New Release Books on WW2 Showing 601-650 of 3,289

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Another new title that may interest some of the group members is this book from National Geographic:


by Stephen Hyslop
Description:
"Eyewitness to World War II" brings you closer than ever before to this epic conflict, told through the words and thoughts of those who lived it - both on the battlefield and the home front. The personal writings of Roosevelt, Patton, and Hitler, as well as letters composed on the battlefield and diaries of women serving in the military at home, tell the story of this war in startling intimacy. Hundreds of photographs capture fateful moments of triumph and defeat that defined the era, and authoritative National Geographic maps detail military movements and decisive battles in both theatres of war. Together, the individual accounts of soldiers, generals, political leaders, and those at home, along with the illuminating maps and a collection of rare photographs and artefacts, bring the entire history of World War II to life in vivid detail.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I purchased a nice secondhand (HB) copy of this book today:


by Patrick Delaforce
Description:
After Hitler reluctantly halted his proposed invasion of Britain in the autumn of 1940, he immediately ordered, by secret edict, the building of an Atlantic Wall. It was a monumental task--made up of 1,500 steel and concrete defensive strongpoints, stretching over four coastlines--and completely designed by the Fuhrer himself. Using material from British, American, and Canadian archives, one of today's top military historians pieces together a unique, barely known story from the war--and memorializes the Allied soldiers caught behind it in appalling conditions.

[Michael, Assisting Moderator Axis Forces]

You always manage to find the most interesting books Rick

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I'm lucky :)

[Morgiana]

Rick, how many bookstores are you monitoring in Canberra (and all around the world)???

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Oh, quite a few :)

[Morgiana]

around a (few) 100(00000)??????

[Antoine]

I can thoroughly recommend:

"England's Last War Against France: Fighting Vichy 1940-1942" by Colin Smith

It covers a shameful period in French History and many today would like to air-brush it out of popular memory. It is remarkable just how vicious the fighting was, particularly in Syria and Madagascar, and how much more enthusiastically many French fought Britain than they ever fought the Nazis.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Good recommendation Antoine, Colin Smith is a pretty decent author and I have read most of his books. I have a copy of England's Last War Against France in my library, just haven't had time to read it yet :)

by Colin Smith

[Mike, Assisting Moderator US Forces]

Antoine wrote: "I can thoroughly recommend:

"England's Last War Against France: Fighting Vichy 1940-1942" by Colin Smith..."

Nice recommendation. Added TBR. I just finished Inferno: The World at War, 1939-1945 and Hastings brings this out. I thought the French gave minor resistance but not so. Vicious fighting indeed.

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Antoine wrote: "I can thoroughly recommend:

"England's Last War Against France: Fighting Vichy 1940-1942" by Colin Smith

It covers a shameful period in French History and many today would like to air-brush it o..."

Thanks Antoine not one I've read so I need to bump this up the list. Have you read

by Richard Vinen

[Antoine]

Geevee wrote: "Antoine wrote: "I can thoroughly recommend:

"England's Last War Against France: Fighting Vichy 1940-1942" by Colin Smith

It covers a shameful period in French History and many today would like t..."

Hello Geevee:I'll look out for "The Unfree French" (though wondering just how willing ot be unfree many of them were.

I recently finished "Occupation" by Ian Ousby. It's a workmanlike but uninspiring account of the Nazi Occupation of France. The most interesting – though depressing - aspect of the book are non-Resistance oriented and chimed with what my Dutch relations told me of the occupation in the Netherlands. A far larger proportion of the population that is admitted today was prepared to along with the occupiers, even if they didn't actively collaborate. It makes the few who did resist, either intellectually or practically, all the more admirable and their sacrifice more poignant. I doubt that the situation would have been much different in Britain.

[Míceál]

Am almost finished with Dog Company: The Boy of Pointe du Hoc by Patrick K. O'Donnell

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Antoine wrote: "Geevee wrote: "Antoine wrote: "I can thoroughly recommend:

"England's Last War Against France: Fighting Vichy 1940-1942" by Colin Smith

It covers a shameful period in French History and many tod..."

I find the French experience interesting in terms of both their military performance before and after surrender to Germany, and also the performance and growth of the resistance against a timeline to invasion and after. Of course there were many French who were courageous, active and pro-allies too.

