Military Books

In early 1942 the Japanese were lords of the Pacific, the Zero the best fighter plane between Tokyo and London and Emperial navy seemingly unstoppable. Lundstrom's story of the first year of the Pacific War and the Navy pilots who first flew from US carriers to blunt the spread of the Empire and take the first steps on the road to victory is by far the best that I have read. As other reviewers have said, Lundstrom's research of the details of the air battles, from both the US and Japanese sides, is unrivaled. His ability to weave these details into a gripping story in which the characters come to life is just as unique. This book and his first volume about Coral Sea and Midway are the kind that you don't want to finish because they are so good.

The bravery of these American flyers comes across well, but so does the the tension (and occasional humor) of this first full year of combat in the Pacific. The F4F-4 Wildcat was a well built, strong plane but could not compete with the Zeke in manuverability or speed. Yet the "First Team" flew their Wildcats from carriers and Guadalcanal's Henderson Field, held their own or better and started the distruction of the Japanese's veteran pilot cadre.

The fact that 10 of 34 pilots from VF-5 (the carrier squadron that flew along side the Marines from Henderson in late summer/early fall '42) were killed or seriously wounded shows that the attrition rate among these pilots was high and points to their bravery and endurance.

Mechanical problems with the F4F-4, bad weather, inhospitable islands, and the endless Pacific Ocean were added to the skilled and agressive opponents to make flying a Navy fighter plane a tough occupation. These flyers were truely a special breed.

You won't find a better told tale of the first year of the Pacific War anywhere. Lundstrom focuses only on the Naval pilots and their battles for more than 500 pages mand it's a tactical story in the truest sense. If you're tired of reading military history that never gets you out of the Admiral's cabin or Washington DC and London, this is for you. "The First Team and the Guadalcanal Campaign" is a terrific read. Highly recommended.

If you are a casual reader of World War II books, this is NOT the book for you, but if you are a wonk, then you'll love this book and John Lundstrom's companion book which covers the time period of Pearl Harbor to Midway. What sets Lundstrom apart is that he has taken the time to get to know virtually all of the pilots (on both sides) who fought in the Pacific battles in 1942. A theme that runs through both books is that each side had a small fraternity of pilots, and everybody knew each other. These pilots ("The First Team") held the line through the Guadalcanal campaign. Those that replaced them generally did not have the same level of skill.

Lundstrom is good at separating myths from the facts. He must either read Japanese or have a great collaboration with someone who does because his research through Japanese sources is the best that I've seen.

One interesting fact brought to light by Lundstrom: in terms of fighter-to-fighter combat through the Guadalcanal campaign, the A6M Zero and the F4F Wildcat effectively fought to a draw. If you see a reference on the F4F claiming a 5/1 kill ratio or something like that, it is likely based on inflated claims and claims against bombers and seaplanes. The biggest difference between the two types statistically is that a F4F pilot was much more likely to survive the downing of his plane. More of the United State's first team survived to fight again and to train other pilots to fight.

Japan made a mistake in trying to achieve air superiority over Guadalcanal from Rabaul, which is over 500 miles away. Just because the Model 21 Zero could fly that far and fight doesn't mean that it was a good idea to make it a regular practice. The distance was a big factor in the pilot attrition that eventually crippled the Japanese Naval Air Force.

I have no idea how many hours John Lundstrom put in to writing each of these books. I do know that the hours you spend reading them (and in my case re-reading them) will be well-spent.

An excellent follow-up to the "First team". Written in the same style as his previous work, this is the only book you need if you are interested in Santa Cruz, Eastern Solomons and day-to-day operations on Guadalcanal.
It is well known the Japanese were hard pressed to provide enough quantities of aircraft and qualified pilots even before the Midway operation. But Lundstrom shows just how critical this same situation was for the US during the Solomons campaign.
What is surprising is what a poor job Japanese fighter pilots did in protecting the bombers they were assigned to escort. Had they done a better job this campaign could have been much more costly for the US.

Although this book concentrates on U.S. Navy fighter combat during the first four months of the Guadalcanal campaign, it gives so many details of associated events that it should be read by anyone interested in the entire Guadalcanal campaign itself. This book also does a great job of giving details of the Japanese side, even to the point of naming most of the individual Japanese pilots involved in combat with the U.S. Navy and Marines around Guadalcanal. The only criticism (and this is slight criticism) I have of this book is Lundstrom's strong defence, for whatever reason, of Fletcher's actions during the initial part of the campaign which have been heavily criticized by just about every other historian. But, I guess it stands to reason that at least one credible historian would find a reason to defend Fletcher.

Anyway, if I were to name the top three books about the Guadalcanal campaign, this would be one of them along with Richard Frank's "Guadalcanal, the Definitive Account" and Michael Smith's "Bloody Ridge."

The First Team - Pacific Naval Air Combat from Pearl Harbor to Midway
and
The First Team and the Guadalcanal Campaign
John B. Lundstrom
Naval Institute Press


I have been studying naval aviation combat since the early 1960s, and I have never come across a book half so comprehensive, from a historical basis - nor half so useful, from a modeling perspective - as this two-volume set recently reprinted by the Naval Institute Press. The title - "The First Team" - refers to US Naval Aviator fighter pilots who were in service at the start of World War II; a convenient way of focusing on naval fighter combat from December 7, 1941 to the end of the Guadalcanal campaign in early February, 1943. This was a time when the F4F Wildcat bore the brunt of the aerial warfare - a few F2A Buffalo fighters served in the Navy during this time-frame, but the only Buffalos that saw combat were serving with the Marines (who are outside the scope of this two-volume study).

This book covers literally every incident of aerial combat that included US Navy fighter aircraft from December 7 through the end of Guadalcanal. I mean EVERY incident, every American shoot-down (and every American shot down) and every American carrier attack on a Japanese island target fought during the first 14 months of the war in the Pacific: the Wake relief force, the Gilbert, Marshall and Marcus Island raids, the assault on Rabaul, and the attacks on Tulagi, Lae and Salamaua - and of course, Guadalcanal. The books also cover every carrier vs. carrier battle that was fought in the Pacific before 1944: Coral Sea, Midway, Eastern Solomons and Santa Cruz. In short, The First Team two-volume book is incredibly comprehensive. Maps and charts illustrate each battle, each significant combat incident, each movement of carriers and air groups - the detail is remarkable. Author John Lundstrom makes these battles come alive in ways that no other history I've read have been able to accomplish. But for all their value as pure history, these books go way beyond that.

