Europe Books

I greatly enjoyed reading this book. It not only held, but increased, my interest as I progressed through the story. "The Major" is a very credible author, and I had no trouble picturing what he described in my mind's eye. My understanding of how American soldiers in WW II fought the campaign in Normandy is now greatly enhanced. Good show!

My mother, Mrs. Glover S. Johns, Jr., who recently celebrated her 84th birthday, called me today to advise that a friend had just stopped by her home in Austin, TX. with word of this site and the fine reviews of "The Clay Pigeons of St.Lo", written by my father Colonel Glover S. Johns, Jr. We would like to thank those of you who have treasured this book - a labor of love, pride, dedication and, at times, agony - as much as we have. I want to take this opportunity to salute and thank all those who served with my father and those have shown support for my mother since the Colonel's death in 1976. My father lived "The Clay Pigeons of St.Lo" and gave the book what he gave battle and his men: his very best. It is, indeed, a timeless and monumental work - monumental in its testimonials, monumental in its anonymity, and monumental in its unheralded magnitude. Lee Johns, son of Colonel G.S. Johns, Jr. - one of America's finest Fighting Sons.

This is the best single book on American infantry fighting in World War II that I have read. Then Major Glover Johns recounts his personal participation in one of the toughest fights our GIs faced; the struggle through the hedgerows from the D-Day beaches to St. Lo. More importantly, Johns' book demonstrates the critical importance battlefield communications played in achieving victory. As a Battalion Commander in the 29th Infantry Division, Johns' ability to manage his units was directly related to how fast phone lines could be restrung after each mortar attack or how successful his radio operators were in linking to artillery support units. Despite his relative remoteness from the foxholes, you feel every attack and suffer every loss as if you were shoulder to shoulder with the heroes who defeated Hitler's vaunted 2nd Parachute Division.

This isn't rehashed third-hand research, this is war as it was fought by one of our best combat commanders. Read it.

The book deals only with the time frame from when Col. Johns (then Major) inherits the 1st of the 115th until they capture St. Lo. During this time period, we get to see how hedgerow combat was (from the battalion commanders perspective), how German Fallshirmjagers fought, and the pressures higher command applies to their combat organizations. While Col. Johns was a battalion commander, this book does give a feel for front line combat, but no where near as directly as books such as Currah! or The Forgotten Soldier.

Col. Johns tells the story of how the 1st of the 115th (his unit) led the way to St Lo. In his telling, Col. Johns uses the third person familiar to describe the events his unit experienced rather than a first person account. This is very refreshing because story takes on more of a story tellers point of view rather than that of a person telling us how great they were.

This book is a very good re-telling of Col. Johns experiences in Normandy. If there's a weakness to this book, it's the fact that Col. Johns focuses his telling on the capture of St. Lo rather than his total exerience with the 1st of the 115th. Because of this, I found the book slightly lacking because I really wanted to know what happened to the unit later in the war and also to Col. Johns!

I'll recommend this book to those who've read Beyond the Beachhead, have an interest in the Normandy Campaign, or how a battalion commander operated during WWII. Overall, I'll rate this book 4.5 stars (out of a 5 possible). The reason I can't give this one 5 is because I preferred Company Commander by Charles McDonald for telling the struggles of command in combat at the lower levels. Since Amazon doesn't give half stars, I'll give the nod to 5 stars since Col. Johns' book is a compelling read.

This memoir is unlike any other memoir of World War II that I have ever read. Johns relates the stress, the worry, the fear, the exhaustion, the humor and the camaraderie with the ease of a seasoned storyteller. For the unseasoned reader, Johns's device of telling his story in the third person will take some getting use to, but that's done after only a few pages. More telling was Johns' own reasons for using third person, "people who fight wars up close to the enemy are not the same while they are fighting as they were before and after...His (Johns) life during that time always seemed that of another person." After that, "Clay Pigeons" is a fast read. Sadly, Bantam books never reprinted this now forgotten classic. Let's hope someone will do such a service and bring this book back. It demands a reprint.

Glantz's book is a must read for any serious student of the Eastern Front in World War II. While it may be long and dry, it covers the Soviet Army at an important time in the war. It is not a book for those who are new to the conflict. Glantz covers it all, so if you want to understand how the Red Army beat the German Army, this is one you have to read.