Their post-war place as one of the four occupying powers is interesting too as it had little to do with their military performance and far more as a western allied attempt to help temper any possible Russian designs on Berlin as Britain was exhausted (and financially poor) and the US did not envisage keeping troops in Europe for long at all.

Credit for the "myth" of the French military contribution and in part the refusal to discuss the country's war effort goes to de Gaulle (no French official history has ever been written, and is now unlikely ever to be) who was - although I am no admirer - a great chance taker and statesman.

I think too that had the situation been such in Britain it would have seen the mix you saw in France, and is merely down to human nature rather than any nationality or national trait.

Do you have any recommendations for books on the Dutch home front (in English? as I am afraid I do not read Dutch).

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Dr. Michael wrote: "Am almost finished with Dog Company: The Boy of Pointe du Hoc by Patrick K. O'Donnell"

Let us know what you think when you finish. Don't forget we have a Q&A session Patrick K. O'Donnell on 20th November.

[Antoine]

Geevee wrote: "Antoine wrote: "Geevee wrote: "Antoine wrote: "I can thoroughly recommend:

"England's Last War Against France: Fighting Vichy 1940-1942" by Colin Smith

It covers a shameful period in French Hist..."

Not much available in English on the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands but what is excellent is "The Hunger Winter: Occupied Holland 1944-1945" by Henri A. van der Zee. More than 50,000 people died in the Western Netherlands in the last months of the war. I had relatives who lived through this ghastly period and their greatest bitterness was reserved less for the Germans than for the Dutch farmers who profiteered from the hungry, trading potatoes and other farm produce at black-market prices to their starving fellow countrymen and women. This shameful behaviour is not glossed over in v/d Zee's book.

As regards the major and successful German frustration of the efforts of Dutch patriot agents in the early part of the war, look at the Wikipedia entry on "Operation North Pole":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Englands...

Serious breakdowns in communications procedures, primarily at the SOE end in London, were responsible for this debacle.

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Thanks Antoine I'll add this to my TBR and read through the Wikipedia entry. I've read about the starvation through the RAF/USAAF's Operation Manna and Chowhound.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Today I picked up these new books at a remainder shop. They are all WW2 related in one way or another:


by Michael Green

by Bill Yenne

by Gordon Thomas

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Here is a new release covering an fascinating subject that a few members here might find interesting:

by Christopher Duggan
Description:
Christopher Duggan's new history of fascist Italy explores how the movement became embodied in the person of Benito Mussolini who occupied for many an almost divine status and gave millions of men and women a sense of pride and hope, offering the prospect of national regeneration after decades of disappointment.

A work of exceptional authority and originality, Fascist Voices makes use of rarely examined sources - letters and private diaries, newspaper reports and secret police files - to uncover how ordinary people experienced fascism on a daily basis and how its ideology influenced their beliefs, values, language and lifestyle.

Tracing fascism from its conception to its legacy, Christopher Duggan unpicks why the regime enjoyed so much support among the majority of the Italian population. He examines the extraordinary personal relationships that millions of Italians had with Mussolini, explores the religious dimensions of totalitarianism, and discusses why the 'cult of the Duce' still resonates in contemporary Italy.

Fascist Voices is a fresh and disturbing look at a country in thrall to a charismatic dictator.

[carl]

this book has a chapter on :

Hunger: The Netherlands and the Politics of Food

overall there are some interesting points in the book, though i found the author the revisionist vareity.




Geevee wrote: "Do you have any recommendations for books on the Dutch home front (in English? as I am afraid I do not read Dutch). "

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Thanks Carl - will look it up. I have this by Lizzie Collingham and so anticipate Manna & Chowhound being mentioned too.

[Antoine]

Geevee wrote: "Thanks Carl - will look it up. I have this by Lizzie Collingham and so anticipate Manna & Chowhound being mentioned too."

I was very impressed by "A Taste of War". It's a splendid example of readable scholarship built on thorough research.

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Oooh thanks (another!) to bump up the list. I found this an interesting read too Antoine, have you read it? .

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I've just ordered a copy of this book; Into Dust and Fire which appears to offer something different:


by Rachel S. Cox
Description:
The untold story of five young American friends who left the ivory towers at Harvard and Dartmouth to take on the Nazi's…

In the spring of 1941, with Europe consumed by war and occupation, Britain stood alone against the Nazi menace. The United States remained wary of joining the costly and destructive conflict. But for five extraordinary young Americans, the global threat of fascism was too great to ignore.