For instance, The First Team covers combat tactics - the prime reason why the vastly-inferior F4F-4 Wildcat was able to best the incredible Japanese Zero in almost every encounter (including decisive victories at Midway and Guadalcanal). Pre-war, the US Naval air service - alone among the world's air forces - trained its pilots to successfully use deflection shooting, permitting pilots to attack from beam positions, instead of just from directly astern. To perform a deflection-shooting attack successfully, the pilot couldn't aim at the target; instead, he had to aim for where the plane would be when the bullets arrived.

Deflection shooting is a kind of lead-the-target targeting performed by duck hunters and skeet shooters; a process vastly complicated in aerial combat because both the attacker and the target are moving at several hundred miles per hour, generally in different planes. However, when successfully executed, deflection attacks are almost unbeatable. This kind of deflection shooting permitted American Naval fighter pilots to attack the enemy with limited risk of counter-battery fighter from defending aircraft. Deflection attacks were decisive in attacks on bomber aircraft, but this approach also gave U.S. Naval aviators a significant advantage over the more maneuverable and - at most altitudes - faster Japanese fighters.

Other tactical elements explored in great detail were the comparative tactical formations - American transition from four-aircraft divisions to two-aircraft divisions while the Japanese held onto the far more awkward and inflexible three-plane formations - as well as the evolution of the "Thatch Weave," a mutually-supportive defensive formation the Japanese were never able to effectively counter.

The First Team also looks - in depth - at the training of Japanese and US Naval aviators. In 1941, Japanese naval aviators were, man-for-may, the best-trained pilots in the world, yet thanks to different tactical approaches, they were consistently outfought, first by well-trained US Naval Aviators and later even by grass-green Ensigns not long out of advanced training programs. Training and organization were critical - Japanese were taught to move in units of three aircraft, and to take advantage of their aircraft's incredible maneuverability.

American Naval Aviators were trained in deflection gunnery, in pilot-wingman cooperation and in emphasizing mutually-supporting defensive tactics culminating in the unbeatable Thatch Weave - which remarkably was under development before the outbreak of the war, though "conventional wisdom" has held that Commander John "Jimmy" Thatch developed the mutual-support tactics in response to initial combat with the Japanese.

Another factor that The First Team explored which worked against the Japanese was the very different organizational structure of the two countries' carrier air groups. In the US Navy, carrier air groups were fungible organizations - new squadrons and new pilots could be shuffled through the air groups, and these groups could be shuffled from carrier to carrier as needed. By contrast, Japanese carrier air groups trained as a unit, and were permanently assigned to a specific aircraft carrier.

When a Japanese group suffered significant combat casualties, not only were the individual squadrons no longer combat-capable, but the carrier itself was out of the battle. As a result, after the bloody draw at Coral Sea, surviving Naval aviators from the sunken Lexington were able to go back into combat onboard the Yorktown at Midway - less than a month later - effectively replacing losses the Yorktowners suffered at Coral Sea with combat-tested pilots. Even though the Yorktown had been badly damaged, it was patched together and able to field a combat-ready air group that proved decisive at Midway less than a month later.

However, as explained in The First Team's assessment of Japan's carrier air group organization, the Zuikaku - which, unlike the surviving Yorktown, was undamaged but which also suffered heavy pilot losses - was unable to serve at Midway because the Zuikaku's carrier air group had been decimated, and a carrier without an air group is little more than a target. Although sufficient combat-experienced pilots from the heavily-damaged Shokaku had survived and were at least technically available, because of a long-standing organizational policy, the Japanese were unable to restore the Zuikaku's group.

Instead, both air groups had to be restored to full combat capability only after receiving infusions of trainees, which required a long work-up period. The Yorktown's presence at Midway was decisive; the absence of Zuikaku was at least potentially just as decisive. Had two Japanese carriers - Zuikaku and Hiryu - survived the first devastating US Naval attack, their return strike may have done more than just knock out the Yorktown.

The books even get into fascinating controversies, such as the odd decision to put six .50 caliber machine guns into the Navy's new folding-wing F4Fs, even though they'd add a further weight penalty that would - along with the weight of the wing-fold mechanism -cripple the Wildcat's climb, range and overall combat capabilities. The early-war fixed-wing F4F-3 carried four .50 caliber machine guns - which US Navy fighter leaders felt was sufficient to knock down unarmored Japanese bombers and fighters. However, the fixed wing took up deck and hanger space and sharply limited the number of fighters a carrier could handle. With fighter squadrons growing from 18 to 27 to 36 aircraft, the need for folding wings was essential, even though the weight penalty imposed by the folding mechanism would inevitably degrade performance.

The initial decision to go with six .50 caliber guns in a folding-wing Wildcat was made by the British Fleet Air Arm, which did not routinely face fighter-to-fighter combat - minimizing the need for high-end performance - yet rightly felt it needed the heavier firepower inherent in six .50 calibers to swiftly knock down armored and well-armed German and Italian bombers. Oddly, instead of listening to their own fighter leaders, the US Navy's "Brass Hats" listened to the Brits, and decided - in the name of production efficiency - to standardize on the British design.

The result was the F4F-4 - a sluggish, slow-climbing short-range fighter which had six .50 caliber machine guns but fewer total rounds of ammo (and, therefore, a much shorter firing time) than the older F4F-3. This plane had a harder time climbing to a decisive altitude. It had difficulty conducting CAPs of more than a couple of hours or escorting bombers farther than 175 miles; and when it did find targets, this new Wildcat all-too-quickly ran out of ammunition. When front-line Naval Aviators complained about being asked to fight what was arguably the best carrier planes in the world with an increasingly second-string fighter plane, the Navy Brass in Washington told these front-line troops to fly their Wildcats with a 2/3rds fuel load and two unloaded guns - absurd advice to pilots who knew they needed every bullet and every gallon of gas every time they went head-to-head in combat with the best-trained naval aviators in the world, the Japanese.

