What Are You Reading?

From charity shop .
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown

 

Still reading American Caesar. There are occasonal points made by the author that gives the illusion of objectivity, but so far it looks like he soft peddles the manuscript. Still hoping for some ripping to go on, but not much for now. We are in the summer of 1942, and the build-up in Australia is going on.

 

Yeah, but I want some official objecive ripping. I know, it's asking a lot but a man's gotta have a dream.

 

Currently reading Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War by William Manchester. I really love his writing style - vivid and lyrical, even when the material is downright disturbing. I'm enjoying it a lot. It's different than Eugene Sledge's, and I'm not going to say I like one better than the other.

 

It's different because Manchester was not present during the many actions he describes. He only participated in one campaign - Okinawa...The rest is just wordy prose juxtaposing his experiences on Okinawa with the many battles of the Pacific to give the impression that he participated in all of the actions described.

Sledge, on the other hand, actually experienced all that he wrote about, and had no need for Manchester's self-aggrandizement.

Anywho, my two cents on the Manchester's book.

Back to rereading Richard B. Franks' Guadalcanal.

 

Wait. That doesn't sound right. He was on Guadacanal.

ETA - Oh, it looks like he was there *after* the fighting was done.

Thanks for this. I will now look at it with a more critical eye.

 

The Economics of World War II: six great power in international comparison, edited by Mark Harrison; it is categories itself as studies in macroeconomic history. ISBN 0 521 78503 0 paperback

As described in its own summary in the following paraphrase, "[the] book provides a new quantitative view of the wartime economic experiences of six great power: the UK, the USA, Germany, Italy, Japan and the USSR. What contribution did economics make to war preparedness and to winning or losing the war ? What was the effect of wartime experiences on postwar fortunes, and did those who won the war lose the peace ? ... [Through] reviewing [each country's] economic war potential, military-economic policies and performance, war expenditures, and development, while the introductory chapter presents a comparative overview. The result of an international collaborative project, the volume aims to provide a text of statistical reference for students and researchers interested in international and comparative economic history, the history of World War II, the history of economic policy, and comparative economic systems. It embodies the latest in economic analysis and historical research."

I am trying to use some of its data and info to improve alternative scenarios for Italy, Japan and minor nations.

 

Started reading the Battle for Moscow yesterday. It's a book featuring Zhukov's, Rokossovsky's, Sokolovsky's, Vasilevsky's, Konev's and many other generals views on the Battle of Moscow.

 

Great Battles by Christer Jorgensen.

 

I'm currently into War int the Pacific: People and Places by Jerome T. Hagen.

 

Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel

 

the Laurent Binet 'retelling' of Heydrich's rise to power and assassination " HHhH " - not sure what to make of it. Its a book about writing a book rather than a straight-forward bio. I guess the forthcoming film adaptation will leave this out - or feature flashbacks to the war as the main protagonist sits in his study or whatever writing his book...I'd like to know what others who've read it made of it ...

 

Laurent Binet´s book on Heydrich. That man is such an enigma although a cold-blooded killer.

 

I just started on Captives Courageous, South African Prisoners of War.