David Glantz may not write in the most exciting way or use tons of hyperbole or focus alot on the human facet of his stories on the Russo-German war, however as far as wealth of information on the Soviet side of things go there is no one better equipped in the western world to write about The Great Patriotic War. His access to Soviet military information is unprecedented and his attention to detail of the military operations second to none. When I first began reading Glantz's tomes on the war I had preconceived notions about this conflict. If Hitler had stayed on course for Moscow after the battle of Smolensk, if he had not split Operation Blau into a Stalingrad and a Caucauses dual front and kept those troops together for a concerted drive to the Volga, if Barbarossa had been launched in May instead of late June, if the Rasputista and bitter Russian winter had not intervened, if if if. And i truly believed Hitler could and should have won this war. After starting on Glantz's books around the year 2000 or so, and truly realizing the awesome potential in manpower and equipment the Soviets had, and realizing in these readings how unprepared materially and logistically the Germans were to fight this war my whole mindset has changed. I believe even if the Germans had taken Moscow Russia would still have won this war. Other then the Germans developing atomic weapons before anyone I have radically altered my view on Germany's chances here. The Soviet Union was destined to win this war no matter what the cost. Barbarossa more then anything else, was Hitler's greatest mistake in the war. I owe this new view to the works of David Glantz. His information is incredible, his summaries superlative, his conclusions inescapable. Dry and technical it may be, but for my money there is no better writer on The Great Patriotic War then David Glantz. Remember, Germany lost the war and 90 percent of her casualties on the Eastern front. Remember, the Soviet Union lost 27 million dead and most of her agricultural and economic bases and STILL won this war. She probably could have done so, although at even greater cost, without a second front in Italy in 1943, and in France in 1944. The Russian contribution to World War II must not be downplayed in the west. The war against Germany was primarily a Russian one, and David Glantz deserves accolades for being one of very few western writers to acknowledge this fact.

So, this is something that's only for professionals and hardcore fanatics, but it is highly recommended for them. It contains everything you ever wanted to know about the Red Army between 1941-43, and even more.

OK, nothing's perfect (5 stars means it's as perfect as it could be in our imperfect world), I can tell you one complaint. At one point he claims that command turbulance wasn't that bad even during Barbarossa. He cites statistics. But what I would've needed is some comparison. It's fine to know that less than X% of certain types of commanders were relieved of command, but it would've been nice to read some comparison: how was it with other armies... Without those, the data just hang in the air... (There were a few similar points - it's not much in a book well over 600 pages. So I still give it the 5 stars.)

Glantz does his usual excellent job on the Soviet military in World War II. He covers the campaigns, and the structure and development of the red army during the early part of the war. Separating much of the formation, commander and OoB material into the companion volume is actually a plus. Both volumes are easier to handle becuase of the size and it is easier to use two books to cross reference material.

Although hundreds of histories of Soviet-German war have been published in the last decade or so, they have for the most part either focused on large-scale operations, told the story from a predominantly German perspective, or, most likely, done both. Another unfortunate result of this has been the number of revisionist works, in some degree or another based on Viktor Suvorov's Icebreaker. In part this was out of necessity due to a a number of factors, including the lack of access to former Soviet archives as well as the repression of histories deemed embarrassing to important wartime heroes. David Glantz has once again answered this dearth of reliable Soviet-perspective war history with his newest volume Colossus Reborn. Using a massive number or Soviet primary sources he has written the comprehensive history of the Soviet-German war.

Glantz' book is divided into three parts to tell this story. The first is a chronological discussion of the first 30 months of war, subdivided into the initial period, which covers the war up to the Soviet counteroffensive at Stalingrad and then the second period, which covers the remaining 12 months. This first part of the book not only discusses the conventional view of the war but also clearly exposes the many Soviet operations that have lay hidden in virtual obscurity since war's end. Glantz also does a fine job showing how the Soviet-German war affected the course of WWII in general. Perhaps out of necessity this part of the book is rather concise. In any case it is still eye opening to have the vast number of counterstrokes, counteroffensives and strategic offensives laid out as they are here. As he himself points out, prior histories of the war have led to an almost constant and simplistic portrayal of operations as smooth periods of Wehrmacht offensives in the summer and Soviet offensives in the winter. He also clearly dispels the myth that the Red Army was simply along for the ride after the surprise attack and shows how Stalin and the Stavka repeatedly during the initial period of war attempted to organize counterstrokes as well as full counteroffensives.