These limiting factors for the new F4F clearly had an impact in the loss of the Yorktown at Midway, as well as the loss of so many torpedo planes at that same battle - and these F4F deficiencies may have also contributed to the loss of the Hornet at the Battle of Santa Cruz four months later. Nobody from the greenest Naval Aviation Ensign all the way up to Admiral Chester Nimitz had a good thing to say about the F4F-4 - but it was only after the end of the Guadalcanal campaign that the General Motors-built FM-1 reverted to a four-gun armament - too late to face down the Japanese.

Yet remarkably, the US Navy seldom fought the Japanese head-to-head without coming out on the winning end. Ultimately, the Wildcat scored a three-to-one winning margin over the Japanese - not because the Wildcat was a better fighter aircraft, though it did have some advantages, but because American Naval Aviators had better tactics, from the two-plane division to the Thatch Weave.

As noted, while it had dramatically shorter range, at least a marginally lower speed at most altitudes - and it was far less maneuverable than the Zero - the Wildcat that fought the Japanese from December 7, 1941 to February, 1943 did have some significant advantages over its adversary. The Grumman was solidly built - earning for its manufacturer the affectionate nickname "Grumman Iron Works." The Grumman fighter was also well-armored (at least where it counted), and - early in the war - it began to receive functional self-sealing fuel tanks that would absorb a 7.7 millimeter (.30 caliber) Japanese machine-gun bullet.

While it was slow to climb, the Wildcat could dive like a bat out of hell - given enough altitude, American Naval Aviators could always break off combat with Japanese Zeros - and given an initial altitude advantage (hard to come by, but not impossible to achieve), the Wildcat could initiate combat - attack Zeros and other Japanese aircraft - with no recourse by the Japanese. They couldn't escape a diving Wildcat; they could turn and fight, but couldn't run away.

Further, in a head-to-head attack, the Wildcat's rugged structure and .50 caliber armament (either four-gun or six-gun) easily outmatched their Japanese adversaries. The Japanese Zero's 20 mm cannons were low-velocity weapons useful only at short range; the longer-ranged Japanese 7.7 mm (.30 caliber) machine guns had too little hitting power to ensure a quick victory over the Wildcat. On the other hand, the standard American .50 caliber Browning heavy machine guns were fast-firing, long-ranged and hard-hitting enough to knock down any Japanese fighter - or bomber - they could hit.

All of these factors were covered in fascinating detail in The First Team, making them a feast of information, insight and factual data for the historian - and the history buff.

Beyond that, the two "First Team" volumes also offer a great deal to modelers. Each book is heavily illustrated with contemporary photos which show evolving markings on US Navy fighters. Not a few of these photos will also offer modelers display and deck-handling diorama ideas.

In addition, Appendix 3 of The First Team and Appendix 4 of The First Team and the Guadalcanal Campaign each features side-view profiles of F4F fighters in use during the time periods covered by the books. Together, these let modelers authoritatively paint-and-mark virtually any F4F that fought off one of the USN fleet carriers during the first year of the war - including carrier-based planes that temporarily served on Guadalcanal. With the recent spate of new F4F Wildcat releases in 1/32nd scale (including the soon-to-be-here Trumpeter Wildcat), this kind of reference will prove invaluable to modelers.

Bottom line: These two books are remarkable. For those interested in carrier-based fighter combat during the dark early days of World War II in the Pacific, these are "must-reads." The books have been released in Trade Paperback format by the US Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland - it's also available from Amazon.com.

Great book on the Marine Corps. This book is on the required reading list for active duty Marines. The author reviews a number of Marine Corps "touch stone" battles from all conflicts and wars. If you read one book about Marine Corps history this should be it.

Simple, this was stellar. Perfect condition, AMAZING read!! Gets to the "nitty-gritty" of the Corps.

This is an excellent book written by Gen Krulak. It gives an inside/personal look at Marine Corps history that many historians don't have access to. The main focus throughout the book is how the Marine Corps has dodged the "chopping block" many times prior and the authors point of view of why the USMC is so important to national security.

I love this book. When it first came out, I passed it by in the book stores, thinking it was just another compilation of sea stories, but man as I ever wrong.

I had the pleasure of serving under Capt. Charles Krulak, who eventually became Commandant, for a brief period of time and I used to work with a man who was "Brute" Krulak's personal chef, so the name was not entirely new to me.

After having served four years in the Corps, including an abbreviated tour in Vietnam, I knew how the Corps was, but I had no idea how it really came to be the institution that it is, except of course, for the tales of glory I heard in Boot Camp.

Anyone who has ever served in the Corps should read this book. Anyone who is thinking of joining the Corps should read this book. In fact, anyone who has any connection at all with anyone who has any connection at all with anyone who is in any way connected to the Marine Corps should read this book.

Excellent book that narrates about what is rarely narrated about: How the Marine Corps had to fight government bureaucracy to survive. A very different perspective on the USMC's history. A true underdog/dark horse -type story. Very little about the wars fought, but about the intra-government conspiracies and maneuverings to neuter, eradicate, and destroy the USMC. It shows how the USMC had to do more with less and still excel. This one has a happy ending and a fortunate one for us all in the USA.

My Dad was a POW in Stalag 17 during the same period of time as Handy. Dad had a hard time of it and it really was difficult for him to talk much about it. I now know that it would have been much better for him, and us, if he had been able to talk about it. He died in 2004.

Many of the things he did tell me in bits and pieces over the years about his experiences Handy described also. The Kregie who killed imself by deliberately crossing over 'the wire', the tunneling efforts, the dirt in the rafters, the sawdust bread, the interrogations, solitary, the bunks, the cold, the hunger, the frightened guards, the end in the forest. Lot and lots of pieces of the puzzle.

Dad was a most devout Catholic and, as it turned out, the only prisoner in camp who had been trained to be an Altar Boy. He gave lessions in Latin to train many other prisoners who were 'getting religion' in those desperate times. Dad described the Christams Mass in great detail, and it was striking to read Handy's account of that sermon. It was erie to read Handy's account of it all and how identical it was to Dad's. It was a very uplifting sermon that Dad and Handy never forgot.

