Second World War Books

Book SynopsisIn July 1943, Hitler launched Operation Zitadelle, the last German offensive on the Eastern Front. It was an attempt to shorten the German lines by eliminating the Kursk salient and was designed to result in the encirclement of the Red Army. In reality, the German tanks came up against impenetrable Russian defences: minefields, artillery and anti-tank emplacements, spread through lines 250km deep and manned by Russian troops whose actions often verged on the suicidal. The greatest tank battle in history, Operation Zitadelle assured the Nazis’ defeat and was ‘the swan song of the German tank arm’.Involving over 9,000 tanks, 5,000 aircraft, 35,000 guns and mortars, 2.7 million troops and 230,000 casualties, the Battle of Kursk’s scale and barbarity eclipsed all other clashes in Europe. In this book, historian Mark Healy gives a clear, concise account of those dramatic days in 1943.

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Book SynopsisThe bold campaign to liberate Western Europe from Nazi tyranny was the outcome of years of close co-operation and meticulous planning by the Western Allies. Eleven months of vicious fighting followed the Allied landings in Normandy on 6 June 1944, against a determined and well-armed foe controlled by paranoid and brutal political masters.Military author and veteran Roy Conyers Nesbit has assembled a selection of over 300 photographs and illustrations that tell the story of the battle for Europe, from the shores of Normandy to the daring airborne assault on Arnhem, and from the bitter winter fighting in the forests of the Ardennes to the final sweep into the heartlands of Nazi Germany.

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Book SynopsisTerrifying raids, thousands of bombs and countless petrified inhabitants of Britain’s busiest cities. These are the prevailing images of the Blitz and the Home Front in the Second World War. However, for the people who experienced it, it was so much more and affected every aspect of their existence.Surviving the Home Front explores through contemporary newspaper reports and advertisements the effect the Blitz had on issues as varied as fashion, food, transport and more. It explores how facets of humanity showed themselves through individual tales of heroism, eccentricity and humour, but above all Stuart Hylton shows how the irrepressible spirit of the British people overcame a period of harsh austerity combined with the fresh terrors that appeared in their skies almost every night.

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Book SynopsisELYESA BAZNA WAS THE HIGHEST-PAID SPY IN HISTORY.Working for the British ambassador in Ankara in 1943, Bazna photographed top-secret documents and sold them to the Nazis. So started his career as a ‘walk-in’, a freelance spy whose loyalties lay with the highest bidder. His codename was Cicero.But a beautiful woman was to end it all. Cicero was compromised by an American-controlled agent working at the German Embassy, who obtained his codename and discovered that he was working at the British Embassy. He fled and narrowly avoided being captured by the tipped-off British. Finally free, he realised his money was worthless – most of it was counterfeit, produced by the Nazi scheme Operation Bernhard.In Agent Cicero: Hitler’s Most Successful Spy, Mark Simmons weaves together personal accounts by the leading characters and information from top-secret files from MI5, MI6 and the CIA to tell this astonishing story.

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Book Synopsis“A date which will live in infamy.”—US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt Sunday, December 7, 1941, was supposed to be a day of rest for the military personnel at Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor naval base on the island of Oahu. But at 7:55 a.m., Japanese carrier-based planes launched a surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet moored in the harbour. Thousands of lives were lost that day, drawing the United States into World War II and beginning a new phase of the war in East Asia. In Pearl Harbor, our expert author offers a concise photographic guide to this key turning point in World War II. The book is divided into chapters covering the origins and military strength of the naval station; Japanese plans and dispositions; the attack itself; the damage caused; the clean-up operation and aftermath; and the life of the base today. See rare photographs of Japanese airplanes taking off to launch the attack; aerial views of the US naval base before and during the air attack; the destruction wrought; the key figures involved on both sides; and the memorials that have been erected, especially to the sunken battleship USS Arizona. Pearl Harbor provides a photographic exploration of this momentous event and its aftermath in 160 dramatic photos.Table of ContentsIntroduction War between Japan and the United States had been a possibility that each nation had been aware of, and planned for, since the 1920s. Japan had been wary of American territorial and military expansion in the Pacific and Asia since the late 1890s, followed by the annexation of islands, such as Hawaii and the Philippines, which they felt were close to or within their sphere of influence. 1: Naval Station Pearl Harbor Following the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom, the United States Navy established a base on the island in 1899. In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the Pacific Fleet from San Diego to Hawaii. The U.S. Pacific Fleet had been stationed at Pearl Harbor since April 1940. In addition to nearly 100 naval vessels, including eight battleships, there were substantial military and air forces. FEATURE: Admiral Husband Edward Kimmel 2: Japanese Preparations The Japanese intended the attack as a preventive action to keep the United States Pacific Fleet from interfering with its planned military actions in Southeast Asia against overseas territories of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the United States. On November 26, 1941, a Japanese task force (the Striking Force) of six aircraft carriers—Akagi, Kaga, Sōryū, Hiryū, Shōkaku, and Zuikaku—departed Hittokapu Bay on Kasatka (now Iterup) Island in the Kuril Islands, en route to a position northwest of Hawaii, intending to launch its 408 aircraft to attack Pearl Harbor: 360 for the two attack waves and 48 on defensive combat air patrol (CAP), including nine fighters from the first wave. Fleet submarines I-16, I-18, I-20, I-22, and I-24 each embarked a Type A midget submarine for transport to the waters off Oahu. On December 6, they came to within 10 nmi (19 km; 12 mi) of the mouth of Pearl Harbor and launched their midget subs at about 01:00 local time on December 7. FEATURE: Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto 3: The Attack The attack commenced at 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian Time (18:18 GMT). The base was attacked by 353 Imperial Japanese aircraft (including fighters, level and dive bombers, and torpedo bombers) in two waves, launched from six aircraft carriers. Of the eight U.S. Navy battleships present, all were damaged, with four sunk. A total of 188 U.S. aircraft were destroyed; 2,403 Americans were killed and 1,178 others were wounded. FEATURE: Mitsubishi A6M Zero 4: The Damage The Pearl Harbor attack severely crippled US naval and air strength in the Pacific. However, of the eight battleships, all but the Arizona and Oklahoma were eventually repaired and returned to service, and the Japanese failed to destroy the important oil storage facilities on the island. As a result of the dispositions made by Admiral Kimmel, two US aircraft carriers were not in the harbour, however. The USS Enterprise, under Adm. William F. Halsey, was on a mission to reinforce the Wake Island garrison with marine planes and aviators. The USS Lexington was undertaking a similar mission to ferry marine dive-bombers to Midway. 5: Aftermath The success of the attack on Pearl Harbor was primarily due to the Americans’ false estimate of the enemy’s capabilities and intentions. In 1946 a full-scale congressional investigation took place. Prior to the September 11, 2001, attacks, probably no episode in U.S. military history was so thoroughly examined, and on none has a wider divergence of opinion been expressed. 6: Pearl Harbor Today In 2010, Pearl Harbor was combined with Hickam Air Force Base to create Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. The base is home to over 18,000 service members. It serves 24,000 family members each year with schools, hospitals, stores, and recreational opportunities. Today, it is home to the USS Arizona Memorial, the Battleship Missouri, the Pacific Aviation Museum, and other must-see places. Index

