New Release Books on WW2 Showing 1,501-1,550 of 3,292

[Miss M]

Already out in the UK, not in the US until March:


The London County Council Bomb Damage Maps, 1939-1945

The attack on London between 1939 and 1945 is one of the most significant events in the city's modern history, the impact of which can still be seen in its urban and social landscapes. As a key record of the attack, the London County Council Bomb Damage Maps represent destruction on a huge scale, recording buildings and streets reduced to smoke and rubble. The full set of maps is made up of 110 hand-coloured 1:2500 Ordnance Survey base sheets originally published in 1916 but updated by the LCC to 1940. Because they use the 1916 map, they give us a glimpse of a 'lost London', before post-war redevelopment schemes began to shape the modern city. The colouring applied to the maps records a scale of damage to London's built environment during the war - the most detailed and complete survey of destruction caused by the aerial bombardment. A clear and fascinating introduction by expert Laurence Ward sets the maps in the full historical context of the events that gave rise to them, supported by archival photographs and tables of often grim statistics.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

A very interesting book by the sounds of it, thanks for posting the details Miss M.

[Miss M]

I think it would be a fascinating, and sobering, book to have, but also, for me, one to watch out for as a used copy (if lucky.)

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Miss M wrote: "I think it would be a fascinating, and sobering, book to have, but also, for me, one to watch out for as a used copy (if lucky.)"

Fingers crossed :)

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Miss M wrote: "Already out in the UK, not in the US until March:


The London County Council Bomb Damage Maps, 1939-1945

..."

Good one Miss M, thanks for posting.

[Manray9]

The New York Times reviewed this weekend Nicholas Stargardt's new book:

The German War: A Nation Under Arms

Now's it's atop my TBR Everest.

The review:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/15/boo...

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Another great review of a very good book that is well worth the effort of reading. Thanks for the link Manray9 and I am pretty sure you will find the book fascinating and a great read.

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Thanks and one I had wanted to read and the review reinforces that it will be a good choice.

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Another great review of a very good book that is well worth the effort of reading. Thanks for the link Manray9 and I am pretty sure you will find the book fascinating and a great read."

I'd forgotten you'd tackled it AR. I must check out your review too.

[KOMET]

Mapping the Second World War: The History of the War Through Maps from 1939 to 1945 by Peter Chasseaud



SCHEDULED RELEASE: November 24th, 2015 (Hardcover)

Summary
"More than 150 maps, accompanied by descriptions of key historical events, tell the story of how this global war was fought. They include strategic maps showing theaters of war, frontiers, and occupied territories; maps covering key battles and offensives on major fronts; planning and operations maps showing defenses in detail; propaganda and educational maps for the armed forces and general public; maps showing dispositions of Allied and enemy forces; and bomber and V-weapon target maps."

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I better sit down and write a review first Geevee :)

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Ha yes just seen that - mind you a 4-star rating means I must put it on my Christmas list :)

[Dimitri]

KOMET wrote: "Mapping the Second World War: The History of the War Through Maps from 1939 to 1945

Need to leaf through it first, I wonder how global vs. anglocentric the selection is, how much Eastern Front material the IWM can resort to...

[Timothy]

KOMET wrote: "Mapping the Second World War: The History of the War Through Maps from 1939 to 1945..."

That looks a terrific reference to have on hand for the student of WW2.

[Jerome]

A May 2016 release:

by Srinath Raghavan
Description:
India’s role in World War II has long been overlooked. But as Srinath Raghavan shows in this authoritative account, India did not fight the war as merely an appendage of the British Empire. From the start, India defended its own sub-empire from Imperial Japan and assisted its allies in battles in Italy, East Africa, and the Pacific.

The war also brought great changes to the subcontinent. By the war’s end, the Indian Army had become the largest volunteer force in history, while many millions more Indians had worked in their nation’s rapidly expanding industry and agriculture. This nationwide commitment to victory altered the country’s social landscape, overturning assumptions about class and opening up new opportunities for India’s most disadvantaged people.