Part two of the book is a very thorough look into the force structure of the Soviet army. This section is as comprehensive as one could possible ask for and retain a modicum of readability. Even as such, it is certainly the most difficult section to work through as it is basically a detailed look into how every aspect of the Soviet forces were reorganized from Front down to battalions in some instances. As such is feels at times to be comprised of endless tables of organization. This should not be overstated however, as this type of attention to detail is what most readers of Glantz have come to expect. Furthermore, it is this level of detail that sets him apart from most other widely published WWII historians. He does not simply explain to the reader that a particular type of unit was employed in a particular defensive or offensive action. He thoroughly explains how that type of unit came to be and gives the prior organization of similar units and why they failed to work.

Part three is a thorough analysis of the leaders of the Red Army and those that they led. The first subsection is broken up primarily into mini biographies of every major general, commanding every Front, Army, and Corps and all of their variants. It does so and gives a very interesting breakdown and percentages by year of the surviving and thriving general staff as well as command failures and traitors. Glantz then gives a very enlightening look into the soviet soldiers; who they were (ethnicity and gender are investigated here) how they survived, why they fought and what methods were used to keep them toeing the line, particularly after the hideous and demoralizing losses of the first six months. This section is probably the most readable of the three and is a very well written look into the human aspects of the war.

Finally, Glantz has once again written a history of the Soviet-German war that is groundbreaking, to say the least. Using sources that only he seems to be able to gain access to, he has delved more comprehensively into the factors that allowed the Red Army to first survive and eventually defeat Hitler's Wehrmacht, than anyone else before him. Yes, this volume reads quite dryly at times and the tables of organization can seem daunting but it must clearly be understood from the beginning that this is not a book for the casual history reader by any stretch. This book is meant for the dedicated historian of the Soviet-German war-those who need more than a basic overview of the military operations and geopolitical ramifications of the war. With all that said the only weakness that this book has are some instances of sloppy writing and subsequent poor editing. At times-particularly in Part I-this poor editing is truly frustrating and frequent. For the most part though, this is never more than a minor irritation. As a whole Glantz can, once again, be said to be the undisputed master of Soviet-German war history.

A really great, fascinating book. I've read a lot of holocaust literature, but rarely review it, because what can I say besides that it "literally caused me to have nightmares" - should I say that I "enjoy" reading these accounts?

But I can't let this masterpiece go unnoted by me. Dawid Sierakowiak's notebooks are enormously interesting and inspiring. Very similar to Victor Klemperer's diaries but more terse and to the point. I found it very interesting that both Klemperer and Sierakowiak seek refuge in books, and even (as I recall from my reading Klemperer years ago) both mention reading "The Forsythe Saga" while undergoing starvation and persecution.

Of particular interest in Sierakowiak's diaries is his accounts of what news he heard from the outside world (for the most part he is surprisingly well-informed) and what "current events" signify to him. I found it very interesting, for example, not only that he was aware that Anthony Eden was visiting Washington in early 1943 (which I assume is true - I really have no idea) but also that he hoped for some kind of decisive announcement or action to come as a result of that meeting.

The diaries get bogged down a bit in extremely depressing detail of what little food he and his family managed to eat but then explode with lucidity when his Mother is selected for deportation.

Really one of the most memorable books I have ever read.

Teen-ager Dawid Sierakowiak, imprisoned with his family in the Lodz Ghetto, at first carries on a "normal" life, discussing politics with his friends and keeping up with his studies.
More and more restrictions on the population-- illness, lack of food, hygiene, fuel and money, eventually take their toll on everyone. Existence deteriorates to the point at which Dawid knows he will soon die, and he does so 4 months later.
Every aspect of this slow death to the ghetto residents who are not murdered was planned by the Germans.
There are many photographs, which enhance the narrative.