Six months before Pearl Harbor, these courageous idealists left their promising futures behind to join the beleaguered British Army. Fighting as foreigners, they were shipped off to join the Desert Rats, the 7th Armored Division of the British Eighth Army, who were battling Field Marshal Rommel’s panzer division. The Yanks would lead anti-tank and machine-gun platoons into combat at the Second Battle of El Alamein, the twelve-day epic of tank warfare that would ultimately turn the tide for the Allies.

A fitting tribute to five men whose commitment to freedom transcended national boundaries, Into Dust and Fire is a gripping true tale of idealism, courage, camaraderie, sacrifice, and heroism.

Reviews:
“A multifaceted, moving story… extraordinary… terrific… A unique take on the war, from the point of view of the young, idealistic and foolhardy.” - Kirkus Reviews

“A moving, beautifully-written tale of five young Ivy Leaguers, romantics and idealists all, who left their privileged lives in peacetime America to join the British Army in its pre-Pearl Harbor struggle against the Nazis. In her quest to trace the wartime experiences of her uncle, Rob Cox, and his four colleagues, Rachel Cox has produced a masterpiece of storytelling, infused with romance, danger, adventure, humor, and heartbreaking loss. It is, hands down, the best description of the transformation of untested young men into soldiers that I have ever read.” - Lynne Olson, (author of Citizens of London and Troublesome Young Men)

“Rachel S. Cox's Into Dust and Fire is an inspired saga about a group of young Americans who hated Nazi totalitarianism to the core. Their rash bravery is the stuff of legend. This is an important new contribution to our growing World War II must-read library.” - Douglas Brinkley, (New York Times Bestselling Author of The Wilderness Warrior)

“Rachel Cox's book achieves a kind of miracle—bringing to startling life the story of five young Americans who volunteered to fight for Britain in North Africa while the United States was still sitting out the war behind the Atlantic Ocean. Cox is a vigorous, intelligent writer, and her book is a dramatic tale of war, love, hardship, suffering and loss.” - Thomas Powers, (Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author of The Killing of Crazy Horse)

“Into Dust and Fire is a beautifully-written book that evokes World War II in North Africa in a way that has rarely—if ever—been bettered. Touching, moving, and thought-provoking, this is a wonderful, exquisitely crafted book.” - James Holland, (author of The Battle of Britain)

“An elegantly-written story of five unheralded American heroes who left the security of their Ivy League schools to fight the war against Nazi Germany—before the rest of the nation joined the battle. Rachel Cox has written an inspiring, richly-documented historical account that captures the essence of American valor. Into Dust and Fire fills in an essential piece of World War II history that will last for the ages.” - Ken Gormley, (Dean and Professor of Law at Duquesne University)

[Michael, Assisting Moderator Axis Forces]

Looks good Rick

[Mike, Assisting Moderator US Forces]

Added TBR. Nice find Rick, heroes from another age.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Happy to share :)

[Jenn]

I am new to the group and I was wondering if anyone had read the new book entitled, "Resolve: From the Jungles of WWII Bataab, A Story of a Soldier, a Flag, and a Promise Kept" by Bob Welch?

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Hi Jenn, welcome to the group. I haven't read the book you mentioned but it sounds good.



by Bob Welch

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Jenn wrote: "I am new to the group and I was wondering if anyone had read the new book entitled, "Resolve: From the Jungles of WWII Bataab, A Story of a Soldier, a Flag, and a Promise Kept" by Bob Welch?"

Hi Jenn and welcome. I've not read it either but it does sound interesting.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I picked up a nice second hand copy of this classic account of the 1944 Ardennes offensive; The Bitter Woods and have also ordered a copy of; Hitler Youth, by Michael H. Kater.