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Book Synopsis'A multiple biography with overlapping chronology is a tricky feat and Buruma pulls it off magnificently.' Ben Macintyre, The TimesOn the face of it, the three characters here seem to have little in common - aside from the fact that each committed wartime acts that led some to see them as national heroes, and others as villains. All three were mythmakers, larger-than-life storytellers, for whom the truth was beside the point. Felix Kersten was a plump Finnish pleasure-seeker who became Heinrich Himmler's indispensable personal masseur - Himmler calling him his 'magic Buddha'. Kersten presented himself after the war as a resistance hero who convinced Himmler to save countless people from mass murder. Kawashima Yoshiko, a gender fluid Manchu princess, spied for the Japanese secret police in China, and was mythologized by the Japanese as a heroic combination of Mata Hari and Joan of Arc. Friedrich Weinreb was a Hasidic Jew in Holland who took large amounts of money from fellow Jews in an imaginary scheme to save them from deportation, while in fact betraying some of them to the German secret police. Sentenced after the war as a traitor and a con artist, he is still regarded by supporters as the 'Dutch Dreyfus'. All three figures have been vilified and mythologized, out of a never-ending need, Ian Buruma argues, to see history, and particularly war, and above all World War II, as a neat tale of angels and devils. In telling their often-self-invented stories, The Collaborators offers a fascinating reconstruction of what in fact we can know about these fantasists and what will always remain out of reach. It is also an examination of the power and credibility of history: truth is always a relative concept but perhaps especially so in times of political turmoil, not unlike our own.Trade ReviewA fascinating book, sometimes disturbing, sometimes entertaining, never dull. -- Noel Malcolm * Daily Telegraph *A multiple biography with overlapping chronology is a tricky feat and Buruma pulls it off magnificently, maintaining the distinct dramas, filleting fact from fiction with sympathy and balance, but maintaining the overarching psychological narrative. He never misses a mordant aside or a telling detail... Superb. -- Ben Macintyre * The Times *Fascinating... Buruma's powerful book is also a warning for our own times. -- Rana Mitter * Financial Times *Richly enjoyable, vital and astute -- Richard Davenport-Hines * Literary Review *Fascinating * Observer *Buruma's intriguing narrative reads like a spy thriller. * Sunday Independent *In his subtle, carefully constructed book, Ian Buruma weaves their stories into an unsettling tapestry. * Times Literary Supplement *The Collaborators is at once fascinating and frightening, an apposite tract for our increasingly mendacious, treacherous times. The accounts Ian Buruma gives of the lives and dark doings of three egregious collaborators starkly illustrate our depthless capacity for betrayal and subsequent self-justification; they are also fascinating life studies. It would be shocking to be entertained by such a book, but I was. -- John BanvilleWith impressive skill and meticulous research, Buruma has woven three very different wartime characters into a fascinating tale of alternative realities, riven by mythomania, perfidy and collusion. -- Caroline MooreheadCompulsively readable as always, Buruma has taken a riveting subject - collaboration - and delved deep into it, probing concepts of national identity, self-reinvention, loyalty and treason. -- Simon CallowThese unforgettable true stories from terrible days show ruthless survivors using all the tricks of stage farce - storytelling, double-crossing, cross-dressing - to avoid the firing squads or the gas chambers. The human comedy has never been so bleak - or so human. -- James HawesMythmakers, duplicitous self-aggrandizers and deluders star in these three wartime narratives of both East and West. Ian Buruma weaves their stories together with great skill and panache, all the while challenging "history" and our own time's elision of wish and truth. -- Lisa AppignanesiWe are slowly coming to an understanding that the Second World War is a more twisted tale than our black-and-white stories about heroes made us believe. The evil guys remain evil, but what about the good ones? Time allows us a more nuanced look, and The Collaborators does a formidable job at navigating the muddy waters of an epic battle that was a challenge to each person going through it - a challenge that truly makes for an interesting history. -- Norman OhlerAt a time when manifold forms of authoritarianism are on the rise, this book could not be more welcome and necessary. By masterfully exploring the complicity, guilt and ambivalence pervading three parallel lives in imperial Japan, Nazi Germany and occupied Holland, Buruma conjures up and richly evokes a thick web of history, allowing contemporary readers to understand how easy it is to condone systematic violence and untold suffering in the name of misguided ideals. -- Ariel DorfmanBuruma sifts through his subjects' complex, multinational backgrounds in fluid prose and brings a welcome measure of sympathy to their lives without minimizing the repercussions of their actions. It's a captivating portrait of what happens when survival turns into self-deception. * Publishers Weekly *Meticulously, relentlessly, Buruma dissects these collaborators' contradictory and self-serving accounts and cross-references with other sources to get closer to the truth. A powerful exploration of complicity, ambivalence, and the human capacity for deception and self-rationalization. * Library Journal *Table of Contents1: PARADISE LOST 2: IN ANOTHER COUNTRY 3: MIRACLES 4: A LOW, DISHONEST DECADE 5: CROSSING THE LINE 6: BEAUTIFUL STORIES 7: THE SHOOTING PARTY 8: THE ENDGAME 9: FINALE 10: AFTERMATH

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Book SynopsisA poignant description of one of Europe's most well known war cemeteries. Based on interviews and personal experiences, this work includes images, including photographs by Corporal Eric Gunton of Number 32 Graves Registration Unit, who photographed the cemetery as it took shape. Look out for more Pitkin Guides on the very best of British and French history, heritage and travel.Table of ContentsIntroduction; Bayeux - Liberation; The battlefield graves; The Army chaplains; The medics (The cutting edge); Nursing staff (Quiet heroines); Aerial map (A countryside transformed); Grave registration; Burial and exhumation; Grave concentration; The entrance to the cemetery; Winter months (To absent friends); 1945 - The price of victory ... and solidarity; Conclusion; Simply Me When I'm Dead (poem)poem

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Book SynopsisThe true story of one family's struggle in the chaos of Germany's defeat in 1945'Outstanding' The Times'The most interesting personal document which has come out of Germany since the war' Philip Magnus, Time and TideTowards the end of the Second World War, Lali Horstmann and her husband Freddy, a retired diplomat and art collector, were living at Kerzendorf, an elegant eighteenth-century house with a small park, avenues, statues and a garden, fifteen miles east of Berlin. The house was destroyed one night by allied bombers and the Horstmanns moved into the agent's little house in the park.It was to this small house that the Russian Secret Police came one spring night in1946 and took Freddy away with them into the dark. Two and a half years later Lali learned, almost by chance, that Freddy had died of starvation in a Russian concentration camp only a few miles from their home.Lali Horstmann's account of the last months of the war under the desperate and demoralised Nazis, and the terrifying arrival of the Russians, is both eloquent and heartbreaking.Trade ReviewOutstanding * The Times *The most interesting personal document which has come out of Germany since the war * Time and Tide *

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Book SynopsisThe Tottenham family is falling apart. There is no money to maintain the crumbling house and farm in County Westmeath, so decisions have to be made. Brothers Nick and Tony, with no prospect of a future in rural Ireland, make the long journey to their uncle’s ranch in Australia. As World War Two looms, the entire family signs up to fight: mathematician mother Eleanor calculates flight paths; sister Rose repairs radar masts in Lincolnshire; Nick and Tony, like thousands of others, enlist in Australia; even their ageing father Gerald signs up for duty in the Far East. Little does each foresee what terror, starvation and heartache lay ahead, and what it would take to survive. In a gripping narrative that spans four generations and encompasses the battlefields of Syria and Egypt, the Australian outback, night sorties over Germany, English airfields and the horrors of a Sumatran prison camp, this is a harrowing story of hardship and heroism, based on an Irish family’s experience.Trade Review‘Beautifully written, fast-paced … The ending was particularly poignant and uplifting.’ – Jilly Cooper OBE ‘A story of heroism, it is beautifully told.’ – Sue Leonard, Irish Examiner ‘Preston’s moving tale … gives an affecting insight into the sacrifices and resilience of both men and women involved in the Second World War.’ – Louisa Carroll, The Sunday TimesHer scope is commendable, with the various narrative strains offering diverse perspectives that bring the conflict to life. -- Sarah Gilmartin * The Irish Times *