This review is based on the 1996 Oxford hardback edition. Sierakowiak devotes a considerable number of entries to the 1939 German-Soviet conquest of Poland. On Sept. 14, it rained. Sierakowiak notes that, had this been going on since Sept. 1, the German tanks would've gotten stuck in the mire (p. 38). On Sept. 19, Sierakowiak repudiated Hitler's lies, in which the Fuhrer, in a radio broadcast, had blamed Poland for starting the war and for mistreating the German minority (p. 42).

A radio program from London mentioned the Germans' vain seeking of Prince Janusz Radziwill to form a collaborationist government (Nov. 5, 1939; p. 59). This adds refutation to the claim that there was no Polish Quisling because the Germans never wanted one.

No sooner had the German entered Lodz then they began to persecute both Jews and Poles. On Nov. 17, 1939, the Germans forced Polish priests to destroy the Kosciuszko statue with sledge hammers. This being ineffective, the Germans resorted to dynamite (p. 63).

A common Polonophobic Holocaust theme is the one about Poles habitually delighting in Jewish humiliation and suffering. In contrast, Sierakowiak writes (Nov. 18, 1939; p. 64): "The Poles cast down their eyes at the sight of the Jews with their armbands; friends assure us that `it won't be for long.'" In view of the fact that Sierakowiak otherwise never mentions Polish attitudes, and that negative incidents are more likely to be remembered and recorded in diaries than positive ones, this takes on further significance.

Sierakowiak was irreligious (p. 38). And, not only was he pro-Communist, but in fact he praised Communists and condemned capitalism many times (p. 88, 92, 102, 105, 155, 220, 260, 263, etc.).

As for leader Chaim Rumkowski (Rumkovsky) and his privileged Jews, Sierakowiak elaborates on the inequities between the well-fed, well-clad Jews and the starving, ragged Jews (p. 176, 198, 245). When Rumkowski ordered the timely and obedient fulfillment of the German order to deport Jewish children and the elderly ("useless eaters" for extermination), Sierakowiak noted the many kinds of privileged Jews whose children and elderly relatives had been exempt from this order (pp. 216-217).

The Germans used some Jews to beat other Jews (March 16, 1943; p. 258). During the deportations, one unarmed Jewish policeman each was assigned to supervise the loading of about 100 Jews onto the trains (p. 270). Armed Germans didn't usually get involved until the latter phases of the day's loadings.

Owing to the fact that the Jews in the Lodz ghetto had been exploited for German war production, they were spared for most of the duration of the war. Not until August 1944 did the Germans liquidate the Lodz ghetto.

Simply put, Dawid is an amazing young man. Unfortunately for this world, he probably had to suffer to make a long lasting impact. True greatness rarily comes to those of us who contribute daily to the ENHANCEMENT of life and young Dawid is proof of this. His sometimes yielding but never breaking spirit of joy and hopeful speculation makes him a true hero. While his tragic, and "all too early" death are sad, the important things left behind in his words are timeless. He reminds us all that no matter how (supposedly) bad things get in our (truly) rich lives, a thing such as maniacal tyranny and slavery can never be tolerated. The light at the end of Dawid's tunnel never came to him, but by his words and actions hopefully we will all see that inspiration and determination will also glow.

This book is the most powerful and memorable book on the Holocaust I have ever read. Kids in school read Anne Frank, I suppose because it is so popular. It was the first memoir found, not the most telling or interesting. This book is also a great psychology book as it so graphically shows the heirarchy of needs as the situation becomes more desperate. I wish that teachers of senior or junior honors classes would consider this over Brave New World where the main character gives up. Dawid, is a much more positive book of the human spirit in that he continues to deal with the ever worstening cards he is given and works hard to survive. This book hits on so many topics: history, psychology, the power of the human spirit, man's cruelty and literature as Dawid was an exceptional mind for his age.

i loved this book. i felt as though i was right there with him and his family through every phase of their lives. this book had everything going for it, sadness, chaos, happiness, tragedy. it was so personal and you just felt as though the author let you in to share with him.

This book will be enjoyed by all who read it for it is a story of survival from the ashes of the Holocaust. This book is also an excellent book club selection that will spark much thought and conversation.

