'Aussie Rick'’s Comments (group member since Jun 12, 2009)

'Aussie Rick'’s comments from the THE WORLD WAR TWO GROUP group.

Nicely done Mike! It sounds like an excellent book. I have a HB edition on order - a Christmas present for myself :)

Marc wrote: "Found this one today on Amazon for $0.99:

[book:Blood, Dust & Snow: Diaries of a Panzer C..."

Can't argue with that price eh!

One of my favourite songs, thanks for that link Mike!

"Fire and Steel" - A very touching story about General Alexander M. Patch:

"The following month, Patch in his headquarters at Luneville was told of the death on 22 October 1944, of the CO of Company 'C' in the 315th Infantry Regiment. Captain Alexander McCarrell 'Mac' Patch III, his only son, was serving with the 79th Infantry Division when he was killed in action. De Lattre (whose own son, Bernard, was serving with him) was not alone in noting Patch's grief, recalling the 'sensitive man, who spoke tenderly of his wife, and dearly loved the son who fell in the Vosges'. Patch, distraught like O'Daniel, buried his son, who had graduated from West Point only in May 1942, in the American military cemetery adjacent to his army's main field hospital at Epinal. Perturbed at being unable to comfort Julia, his wife, over their loss, he was also aware of his wider responsibilities.

As he pointed out in a letter to her, they were 'far from unique' in their situation. Seventh Army staff observed their commander 'was never the same man after the loss of Mac'. Yet Patch soldiered on, providing a worthy example of devotion to duty in a higher cause. In February 1945 he would pen Julia a further heartfelt letter. 'In my quiet moments alone, I too get a great sense of depression ... Am getting so very, very many letters from parents of boys who have been killed, wounded, or missing from this Army. Nothing is more devastating than that - There is so little I can say'."

Most Underrated General of World War II: Alexander Patch
by Keith E. Bonn:
https://www.marshallfoundation.org/wp...

Another good book for this month's theme read Jonny!

Two good books there Nathan and Marc, I will be keen to hear how you both go with your nominated books.

"Fire and Steel" - An interesting story about George Patton:

"Fluent in French, a family friend described him as 'the most literate man I have ever known and the most well-read', despite suffering from severe dyslexia and only learning to read aged eleven. Characteristically, Patton lampooned his own inability to spell, one advising a nephew, 'any idiot can spell a word the same way time after time. But it calls for imagination and is much more distinguished to be able to spell it several different ways, as I do'. It is worth observing that Patton graduated from West Point forty-sixth out of 103 and were it not for his dyslexia, would undoubtedly have been at or near the top of his class. Despite the affliction, Patton found time for Homer, Caesar, Napoleon and Shakespeare; memorised huge chunks of the Bible, knew the Book of Common Prayer backwards, and had read the Koran."

Fire and Steel: The End of World War Two in the West by Peter Caddick-Adams

Sounds like a very interesting book, thanks for that information, Thomas. I hope your book does well.

Sounds good to me, thanks for the update, Marc.

That's a good idea reading "Embracing Defeat" after finishing "Black Snow". I hope you find the book interesting.

KOMET wrote: "Half American: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad by Matthew F. Delmont

[bookcover:Half American: The Epic Story of Afric..."

Sounds like the perfect book for you Komet. I hope you enjoy it! Keep us all posted.

Randy wrote: "It Never Snows in September: The German View of Market-Garden and the Battle of Arnhem, September 1944The Longest DayA Bridge Too Far"

An excellent book!

It Never Snows in September: The German View of Market-Garden and the Battle of Arnhem, September 1944 by Robert Kershaw

That's an excellent point Mike!

I have set up the December theme page in case anyone wants an early start. The theme is a member's choice or a general WW2 social/cultural book:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

The December theme read is a member's choice book or a general WW2 social/cultural book.

"On the Knife Edge: How Germany Lost the First World War" - The author quoted these figures from Niall Ferguson:

" ... who calculated roughly how much money each of the opposing parties had to spend to kill an enemy soldier: the Central Powers spent on average US$11,345 to kill an enemy soldier, while the Entente needed US$36,485, more than three times as much. These figures are naturally open to interpretation, since it could be argued that the Central Powers were mostly on the strategic defensive and therefore suffered fewer losses than the Entente Powers, who were attacking far more frequently and on a larger scale."

On the Knife Edge: How Germany Lost the First World War by Holger Afflerbach

Very interesting indeed MR9! Thanks for that information.

Jonny wrote: "Refreshing to see that Rick. I'll definately have to get this one! Thanks for all the posts."

It's a very interesting read covering the German perspective of the Great War. I think you would enjoy it.

Sounds like a pretty good book MR9 - what a sad end for Admiral Lee. Fought and survived all through WW2 to die of a heart attack at the end of the war!

Tony wrote: "I finished The Holocaust: A New History this afternoon. While it’s obviously a difficult read, I do recommend it. It doesn’t fully explain “why”, but then I’m not sure there really ..."

It's a good book covering a shocking subject and well worth the read. Glad to hear you found the book interesting.