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1708 reviews
Wilde Sau Nightfighters by Martin Streetly
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
In the immediate aftermath of RAF Bomber Command's firebombing of Hamburg in July 1943, and the RAF's deployment of Window (i.e. thin strips of paper with aluminum foil covering one side), which jammed the German radar system, thus making it almost impossible for Luftwaffe night fighters to track and destroy RAF bombers, the decision was made by the Luftwaffe high command to increase and further develop the use of single-seat fighter planes to intercept RAF bombers by night. Thus arose the Wilde Sau concept, which "envisaged the use of free-ranging day fighters (and to a lesser extent night fighters) to counter Bomber Command."
This book goes on to provide the reader with a concise history of how and why Wilde Sau night fighting tactics were developed and implemented, the fighter units that carried out these tactics, the successes and failures from Wilde Sau, as well as accounts from some of the pilots who flew Wilde Sau missions between 1943 and 1945.
For any reader wanting to have a basic understanding of the various aspects of the Wilde Sau approach to night fighting, look no further. There are also in this book a variety of illustrations and photos that lend greater clarity to what was a novel approach to taking on RAF Bomber Command in the skies over Germany.
This book goes on to provide the reader with a concise history of how and why Wilde Sau night fighting tactics were developed and implemented, the fighter units that carried out these tactics, the successes and failures from Wilde Sau, as well as accounts from some of the pilots who flew Wilde Sau missions between 1943 and 1945.
For any reader wanting to have a basic understanding of the various aspects of the Wilde Sau approach to night fighting, look no further. There are also in this book a variety of illustrations and photos that lend greater clarity to what was a novel approach to taking on RAF Bomber Command in the skies over Germany.
Defiant: Forgotten Heroes of the Battle of Britain by Robert Verkaik
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
DEFIANT: The Untold Story of the Battle of Britain goes a long way towards redressing the long established reputation of the Boulton Paul Defiant 2-seater fighter plane as an aircraft that, when tested in battle against the Luftwaffe, failed to live up to its promise as a "bomber destroyer."
The inspiration for the Defiant came from the Bristol Brisfit 2-seater fighter/reconnaissance plane, which built a reputation during its deployment in World War I as an exceptional aircraft. Indeed, the Brisfit could tangle with the best of the German fighters over the Western Front and came to be highly regarded by the British as "a fighter with a stinger in its tail."
The book explores the interwar development of the Defiant, its supporters and detractors within the leadership of RAF Fighter Command, the ongoing manufacturing problems at Boulton Paul Aircraft that delayed the production of Defiants, the Defiant's combat history with 264 and 141 Squadrons, and the factors that led to the Defiant's withdrawal from daytime combat in August 1940 when the Battle of Britain was at its height. (The Defiant would go on to be used as a night fighter until well into 1941.)
Through reading this book, I gained a greater appreciation for the strengths the Defiant did have and the crews who flew them in combat. I was deeply impressed by 264 Squadron's commander, Squadron Leader Philip A. Hunter. He embodied the best qualities of leadership, was inspirational to the men under his command, always led from the front, and was an innovative and brilliant tactician. Indeed, under Hunter's leadership, 264 Squadron set the record for the highest number of enemy aircraft destroyed in aerial combat when it was credited with shooting down 38 German planes in one day of combat over Dunkirk on May 29, 1940.
DEFIANT is an absolutely first-rate aviation book containing 2 sets of photos featuring the Defiant, its crews, and some of the civilian and military leadership responsible for its development and deployment by RAF Fighter Command.
The inspiration for the Defiant came from the Bristol Brisfit 2-seater fighter/reconnaissance plane, which built a reputation during its deployment in World War I as an exceptional aircraft. Indeed, the Brisfit could tangle with the best of the German fighters over the Western Front and came to be highly regarded by the British as "a fighter with a stinger in its tail."