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Book SynopsisAs her mother slipped into the darkness of old age, Lisa Appignanesi began to realise how little she knew of the reality behind the tales she had heard since childhood. She had shunned her parents' stories of war-time Poland, but now she set out to find the truth. In her quest she flew to Warsaw - imagining and revisiting a past she never knew.This is the moving story of the Jews who survived outside the camps, but it is also the author's own voyage of self-discovery - a family memoir of the rites of passage of emigration, childhood, and growing up an outsider in a closed communityTrade ReviewDistinguished . . . Appignanesi has a sharp eye for the details of everyday life in the Warsaw ghetto . . . Read Losing the Dead and you begin to appreciate what life must have been like for hundreds of thousands of European Jews during the long nightmare of the Third Reich * The Times *This book crosses genre, combining profound story telling and hard history. It is wonderful and heartbreaking in equal measure, and it remains an astonishing work * Edmund de Waal, author of THE HARE WITH AMBER EYES *This book crosses genre, combining profound story telling and hard history. It is wonderful and heartbreaking in equal measure, and it remains an astonishing work -- Edmund de Waal, author of THE HARE WITH AMBER EYES

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Book SynopsisThere is a hidden legacy of war that is rarely talked about: the children of native civilians and enemy soldiers. What is their fate?This book unearths the history of the thousands of forgotten children of World War II, including its prelude and aftermath during the Spanish Civil War and the Allied occupation of Germany. It looks at liaisons between German soldiers and civilian women in the occupied territories, and the Nazi Lebensborn program of racial hygiene. It also considers the children of African-American soldiers and German women. The authors examine what happened when the foreign solders went home and discuss the policies adopted towards these children by the Nazi authorities as well as postwar national governments. Personal testimonies from the children themselves reveal the continued pain and shame of being children of the enemy.Case studies are taken from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Czechoslovakia, Norway, Denmark and Spain.Trade Review'Breaking a long post-war taboo, this book broaches the subject of sexual intimacy between enemy soldiers and female civilians. It focuses especially on the stigma attached not only to the women but also the children born of such liaisons. This is essential reading for anyone interested in the wider impact of the Second World War and occupation on European societies.'Nicholas Stargardt, author of 'Witnesses of War: Children's Lives under the Nazis' and Lecturer in Modern History, Oxford University'A subtle and moving account of the children left behind by the forces of occupation in the Second World War. This collection for the first time gives voice to children who were stigmatized as the forbidden fruit of collaboration and until now have had to live with shame and silence.'Robert Gildea, Professor of Modern French History, University of OxfordTable of ContentsIntroduction * War, Cultural Loyalty and Gender: Danish women's Intimate Fraternisation--Anette Warring, University of Roskilde, Denmark * War Children: Foundlings of Europe?--Eva Simonsen, University of Oslo * Besatzungskinder and Wehrmachtskinder: Germany's War Children--Ebba Drolshagen, Freelance Journalist, Frankfurt. * Black German 'Occupation children': Objects of Study in the Continuity of German Race Anthropology--Yara-Colette Lemke Muniz de Faria, Institute for the History of Medicine, Berlin * Enfants de Boches: The War Children of France--Fabrice Virgili, CNRS, Paris * Life Stories of German-Norwegian war children--Kjersti Ericsson, University of Oslo, and Dag Ellingsen, Editor, Statistics Norway * Challenges for War Children in Denmark--Arne land, Freelance Writer, Frup, Denmark * Ideology and the Psychology of War Children in Franco's Spain--Michael Richards, University of the West of England * German Mother and Czech Father/Czech Mother and German Father - The Alchemy of Nationality and Collective Identity in Their Children--Michal Simunek, Charles University, Prague * Meant to be Deported Lars Borgersrud, University of Oslo * The Norwegian War Children and their Mothers: A summary of their History During the War and the First Postwar Period--Kre Olsen, National Archives of Norway * Stigma and Silence: Dutch Women, German Soldiers and their Children--Monika Diederichs, Nederlands Instituut voor Oorlogsdocumentatie (NIOD), Amsterdam * A Topic for Life: Women and Men Born in a German Lebensborn Home (Dorothee Schmitz-Kster, Freelance Writer, Bremen * Epilogue

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Book SynopsisD-Day, the largest amphibious invasion in history, took place on 6 June 1944. The subsequent battle of Normandy involved over a million men, and helped seal the fate of The Third Reich. This is a graphic account of the planning and execution of Operation Overlord, as well as the campaign which effectively destroyed the German forces in France, opening the way for the Allied advance. Including a wealth of superb photographs and maps, the book also contains 10 facsimile items of rare memorabilia, including diaries, letters and memos. This title includes top-secret hand-drawn map showing the minute-by-minute position on the way in to the drop zone just west of Ste-Mere-Eglise for elements of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division. This is an extract from the pocket diary of Sergeant G.E. Hughes, then a corporal, landed with the 1st Battalion, Hampshire Regiment at Arromanches.Table of ContentsThe planning; The Leaders - Allied; The Leaders - German; German Forces and Defences; Deception and Intelligence; The Resistance and SOE; Pegasus Bridge; British Airborne Assault; US Airborne Assault; Utah Beach; Pointe du Hoc; Omaha Beach; Gold Beach; Juno Beach; Sword Beach; Villers-Bocage; Pluto & Mulberry: Logistical Superiority; Operation Epsom; Bocage Fighting and Capture of Cherbourg; Operation Charmwood; Medics; The Battle for St Lo; Operation Goodwood; Operation Cobra and Breakout; Allied Tactical Air Support; Operations Totalize and Tractable; The Falaise Pocket; The Liberation of Paris.

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Book SynopsisIn June 1944, an elite unit of British paratroopers was sent on a daring and highly risky behind-the-lines mission, which was deemed vital to the success of D-Day. Dropping ahead of the main Allied invasion, 9 PARA were tasked with destroying an impregnable German gun battery. If they failed, thousands of British troops landing on the beaches were expected to die. But their mission was flawed and started to go wrong from the moment they jumped from their aircraft above Normandy. Only twenty per cent of the unit made it to the objective and half of them were killed or wounded during the attack. Undermanned and lacking equipment and ammunition, the survivors then held a critical part of the invasion beachhead. For six bloody days, they defended the Breville Ridge against vastly superior German forces and bore the brunt of Rommel's attempt to turn the left flank of the Allied invasion.The Manner of Men is an epic account of courage beyond the limits of human endurance, where paratroopers prevailed despite intelligence failures and higher command blunders, in what has been described as one of the most remarkable feat of arms of the British Army and the Parachute Regiment during the Second World War.Trade ReviewDeftly captures the agonising way in which everything went wrong * The Spectator *Told in elegant and evocative prose . . . The Manner of Men is one of those rare books - one that actually manages to bring to life the reality of a desperate mission behind enemy lines. This former soldier writes superbly well * Damien Lewis, author of Zero Six Bravo *If you have any interest in military history this is a must - I'll be reading it more than once. A fascinating story - couldn't be any less than five stars * Soldier Magazine *