My Mother told me about this book and I ordered it immediatly from Amazon and couldn't put it down until I had read all the way through. It was as if Dad was sitting in the room and describing the whole horror, step by step, and in chronological sequence for the first time which enabled me to put it all together for the first time. Now I have an even deeper understanding and appreciation for what Dad had endured, and how tragic his ongoing suffering had been, what it meant for his life, how much he had sacrificed, not only for those 16 months as a POW - but throughout the remainder of his life. I also got some insights regarding how it impacted mine life and my family's. I wish Dad could have read it him self 50 years ago. Thanks, Ned for getting it out for all of us to understand.

If you have any POWs in your immediate family, especially if that POW is or was your father - or you were a POW and you have children, I would say that this is required reading.

Loved this book. It grabbed my attention from the very start and never let it drift...housework and commitments be damned! Knowing it was a true story made it all the more gripping. I highly recommend it.

One of the heroes in this book, Gene Meese, is a friend of mine. He no longer talks much about his war experiences but he does say that Ned Handy tells the story with great accuracy. Oh, sure, much was omitted -- some of it quite bad -- but the core and substance is there and treated well.

Knowing Gene and reading the book deepened my appreciation for all the terror our troops, past and present, have endured for our country.

I am a WWII buff as I know had it not been for those who served we would not be here. So reading and appreciating those sacrifices is paramount to me.
I found this book "disturbing" (in a good way) in that the book literally took the reader inside the walls of Stalag 17.
It was a fearful experience and filled me with dread and agony for those who lived through that experience.
Some of the material mirrows what the movie "Stalag 17" depicted but certainly not with the Hollywood context of stalag life.
Ned Handy is one of countless heros who served all of us. God bless them, each and every one.
This is a book to cherish and help us understand the horror of war and the sacrifices of so many.

It is not hyperbole to say that The Flame Keepers is an excellent, well-paced book that will captivate readers of all ages and backgrounds - from teens to seasoned citizens. Not only about World War II, or even strictly a "war story," the book covers the effects on human behavior of war, imprisonment and defiance of one's enemies -- all well beyond the armored battles that raged.

Author and protagonist Ned Handy tells the unvarnished story through his eyes of a network of men and comrades-at-arms whose sudden imprisonment brought out their individual and collective ingenuity, bravery, stamina and perseverance in ways they could not have imagined. These qualities possessed by so many "ordinary" sergeants came to the fore when they faced the stark choice of surviving or giving up behind a wire, while watched by armed guards, deep in enemy territory, and in spite of brutal weather and a starvation diet. The incredible story of a brash and brilliantly conceived escape attempt from Stalag Luft XVII-B plays a major part in the narrative, and it is spell-binding.

Mr. Handy employs simple but eloquent language that takes the reader on a hard-to-put-down journey through five seasons in the life of a 21-year-old B-24 flight engineer and top turret gunner, who survives a shoot-down only to be imprisoned in infamous Stalag XVII-B. Events inside Stalag 17 are interwoven with interesting vignettes that bring to life Mr. Handy's memories of home, family and early life, which inform his ability to survive the prison ordeal. He ascribes well-deserved credit to his colleagues, from his crewmates to POWs with whom he lived in extremely close quarters for more than a year. He describes how each POW used the talents he had to their utmost, such that they were able to survive, defy the enemy at times, and create a vital internal safety net for their fellows when it mattered most. For a man imprisoned and isolated for a time due to circumstances that are movingly presented in the text, Mr. Handy presents a fair-minded view of the individual human beings behind the generic descriptors, "soldier," "prisoner," "enemy," "guard," and "civilian."

It is easy to get "lost" while reading this book, and is a challenge to return, during the intervals one puts it down, to the regular and occasionally mundane tasks of everyday living. For it is the ability to do these tasks, and to take advantage of all the small and large freedoms we have today, that was denied the prisoners of war like Mr. Handy and those whom he describes so vividly. And although the author doesn't indulge in self-praise, the reader cannot help but thank God for stalwart men like Mr. Handy and his comrades, who sacrificed so much for the liberty and prosperity we all enjoy today. It's a must-read for all ages.

The human fleets have signed an peace throaty with the cats but has the war really ended? As Jason "Bear" Bodevsy and Ian "Iceman" Hunter face against time to discover the earth's time may have just run out.

Wonderful book I liked the imagery and to find a book that does not strictly go by the plot that the game set out.

What is it about this book that makes you read it over and over. Well the action,humour, a little romance, and the emotion combined with a desperate battle for survival make this book a worth while read. If they only made them like this.

The best of the Wing Commander books. Emotional and exciting, two qualities that i find are missing from books based on previeously created series, like Star Trek or Star Wars. Hunter's death moved me to the point of tears. It didn't take me there entirely but when Admiral Tolwyn cried when they found his nephew, that part drives me over the edge every time I read it. The decriptions of the Battle of Earth are absolutely perfect. Especially when Mike Powolski rams the Kilrathi super carrier with his destroyer. When I read that to my girlfriend, she started sobbing. I recomend this book to anyone who likes a good read. The next Wing Commander movie should be based on this book.

An excellent book providing the reading with non-stop action. This book will keep you on the edge of you seat with surprises around every turn. You will not be sorry that you bought it.

When I read Fleet Action a few months ago I was relatively new to Wing Commander, having only been familiar with WCIII and WCIV and Colonel Christopher Blair. I wasn't too sure I'd like this Jason Bondarevsky guy since I was used to Blair. But I found this book to be one of the best in the series, sticking close to real military facts yet maintaining that brand of science-fiction. And there were some familiar characters from the game like Thrakhath, Tolwyn, and Paladin, so I wasn't totally lost within all these new guys. But in conclusion Fleet Action had all of the action, suspense, drama, etc. I'd expect with the Wing Commander series.

A unique blend of introspection,philosophy, WWII adventure, and aviation.

In this autobiogrpahical tale, Antoine de Saint-Exupery ruminates at length upon the situation of men within mankind, France's gallant but failing war effort, and the general context of a life lived meaningfully. He includes relationship to God. He provides specific illustrations within the context of his occupation as a pilot in the French air corps. AND . . . incredibly, he narrates most of this story while at the controls of a French military reconnaisance aircraft on a seemingly hopeless mission to Arras and back.