The book explores the interwar development of the Defiant, its supporters and detractors within the leadership of RAF Fighter Command, the ongoing manufacturing problems at Boulton Paul Aircraft that delayed the production of Defiants, the Defiant's combat history with 264 and 141 Squadrons, and the factors that led to the Defiant's withdrawal from daytime combat in August 1940 when the Battle of Britain was at its height. (The Defiant would go on to be used as a night fighter until well into 1941.)
Through reading this book, I gained a greater appreciation for the strengths the Defiant did have and the crews who flew them in combat. I was deeply impressed by 264 Squadron's commander, Squadron Leader Philip A. Hunter. He embodied the best qualities of leadership, was inspirational to the men under his command, always led from the front, and was an innovative and brilliant tactician. Indeed, under Hunter's leadership, 264 Squadron set the record for the highest number of enemy aircraft destroyed in aerial combat when it was credited with shooting down 38 German planes in one day of combat over Dunkirk on May 29, 1940.
DEFIANT is an absolutely first-rate aviation book containing 2 sets of photos featuring the Defiant, its crews, and some of the civilian and military leadership responsible for its development and deployment by RAF Fighter Command.
CHILD YANK OVER THE RAINBOW - 1918 by Warren J. Brown
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Originally published in 1975, CHILD YANK OVER THE RAINBOW DIVISION - 1918 is a compilation of World War I eyewitness accounts from a U.S. fighter pilot (Lt. Joseph E. Boudwin - nicknamed 'Child Yank' by his British squadron mates during his frontline service with No. 84 Squadron because of his youthful appearance) and 3 veterans of the U.S. 42nd 'Rainbow' Division and their experiences with the Division stemming from its arrival in France late in 1917 to its deployment on the Western Front from July 1918 to the Armistice in November of that year.
Boudwin was one of those American combat aviators who received his initial flight training in the U.S., followed up by advanced flight training in the UK with the Royal Flying Corps (later the Royal Air Force [RAF] after the RAF came into being on April 1, 1918 as a result of the amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service). Being an aviation enthusiast, I especially enjoyed reading about Boudwin's experiences both in the UK and later in France with, first, No. 84 Squadron, flying S.E.5A fighters, and later, under U.S. command, with the 25th Aero Squadron, which arrived at the Front too late to see much action.
The 3 accounts from the 42nd Division give the reader a tangible feel of the raw intensity, brutality, and sometimes uneasy quietness and monotony that often characterized frontline combat during the summer and fall of 1918, when the U.S. Army became a major factor playing a key role in the eventual defeat of Germany. This book is a keeper, one to be read again and again at leisure.
Boudwin was one of those American combat aviators who received his initial flight training in the U.S., followed up by advanced flight training in the UK with the Royal Flying Corps (later the Royal Air Force [RAF] after the RAF came into being on April 1, 1918 as a result of the amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service). Being an aviation enthusiast, I especially enjoyed reading about Boudwin's experiences both in the UK and later in France with, first, No. 84 Squadron, flying S.E.5A fighters, and later, under U.S. command, with the 25th Aero Squadron, which arrived at the Front too late to see much action.
The 3 accounts from the 42nd Division give the reader a tangible feel of the raw intensity, brutality, and sometimes uneasy quietness and monotony that often characterized frontline combat during the summer and fall of 1918, when the U.S. Army became a major factor playing a key role in the eventual defeat of Germany. This book is a keeper, one to be read again and again at leisure.
The White Rhino Hotel by Bartle Bull
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Peopled with a rich array of characters, the novel takes place in British East Africa (Kenya) in the immediate aftermath of World War I, when the British government has promoted a great land rush for veterans, their families, and anyone in Britain keen for making better lives for themselves in Africa.
The White Rhino Hotel (owned by a British aristocrat) serves as the focal point for many of these expatriates upon their arrival in Africa. It's steeped in drama and intrigue, with the African landscape and the flora and fauna thereof brought vividly to life in its pages, acting in effect as an additional character which lends a deeper richness to the novel. I so enjoyed the reading experience.