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Book Synopsis'Superbly written and gripping' Daily ExpressThe thrilling true account of Hitler's first defeat.In the summer of 1940, the Nazi war machine was at its zenith. France, Denmark, Norway and the Low Countries were all under occupation after a series of lightning military campaigns. Only Britain stood in the way of the complete triumph of Nazi tyranny. But for the first time in the war, Hitler did not prevail. The traditional narrative of 1940 holds that Britain was only saved from German conquest by the pluck of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain. The image of Dad's Army recruits training with broomsticks is a classic symbol of the nation's supposed desperation in the face of the threat from Operation Sealion, as the German plan for invasion was code-named. Yet as Leo McKinstry details, the British were far more ruthless and proficient than is usually recognised. The brilliance of the RAF was not an exception but part of a pattern of magnificent organisation. In almost every sphere of action, such as the destruction of the French naval fleet or the capture of German spies, Britain's approach reflected an uncompromising spirit of purpose and resolution. Using a wealth of primary materials from both British and German archives, Leo McKinstry provides a ground-breaking new assessment of the six fateful months in mid-1940, beginning with Winston Churchill's accession to power in May and culminating in Germany's abandonment of Operation Sealion.Trade ReviewIn his immaculately researched and gripping work Leo McKinstry paints a vivid picture . . . [He] strikes a balance through reinforcing what the average reader is likely to be aware of and coming up with revelatory nuggets . . . stirring and passionate * Daily Express *If we had lost the Battle of Britain, all that stood between us and a fascist future was the Home Guard, a Dad's Army of oldsters armed with broomsticks. Leo McKinstry's engrossing, forensic review of the evidence challenges that idea and exposes some myths along the way . . . McKinstry's admirable book sets the record straight * Daily Mail *An enthralling story which confirms, should anyone still doubt it, that this really was our 'Finest Hour' * Mail on Sunday *A pacey, readable history of Britain's resistance to the bogeyman across the Channel * The Spectator *Fans of Leo McKinstry will know what to expect from his superbly written and gripping historical books and the unashamedly patriotic and unputdownable Operation Sealion . . . one of his best yet * Daily Express *[A] fascinating, original study * Daily Mail *Masterly narrative * BBC History Magazine *

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Book SynopsisOver 8 million women stayed at home during the Second World War and their story has never been told. Using brand new research from the Mass-Observation Archive, Jennifer Purcell brings to life - in all its tragedy, pathos, joy and fear - the lives of six ordinary women made extraordinary by the demands of war. In their diaries and notes they record the inner thoughts and everyday activities as they tried to survive come what may. Nella Last, the archetypal housewife struggles between the demands of her husband and her desire to help the war effort. Cambridge-educated, middle-class Natalie Tanner sneaks out to the cinema whenever possible and discusses politics in town, leading a leisured life while others try to scrape by. Saddled with a draughty and unwieldy centuries-old home directly in the path of German bombs, Helen Mitchell constantly tries to escape the war and her domestic life. Opinionated and patriotic Edie Rutherford uses the war to escape the home and go to work. Alice Bridges endures the horrors of the Blitz on her home town of Birmingham and finds a new and exciting social life as she reports the war for Mass-Observation. Housebound for most of the war with debilitating arthritis, working-class Irene Grant struggles to keep her family fed and dreams of a better Britain.Intensely moving and personal, each woman reveals their most secret fears and hopes, as well as the everyday problems of wanting to contribute to the war effort, keeping a house together under difficult circumstances, the travails of rationing, work and volunteering, whilst maintaining their duties as wife and mother. Jennifer Purcell redraws a new, emotional and unexpected history of the Second World War as it was experienced by those left behind, the domestic soldiers.Trade ReviewBook of the week * Daily Mail *The book gives a diverse flavour of experience. * Who Do You Think You Are? *This is an enjoyable and rewarding social history of the war. * BBC History Magazine *Fascinating read. * Sunday Post *

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Book SynopsisOn the morning of April 3, 1941, 'Orlando Mazzotta', a man posing as an Italian diplomat, walked up the steps of the German Foreign Office on the Wilhelmstrasse in Berlin, having arrived from Moscow the previous afternoon. The Under-Secretary of State, Dr Ernst Woermann, immediately received him and listened carefully as he spoke of establishing a government-in-exile and launching a military offensive. The government he had in mind was Indian and the target of his offensive was British India. Although Woermann was taken aback by the nature of these proposals, he should not have been. 'Orlando Mazzotta' was in fact Subhas Chandra Bose, an Indian leftist radical nationalist and former President of the Indian National Congress who had escaped a few months earlier from Calcutta and reached Kabul. From there, the German and Italian legations assisted him in reaching Berlin, via Moscow, under Italian diplomatic cover. Bose is one of India's national icons, practically on a par with Gandhi, a hero of anti-colonial resistance against the British, who established the Indian National Army in order to recruit Indian soldiers to fight the imperial power. His activities in Nazi Germany - particularly taking into account their inevitably highly controversial implications - merit scrupulous, scholarly and detailed study, yet till today almost everything published on the subject has been suffused with hagiography. This book is the first to focus exclusively on Bose's interactions with Nazi Germany during the Second World War. Hayes's narrative makes extensive use of German, Indian and British documents, including memoranda, notes, minutes, reports, telegrams, letters and broadcasts, and he also presents the reader with fresh scholarly sources from the German historical archives. His book takes not only the political dimension into consideration but the intelligence and propaganda angles too, including the recruitment and training of Indian POWs captured in North Africa. Emphasis is also placed on the specific roles of key actors including Hitler, Joachim von Ribbentrop, Gandhi, Nehru, Mussolini, Churchill, Sir Stafford Cripps, Chiang Kai-shek, General Hideki Tojo and, to a lesser extent Dr Goebbels, Heinrich Himmler and Count Galeazzo Ciano. Hayes's objective is to reveal a lesser-known aspect of Nazi foreign policy and to challenge and provide an alternative to Gandhi-centric portrayals of the Indian independence movement. His book, augmented by a fascinating selection of hitherto largely unpublished photographs, will appeal to those interested in the Third Reich, Indian nationalism and anti-colonialism and the Second World War.Trade Review'A thoughtful narrative of the actions and words of Bose during his war years in Germany. The author has set out a valuable description that follows the evidence very closely.' --Professor Michael H. Fisher, Oberlin College 'As the only Indian to lead a military assault against the British empire in the twentieth century, Subhas Chandra Bose is an important figure who interrupts the conventional narrative of India's nonviolent resistance against colonialism. The fact that Bose fought Britain with German and Japanese help during the Second World War, however, has led to his efforts being glossed over, downplayed or dismissed merely as an example of collaboration with fascism. This book's great achievement is to demonstrate that Bose's relations with the Nazis were far more complex than has generally been thought, and in doing so it allows us to see both German diplomacy and Indian nationalism in a new light. Rather than dealing with imperialism as a side issue in the war, Hayes shows us that it was an integral part of this great conflict, so often seen only as a battle between freedom and tyranny.'- * 'A thoughtful narrative of the actions and words of Bose during his war years in Germany. The author has set out a valuable description that follows the evidence very closely.' --Professor Michael H. Fisher, Oberlin College 'As the only Indian to lead a military assault against the British empire in *'Egotistical, autocratic, hubristic, Subhas Chandra Bose was an ambivalent figure but also widely admired; a tragic hero who stood on the wrong side of history. This book is a nuanced elucidation of a complex national leader, one both impressive and infuriating. Hayes effectively evokes the subtleties of Bose's relations with the Congress Party, a Party he once led, and with the masses of his fellow Indians. And above all the moral ambiguities: neither Nazi nor Quisling, he nevertheless made fatal moral compromises with ascendant totalitarian power. - A highly original, erudite and scholarly work based on intensive new research and new sources, this book represents a lucid contribution to our understanding of both India's independence movement and its relationship to the great global conflict of nations wherein it struggled to make its voice heard; and to the massive propaganda fight engaged in with frenzy by all the warring parties of World War Two.' * Nicholas O'Shaughnessy, Professor of Communication, Queen Mary, University of London *'[A] short and fascinating study of Bose in Germany ... The thrust of the argument in the book is to dispute an account of Bose as an Indian Quisling and to insist on his credentials as an anti-imperialist nationalist. ... Written with a great economy of style ... [it throws] the whole story of wartime India into a new perspective to discover how engaged the Nazi leadership became with Bose and India. ... This is Hayes' first book and it is an impressive beginning.' * Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society *