The first major account of India during World War II, India’s War chronicles how the demands of war forever transformed the country, its economy, its politics, and its people, laying the groundwork for the rise of modern South Asia.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

That should be a good book and one that I may have to have :)

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Just stumbled across the January 2016 release which is sure to attract some attention with members within group:

The Noise of Battle. The British Army and the last breakthrough battle west of the Rhine, February-March 1945 by Tony Colvin
Description:
Half of the book is a detailed description, mainly told in the words of participants, of three battles fought over four days in the Rhineland south of Goch between 27 February and March 2 1945. The battles were between 3rd Division supported by 6 Guards Armoured Brigade, and 8. Fallschirmjäger Division. For the first time the combined actions of over 50,000 men during 96 hours have been analysed from the ground up in an unprecedented attempt to provide understanding of a significant military event. 3 Scots Guards said of Winnekendonk, "It is suggested that this will surely rank as one of the finest small scale tank/infantry battles ever executed and well worthy of more close study." The fighting was bloody and heroic, and some controversial aspects are explained for the first time. The other half of the book is an analysis of the units and people involved in the two divisions and their supporting armour and aviation. An answer is provided as to why only two months before the end of hostilities, 21 Army Group could manage only quite slow and costly progress. The answer comes from the analysis, and is tested through comparison with the contemporary Canadian Operation Blockbuster, and with two battles in the Hitler Line. Evidence is provided that there is no truth to recent claims that Montgomery's generalship was efficient and saved lives. Instead, it is shown that the military hierarchy, including Churchill, ignored the all-arms operational methodology under unitary command which Sir John Monash had developed to bring victory in 1918. In the Second World War, by contrast, the Royal Armoured Corps and 2 TAF never integrated with the infantry and artillery, and were never suitably equipped, being bound to the cultic pursuit of mobility. General Elles required that the Infantry Tank be immune to all German anti-tank guns, and his Matilda II was a major reason for the deliverance from Dunkirk and for the success of Operation Compass in North Africa. Compared with the Hundred Days of 1918, the author suggests that the British Armed forces in 1945 were relatively less efficient in all respects except that of killing German civilians in area bombing. This book's fully documented and researched conclusions provide a new and controversial interpretation of 21 Army Group.

[KOMET]

Operation Menace: The Dakar Expedition and the Dudley North Affair by Arthur J. Marder



Slated for release: July 15, 2016

SUMMARY
"Continuing on from Arthur Marder's previous book,'From the Dardanelles to Oran: Studies of the Royal Navy in Peace 1915-1940' this next volume investigates the Allied expedition of September 1940, with De Gaulle present, which unsuccessfully attempted to break the French at Dakar away from the Vichy Government.

"A pet operation of Prime Minister Churchill, the operation was undertaken against all advice, and it turned out to be a fiasco. In the author's words, 'Menace exemplified, in its genesis, planning, and execution, all that can go wrong in warfare; an operation fouled up by unforeseen contingencies, the accidents of war, and human error, and against a background of undue political interference, inadequate planning, and half-baked co-operation between Allies.'

"Using Admiralty and Cabinet papers, as well as private sources of information, Marder weaves a skilled course through all the complex material to produce a masterly case-study of how an operation is mounted and how it can go disastrously wrong. It is a classic, tragicomic illustration of the fog of war."

[Lee]

The War is Boring blog just turned me on to this one:


US Tank destroyers don't have a lot of books published on them, so anything seems welcome to me.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Sounds like an interesting book Lee.

[Dimitri]

KOMET wrote: "Operation Menace: The Dakar Expedition and the Dudley North Affair by Arthur J. Marder

[bookcover:Operation Menace: The Dakar Expedition and the Dudley North Affair..."

interesting. A hole in my WWII knowledge worth covering.

[Bevan Lewis]

Mapping the Second World War: The History of the War Through Maps from 1939 to 1945 certainly sounds interesting. Peter Chasseaud has already produced a similar history of mapping of the Great War.
The German War sounds great, it is really a toss up between that and Richard Evan's book The Third Reich At War (although I want to read the predecessors to that volume first. Could anyone who has read both offer a comparison?

Thanks

[Manray9]

Bevan wrote: "Mapping the Second World War: The History of the War Through Maps from 1939 to 1945 certainly sounds interesting. Peter Chasseaud has already produced a similar history of mapping o..."

Bevan: I've come across a couple books recently which discussed WW II as contributing to huge leaps in mapping the earth and the development of the arts and sciences of map-making.

[Manray9]

The NY Times has a review of --

To Hell and Back: Europe 1914-1949 by Ian Kershaw

by Sir Harold Evans. It sounds pretty good. Added to the TBR pyramid. I like this excerpt:

The signatories paid lip service to Wilson’s impossible ideal of self-­determination, but the new map was little more than a reflection of the appetites of the winners. Germany lost 13 percent of its territory, with millions of Germans ending up in Poland, the new countries of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, and the free state of Danzig. The Big Three at Versailles should have invited Machiavelli to remind them of his principle that it’s imprudent to wound an adversary and leave him with an appetite and capacity for retaliation.

The review:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/29/boo...

[Manray9]

Also from the NY Times a review by Ramachandra Guha of Yasmin Khan's --

India At War: The Subcontinent and the Second World War.