The White Rhino Hotel (owned by a British aristocrat) serves as the focal point for many of these expatriates upon their arrival in Africa. It's steeped in drama and intrigue, with the African landscape and the flora and fauna thereof brought vividly to life in its pages, acting in effect as an additional character which lends a deeper richness to the novel. I so enjoyed the reading experience.
KIM PHILBY: The Spy I Married by Eleanor Philby
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Kim Philby: The Spy I Married is Eleanor Philby's recounting of the years she was married to Kim Philby, one of Britain's most notorious spies who had loyally served Moscow for 30 years, all while presenting to his friends, colleagues, and Eleanor herself the veneer of an urbane, witty, compassionate, and suave Englishman (who had risen to the highest ranks of Britain's MI6, which is analogous to the CIA).
This book makes for sobering reading and shows the costs deception can exact within a loving relationship. Philby comes across as a person with a certain sensitivity and disingenuousness in his personality. But his fealty to the Soviet Union, to which he pledged himself while a student at Cambridge during the early 1930s, proved to be total and absolute, overriding all other personal attachments in his life. I felt sorry for Eleanor because she had fully invested herself in her marriage to Philby (even to the point of going to Moscow to be with Philby after his January 1963 defection from Beirut, Lebanon -- where the couple had made a life together for 4 years) and ended up being cruelly deceived by her husband. In case you're wondering: the marriage did not last.
This book makes for sobering reading and shows the costs deception can exact within a loving relationship. Philby comes across as a person with a certain sensitivity and disingenuousness in his personality. But his fealty to the Soviet Union, to which he pledged himself while a student at Cambridge during the early 1930s, proved to be total and absolute, overriding all other personal attachments in his life. I felt sorry for Eleanor because she had fully invested herself in her marriage to Philby (even to the point of going to Moscow to be with Philby after his January 1963 defection from Beirut, Lebanon -- where the couple had made a life together for 4 years) and ended up being cruelly deceived by her husband. In case you're wondering: the marriage did not last.
Summer Crossing by Truman Capote
emotional
medium-paced
3.0
Summer Crossing is a previously unpublished work of Truman Capote that was likely left undone around 1950. It was discovered by chance, vetted and read by a number of reputable writers at the request of the Truman Capote Literary Trust, and published in 2005, 21 years after Capote's death.
The story is set in New York shortly after the end of World War II and is centered around a young woman, Grady McNeil, who hails from a very affluent family in Manhattan. The oldest of 2 children, Grady is a carefree socialite in her late teens. Along with one of her oldest friends, Peter Bell, she sees her parents off on a ship to Europe, where they'll be spending the summer. This was a time when the affluent classes would regularly vacate New York for the summer, rather than endure the humidity there.
A few months before, Grady had made the acquaintance of Clyde Manzer, a World War II U.S. Army veteran home from Europe who was parking cars at a lot where she liked to park her convertible from time to time. Clyde is from a working class Jewish family in Brooklyn, which is worlds apart from the type of people with which Grady normally associates.
In reading Summer Crossing, I couldn't help but feel that Grady took up with Clyde just to see what would happen. I didn't get any sense of there being a romance between the two, just an opportunity both are taking advantage of just to see what happens.
I admit Capote's prose from the beginning took some getting used to. It was the first time that I had read anything from him since a short story in high school about 45 years ago. But the more I read Summer Crossing, the more I became settled into its rhythm. This is a story that could be adapted for the screen or TV and made into a short drama.
At 126 pages, this is a book that can be read in one sitting. Capote fans: Eat your heart out.
The story is set in New York shortly after the end of World War II and is centered around a young woman, Grady McNeil, who hails from a very affluent family in Manhattan. The oldest of 2 children, Grady is a carefree socialite in her late teens. Along with one of her oldest friends, Peter Bell, she sees her parents off on a ship to Europe, where they'll be spending the summer. This was a time when the affluent classes would regularly vacate New York for the summer, rather than endure the humidity there.
A few months before, Grady had made the acquaintance of Clyde Manzer, a World War II U.S. Army veteran home from Europe who was parking cars at a lot where she liked to park her convertible from time to time. Clyde is from a working class Jewish family in Brooklyn, which is worlds apart from the type of people with which Grady normally associates.
