Elinor Florence's Blog, page 16

Peenemünde: My Visit to the V-Weapons Museum

I had two personal reasons for visiting the museum at Peenemünde in Germany, where the Nazis invented their deadly V-weapons during the war: the first because of my novel Bird's Eye View, and the second involving my husband's family.

V-Weapons: The First Cruise Missiles in History

Today we call them cruise missiles, but back then they were called V-weapons. In German, the V stood for Revenge. Hitler promised that his revenge weapons would punish the Allies for their bombing of German cities. And these jet-propelled missiles almost won the war.

Bird's Eye View: Read An Excerpt

Today I’m departing from my usual format to bring you a chapter of my newly-released book, Bird’s Eye View. Briefly, it's the story of a farm girl from Saskatchewan who joins the air force, goes overseas in World War Two, and becomes an aerial photo interpreter. I hope you enjoy this excerpt and I look forward to your comments.

The Woman With the X-Ray Eyes

When I began to research my novel Bird’s Eye View, about an aerial photo interpreter in World War Two, the woman who made the most impact – not only on my book, but on the world we live in today – was the brilliant, beautiful Constance Babington Smith.

RAF Medmenham: Where the Magic Happened

Danesfield House is now a luxury hotel, but during the war this beautiful building played a vital role in the Allied victory. Requisitioned by the Royal Air Force, it was renamed RAF Medmenham and served as the headquarters for aerial photographic interpretation. It has personal meaning for me, too.

Tales from an RAF Wing Commander

Russ Jeffs was a Royal Air Force veteran who rose to the rank of Wing Commander before leaving England in the 1950s and moving to Canada. He was an inveterate story-teller with an endless stream of anecdotes about his days in the air force.

The Battle for Berlin: An Eyewitness Account

My mother-in-law Gerda Drews was a teenager living in Berlin during World War Two. In this interview, she describes her family's tragic experiences after her city fell to the Soviet Army in May 1945.

The Bombing of Berlin: An Eyewitness Account

My mother-in-law Gerda Drews was a teenager living in Berlin during World War Two. In this interview, she describes her family’s terrifying experiences during the almost-nightly Allied bombing raids.

Saving Fuel for the War Effort

What if you weren’t allowed to buy gas or tires for your car -- or even a new car? That was the case for thousands of Canadians who saved every drop of fuel for the war effort. Even riding alone in a vehicle was considered almost criminal.

The Night Witches

The Russians were the only women in the world who engaged in combat during World War Two. These daring young women, some of them just teenagers, flew lightweight aircraft that dodged and darted and dropped bombs on the enemy under cover of darkness. So feared were they that the Germans called them The Night Witches.