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Book SynopsisBorn in Margilan, Central Asia on the eve of the Russian Revolution of 1917, Ruzi Nazar had one of the most exciting lives of the twentieth century. Charming, intellectually brilliant and passionately committed to the liberation of Central Asia from Russian rule, his life was a series of adventures and narrow escapes. He was successively a Soviet student, a Red Army officer, an officer in the German Turkestan Legion during World War II, a fugitive living in postwar Germany's underworld, and finally an immigrant to the United States who rose high in the CIA. Here he mixed with the powerful and famous, represented the US as a diplomat in Ankara and Bonn, and became an undercover agent in Iran after the hostage crisis of 1979-81. Nazar's foresight was formidable. He predicted that communism would collapse from within, briefing Reagan on the weakness of the Soviet system before the Reagan-Gorbachev talks. A Muslim who rejected Islamism, his warnings to the US government about the dangers of Islamic radicalism fell on deaf ears.This remarkable biography casts unique light on the lives of people caught up in the turmoil of the Soviet Union, World War II, the Cold War, and the struggle of nationalities deprived of their freedom by communism to regain independence.Trade Review'Ruzi Nazar led a truly remarkable life, and in A Dark Path To Freedom, Enver Altayli, one of Turkey's leading specialists on Central Asia and a friend of Nazar for more than half a century, has turned it into a breathtaking book.' * The Scotsman * 'A Dark Path to Freedom is one of the most amazing spy stories of recent times. It follows a fascinating journey from Stalin's Russia to Nazi Germany and onwards through the clandestine Cold War to the Iranian Revolution of 1979. This is essential reading for anyone interested in secret service in the Middle East and Central Asia.' -- Richard Aldrich, Leverhulme Major Research Fellow in Politics & International Relations, University of Warwick 'It is rare for individuals to have had such a varied life and to have played as important a role against a range of intelligence adversaries as did Ruzi Nazar. This is a thrilling story of one man's struggle against Nazism, Soviet communism, and radical Islam.' -- Michael Goodman, Professor in Intelligence and International Affairs, King's College London Department of War Studies 'What an extraordinary life! If one wrote this survival story as fiction it would be hard to believe. A Dark Path to Freedom is especially useful in its first-hand details of often reviled movements, from the Nazis to Turkey's far-right--though for Nazar himself, the decolonisation of Central Asia was paramount.' -- Hugh Poulton, author of Top-Hat, the Grey Wolf and the Crescent: Turkish Nationalism and the Turkish Republic 'In A Dark Path to Freedom, Enver Altayli captures the sweep of history through the remarkable life of Ruzi Nazar, taking the reader on a lively journey from Central Asia on the eve of World War II, to the horror of that conflict, the intrigue of the ensuing Cold War and the fall of the Soviet Union.' -- Benjamin Fortna, Director of the School of Middle Eastern and North African Studies, University of Arizona

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Book SynopsisThis book gives a focused, military biography of Heinz Guderian, perhaps the most highly respected tank commander of World War II. Guderian was a typical product of the Prussian military elite; the son of a general in the army, there was little doubt that he would follow in his father's footsteps. Some consider Guderian to be the founding father of blitzkrieg warfare, and he certainly brought the whole concept to public attention and prominence, chiefly through the publication of his book Achtung Panzer in 1937. He commanded the XIX (Motorized) Army Corps in the 1939 Polish campaign, and Panzergruppe Guderian during Operation Barbarossa. In March 1943 he became chief inspector of the Panzer forces, but even the great tank commander could achieve little more than to delay the inevitable defeat of Germany.Trade ReviewA fascinating and useful reference source -- Military Modelcraft International

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Book Synopsis...It is remarkable that one man should have been involved in so much action in so few years...I commend his biography to the reader: ...by any standard he was a hero, and he tells his life's story with modesty and humour. Extract from the Foreword by Admiral Lord Boyce Captain Mervyn Wingfield was one of the last of his generation of submariners who made their reputation in the Second World War. Pre-war he had served on the China station and lived the riotous life of a young officer; in the war he commanded three submarines, Umpire, Sturgeon and Taurus, survived a collision in the North Sea, spent a winter in the Arctic, penetrated the Norwegian fjords submerged through a minefield, surfaced off St Nazaire in view of German guns to act as a navigation marker for the raiding force, fought cavalry in the northern Aegean, and later, off Penang, was the first British submariner to sink a Japanese submarine - and barely survived the subsequent, vicious counterattack after Taurus was severely damaged and became stuck in the mud at the bottom. Any one of these incidents would have merited a place for Wingfield in the history of naval warfare and the pantheon of submarine heroes. The Royal Navy's most senior submariner, Admiral Lord Boyce, notes in his Foreword that the diesel-powered submarines in which both men served were not so different, but the risks which Wingfield took in wartime were greater and Lord Boyce admired the way in which Wingfield led his crew and was loved by them. Many men were burned-out by the war, but in the postwar years Wingfield enjoyed a successful peacetime career in the Royal Navy where, finally, his personal qualities and his diplomacy were put to the test as a naval attache. In retirement Wingfield was well-known for hosting lively beef and Stilton lunches at the London Boat Show! He was also one of the last of the generations of Anglo-Irish families who served the Crown and provided officers and men for the Army and the Navy, and his story additionally gives some insights into his early days, especially with regard to being a young officer in the Royal Navy in the 1930s.Trade Review'Even in an era when submarine captains were often a bit mad or eccentric, the amazing Mervyn Wingfield stood out a mile! ...Second World War submarine Captain Wingfield played a vital part in our victory.' The Weekly News -------------------- 'Mervyn Wingfield was a submariner who commanded three boats, UMPIRE, STURGEON and TAURUS during World War 2; he did not serve with the RAN but his stories of the RN from 1925 onwards describe an organisation that will be familiar to generations of Australians who were trained by or who served with the RN. He spent time on the China Station during the 1930s in the submarine ODIN, sister ship of the OTWAY and OXLEY operated by the RAN between 1927 and 1931, and writes of a way of life that is now almost forgotten with quiet humour that brings his adventures to life in the reader's imagination. - This is a delightful book that gives insight into historical events through the eyes of the author which are carefully edited to ensure their accuracy. I thoroughly recommend it.' Headmark -------------------- '...As one of the more successful and decorated wartime submarine commanders his book is well worth a read'. In Depth -------------------- 'Wingfield's memoirs ... make fascinating reading. His wartime exploits ... are related with quiet understatement, leavened with amusing anecdotes and reminiscences of well-known characters... The book is highly recommended ... and is a thoroughly good read'. Forces Postal History Society Journal -------------------- '...Wingfield's entertaining - in places rather thrilling - and always fascinating autobiography. ...Wingfield's fantastic story... We are plunged into a lost age of fading empire and the life or death struggle against the Nazis and Japan's militaristic fanatics. ...We discover amazing incidents and people in the light he shines on the fine grain of history. They inspire us and provide a few chuckles. Among the highlights is Wingfield's submarine (HMS Taurus) duelling with Bulgarian cavalry and his courageous intrusion (in command of HMS Sturgeon) through a minefield in a Norwegian fjord to sink an enemy cargo vessel'. Warships International Fleet Review -------------------- '...Mervyn Wingfield's autobiography sets a high standard... This is an absorbing story of a distinguished naval officer and outstanding submarine captain's war record'. RNSA Journal '...there is more than enough colour to make all the memories very interesting. ... He writes in an engaging and direct way, self-deprecating but always with the confidence of one who is far more able and conscientious than he would claim. ...this is an easy book to read and enjoy. ...this is a delight - honest, informative, humourous, totally recognisable and, by this reviewer, highly recommended'. The Naval Review -------------------- 'A very good read'. WPS Newsletter -------------------- `…via this book I much enjoyed `meeting him’. Army Rumour Service