In reading Summer Crossing, I couldn't help but feel that Grady took up with Clyde just to see what would happen. I didn't get any sense of there being a romance between the two, just an opportunity both are taking advantage of just to see what happens.
I admit Capote's prose from the beginning took some getting used to. It was the first time that I had read anything from him since a short story in high school about 45 years ago. But the more I read Summer Crossing, the more I became settled into its rhythm. This is a story that could be adapted for the screen or TV and made into a short drama.
At 126 pages, this is a book that can be read in one sitting. Capote fans: Eat your heart out.
Gaudi Afternoon by Barbara Wilson
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Gaudi Afternoon I found to be a delightful and richly entertaining novel to read. Cassandra Reilly is a globe trotting, Irish American lesbian translator and amateur detective working in London on a translation of a best-selling novel by a woman Venezuelan writer when she receives a call from Frankie, an American actress. Frankie was put in the know about Cassandra from Cassandra's friend Lucy in San Francisco, where Lucy keeps watch over Cassandra's place and correspondence there whenever Cassandra is on her far flung travels. Frankie requests a meeting with Cassandra in London upon arriving there the next day to better explain herself and why she needs Cassandra's help.
Though showing a reluctance to take on Frankie's case, Cassandra is intrigued. Besides, the initial show of money Frankie offers for her services is tempting enough. So, the two meet in London and Frankie explains that she needs to track down her estranged husband Ben, whom she suspects is in Barcelona. Where exactly in Barcelona, she's clueless about. Nor does Frankie speak Spanish or Catalan. But Cassandra, given her fluency in Spanish and previous contact with Barcelona (where she has 2 close friends, Ana, who is a conceptual architect, and Carmen, a lesbian hairdresser with a very strong personality and spirit) makes use of the phone numbers Frankie provided her with, and is able to gather a fairly good idea of where Ben is in Barcelona.
Once both Frankie and Cassandra are in Barcelona, the story becomes more convoluted, colorful and intriguing with lots of unexpected twists and turns. Some of the main characters prove to be different from what they at first show themselves to be. That's all I say about that.
Notwithstanding the roller coaster nature of the novel, Gaudi Afternoon was very well written and fun to read.
Though showing a reluctance to take on Frankie's case, Cassandra is intrigued. Besides, the initial show of money Frankie offers for her services is tempting enough. So, the two meet in London and Frankie explains that she needs to track down her estranged husband Ben, whom she suspects is in Barcelona. Where exactly in Barcelona, she's clueless about. Nor does Frankie speak Spanish or Catalan. But Cassandra, given her fluency in Spanish and previous contact with Barcelona (where she has 2 close friends, Ana, who is a conceptual architect, and Carmen, a lesbian hairdresser with a very strong personality and spirit) makes use of the phone numbers Frankie provided her with, and is able to gather a fairly good idea of where Ben is in Barcelona.
Once both Frankie and Cassandra are in Barcelona, the story becomes more convoluted, colorful and intriguing with lots of unexpected twists and turns. Some of the main characters prove to be different from what they at first show themselves to be. That's all I say about that.
Notwithstanding the roller coaster nature of the novel, Gaudi Afternoon was very well written and fun to read.
MERS EL-KÉBIR 1940: Operation Catapult by Ryan K. Noppen
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
This book tells the story of a series of bold naval and air strikes by Britain against the French fleet in its anchorage of Mers el-Kébir in French North Africa early in July 1940. These strikes were carried out on the insistence of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who, in the immediate aftermath of the French defeat in June 1940 and France's subsequent signing of an armistice with Nazi Germany, was fearful that that French Navy's warships would be ceded over to Germany, thus augmenting the Kriegmarine's surface fleet.
