Just finished Cornelius Ryans 'The Longest Day'. A very good read though not quite on the same level as 'A Bridge Too Far' but I did recognize a lot of the scenes that are in the movie when reading them in the book. Now its either onto 'The Last Battle' or yet-to-be-determined book!
I recently re-read The Last Battle I found it quite enjoyable. He will forever be unmatched in prose.
Every year, Wilson College in Chambersburg has a used book sale to help provide access to legal services for low-income people in the community. This year it is May 18, 19 and 20. They have thousands of used books. The paperbacks are fifty cents and the average price of a hard cover is about $3.00. It was packed with people today and I headed directly for the table marked “military.” I picked these up for a total of $7.00. The book by Ian W. Toll received terrific reviews from what I have read and I was happy to find it because I was considering buying it new from the book store. It was $4.00.
Just in case the above image should disappear after a period of time, which has happened in the past, even with postimage.org, the four are: Six Frigates by Ian W. Toll, Miracle at Midway by Gordon W. Prange, The Two-Ocean War by Samuel Eliot Morison and The Battle of Leyte Gulf by Edwin P. Hoyt.
Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in WWII by Arthur Herman. I've been asked to lead a book discussion on it at the library next month.
Hi Clem! Glad to see you posting again. Hope your discussion is successful. Be sure to let us know how it goes.
Wages of Destruction would provide an interesting counter point in that discussion. Not a fast read though I bogged down about half way through but the pre war part is perhaps the most important.
I'm now reading Stay the Rising Sun: The True Story of USS Lexington, Her Valiant Crew, and Changing the Course of WWII by Phil Keith.
Anybody who reads Prange's books that include material from Fuchida may want to consider the information Allan Zimm provides in Attack on Pearl Harbor: Strategy, Combat, Myths, Deceptions
The Tanks of TOG. Andrew Hills. I think it may well be excellent, but as it's rather flimsily printed-on-demand & is a bit of a brick, I've stopped until one of those plastic covers arrives to toughen the thing up a bit. Large & slightly flawed. Not unlike its subject.
He wasn't that bad, actually. Reasonable eye for delegation in deeper technical fields by WW2. Certainly many other far more peculiar influences were allowed to stroll in and throw spanners about based largely on who they knew over what. Always thought the TOG project was inspired - sitting all those old buggers and their potentially powerful influences in a self-contained corner, distracting them from excessive interference in the real business. The book may disabuse me of that, but I doubt it. Am however very intrigued by how Ricardo viewed the whole business. Certainly no duffer...
I'm trying to decide which Flying Tigers book I should buy. There's a new one by Sam Kleiner and a 2016 book by Daniel Ford. Any recommendations?
Now halfway through The Ship that Held the Line: The USS Hornet and the First Year of the Pacific War by Lisle A. Rose.
Recently completed Biggest Brother, The Life of Major Dick Winters, the Man Who Led the Band of Bothers, by Larry Alexander. Another good writing on the history of the Screaming Eagles, Easy Company. The concept of creating the biography was spun from his employer. Alexander mailed his first contact to Winters using his home address for the return address. Winters called the newsroom days later opening the convo, questioning where he lived in Ephrata Pennsylvania. Winters had lived on the same street as Alexander. They had common acquaintances. Briefly, having completed his tour of duty in January 1946, Winters received his callback in the onset of the Korean War. Determined to stay out of the conflict, he made an unannounced visit to the Pentagon in search of the officer in charge of personnel. Winters served under General McAuliffe during the Battle of the Bulge. Presenting his case as having served his obligations, McAuliffe asked Winters if the graduating officers from West Point could serve as Battalion Commanders. In the absence of experience, Winters' answer of no, came with the realization of why he was needed. In the historical research for the book Band of Bothers, Stephen Ambrose, Winters, veterans and significant others, returned to the sites and old battlefields. Upon their approach to Foy, Ambrose asked Mr. Winters to provide details on how the conflict ensued. Winters reflected on the location of suppressing fire, pointing out the positions of two .30 caliber machine guns with a third locating where Mrs. Ambrose was standing. Moira tilled the soil recovering spent .30 caliber casings. The trip included a visit to a nemesis, retired Colonel Fredrick von der Heydte, who led the 6th Fallschirmjager Regiment. As Winters unfolded his map across a coffee table, the Colonel recognized it immediately. Details on events flowed and circulated in the room through the translator, the Colonel’s daughter. Currently reading The Liberator, One World War II Soldier’s 500-Day Odyssey from the Beaches of Sicily to the Gates of Dachau, by Alex Kershaw.