As St-Ex is wont to do, he flits back and forth between his reflections on life, and the current situation piloting the aircraft. The effect in fascinating, dealing with his inner thoughts while on this hopeless mission, for example describing his feeling of old age as he starves for oxygen at high altitude, fighting against his frozen controls. There is tense combat, described at one point as, flying into a "wall of brass".

On a few occasions the heavy introspection came close to losing me. I suspect that the translation from the French contributed to this, although the Lewis Galantiere translation that I read was generally nicely done.

Great writing . . . adventure . . . thoughtfulness . . . history. Does he make it back to home base? I won't ruin it for you. His writing indicates that in a way, he "found himself" while on this sortie. I will add that, as recorded in history, Saint-Exupery died when his P-38 reconnaisance plane went down in 1943, returning from a mission.

How can an author do better than "The Little Prince"? He can't. And once the dull reader--myself--accepts that, Saint-Exupery's other wonderful books become what they are meant to be: special gifts from a memorable writer.
Read "Flight to Arras" to learn about the nature of warfare, the nature of defeat and, in the midst of all this overwhelming distress, the importance of the individual.

It took more than one try for me to really get into Flight to Arras. Saint-Exupery is not the easiest of writers to follow, despite a superb writing style, because of being so deep into philosophy. And, once I did finally reach the point of being ready for this book, I was astounded. Absolutely! As always, St-Exupery taught me So Much.


To anyone who likes Saint-Exupery and wants to read this, I would say: Go for it. Don't force yourself through it, though. Wait until you're really at the place where this book will take to you, on its own.

In this autobiographical story, Saint-Ex tells of the already lost battle he found himself in during 1940 in desperate, war-torn France. He and his crew get sent on a hopeless reconnoissance flight mission over the burning City of Arras. Faced with almost certain imminent death, he is brought to the point of where he can't help but ask himself: "Where's the sense in all this? What am I doing? Why am I doing this?" And as we live through the harrowing experience with him, he lets us see into his heart and mind as he tries to find some answers.. What he comes up with is defined by solid thought resulting from acute observation (Metaphysics my foot!) of man and mankind, certainly more poignant now than ever and therefore surely timeless... And since it's Saint-Ex who relates all this in his unique humble-but-not-so-humble and profoundly human style, this is not only an exciting read about a dangerous time, but it is infused with charme and humour like some superb wine with its unique flavour and aroma. A great little book by a great man.

the book is st.-ex's thoughts and reflections as he flies a suicide recon mission during WW2. it is not an action novel, but does have some exiting parts to it. it is a thoughtful look at life. the book is not just an interesting look into the mind of someone on a doomed mission, but is motivating, thougth provoking and insightful, and has some great lines to live by. i liked it better than his other book wind, sand and stars, and my copy is all marked up and highlighted and i refer back to it often. i would reccommend this book without hesitation.

A very important insight into the life of a soldier in WW2. Lieutenant Edlin saw and lived to tell about some absolutely amazing things. From being wounded twice on D-day to accepting the surrender of the Graf Spee battery, Lt. Edlin's story keeps you riveted!

Marc Maxwell, AUG 26, 2001, Ranger GOD: Robert Edlin This is one of the finest books I have ever read. Mr. (Ranger) Robert Edlin's story is one of true heroics. This personal account of D-Day and WWII through the eyes of a well decorated 2nd Battalion Army Ranger is one that should be read by any one that wants to know what it means to be a Ranger and how these men fought with strength and nerve through one of America's defining wars. Mr. Edlin, is what all Ranger's aspire to be and along with the men and women of this era, they are what America should love. RLTW

I recently had the honor of meeting Lt Edlin at a show in Orlando. He and the other 2nd Rangers that attended were complete gentleman who answered all questions about there heroic exploits in the ETO. I honestly was in awe of these living legends and feel very fortunate to have met them. I really enjoyed my conversations withem all especially "Halftrack" Burmaster. I am a living historian(reanactor) and perhaps am a bit biased towards these men. To actually have met them and realized they really were/are just "ordianary" American citizens who gave all was incredible. I think this book will appeal to all on many levels. Written from the platoon/squad level point of view makes this interesting, in the trench's reading. I especially liked the detailed "appendix" near end of book that describes in detail the basic element of WW2 Ranger life. I really enjoyed the account of the bloody Hill 400 battle right before the Bulge exploded that goes little noticed in many books, The Rangers slugging it out with top notch German paratroopers and coming out on top. If the movie Saving Private Ryan sparked your interest in the WW2 Rangers then this book is a must read. This book has inspired me on many differant levels and I look forward to the day I can get to meet these hero's again.

Reviewer, Gordon E Mercer Ph.D. Professor of Political Science and Public Affairs and Director of the Public Policy Institute, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, North Carolina I couldn't put it down! Have you ever heard of someone turning down the Congressional Medal of Honor? This is exactly what Bob Edlin did during WWII after it was explained to him that accepting the honor would mean he would have to leave his unit and return home. As the war progresses, Lt. Edlin's small unit of four is assigned to gather intelligence on the Graff Spree Battery on the Brest peninsula, a major German Fort of strategic importance to the Germans. The Fort needed to be taken since the guns from the Fort could fire in any direction with devestating consequences. How does Lt. Edlin lead a small unit to capture over 850 Germans? Lt. Edlins unit of four reached the area of Graff Spree Batery and.......well, the rest as they say is history! It is also an exciting story about a real American hero! Bob Edlin earned his nickname "Fool Lieutenant" for daring, courage and risk taking. One cannot fail to notice however Edlin's voice of reason and hope throughout WWII as well. He saves the lives of men, gets mine blasted in the process and then proceeds to break orders by leaving the hospital early. This is a story of greatness and courage while victory and defeat hang in the balance. Edlin continues his fight for freedom on the home front when the war ends and he returns to civilian life. Captain Edlin, now in the Reserve, tries to integrate the Army Reserve and is fought up and down the line by bureaucracy and high ranking officers. Throughout the book you will read about raw courage! The author's Marcia Moen and Margo Heinen are to be commended for telling this story. They did an excellent job of capturing the spirit of Bob Edlin! It is only a matter of time before this book is made into a movie and in reading this book as a Professor, I think you are probably reading a book that is headed for a major movie!

