City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945

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.HMS Rodney: The Famous Ships of the Royal Navy Series (Warships of the Royal Navy)
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Iain Ballantyne

March 12, 2008
I was surprised to recently come across this book in Waterstones (more expensive than on Amazon!) and bought this book on a whim. My late father was a young stoker on HMS Rodney - joining in 1943 - after Bismark - but in time for D-Day and the Russian convoys. He left the ship following Victory in Europe and was in Vancouver ready to join the Pacific fleet when the war ended.

This is a wonderful history - accessible for non-specialists like myself. Following a brief introduction to the Admiral himself and the first ships that subsequently bore his name, the book focuses on the battleship laid down in the 1920s and finally broken up in 1948.

The strange shape of the Rodney and her sister ship Nelson resulted from ... Read More:
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.The Germans in Normandy
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Richard Hargreaves

September 21, 2006
As a professional battlefield Guide I am always searching for information on the German `enemy' as too often history (as ever) is told by the victors. This is a very good addition to the view from the other side and gives a comprehensive insight into tactical and operational considerations in Normandy (strategic being necessarily a matter for Berlin).
The main focus is on the situation in 1944 and as well as including many invaluable personal accounts of individual soldiers, gives us the command problems of the senior officers. The fallacy that the Atlantic Wall could be adequatly defended by second rate garrison troops when a key component of the defence plan was to deny the landings on the beaches, is clearly shown in the frustrations of the local ... Read More:
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.Why the Allies Won
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: R.J. Overy

September 07, 2006
Firstly, this is a far from comprehensive view of the war, as some reviewers have pointed out. Then again, with a conflict as big and sprawling (and as heavily reasearched and written about) as WW2, we can hardly be surprised by this. What the author does do is bring together some very interesting analysis to parts of the war often overlooked, and comes to some quite interesting conclusions.

The analysis that bears the most fruit is that of the economies of WW2, and the contrast between the Axis and Allied powers in how they understood what Total War meant. For the Axis powers, they didn't get it. Germany is a good example - lauded for the technical sophistication of its blitzkrieg forces, it failed decisively to understand that quantity mattered ... Read More:
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.Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain, 1942: Reproduced from the Original Typescript, War Department, Washington, DC (Instructions for Servicemen)
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Bodleian Library

September 01, 2004
I bought this as a stocking filler for my son when he was 12. He thought it was very amusing, because of the language, but it also prompted discussion over how things were then, and how they have changed. Provides a more lively insight into the effect of war in England, such as beer being weaker than in peacetime, and the price of whiskey going up to $[...] a bottle!

At his request, I have now ordered other books in the series: the American Guide to Australia and the British Serviceman in France, along with the Home Guard Manual.
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.Before Endeavours Fade
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Rose E.B. Coombs

2006-05
If there is one reference book that any serious military historian, battlefield guide or family history researcher with an interest in the battlefields of the Great War should buy, then this is it! I bought my first copy of this excellent volume over ten years ago and it has been a constant "companion" on my battlefield tours and at my side during many hours of research too.

This splendid volume includes over thirty different battlefield tour/routes based on the popular Michelin Maps. Every significant British, American and French battlefield, memorial and war cemetery is covered in detail and the whole volume is packed to the hilt with an amazing amount of photographs (including aerial views) which certainly add a whole new perspective to touring.
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.Churchill, Hitler and the Unnecessary War: How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Patrick J. Buchanan

May 13, 2008
When I read this book I realized I had been brought up on half-truths by people peddling the myth that fighting WWII was the best thing Britain ever did.

Buchanan's argument is that our we were led to war by a small number of warmongers (including Churchill), some strategic and tactical diplomatic blunders, and a failure to see how bad were the consequences of the path we were choosing.

Before you say, "That's preposterous, it's an insult to the pride of our nation and our war heroes", try to give it a go with an open mind. Most of us non-historians know little about the war except what our parents told us, popular opinion, and perhaps an official history book approved for use in schools but we think we know enough to conclude that a "revisionist ... Read More:
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.The SAS Tracking & Navigation Handbook
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Neil Wilson

May 01, 2002
This is the book every outdoor/soldier should have!

Every page is full of usefull and easy-to-understand information and how to use a compass and almost every navigation method used.

Perfect for the first-time user and for the experienced outdoor and soldier
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.Parachute Infantry: An American Paratrooper's Memoir of D-Day and the Fall of the Third Reich (Dell War Series) (Dell War Series)
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: David Kenyon Webster

February 26, 2008
While I agree with many of the other reviewers here that this is a good first hand account of a young soldier's experience of WW2. I cannot, however, agree with their sentiments that this book changes the portrayal of Webster in the Ambrose book and subsequent mini series or portrays him as a soldier of any distinction.

The writing here is that of a young man who wanted to be a writer and so viewed events through that prism. He appears to be very descriptive, honest and have very detailed recollections based on his letters and journals.

However in describing himself so honestly he reveals a flawed protagonist; he describes his wound (when shot) in terms of causing minimal damage but providing maximum escape from combat, he lets a fellow soldier who cant swim go on a water-bourne ... Read More:
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.Survival in Auschwitz
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Primo Levi

February 19, 2000
A great work, but 'Survival in Auschwitz' is just the American name for 'If This Is A Man', which is published in Britain together with 'The Truce' in a single volume. Amazon has it, and it's better value as well as a better title.
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.Schindler's List
City Travel Guides > Books > World War II 1939-1945
by: Thomas Keneally

February 17, 1994
Best holocaust book I have read to date. Very well written and informative. Book does differ from the film with obvious detail that you would expect. Read the Pianist after this but did not come close to this one.

Buy it!! Read it!! Remember!!



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