by John S.D. Eisenhower

by Michael H. Kater
Reviews:
"The indoctrination that the Nazis gave German youth during the 1930s and 1940s led some of these children to commit atrocities during WWII. The effects were felt by many even after the war ended. Using letters, diaries and the recollections of former members of Hitler Youth—a paramilitary and ideological group in which membership, for both boys and girls, was eventually mandatory—Kater, a noted historian of the Nazis, concludes in this readable volume that "the authoritarian nature of the Nazi regime" and its "merciless" racial ideology, as well as its sense of community, underlay its appeal to "adolescents who were searching for certitudes in a swiftly changing and newly structured world." The author is particularly effective at providing context: the Nazis took the youth movement concept, popular throughout Europe in the early 20th century, and adapted it to fit a racist ideology. He also shows that the values of militarism and self-reliance clashed with German family values of nurturing—and that, for the most part, the Hitler Youth won out. Nor does Kater ignore the few who resisted these imposed values. This is a scholarly book that deserves a wider audience, especially those interested in the Nazi period and adolescent psychology." - Publishers Weekly

"An engaging study of the comradeship and feeling of belonging, sense of power and superiority imparted to Germany's young boys and girls as they became ideologically charged paramilitary men and women ready to serve, to follow orders and to sacrifice for Adolf Hitler. Kater has crafted a masterful history essential to comprehending Germany through the Weimar Republic and the Third Reich. This will be the definitive history of the Hitler Youth." - Peter Loewenberg, Professor of History, UCLA and Dean of the Southern California Psychoanalytic Institute

"Hitler Youth is as carefully comprehensive as it is morally careful. Kater is an expert compiler of data, beginning with the early 20th century roots of German youth leagues and ending with the hideous details of 12-year-olds being sent to fight on the front lines. He makes clear that the Hitler Youth instigated its share of atrocities, but also that its members were forced to face the gory reality of war, and suffer accordingly, at a terribly young age...Within the greater Nazi nightmare, the Youth are uniquely frightening. The particulars of their frightfulness are well sketched in Kater's study." - Jana Prikryl (Salon 20041203)

"[A] riveting history of the Nazis' use of children...Kater...has written an indispensable study. Hitler Youth focuses on the methods used by the Nazis to indoctrinate young boys and girls--from ten to eighteen years old--to follow authority and sacrifice for Adolf Hitler." - Jack Fischel (Weekly Standard 20050131)

"Michael Kater's Hitler Youth traces the history of the Nazi youth movement, examining the imposition of uniformity and conformity within the Hitler Youth, issues of training and leadership and its emphasis on authoritarianism, war and expansion...Based on a range of sources, this book will be useful for scholars and students of modern German history, but is also likely to appeal to a wider readership of those interested in the history of the Third Reich." - Lisa Pine (Times Higher Education Supplement 20050415)

"Michael Kater's new book traces the social and institutional history of the Hitler Youth. Yet, in keeping with Kater's extensive scholarship on the Third Reich, Hitler Youth offers more than a straightforward social history. Kater focuses on the collective experiences of the young people who made up the movement, paying particular attention to the dialectic of emancipation and subjection that characterized the group's activities...The book's most gripping sections detail the wartime activities of young people...Through thick description and a wealth of evidence, Kater gives his readers a multifaceted picture of the movement." - Jennifer L. Jenkins (University of Toronto Quarterly )

[Jerome]

This came out last month:

by Nigel Jones

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Looks good Jerome, thanks for posting details of the book, I'm sure a lot of members will be interested.

[Liam]

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Well I am having a good day today! I checked out one of my local favourite second hand book shops and managed to find these two excellent books:


by Willia..."

Congratulations, Rick! That First Edition is a nice find... It took me forever to find the above cover scan, but I guess it was timely enough.

[Steve]

Picked up quite a few books recently including the following:



Gavin Mortimer
Alistair Urquhart
Eric Lomax
Denis Edwards
Carl Shilleto
Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke
Roderick Bailey
George Blackburn

[Steve]

Just received a copy of my Dad's Army Service record and discovered that he was a tanker in the British 6th Armoured Division. They were involved in the battle for Tunisia including Kasserine Pass and later moved into Italy. I'll be researching the history of his unit and have just picked up the following books:

Ken Ford
James Wilson
Norman Gelb

[carl]

Always makes the reading more fun when you
have some personal & personell touches included!

Steve wrote: "Just received a copy of my Dad's Army Service record and discovered that he was a tanker in the British 6th Armoured Division. They were involved in the battle for Tunisia including Kasserine Pass ..."