If you like personal narratives of life in front line combat, you should read "The Fool Lieutenant," the story of Bob Edlin vs the Germany Army. I have read a dozen or more, but this one is something special. In the first place, this guy really had some adventures - some funny some hair-raising. One reason it's special to me is that I served with Bob for 18 months in the 112th Regiment. But he was in a hurry to get into combat and so he volunteered for the Rangers - and became a legend. I hope you read this excellent account of Bob's story, told in his special straight-talking style, and I hope he sells a million copies. Anybody who would turn down the Medal of Honor (because if he accepted it, he would have to leave his Ranger comrades and return to the States) deserves to have his story known after all these years.

He also tells of his life before and after the war, which adds interest to his combat story.

History that reads like a novel. The other reviewers said just about everything else.

This book follows the exploits of the Balao class submarine USS Archerfish (SS-311). Launched in May, 1943, Archerfish's first year of service in the Pacific was lackluster, with two skippers and only 2 sinkings to her credit. Her next skipper had earlier lost his confidence when in command of USS Dace after missing the Japanese carrier Shokaku, and had asked to be relieved of command. Archerfish was Joseph Enright's second chance. Initially Archerfish draws "lifeguard duty" for B-29 raids south of Tokyo Bay. After being released from this duty, the submarine was patrolling near Tokyo when it picked up an uncharted island on radar. Shortly it was determined that the "island" was moving. Closing in for a look, Enright ran the submarine parallel to the large, indistinct target. They determined that it was an aircraft carrier, and slowly outrunning Archerfish. Just as they were losing the race, the target turned to the west, heading directly for Archerfish. Enright submerged the boat, and continued periscope observations, plotting course and speed. Although he could not identify the type of aircraft carrier, he did draw a sketch on paper of the target. As shooting time was near, one of the escort destroyers passed directly over Archerfish, and as soon as she passed, Enright came to periscope depth and fired six torpedoes. The crew heard them strike the target, and believed they heard breaking up of the target. Initially Archerfish was given credit for sinking a 28,000 ton Hayataka class carrier. After the war, it was found to be the 72,000 ton Japanese supercarrier Shinano, built in secret on a battleship hull, and as big as a postwar Forrestal class supercarrier. It remains to this day the single largest warship sunk by a submarine.

One of the authors (Henry) served on board the Archerfish in the early 1950's, and he describes the postwar exploits. After the war the submarine was inactivated in 1946, and with the Korean War and the Cold War was reactivated in 1952. The submarine was not modernized to Guppy configuration, but rather retained her original fleet boat look. She participated in a number of operations, including making movies (Operation Petticoat), testing early SubRoc, and acting as a diving bell target in rescue simulations. The most unusual operation commenced in 1960, in which an "all-bachelor" crew was selected for an around the world cruise, termed "Sea Scan". The story was that she would make a complete hydrological and meteorological survey during the cruise, and she was loaded with impressive racks of equipment. In fact, her true mission was to submerge every 60 miles to provide a stable platform for extremely sophisticated gravimetric measurements under the oceans. Early missile launches were straying from their tracks due to fluctuations in the Earth's gravitational field. These sensitive measurements, which mapped small variations in the Earth's gravitational field, were essential for accurate ICBM targeting. To prepare Archerfish for the cruise, she was sent to the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Because of the cover story and the very limited number of "need to know" personnel, the Navy Yard assigned little priority to outfitting the submarine for the hydrographic science mission. In order to prepare their ship, the crew engages in "creative requisitioning" that is reminiscent of the better episodes of "McHale's Navy" and "MASH". We the get to follow the crew on a series of adventures and mishaps as they make their way around the globe, disguised as an aging submarine with a randy bachelor crew and a mission that no one would want. Eventually, Sea Scan takes until 1967 to complete all phases, and shortly after that, at the end of 1968, USS Snook (SSN-592) sinks Archerfish in a torpedo exercise off of San Diego. Many books focus on the exciting SSN operations during the Cold War. This book is a look at the DBF part of the Cold War, when even second line fleet submarines had their role to play. I highly recommend!

I picked this book up figuring it would be another WW11 account of a submarines' exploits then on seeing the jacket I had to find out what this sub did.......I laughed and felt fear, I felt sorrow at the parts where members of the crew left.....I can only imagine what it was like from the fires to the storms to the beauty that was there both in nature and in the closeness that was her crew...few are that fortunate to actually belong to a group of men that are all like brothers....and feel that their "boat" was in fact a living being...it must've been some ride.........

Gallant Lady traces the history of a remarkable "boat" from its WWII pinnacle with the sinking of Japanese super-carrier Shinano to the final Cold War mission.

This latter segment of the story is told from the 'rag hat' perspective and gives insights that are informative, entertaining and funny as hell.

"Rollicking" is probably the term Hollywood would use, and probably such a movie from the latter part of this book would be a hit. There is little question of the drama of ARCHERFISH wartime patrols and her singular distinction in stalking and sinking the world's largest enemy ship on its maiden voyage. Like many other accounts of submarine warfare, GALLANT LADY vividly describes the stuffy quarters, grimy tension, and grim excitement of WWII submarine life. Where the book becomes unusual is in the story of ARCHERFISH's third commission as auxiliary to a modernized fleet in which she has become an anachronism. Not intimidated by her diminishing status, she forges her own direction for the next ten years, embracing with gusto a series of routinejobs and a unique assignment that no other ship can be spared for. In the process her maverick (and envied) crew lives an experience of exploration, adventure, and hi-jinks worthy of the sea sagas of earlier centuries. No other commissioned ship of the Navy has enjoyed such a voyage, and no others are likely to. This is a fascinating tale of camaraderie and initiative in service to our country that belongs in every seafarer's locker. Frank S. Virden, Captain, USN (Ret.)

I know that this N&A edition is priced high but I payed the $25.95 here at Amazon and I was not disappointed. The General is one of the best war books I've ever read. It tells the tale of Herbert Curzon as he rises through the ranks to being a general in the British military. It's brilliant in revealing the world, social and political, of WWI Britain. One admires "old-school" Curzon and those like him and yet one is also shocked at the inadequacy of "old-school" tactics and their results. This book is gritty and polished, much like the British officers it illustrates. The war bits are very good though tragic. I had read The African Queen and disliked it. This is the second book of Forester's that I've read and I thought it was brilliant.