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Book SynopsisThe autobiography of Tony Bentley-Buckle, a child of the Empire who was left to grow up in the care of maiden aunts. Having joined the Royal Navy before the war, he found himself on the Northern Patrol during the blockade of Germany and as a teenager in command of captured ships. When he brought a ship through the minefields into Scapa Flow, the young Midshipman Bentley-Buckle was interviewed by the famously ferocious Admirax Max Horton who recommended him for advanced promotion. In a fit of derring-do he volunteered for 'special service' without knowing what this meant and began training for one of Britain's secret navies. As a beach commando he was one of the first ashore at the Allied landings on Sicily and one of the first Allied officers to cross the Straits of Messina. On Reggio beach he became one of the few people to order General Montgomery to stop talking and not to block the exit of the beach! He was soon seconded even deeper into British secret services when he was lent to MI9, the escape and evasion agency, helping to rescue hundreds of British prisoners of war in Italy. He was captured in a fierce hand-to-hand battle with the Germans, escaped, recaptured and was badly-beaten, eventually reaching Prisoner-of-War Camp 'Marlag O'. There he helped organise one the cheekiest escapes from a prisoner-of-war camp by making the eyes for a dummy known as 'Albert RN'. Post-war he learned to fly, sailed a small boat to East Africa and founded a shipping empire and an airline. This is a remarkable and exciting true story including escape and evasion behind enemy lines in Italy, Yugoslavia and Germany; life in a prisoner-of-war camp and adventure in the Indian Ocean.Trade Review'This is a remarkable story recounted by a remarkable man in his own words. Tony Bentley-Buckle (1921-2010) was a real-life James Bond - and more - whose long life was full of adventure and entrepreneurism on a grand scale. ... After reading his biography, you are in no doubt that he packed more into his war and his life than contemporary heros. ...compelling reading... He took part in one of the war's most audacious escapes, his part being to make the moving eyes of the dummy known as Albert RN (hence the book's title) - a story which was turned into a movie after the war. ... This enthralling book ends with some very useful explanatory notes and a comprehensive index.' Nautilus' Telegraph -------------------- '...this is a story of 'daring do' well told with charm and modesty. ... The book is well produced and illustrated with family photographs and drawings, having good footnotes and a useful index. Highly recommended'. South West Soundings -------------------- '...a very interesting book... The author's five war years of the R.N. were rich and enthralling... ...for the author "civvy street" was almost as action-packed as his naval service; not as brief, hectic and dangerous as those five years, but a most absorbing series of varied and fruitful global travel and enterprises'. QSO -------------------- 'This is a well-written and fascinating story and the descriptions of amphibious and asymmetric warfare have topical value in Australia as the RAN begins to establish its own 'beachhead commando' equivalents. Buckle was clearly a resourceful and determined man in both his naval and civilian careers; his story is an interesting one and it is enhanced by a number of John Worsley's wartime sketches. It is a good read and I thoroughly recommend it'. Journal of the Australian Naval Institute -------------------- 'Tony Bentley-Buckle led a particularly adventurous life... ...a well-written and fascinating story and the descriptions of amphibious and asymmetric warfare have tropical value in Australia... ...his story is an interesting one and it is enhanced by a number of John Worsley's wartime sketches. It is a good read and I thoroughly recommend it'. Headmark -------------------- 'A fascinating life, well lived'. Work Boat World '...it's very readable...' Naval Review -------------------- `…is very modestly (and humorously) told, almost concealing the fact he was a man of extraordinary resource and capability … This is a fascinating adventure story, told in a very dryly amusing and laid-back manner, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Army Rumour Service

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Book SynopsisDavid Balme will be forever known as the 20-year-old hero who, on 9 May 1941, boarded a German U-boat in mid-Atlantic, and captured one of the greatest secrets of the Second World War. This capture - or 'pinch' as it was known within secret, inner circles - changed the course of the Battle of the Atlantic and shortened the war itself. Balme was part of a team comprising officers and men of the Third Escort Group ably led by Commander Joe Baker Cresswell, also commander of HMS Bulldog, who shared the danger with other unsung heroes such as Lieutenant Commander George Dodds. Balme was tasked with taking the Bulldog's whaler and a small party to board the U-boat U-110 which had been disabled. However he was alone when initially boarding, entering and searching the U-boat. This put him in a vulnerable position while descending into the vessel - he risked being shot by any German submariner that may have remained or blown-up by a booby-trap device. Furthermore he could have drowned when Bulldog disappeared into the mists of the Atlantic to hunt another U-boat, as U-110 could have plummeted into the depths at any time.However, where others tried and failed or tragically lost their lives, Balme and his boarding party succeeded magnificently in capturing an entire Enigma machine, the essential rotors and months' worth of associated cipher material. This was an absolute gift to the code breakers at Bletchley Park who were able to read all the secret German naval signal traffic for some months and it enabled them to read virtually the whole of the traffic for the rest of the war and with little delay. The capture was kept so secret that few even on the British side knew about it - not even the Americans were told what had been achieved after they entered the war. Balme returned from the war and never spoke about the secret capture which he believed would be hidden forever. The story of the capture and ransack of U-110 is told for the first time in the words and letters of David Balme, his captain Joe Baker Cresswell, George Dodds and others who took part in the most important submarine capture of the whole war.Besides the capture of U-110, Balme enjoyed an astonishing variety of wartime experience including the Spanish Civil War, the Palestine Patrol, the sinking of HMS Courageous, the Battle of Convoy KJF3, the fight with the heavy cruiser Hipper, the Battle of Cape Spartivento, the Battle of Convoy OB318, being sunk during Operation Harpoon, the air war in the Western Desert, the high level diplomacy of Prime Minister Winston Churchill and pioneering work as a Fighter Direction Officer in the war against Japan.Trade Review'Captain Peter Hore has put together a most remarkable story which is well worth a read'. In Depth -------------------- `...in 21 compelling chapters - describes the build-up to the capture of Enigma, the event itself and its aftermath... It's a tale of daring and courage.' Nautilus Telegraph --------------------`A fantastic and enthralling book, I thoroughly recommend it.' Royal Naval Sailing Association--------------------`Balme... made the most astonishing `secret capture' of WW2... his spectacularly ripping yarn in full... is a classic naval biography... hugely enjoyable and entertaining, delivering the last word on various aspects of the U-110 episode.' Warships International Fleet Review-------------------- `This beautifully presented book, however, is more than a classic naval history - it completes a hitherto untold life story... a thrilling and enjoyable read... This book has been eagerly awaited. Peter Hore has succeeded in securing David Balme's role in history.' Ray Mayes -------------------- `The whole account is given a well-written makeover... a thundering good read.' The Naval Review -------------------- `…an exemplar of personal courage and leadership of the highest order. …provides a wealth of materials on technicalities, strategy, events and biographical detail … illuminated by direct quotation from Balme’s midshipman’s journal, letters home, and recollections … This is a fascinating tale … We are truly fortunate that our island, faced with great evil, produced such men’. Army Rumour Service