Joseph Berger has written a story that needed to be told, but he has included too much extraneous material about his own life. Much of what he tells reveals what it was like growing up as the child of a refugee, but who cares whether or not he dated in high school?

The best parts of this book were those about his mother's life and about how she managed in the United States as a refugee. Berger's writing is more journalism than story telling. He's got all the facts, but none of his descriptions flare above the mundane. His mother's reminisences are far more artistic, and reveal more than the words on the page.

New York Times journalist Joseph Berger has created a masterful, evocative and moving account of the ever-present duality of his life: his identity as an acculturated American child of Holocaust survivors. This duality gives his account of his mother's life and his own evolution from a bewildered refugee child into an accomplished American a poignancy and power. "Displaced Persons" will stand as an important contribution, not only to our understanding of the long-term implications of being a survivor of the Holocaust, but of the unique burdens, pressures and responsibilities children of survivors inherit from their parents.

Berger is acutely aware of "the unmentioned sorrow that was the subtext to everything [his] parents said or did." Haunted by memories, devastated by enormous loss, handicapped by their arrival in America in their twenties and driven to provide security for their families, Holocaust survivors often perceive their children as replacements of beloved family members who perished and as repositories of hopes and dreams denied them. Worried about their children's safety, happiness and future, Berger muses about his parents' perspective, "What could I say about the dread and suspicion with which they encountered a world that had proven maliciously fickle?"

As the author emerges from childhood, he begins to chafe from his mother's protective, controlling instincts and desires to assert himself as his own man. Berger's wrenching analysis of his status becomes the overarching theme of his memoir. "I saw myself now an an American...I would no more be the timid refugee boy with one leg planted in the fearful shtetls of Poland, with a mother ever vigilant that no more perils come to the remnants of her kin." It is this unspoken loving tension between Joseph and his mother, Rachel, that gives "Persons" its dynamism.

Alternating between two narratives, one his own and the other the gripping account of his mother's survival, Berger deftly intermingles past and present. Aware of his distinct heritage, the young Berger recognizes others in his impoverished Manhattan neighborhood who share his background. "We knew one another, knew in our young bellies that our parents were the same dazed and damaged lot, had the same refugee awkwardness, the same whiff about them of marrow bones and carp." Now attempting to wrest coherence in America, Holocaust survivors tend to frustrate Berger with their problem solving techniques. Berger prefers the American way of standing up directly; survivors "were always scraping by on a willingness to do what was necessary to survive, even if that meant surrendering pride or principle."

Raw emotion floods "Displaced Persons." Rachel's symbolic mourning of a dead child in Warsaw at the onset of World War II serves to remind us that she has no "mental picture" of the actual murder of her family. Unspoken grief undulates throughout the memoir. Berger's stoic father Marcus scarcely articulates his unfathomable sense of loss; nearly half a century passes before he can utter the names of his sisters. Guilt ebbs and flows in Rachel's description of her survival. Anguished over refusing to bring non-kosher food to her hungry brother during World War II, she has never forgiven heself, calling it "the worst thing I ever did in my life."

Yet life surges and humor emerges in Berger's descriptions of growing up in New York City in the 1950s and 60s. With both parents working at dreary, tiring jobs, the author experiences a freedom of movement he admits he would never conceive of allowing his own daughter today. His descriptions of his initial exploration of Manhattan reveal the sheer joy of discovery, the incredible exuberance of youthful hopes and the awesome sense of possibilities Berger recognizes in his new home. Berger's frantic disposal of an illicit girlie magazine carries universal appeal; he becomes an American everyboy. His struggles with self-confidence, academic competition and sexual frustrations are those of not only his generation, but of those before and after.

Written with conviction and compassion, "Displaced Persons" is that kind of memoir that not only describes, but instructs. Through the author's descriptions of his resolute, stubborn and proud mother, survivors attain an identity beyond that of suffering and loss. His own life's story shapes our understanding of the purpose of our national experience and the sacredness of an American identity. Treating both the Holocuast in its past brutality and its implications for the second-generation children of survivors, the memoir blends sorrow and joy, heartache and hope, pain and redemption.