This is one of C.S. Forester's first novels about war, published in 1936 and hence pre-dating Hornblower.

Like almost all the novels which Forester wrote before he created the Hornblower books, this is brilliant, far less well known today than it deserves, and consequently quite rare. The author H.G. Wells described "The General" as "a magnificent piece of work."

Some of Forester's other books, particularly those describing battles against opponents of whom he strongly disapproved of such as Hitler's nazis or indeed Napoleon, can come over as patriotic to the point of jingoism or chauvinism. This story does not come into that category and it would not be far from the truth to call it one of the first great anti-war novels.

If you collect books about war, and you are fortunate enough to find a copy of "The General" for sale at a remotely reasonable price, buy it at once.

This novel describes the military career of a fictional first world war general. It begins and ends between the wars, with a sharp pen-picture of the retired general Curzon sitting in a bathchair on Bournemouth Promenade, having lost his leg during the great war and never managed to learn to walk properly with an artificial one.

Then the story goes back to Curzon's first battle as a subaltern in 1899 during the Boer war, and follows him through to the climax of the book at the battle of St Quentin on March 21st 1918 when the last desperate German offensive nearly snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

Forester appears to have set out to do three things; to entertain, inform, and explain. He entertains with an engaging story; he informs by describing the ghastly conditions and waste of life which was the first world war in the trenches; and he tries to explain one possible answer to the question of how British commanders could possibly have given the orders which sent hundreds of thousands of young men to their deaths.

One of the most memorable passages in the book describes the debate as generals and senior staff officers of an army corps prepared a report of why the attack they had just organised had failed and how to succeed next time. "In some ways it was like the debate of a group of savages as to how to extract a screw from a piece of wood. Accustomed only to nails, they had made one effort to pull out the screw by main force, and now that it had failed they were devising methods of applying more force still ... they could hardly be blamed for not guessing that by rotating the screw it would come out after the exertion of far less effort".

But that does not mean that Forester is simply repeating the popular caricature of First World War generals as dangerous idiots. Although he is critical of the mistakes of the generals who wasted so many lives, his criticism is far more sophisticated than the old "Lions led by donkeys" cliche.

Although Curzon, the central figure of this book, is old fashioned and conventional, he is intelligent enough to change his mind when confronted with clear evidence of the need to do so, and decisive enough to enforce that change of mind on others when many men would freeze in panic. Had he been as stupid as some reviewers make out, Curzon would not have survived the first few months of World War 1, let alone been rapidly promoted.

He is intelligent enough to realise that his men need to eat and to make sure that they are fed properly, and to make use of officers who understand newfangled things like engineering, railways, or how many men it takes to carry a gas canister. He is ruthless enough to sack staff officers who are not up to the job even when one of them is his wife's cousin.

Within minutes of arriving at the front and seeing what artillery and machine-guns can do, Curzon abandons his pre-war attitude of deliberately evading training on how to dig trenches, and instead orders his men to dig for their lives, demanding compliance from junior officers who are afraid that the men might get dirt on their uniforms. "God damn it, man!" he explodes, "Get your men digging, and don't ask damn fool questions."

In the first round of battles in the Great War, heroic efforts from Curzon in the face of greatly superior german numbers prevent the British from being flanked and probably defeated at the First Battle of Ypres. Having fought with distinction up to this point, he is promoted to much more senior positions. But then things start to go wrong.

Forester makes a great many good points about the need to use the tactics which will win the current battle rather than the last war: indeed, that even the tactics which won earlier battles of the current war should be dropped if they are out of date. But that is not the only message he is trying to put over.

The main theme of "The General" is a World War One version of the Peter Principle. The very qualities which make Curzon successful on the battlefield up to and including the command of a brigade have disastrous consequences for England when he is a Lieutenant-General commanding an army corps, and when both he and all the other senior officers of the army are still displaying the characteristics which colonels and brigadiers need to hold their regiments in the line.

Forester states quite explicitly in the book that the very strengths of the World War One generals, not just their weaknesses, were part of the problem. I quote - "It might have been ... more advantageous to England if the British Army had not been quite so full of men of high rank who were so ready for responsibility, so unflinchingly devoted to their duty, so unmoved in the face of difficulties, of such unfaltering courage."

This book is an unforgettable classic.

This was one of the best books that I've read in a couple of years. C.S. Forester is a superb author. This book depicts the tragedy and waste of human life through the actions and amibition of a British General, who, in his own mind, maintains he is doing the right thing for king and country. Highly recommended.

While most of the authors novels were set during the time of Napoleon, some were set at later times including the well known novel, "The African Queen," and this lesser known novel, "The General," both of which were set during World War I. It has often been said that generals plan tactics based on the last war. Napoleon had developed tactics based on an artillery barrage followed by an attack by infantry and cavalry. The British Army was still trying to use those tactics at the start of World War I, ignoring the change in armaments which included the introduction of machine guns.

Herbert Curzon is an officer from the old school, entering World War I in command of a lancer regiment, expecting to charge the enemy on horseback. Command of machine guns had been relegated to a lieutenant "who did not sit a horse very well," and most officers did not study the tactics of their use. They did not expect to fight on foot, and did not carry entrenching tools. The machine guns quickly became the most critical part of the battle, and men had to dig in the best they could in the muddy ground.

The British were slow to learn new tactics, and still adhered to the tactics developed by Napoleon well into the war. Curzon is given promotions, partly because he survives and impresses the War Office with his reputation for holding his positions, and partly because he marries the daughter of a Duke who has a position in the government. He rapidly rises to Lieutenant General and Corps commander. The novel ends when he is badly wounded trying to rally his men against a German offensive which is breaking the British lines.

The novel illustrates the muddle that occurred during the war. Officers had little experience trying to handle the orders necessary for the movement of half a million men, and there was an insufficient number of experienced officers. Reserves were in the wrong place, roads became clogged preventing movement, officers had a fixation on large assaults across torn up ground that their own artillery had rendered impassible. It rained, turning land into swamps where the artillery had destroyed the drainage systems. Changes to tactics were very slow. Observations were by balloons and airplanes instead of cavalry patrols. Tanks were introduced, but too few, and not readily accepted by the generals.