The review:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/29/boo...

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

India At War: The Subcontinent and the Second World War sounds like it may be a pretty good book, one to keep an eye out for. Thanks for the links to those reviews Manray9.

[Dimitri]

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "India At War: The Subcontinent and the Second World War sounds like it may be a pretty good book, one to keep an eye out for. Thanks for the links to those reviews Manray9."

if anyone gets hold on if, I'll gladly compare reviews with The Raj at War: A People’s History of India’s Second World War

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Good titles thanks for posting the reviews Manray9. Both are ones I'd like to read (and probably buy LOL).

[Bevan Lewis]

Manray9 wrote: "The NY Times has a review of --

To Hell and Back: Europe 1914-1949 by Ian Kershaw

by Sir Harold Evans. It sounds pretty good. Added to the ..."

Yes Ian Kershaw's book looks like a 'must read'. Another book called The Age of Catastrophe: A History of the West 19141945 has just come out (German author) which looks interesting although some of the reviews aren't quite so positive.

Certainly a fascinating period although I don't 100% buy the 'thirty years war' construct. It seems too backward looking (people in the 20s certainly wouldn't have seen themselves in a war, and twenty plus years of European peace is a pretty long interregnum of wars).

Bevan

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

I agree on the 30 years Bevan.

The twenties may have had much hardship but the nickname the roaring twenties also shines a light on many changes in society and people's lives. The 30s also had problems but wasn't wholly bleak as it also gave many jobs and improved social mobility and improved living standards - not to say hardship and poverty were absent or work prospects were improved across the board but both decades had complex and significant political, social and technological challenges and changes which many saw as being borne from WWI and the subsequent years of "peace".

[Nooilforpacifists]

Manray9, thanks for posting; interesting reviews. Everyone's coming out with books on Burma campaign!

[Dimitri]

Nooilforpacifists wrote: "Manray9, thanks for posting; interesting reviews. Everyone's coming out with books on Burma campaign!"

such as?

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

James Holland has a new one due out mid 2016:





Cornered Tigers: The Defence of the Admin Box, Burma 1944 by James Holland

[Manray9]

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "James Holland has a new one due out mid 2016:





[book:Cornered Tigers: The Defence of the Admin Box, Burma 1944|2784..."

Looks good, AR. Added to TBR.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I will be getting a HB copy when it becomes available as well :)

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

I heard that this book; The French Navy in World War II is to be re-released in mid 2016. It was first published in 1959 and I think it will offer a detailed and interesting history of the French Navy in WW2.

The French Navy in World War II by Rear Admiral Paul Auphan

[Dimitri]

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "I heard that this book; The French Navy in World War II is to be re-released in mid 2016. It was first published in 1959 and I think it will offer a detailed and interesting history of the French N..."

it must have enduring worth for it to be republished by the Navy Press. On the other hand, are there any more recent studies on the French Navy ?

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Good question Dimitri, none that I have heard about or have seen but maybe some naval minder member can let us know.

[Jerome]

Couldn't find any more general histories, but here are a few related titles, Dimitri:


by David Wragg
by Charles W. Koburger Jr.
by Vincent O'Hara

[Jerome]

A May 2016 release, the first of a few volumes:

by Daniel Todman
Description:
The most terrible emergency in Britain's history, the Second World War required an unprecedented national effort. An exhausted country had to fight an unexpectedly long war and found itself much diminished amongst the victors. Yet the outcome of the war was nonetheless a triumph, not least for a political system that proved well adapted to the demands of a total conflict and for a population who had to make many sacrifices but who were spared most of the horrors experienced in the rest of Europe.

Britain's War is a narrative of these epic events, an analysis of the myriad factors that shaped military success and failure, and an explanation of what the war tells us about the history of modern Britain. As compelling on the major military events as he is on the experience of ordinary people living through exceptional times, Todman suffuses his extraordinary book with a vivid sense of a struggle which left nobody unchanged - and explores why, despite terror, separation and deprivation, Britons were overwhelmingly willing to pay the price of victory.

This volume begins with the coronation of George VI and ends with the disasters in the Far East in December 1941. A second volume will tell the story from 1942 to Indian independence in 1947.

[Dimitri]

Jerome wrote: "A May 2016 release, the first of a few volumes:

by Daniel Todman


TBR. Surprising it will not be a trilogy, with a 1945-1947 third.

[J.]

Bevan wrote: " I don't 100% buy the 'thirty years war' construct...."

I'm unclear as to the origin of the 'thirty years war' reference.

