Book Club of War

  This is the second of my book reviews on the German soldiers’ experiences in World War II. Erhard Steinigers autobiography ‘Radio Operator on the Eastern Front’ takes you on a journey from Conscription through Barbarossa to the battle of Leningrad and finally to being a prisoner of the Soviets. Steiniger’s reflections saw him serve in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Russia as a signaler in the 151 st Infantry Regiment.   As a signaler he had to be at the forefront of the battle with the soldiers and this is very much a first-hand account of what that experience was like.    The horrors of war on the Eastern Front are really drawn out. This book is exceptional well written and translated.   The autobiography does not glorify war but shows what war was like for a soldier on the ground right at the forefront of a battle.   The life and horrors that were experienced.     The over 110 illustrations and photographs throughout the book...

  I must admit that I have read very little from a German point of view on World War II.  W e sometimes forget that there are personal human stories from the German side of the war. Screams of the Drowning in lots of ways is an astonishing book.    This is a first-person account, a story of how a young German soldier, Hans Feckler, aged just 17, was conscripted and experienced some of the worst horrors and bloodshed of the World War II.   The book takes you from Hans Fecklers youth and how it was curtailed, through his training and early experiences, to him being badly wounded and then involved in the little-known sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff where he was one of only 1,252 from over 10000 that survived, to his escape from the Russian occupation zone and an almost 200 mile walk back home.     This story is a must read for anyone interested in the Eastern Front in World War II.   It is a strikingly honest account; the story isn’t about g...

  I have a confession, as an 8 year, I was taken to Finningley Airshow by my Mum.   The highlight of the whole day was seeing the Lancaster Bomber in flight.   I had never seen something so mesmorising and utterly beautiful.    The slow grace in which it flew with its bomb doors open, down the runway and away.    The noise of those 4 Rolls Royce Merlin engines will live with me forever.     Even now 45 years later seeing and hearing a Lanc takes me back to that moment with my Mum open mouthed in awe of that day. John Nichol has written a book that takes me back to being that 8 year old.   The book tells the inspiring, passionate and profoundly moving story of the legendary Avro Lancaster, the heroic crews who flew her, the men and women who kept her flying and stories of taking the fight to the heart of Germany. The writing in the book is outstanding.   The author not only tells you the story of the Lancaster but tells stor...

  To be an independent writer and self-publish a book is a very special thing to do and I will always support authors that do this. In Frank Speaking – from Suvla to Schweidnitz the author Carole Hope has done an exceptional job is transcribing the memoirs of Frank Laird. Frank Morrow Laird wrote the memoir of his experiences during the First World War but due to his death in 1925 it remained unfinished.   The memoir has humour, sadness, and thoughts and memories of those he served with. The memoir runs from July 1914 and follows Franks journey from the call to arms through his experiences in the trenches where he was wounded three times to being captured and made a prisoner of war to his last entry in November 1918. Franks Journey takes him from Dublin, Ireland, and officer training to serving across England and then to Gallipoli where his description of the fighting brings home the emotions and reality of battle.   Wounded, he is returned to England, marries, an...

  The brilliant thing with this book is how easy it is to read.    A really beautiful flow of words with a plot that is easy to follow. Out of the Desert: Danger Close… is book one in the wings of victory series.   It starts in 1940 in Egypt and follows the story of a young ambitious Royal Air Force pilot Peter Denhay who is posted to an operational bomber squadron at the start of a major Italian offensive into Egypt. This is a story of relationships, of suspicion that there is a double agent operating in their midst, of intelligence and of the XXI squadron and their battles though Egypt, Create and mainland Greece. The intensity of the last air battle leaves you breathless, you live the fight through these brilliant characters. The author Tom Walker has written a brilliant part one to the series.   His writing is detailed but with a real pace in the story.   He has captured a real part of history that is well researched and woven a fantastic fictiona...

  The fantastic thing I find about reading books on war is the surprising stories.   The ones that capture you.   The human side of war but intertwined with daring operations that might not be that well known. Foursquare: The Last Parachutist does not disappoint.   This is a story of the authors family, a story of a grandfather and grandson.    This is a story about bravery, about resourcefulness, about loss, about patriotism and about resistance in Czechoslovakia. This is a story of a Czech family, cousins that came to England to fight the war.   To contribute, to make a difference in freeing their country and Europe from the Nazis. In 1938 Jaroslav and Josef Bublik came to England and became part of the Czech intelligence service.    Both tied through family and both to play a significant contribution to the war.   Jaroslav trained parachutist to go back into their country whilst Josef was one of the first to be dropped.   T...

  When a book grabs you within the first 20 pages and you cannot put it down you know your onto a winner. In SAS Ghost Patrol the author Damien Lewis guides the reader through a breath taking, daring do, true story adventure of bravery, ingenuity, courage, and tragedy. This is the story of Captain Herbert Cecil Brook M.C and his ultra-secret deception force.   They are to attempt one of the most audacious top-secret raids of 2 World War.   The force was to drive 100s miles without support to bluff their way into Nazi stronghold.   This raid was a desperate attempt to change the tide of axis victories in the desert. This is a story of mavericks, of brave men on a suicidal mission, of deceit and the stuff that legends are made off. In Damien Lewis writing you do not get time to breath.    The fast-paced action and the constant urge to know what happens next keeps the pages turning. The research is masterful drawing you into each soldier’s story. ...