Hundreds of thousands of men were lost for little purpose. It is truly amazing that the government did not totally collapse, but they did not have the news media of our present day; and they had almost hysterical patriotism, with young women publicly shaming men who would not volunteer to go to the front.

The novel ends halfway through the war, when Curzon is badly wounded.

The novel was published in 1936. The forward indicates that it was used as a military manual in some countries.

Forester's main character, Gen Curzon, is from the old school, where one does not question orders, nor does one make waves. That being said, from a military leadership perspective, if one has a method, even if it doesnt work, it will continued to be used time and time again. Curzon's character is a representation of the level of British generalship in WWI. Unyielding, unimaginative, and willing to toe the line at all costs, with the blood and treasure of England.
The story has a humor woven throughout the narrative. It looks at Curzon's social climbing, his promotions (through no fault of his own, and his old school belief system. If it werent for the tradgedy of the hundred of thousands of lives which were expended based on the unimaginative battle techniques, it would be a very humorous story. Unfortunately, the death toll of WWI is a sobering reminder, thanks to Forester, of the repercussions of Generalship as displayed by Curzon.
HIghly recommended. An excellent insight into the class structure of the British Army of WWI.

This book is a great piece of WWII history. I purchased it because my son is named after this general. It is beautiful to see how people wrote letters before the times of computers and texting.

THE GENERAL AND HIS DAUGHTER: THE WARTIME LETTERS OF GENERAL JAMES M. GAVIN TO HIS DAUGHTER BARBARA provides an excellent portrait of the American experience in World War II, telling of a commander who at the age of 37 became the 82nd Parachute Infantry's commanding general, and the youngest to become a major general since the Civil War. His letters were written from the field to his nine-year-old daughter Barbara and provide plenty of 'you are there' insights into the realities of combat. It's a 'must' for any serious, in-depth World War II collection, especially libraries specializing in memoirs and writings from participants.

This is an absolutely marvelous book. Barbara Gavin Fauntleroy has given us a very personal glimpse of a Soldier's Soldier who led his men from the front and was truly one of the great Generals of WW II. General Gavin's letters reveal the sensitivity and love that he maintained despite the strains of combat and command. One cannot read this book without feeling that you have shared so much of the personal experience as well as the love and devotion he showed to his daughter. It is a book that lifts the spirit and makes you respect the "Two Star Platoon Leader' even more.

A unique footnote to World War II, and an unusual view of a famous general

There are a lot of books written about World War II and its commanding generals. There are usually written by historians, or participants writing long after the battles. This book is different. There are the wartime letters written by Jim Gavin to his daughter Barbara. They begin in 1943 when Gavin, then a colonel left the states commander of the 505th PIR or the 82nd. At that time Barbara was nine.

There are approximately 200 letters included in the book. They were written on board ships, in foxholes and tents. They do not have the afterthoughts or 'point-proving' of books written later. They are the personal messages of a father to his daughter. They talk about the day to day realities of what Gavin was doing at the time, and about his personal reactions to combat and the war.

The book provides an insight into the man and the times that is rare to find.

"God Was At Midway" is a very special piece of history, for it tells the story of the great 1942 battle from a perspective you probably haven't yet seen or expected. You can get every detail of what led up to the battle, how it was fought, and what aftermath resulted from the well-known works of Walter Lord, Gordon Prange, Robert Cressman, Mitsuo Fuchida, and other professional historians. Linzey, though, was and is none of those. Instead, he tells the story from the perspective of a young sailor who basically expected to perform a non-combatant role as a musician in the ship's band, but was instead caught up in a titanic (pun intended) struggle of violent combat and survival aboard the USS Yorktown. Young Linzey was a devoted Christian, which led him to a subsequent career as a U.S. Navy chaplain. His faith in God is a fundamental theme in the book, particularly with regard to the apparent divine intervention that brought about the unlikely American victory at Midway.
Any serious student of the Battle of Midway will want this book in his or her collection. It is a worthy complement to the more familiar historical works.

A young married sailor fought the battle of Midway in USS YORKTOWN. Torpedoed and bombed all hands went over the side to be rescued by U.S. Navy destroyers. A story of God answering prayers as sailors attened bible classes. This is must reading.

Chaplain Stanford E. Linzey's book-God Was At Midway-has incorporated the author's love of God, wife, and call to duty. This is the ultimate war story of love and sacrifice, the Godly wife who prayed for her husband and stood with him no matter what, while he faced possible death while many of his shipmates suffer horribly.

God Was At Midway is the story of God's divine intervention in people's lives at war, the author's personal life, and in the affairs of the nation as a whole.

The Battle of Midway was the turning point of World War II. The complete historical accuracy of Linzey's book places this author on par with the best writers of the subject.

- Vera Waisanen, Educator & Mother -

This book, God Was At Midway, impacts many from the perspective that it is about the life of a very young enlisted man who had the courage to believe he was to make a differenct in other young men's lives on the seas, at war and far from home. He had the stamina to believe he would survive and physically rescue another life from drowning as the Yorktown went down. He had the faith and the hope that he would return to his family. And he had the strength to carry out his duties on the job, his spiritual duties with the men, while mentally remaining focused, sane, and strategically thoughtful in every aspect of his being. Not only that, he kept his sense of humor during and after the ordeal.

While reading his story, one can feel the uplifting, the positiveness of what life should be about and how we should approach life.

I am a mother of (3) sons who are too young to realistically know what war is. This is another world they do not understand. This book would make a great movie, a TV special; or an excellent mini-series.

God Was At Midway by Stan--my husband for nearly 60 years--tells our story of trusting God in the early years of our marriage during World War II.

Filled with adventure, excitement, and romance, Stan tells the factual and personal aspects of the events leading up to the Battle of Midway. He also reveals how God changed the course of history in personal lives and in our nation through the most significant battle of this Second Great War.

God Was At Midway is must reading for those searching for a deeper understanding of not only how the Holy Spirit operates in human affairs but also how the Holy Spirit impacts personal lives through these events.

In short, God Was At Midway is scholarly, concise and a valuable contribution.

Stan successfully appeals to an eclectic audience!