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Book SynopsisForeword by Admiral Lord West Whilst living in Liverpool, Britain's second most heavily bombed city during World War II, the author experienced at first-hand the terrible effects of the war on the civilian population and when studying at Cambridge he witnessed the American heavy bombers and their fighter escorts flying to attack targets in Germany and occupied Europe. Serving as an engineering officer in the Royal Navy in HMS Sheffield provided first-hand realisation of the importance of engineering and emphasised that victories achieved in the Battle of Britain and other campaigns were made possible by newly-developed machines, equipment or techniques. These innovations gave the Allied forces a significant advantage and helped ensure eventual victory. Engineering Hitler's Downfall features numerous inventions such as the decoding machines developed at Bletchley Park; the hand-held mine detectors that cleared pathways through enemy minefields, firstly at the Battle of el Alamein but also in most subsequent actions; the newly-located factories and tanks that enabled the Russians to repulse the German invasion; the escort carriers and long range aircraft that enabled U-boats to be attacked in the mid-Atlantic; the 4000 plus Bailey bridges that allowed narrow ravines and rivers as wide as the Rhine to be crossed; the Mulberry harbours through which the D-Day bridgehead was reinforced and supplied and the pipelines under the ocean that supplied fuel for invading troops. These and many other examples illustrate what was achieved under such immense pressure. The book includes timelines to set it all in context with respect to the course of the war.Trade Review`…Gwilym Robert’s takes an insightful look at hese milestones and the individuals behind them that played such a pivotal role in successof the war effort. …takes a walk through the technical development of the Second World Warthat will both enthrall and fascinate the reader into mysteries of the engineering mind’. Civil Engineering Surveyor -------------------- `...is lavishly illustrated with photographs, maps and diagram. Each chapter covers a single campaign, such as `Radar, Battle in the Air' and `Atlantic Agonies' so that by the end we have, in effect, a potted history of the war from the British perspective'. Warship World -------------------- `It's a fascinating read that includes time-lines of key events... A lasting tribute to the remarkable ingenuity and invention of these amazing scientists'. Sea Breezes -------------------- `I have, to be honest, become a little fed up with WW2 books and Hitler in general. That was until this wee gem of a book arrived. I rate this book very highly for bringing to us the science of war engineering in such a clear and enjoyable way, every time you pick it up you will learn something new... Definitely a keeper and will go into my library under "read here for fantastic facts"... ...a great read'. Army Rumour ServiceTable of ContentsGod, Churchill, and the Engineers; A Battle of Wits; Land Battles Lead to Dunkirk Evacuation; Radar, Battles in the Air, and the Blitz; Women at War; Atlantic Agonies; The Worst Journey in the World; The End of the Beginning; The Beginning of the End; Southeast Asia and the Bellicose Pacific; The 3 Rs of the Post-war World

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Book SynopsisForeword by Admiral Lord West of Spithead Few people, even in the Navy, are even aware of this dreadful incident [the loss of submarine HMS Truculent in the Thames] and certainly not the details of human error that led to this huge loss of life. The account is gripping, and explains the strange title of the book. ... John Johnson-Allen has put Fred Henley's personal accounts in the context of world-changing events, and in particular provides a wonderful snapshot of the Royal Navy of that era. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This compelling story is the result of many hours spent recording the memories of Fred Henley. His life at sea is at the centre of his being and his own words are at the heart of the book. At the age of 14 Fred worked on a Thames sailing barge, then after his training at HMS Ganges, he joined his first ship which took him from the icy Arctic Ocean to the heat of West Africa where the Bismarck and her support ships were hunted. His experiences included visiting Archangel, sailing on Arctic convoys, capturing German supply ships, the failed attack on Oran, landings in Piraeus, Salonika and the French Riviera and operating with special forces in the Greek Islands. There is inevitably some humour when Fred recounts his encounters with girls. The book then explores the tragic loss of his last submarine, HMS Truculent. In the cold January waters of the Thames Estuary, within sight of Southend, over 60 men were lost in a major disaster, just five years after the end of the war. The voices of the survivors are heard telling how they stood in complete blackness in a sunken submarine, waiting for the water to come in so that they could escape to the surface, only for all but a few to drift away and die in the darkness. The story concludes with happier times with Fred visiting ports in the Mediterranean during peacetime as a married man.Trade Review`Sometime humorous and often poignant, this is an amazing story of a life served in the Royal Navy. Highly recommended'. Sea Breezes -------------------- `...a moving account of the tragic loss of HMS Truculent. ...the book chronicles Fred's incident-filled Service life, providing a fascinating snapshot of the Royal Navy of that era. A touching and atmospheric read'. Julian Stockwin------------------‘…is an absorbing read’. Scuttlebutt Magazine

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Book SynopsisIn the early hours of 26th June 1942, six airmen from 102 Squadron return from Bremen in their Halifax, Q for Queenie, having taken part in the third Thousand Bomber Raid. These airmen formed a truly international crew, each one having an interesting back story that had led to their being together, including Len Starbuck, the Wireless Operator and Air Gunner on his 26th operation who is close to the end of his tour. As operations continue, events on the squadron are recounted such as the inevitable toll of losses. German defences develop from uncoordinated concentrations around major towns and cities into a coherent barrier known as the Kammhuber Line. More new crewmen arrive on the squadron as the year progresses and with the arrival of winter, the ageing Whitley is phased out, replaced by the Halifax. As the squadron became familiar with the Halifax, they exchanged six of their new aircraft for six from 35 Squadron who were about to mount an attack on the Tirpitz in a fjord near Drontheim. These aircraft were equipped with the revolutionary new navigational aid known as GEE, which was of no use to crews flying to Norway, but suddenly gave 102 Squadron an accurate blind-bombing capability they had not previously enjoyed. On 25 May 1942, American air gunner Jack Fernie arrived on the squadron. Five days later he was on his first operation, caught up in the demand for maximum effort to support the first of Arthur Harris' Thousand Bomber Raids to Cologne who believed that Bomber Command could win the war from the air. Two days later, 102 Squadron again provided maximum effort for another massed attack on Essen, followed three weeks later by the third and final Thousand Bomber Raid to Bremen. Beginning the journey home at the tail end of the bomber stream, a night fighter was guided to an intercept position by a ground-based radar station that resulted in a fight to the death. This is an incisive look at the RAF's bombing campaign during 1941-42 through the prism of a multinational crew which faced mounting risks from an increasingly organised and integrated German air defence capability.Trade Review'...provides in depth information about the technicalities and performance of these warplanes, but the execution of flying operations is always told as seen through the eyes of its crewmembers. ... Not only the German air defence developments are described but, quite exceptional, also the crews of opposing night fighters are identified... ...is entertaining an easy to read for both technically and people-oriented readers'. Aviation Book Reviews; '...As sometimes occurs when a writer begins researching a book... the subject expanded into something greater, more involved and more interesting... presents a vivid day-to-day record of what it was like for the men who risked their lives night after night over enemy territory during the early phase of Britain's bomber offensive'. Aviation History; '...this highly detailed record of 102 Squadron... is dense in operational technical detail overlaid with the personal stories of 102 Squadron members and the tragedy of war and losses'. Australian Naval Institute