[Jerome]

An April 2016 release:

by David Truesdale
Description:
The deployment of the British 1st Airborne Division somewhere in Europe prior to the end of the War was indeed a case of coins burning holes in the pockets of SHAEF .The Allied High Command was anxious to commit to battle a Division that, while it contained some elite units, was not fully trained, had carried out only one divisional exercise and contained several officers who were either unfit or unsuitable for Airborne command. On Monday 18 September 1944, the aircraft and gliders carrying the men and equipment of 4 Parachute Brigade took off from airfields in the south of England. For the first time from its creation in North Africa the Brigade was going into battle as a unified formation albeit not fully trained and far from experienced. Within 24 hours the Brigade would cease to exist, having achieved nothing more than the deaths of good men for no good reason. Despite the fine words of Winston Churchill that the operation had not been in vain and Montgomery s 90% successful, there is more logic to be found in the words of the Great War poet Wilfred Owen when he wrote in his poem Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori. There were those commanders who were indeed ardent for some desperate glory . This is a full account of the Brigade and its actions at Arnhem.

['Aussie Rick', Moderator]

Should be a good book, thanks for posting the details Jerome.

[Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces]

Thanks Jerome, another good one I think.

[Jerome]

A May 2016 release:

by John R. Bruning
Description:
This little-known WWII story introduces a renegade pilot whose personal mission to rescue his family from a POW camp changed modern air warfare forever.

December, 1941: Manila is invaded, and US citizen and Philippines Airlines manager, Pappy Gunn, is ordered to fly key military command out of the country, leaving his family at home. So Gunn was miles away when the Japanese captured his wife and children, placing them in an internment camp where they faced disease, abuse, and starvation.

Gunn spent three years trying to rescue them. His exploits became legend as he revolutionized the art of air warfare, devising his own weaponry, missions, and combat strategies. By the end of the war, Pappy's ingenuity and flair for innovation helped transform MacArthur's air force into the scourge of the Pacific.

[Michal]

interesting ^^ :)

[Dimitri]

Jerome wrote: "Couldn't find any more general histories, but here are a few related titles, Dimitri:


thx Jerome

[Dimitri]

J. wrote: "Bevan wrote: " I don't 100% buy the 'thirty years war' construct...."

I'm unclear as to the origin of the 'thirty years war' reference."

If you see WWII as a consequence of the Great War, the period 1914-1945 period becomes a second Thirty Years' war. De Gaulle saw things this way & Churchill popularised it in his history of WWII. Fritz Fischer's "Griff nach der Weltmacht" (Germany's Aims in the First World War (1961) uses this continuation view, as does A. J. P. 's The Origins of the Second World War of the same year. The latter ventures into David Irving territory with this, but in my opinion the concept will retain a politically neutral validity. The most readily accessible source for its recent (un)popularity would be The Nazi Dictatorship: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation by Kershaw, alltough even the revised edition peters out after the Historikerstreit of '86....

Short version; Winston did it!

[Jerome]

A September 2016 release:

by Craig Nelson

Description:
Published in time for the 75th anniversary, a gripping and definitive account of the event that changed twentieth-century America—Pearl Harbor—based on years of research and new information uncovered by a New York Times bestselling author.

The America we live in today was born, not on July 4, 1776, but on December 7, 1941, when almost four hundred Japanese planes attacked the US Pacific fleet, killing 2,400 men and sinking or damaging sixteen ships. In Pearl Harbor: From Infamy to Greatness, Nelson follows, moment by moment, the sailors, soldiers, pilots, admirals, generals, emperors, and presidents, all starting with a pre-polio Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Franklin D. Roosevelt, attending the laying of the keel at the Brooklyn Navy Yard of the USS Arizona, against the backdrop of the imperial, military, and civilian leaders of Japan lurching into ultranationalist fascism, all culminating into an insanely daring scheme to shock the Allies with a technologically-revolutionary mission in one of the boldest military stories ever told—one with consequences that continue to echo in our lives today.

Besides the little understood history of how and why Japan attacked America, we can hear the abandoned record player endlessly repeating “Sunrise Serenade” as the Japanese bombs hit the deck of the California, we feel terror as Navy wives, helped by their Japanese maids, upturn couches for cover and hide with their children in caves from a rumored invasion, and we understand the mix of frustration and triumph as a lone American teenager shoots down a Japanese bomber. Backed by a research team’s five years of efforts with archives and interviews producing nearly a million pages of documents, as well as a thorough re-examination of the original evidence produced by federal investigators, this definitive history provides a blow-by-blow account from both the Japanese and American perspectives and is a historical drama on the greatest scale. Nelson delivers all the terror, chaos, violence, tragedy, and heroism of the attack in stunning detail, and offers surprising conclusions about the tragedy’s unforeseen and resonant consequence