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Steve another couple for you are:
Prepare to Move: With the 6th Armoured Division in Africa and Italy by Frank Beckett (not listed on GR)

Algiers to Austria with the First & Eighth Armies also by Frank Beckett

[Steve]

Geevee wrote: "Steve another couple for you are:
Prepare to Move: With the 6th Armoured Division in Africa and Italy by Frank Beckett (not listed on GR)

Algiers to Austria with the First & Eighth Armies also by ..."

Thanks Geevee, I ordered Prepare to Move yesterday from the UK. The other one I was not aware of and will certainly try to find a copy. I'm also looking for a book called "The Proud Trooper: The History of the Ayrshire Yeomanry" by W. Steel Brownlie. I found a few copies online but they are quite expensive, so if you happen to come across a copy in the UK let me know.

P.S. Just ordered a signed copy of "Algiers to Austria" from a book dealer in Basingstoke.

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

They are pricey Steve but hopefully you'll get one - I found a UK official history volume once in a Boston (USA) bookshop and it was a steal, so I bought it and carried it all the way back to the UK.

[Jerome]

This comes out in January:

Engineers of Victory: The Making of the War Machine That Defeated the Nazis

by Paul Kennedy

[Wade]

Liam wrote: "'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Well I am having a good day today! I checked out one of my local favourite second hand book shops and managed to find these two excellent books:


[bookcover:Defeat Into Victo..."

Liam...nothing like a second hand/used book store for discoveries,eh Liam..looks like you scored a direct hit w/those finds,,, i could spend all day long in a bookstore--especially the mom&pop variety.

[Wade]

Steve wrote: "Picked up quite a few books recently including the following:



Gavin Mortimer
[bookcover:The Forgotten Highlander: My Incredib..."

Now there is a load of extremely interesting titles Steve---especially the Pegusus/Baltic....bookstore or online(if i may ask)?

[Steve]

Hi Wade,

I got them all online, some used and some new. Now I just need to find the time to read them. I keep telling myself that I won't buy anymore books until I catch up with the books that sit unread in my library, but then I see something online that catches my eye and I buy it. I suppose that's the burden that book lovers like ourselves must bear -)

[Arcticvet]

This will be my followup to "A Bridge Too Far"

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Looks like an excellent book Arcticvet, let us know how it goes once you have finished reading it.

[Wade]

Steve wrote: "Hi Wade,

I got them all online, some used and some new. Now I just need to find the time to read them. I keep telling myself that I won't buy anymore books until I catch up with the books that sit..."

Steve wrote: "Hi Wade,

I got them all online, some used and some new. Now I just need to find the time to read them. I keep telling myself that I won't buy anymore books until I catch up with the books that sit..."

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I've finally caved in and ordered a copy of Mark Reardon's latest book; Defending Fortress Europe. I hope my wife doesn't intercept the parcel!


by Mark J. Reardon
Description:
Defending Fortress Europe provides readers with the first English-language account of what the Germans were saying in their own words during the Normandy campaign.

US Army historian Mark Reardon departs from familiar convention by combining a mixture of modern scholarship with primary source material written over 65 years ago. The primary source material consists of the record of daily activities, covering the period from 6 June to 26 July 1944, compiled by a staff officer from the 7th Army s operations and planning section. This record, known as the Kriegstagebuch (Daily War Diary), served not only as a historical reference, but also as an aide-memoire for the commanding general and his staff. Material from Army Group B and OB-West opens each chapter, providing a context for the 7th Army war diary that follows.

Reardon adds introductory chapters to set the scene for the combat to begin on 6 June. In the concluding chapters he describes subsequent action and analyzes Normandy in a broader perspective.

[carl]

hey AR, a worthy purchase. i'm about halfway through this one. Germans appear to be on the ropes.

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "I've finally caved in and ordered a copy of Mark Reardon's latest book; Defending Fortress Europe.

[bookcover:Defending Fortress Europe: The War Diary..."

[Antoine]

Let me recommend one of my recent reads:

"Churchill's Folly: Leros and the Aegean 1943" by Anthony Rogers

This covers the last successful German invasion of WW2, albeit a snall-scale one. One is impressed by just how professional the Germans were, and how inept was much of the Allied response. It is in many ways a quite chilling story - and reminds one that in the end the Allies didn't win because they were morally superior or professionally more competent, but only because they had numbers and industrial might on their side. A sobering lesson for the future.

Churchill's Folly: Leros and the Aegean