Mers el-Kébir 1940 fleshes out in considerable detail the intrigue and actions of both the British and French high ranking political and naval officers as both nations, once allies, yet not quite official enemies, warily dealt with each other amid Churchill's fear of some of France's most powerful warships falling into German hands. The book, like all Osprey publications of its kind, has lots of photos and 3d illustrations showing the offensive actions staged by the Royal Navy against the French fleet near Oran (French North Africa)
Mers el-Kébir 1940 fleshes out in considerable detail the intrigue and actions of both the British and French high ranking political and naval officers as both nations, once allies, yet not quite official enemies, warily dealt with each other amid Churchill's fear of some of France's most powerful warships falling into German hands. The book, like all Osprey publications of its kind, has lots of photos and 3d illustrations showing the offensive actions staged by the Royal Navy against the French fleet near Oran (French North Africa)
Bf 109E: Battle of Britain by Andy Saunders
informative
medium-paced
5.0
Bf 109E: Battle of Britain highlights the record of the Messerschmitt Bf 109E, Germany's premiere fighter plane, during the Battle of Britain. This was the first great air battle in warfare that, from July 10th to October 31st, 1940, proved a decisive Allied victory, frustrating Hitler's bid to win air supremacy over the Royal Air Force (RAF) and invade and occupy Great Britain.
Like other books of its type published by Osprey, this one is replete with photos of the Bf 109E, accounts of the pilots who flew it during the Battle of Britain, and 3D diagrams detailing a number of combat operations during the Battle of Britain in which the Bf 109E that played a prominent role. Any aviation enthusiast will love this book.
Like other books of its type published by Osprey, this one is replete with photos of the Bf 109E, accounts of the pilots who flew it during the Battle of Britain, and 3D diagrams detailing a number of combat operations during the Battle of Britain in which the Bf 109E that played a prominent role. Any aviation enthusiast will love this book.
Desperately Seeking Something: A Memoir About Movies, Mothers, and Material Girls by Susan Seidelman
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
It was sometime last summer that I became fully aware of Susan Seidelman, award winning movie and TV director. I was listening to the Jessica Shaw Show on Sirius XM radio in which Seidelman was being interviewed about her life and career. I was enthralled and made a check with my local library to see if Seidelman's new memoir was available (it was). And so I borrowed the book. But with other books I then had on a higher rung of my TBR List, it was only within the last 2 weeks that I took up the book and read it.
I became absorbed in Seidelman's life, from her formative years in the suburbs of Philadelphia during the 1960s and early 1970s as the oldest of 3 children; her life in New York after her college graduation and subsequent admission into and graduation from NYU Film School; her early attempts to be taken seriously by a movie industry during the late 1970s and early 1980s in which women directors were rarer than hens' teeth; her first successes with the movies "Smithereens" (1982) and "Suddenly Seeking Susan" (1985) which helped solidify the flourishing of 'Madonna-mania" which went on to sweep the world (I was then in college and remember that very well - then I thought Madonna would peak after the success of her song Material Girl and disappear - how wrong I was! Kudos to Madonna); and the sheer richness and diversity of Susan Seidelman's life and career from the 1980s to today. She certainly knows how to tell an engrossing and captivating story.
For anyone who enjoys reading well-told, engaging memoirs, look no further. DESPERATELY SEEKING SOMETHING is the ticket.
I became absorbed in Seidelman's life, from her formative years in the suburbs of Philadelphia during the 1960s and early 1970s as the oldest of 3 children; her life in New York after her college graduation and subsequent admission into and graduation from NYU Film School; her early attempts to be taken seriously by a movie industry during the late 1970s and early 1980s in which women directors were rarer than hens' teeth; her first successes with the movies "Smithereens" (1982) and "Suddenly Seeking Susan" (1985) which helped solidify the flourishing of 'Madonna-mania" which went on to sweep the world (I was then in college and remember that very well - then I thought Madonna would peak after the success of her song Material Girl and disappear - how wrong I was! Kudos to Madonna); and the sheer richness and diversity of Susan Seidelman's life and career from the 1980s to today. She certainly knows how to tell an engrossing and captivating story.
For anyone who enjoys reading well-told, engaging memoirs, look no further. DESPERATELY SEEKING SOMETHING is the ticket.