous pleasure to read -- Dominic Sandbrook * The Times *This extraordinary book punctures many of the myths that have become so influential about Britain in the Second World War without robbing the period of its spectacular drama * Professor Richard Vinen, author of The Long ’68 and National Service *Written with style and verve, Britain at Bay will make you think anew not just about the war, but about the Britain and the Britons that fought it. A book for anyone who wants to understand this crucial period in the nation's history. -- Daniel Todman, author of Britain's War: A New World, 1942-1947Original, compelling, timely. This is a history that reminds us of the Britain behind the myth of its Second World War. It's a history that many will want to argue with. And that everyone should read. -- Lucy Noakes, Rab Butler Professor of Modern History at the University of EssexThe beautifully-written Britain at Bay is an impregnable fortress of good sense gallantly resisting the crass sentimentality, exaggeration and naïve hindsight of so many accounts of Britain in the early second world war. With great élan, built on deep reserves of historical knowledge, it puts Chamberlain and Churchill in perspective, the Blitz, the Battle of Britain and Battle of the Atlantic in true proportion, and the progress of the imperial war abroad in panoramic view. Its precise and pointed judgements on events, people, and arguments are a bracing reminder of the power of brilliant history to make us reconsider what we think we know about the most familiar part of the British past. -- David Edgerton, author of Britain’s War Machine and The Rise and Fall of the British NationBrave and bold ... much needed antidote to the "keep calm and carry on" strain of nostalgia ... Allport moves with ease, wit and insight between the high political and diplomatic, the social and economic, the strategic and military, with biographical vignettes and anecdotes, illustrating the lived experience of ordinary people * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book Synopsis

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