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Book SynopsisThis book is the first authoritative volume in English on Yasukuni, the controversial Shinto shrine in the heart of Tokyo, dedicated to the Japanese war dead. Twelve convicted and two suspected Class A war criminals are enshrined at Yasukuni, while the shrine's museum narrates an account of Japan's actions in the Second World War that is best described as revisionist. Visits to the shrine by cabinet members often set off protests at home and abroad, especially in China, Korea and Taiwan, and Yasukuni remains a source of considerable mistrust between the Chinese and Japanese governments. Despite the controversy, the former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi made annual visits from 2001-6. The distinctive feature of this volume is that it sets out neither to commend Yasukuni nor to condemn it; it seeks, rather, to present authoritative yet divergent views, thereby allowing the contributors to render more complex an issue which, in the media at least, has long been portrayed in starkly simplistic terms. It accommodates chapters by leading pro-Yasukuni and anti-Yasukuni Japanese intellectuals; it carries multiple Chinese perspectives; and there are also contributions from Western commmentators who offer their own insights on the shrine and its place in post war Japanese diplomacy, ideology and history.Trade Review'By bringing together a wide range of perspectives and casting Yasukuni in multiple historical, ideological, political and religious frameworks that cut across Japanese, Chinese and international perspectives, this volume contributes much that is fresh and provocative.' * Mark Selden, Japan Focus *'The controversial Yasukuni Shrine has become a barometer of the inclinations of the Japanese political elite but we have lacked a dispassionate examination of its history and political significance. John Breen has brought his formidable energies as a researcher and his expertise in the history of Japanese religion to bear on a subject of continuing political significance, and this splendid book ought to dispel much of the myth-making and mistaken suppositions that surround this subject.' * Professor Peter Kornicki, University of Cambridge *'One of the key Sino-Japanese points of friction is the relatively obscure Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. In this impressive English language work John Breen brings together eight scholars who represent a diverse array of perspectives spanning the entire spectrum of thought on the Shinto shrine. The conflicting Chinese, Japanese and foreign opinions found in this volume, illuminate the radically differing standpoints and national narratives surrounding the shrine. They also demonstrate the daunting challenge the two countries face in their efforts to resolve this highly emotive and contentious issue.' * Japan Society *Table of ContentsContentsPrefaceIntroductionYasukuni -- A GenealogyJohn Breen1 The Yasukuni Shrine Problem in Sino-Japanese Relations: Facing a StalemateCaroline Rose2A Religious Perspective on the Yasukuni Shrine ControversyKevin Doak3Unlocking the Secrets of Yasukuni: a Chinese PerspectiveWang Zhixin,4Plumbing the Depths: the Yasukuni Controversy in ChinaSeki Hei5The Showa Emperor and the Yasukuni ShrineTakahashi Tetsuya6And Why Shouldn't the Prime Minister Worship at Yasukuni?Nitta Hitoshi7Yasukuni and the Loss of Historical MemoryJohn Breen8Pledge Fulfilled: the Japanese Media and Prime Minister Koizumi's Yasukuni Worship, 2001-6,Phillip SeatonIndex

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Book SynopsisDavid Welch is Head of the School of History, University of Kent at Canterbury.Table of ContentsThe history and organization of the Nazi cinema; Goebbels the propagandist; comradeship, heroism and the party; blood and soil (blut und boden); the principle of leadership (fuhrerprinzip); war and the military image; the image of the enemy; conclusion; appendix.

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Book SynopsisBetween 1942 and 1945, tens of thousands of young American servicemen arrived in Britain. This book is an examination of the way their presence affected them and the local people during the Second World War. It is a social history and studies the various relationships forged between the British public and their American guests.

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Book SynopsisThe dramatic story of Valerie and David Denison, two English schoolchildren evacuated to South Africa during the Second World War.

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Book SynopsisAs the third and concluding volume of the series, this work examines the persecution of the Gypsy people in Hungary, Norway, Slovakia and Yugoslavia during World War II, together with Switzerland's policy towards refugees. It also looks at the intertwined fates of the Jews and the Gypsies. Included in the coverage is an overview of the events following 1945—reparations and the postwar trials. Various methodologies associated with research and writings about the Holocaust are also discussed.

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Book SynopsisLancaster pilot Victor Woods aircraft arrived too early over Gelsenkirchen when the target was shrouded in darkness and the Main Force miles behind. His bomber was suddenly struck with terrifying force by flak and turned upside-down. An engine was on fire, the unconscious mid-upper gunner, slumped over his turret, was being sprayed with petrol and their bombload had been struck by shrapnel. Could Vic get his crew back to base safely? Find out in Mel Rolfes expertly researched and narrated book, which records nineteen similarly exceptional stories as night after night young men went off on sorties, knowing the unpalatable truth that they might not see another dawn.Trade Review"'Human drama is the strength of these gripping yarns, offering vivid and compelling pen pictures.' Eastern Daily Press 'Carefully researched, well-written, this is an impeccable text with good wartime photos.' Aviation News 'Well written accounts of the trials of aircrew. You will enjoy this one.' Everyone's War 'Dramatically presented...the narrative flows without a pause. Of interest to the veteran and also the present-day reader who will find the tales at times incredible.' Intercom, Journal of Bomber Command Association"

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Book SynopsisChurchills Few will forever be remembered by history as men who thwarted the seemingly invincible German war machine, when all seemed lost. They countered the full force of the Luftwaffe in the daylight battles during the summer of 1940, and in the night skies of the winter and spring of 1940/41. They were at the time, and still are, perceived as knights of the air, as our heroes. Now, five distinguished RAF airmen, four pilots and one radar operator/navigator, who fought that air battle during the Battle of Britain and the Blitz, have recounted their experiences in detail to author Steve Darlow. Their stories have never before been published, and they talk engagingly of their service life, combats, losses, injuries, friendships and fears flying Spitfires, Hurricanes, Blenheims, Beaufighters and Havocs. One pilot tells of the time he fell victim to the enemy My Spitfire stopped being a flying machine, it became a lump of metal. I was going down with it and I couldnt get out. I broke the seat by standing on it. The pressure throwing me into the bottom was terrific A Beaufighter radar operator remembers being involved in shooting down a German aircraft He took a vertical dive, struck the ground and exploded with a shower of incendiaries. I felt like a child with a new toy. I had at last proved myself but for some reason I suddenly felt a little sad. But Five of the Few is not just about the experiences of these men during 1940/41. They would also distinguish themselves in subsequent air campaigns night defence of the UK, offensive operations over the continent and support to D-Day and beyond. In between the aerial combats and ground attack operations, promotions, decorations and command responsibilities would come their way. But not all would make it through safely to the end of the war. One would end up behind barbed wire. Collectively Five of the Few is a war story of youth maturing, through aspiration and idealism, courage and bravado, fear and heroism, memory and reflection. It is a reminder of why so much was owed, and still is, by so many to so few.Trade Review'This story of courage and bravado, fear and heroism reminds us why so much was owed, and still is, by so many to so few.' Best of British magazine 'Makes for gripping reading.' York Evening Press 'Inspirational stories in an age of exaggeration and inflated egos ... a valuable historical testimony.' Aviation News

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Book SynopsisThe Versailles Settlement does not enjoy a good international reputation: despite its lofty aim to settle the world's affairs at a stroke, it is widely considered to have set the world on the path to a second major conflict within a generation. Woodrow Wilson's controversial principle of self-determination amplified political complexities, and the war and its settlement bear significant responsibility for national borders and related conflicts in the Middle East. Furthermore, other objectives of the peacemakers, such as global disarmament and minority protection, are yet to be realised. This book, revised and updated with new material to mark the centenary of the First World War, sets the consequences - for good or ill - of the Paris Peace Treaties into their longer term context and argues that the responsibility for Europe's continuing interwar instability cannot be wholly attributed to the peacemakers of 1919-23.Trade Review'..shrewd, incisive and learned, a masterpiece of analytical narrative by a notable authority on the international relations of the period.' - Jonathan Sumption, The Spectator

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