My father's story parallels Joseph Berger's in eerie ways...they were both at the Schlactensee DP Camp and the Landsberg-Am-Lech DP camp...Berger's mother's story of her youth could be my grandmother's, from an unpleasant step-mother to the flight East to Russia. My father was born during my grandparents' refuge in the USSR, and crossed illegally with his family into Poland after the war ended. I have always been close to my grandparents, but this book brought clarity and insight into topics they don't generally discuss...the duality that immigrant survivors (the displaced persons) felt between their new lives in America and the tragedy and loss left in Europe. When I look at my grandparents' happy faces at family occasions---graduations, weddings, bar mitzvahs, birthday parties---I wonder if the events make them remember times similar back in Lithuania. Berger's story, beautifully written and researched, is a must-read.

I can not say if this is the best book on the subject, because I have not read the other books. I can say that this book is absolutely magnificient scholarship. Its subject is the Irish in America, and it gives a masterful presentation of the history of these people, both in Ireland and in America. This book is not a light read. It is very dense, and rather long. For readers with a serious interest in the subject, however, it is very rewarding to read.

I'm not Irish and I didn't have to read this book as part of a course. I read the book because I'm interesed in U.S. immigration, and find it necessary to understand refugee movements past and present. I'm also concerned about the 'problems'in Northern Ireland.

This book is a hard slog but a fairly good read. I read 10-15 pages at lunch every day and finally got through it. It's a very informative book, and quite illuminating.

The British undoubtedly caused many of the problems the Irish experienced in the past and continue to experience today. However, the Irish have had a hard time letting go of the past. What is to be done? One cannot make the past different, only the present. Although one might sympathize with the Catholic Irish, and even the IRA, the future must be different. Protestants are not going back to England or Scotland. In fact, they can no more return than those of British or Scotish descent living in North Carolina can go back to the U.K.

Read this book to better understand the dilemmna in Northern Ireland, and the possible ways peace may be found.

Emigrants and Exiles: Ireland and the Irish Exodus to North America is a well documented history of the emigration of more than seven million Irish people who left Eire for North America in five time periods from pre-Revolutionary days to 1921. Author Kerby Miller's research included more than 750 sources in both public and privately held collections in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Canada, 20 U.S. states and the District of Columbia as well as more than 5,000 emigrants' letters, memoirs, poems, songs and folklore.

Miller begins and ends the book with recollections of Irish oral tradition to help understand the essence of the Irish emigration experience. He refers to Irish poems, songs and ballads from as early as the 11th century to explain an almost original sin-like belief that all Irish are exiles whether they emigrated or not. He explains how the Irish wake became a metaphor for the departure of the emigrants. In the last moments before Maura O'Sullivan left her mother's cottage to begin her journey to America, the old women of the village gathered `round to sing a mournful goodbye that just as easily could have been a funeral dirge: "Oh, musha, Maura, how shall I live after you when the long winter's night will be here and you not coming to the door nor your laughter to be heard!"

By the 1830s, less than 10,000 families literally owned Ireland, with several hundred of the wealthiest proprietors and large tenants monopolizing the bulk of the land. The Irish Diaspora flowed from an extreme concentration of property and power in an agrarian, export-based economy where too many people competed for too few jobs. In 1841, 80 percent of the more than 8.1 million Irish lived in communities of less than 20 houses. Most people were forced to lead lives of impoverished subsistence agriculture, poorly paid urban common labor or to emigrate.

Miller says Irish country people were "preliterate;" that is, they were illiterate while preserving a rich oral tradition and robust cultural heritage through their Gaelic language. Gaelic tradition had been sustained in Ireland by hereditary storytellers and poets who met in "courts of poetry" at farmhouses where established bards judged the compositions of their successors. Hundreds of thousands of Gaelic speakers emigrated to North America.

Music and dancing also played a prominent role in rural Irish culture from whence most emigrants came. Miller says visitors were often astonished that people so poor could exhibit such skill and spontaneous pleasure in song and dance. He quotes a traveling Englishman who observed, "We frog-blooded English dance as if the practice were not congenial to us, but here they moved as if dancing had been the business of their lives."

Prior to 1815, most Irish emigrants either were able to pay their passages or "emigrated for nothing" as indentured servants. After that, overseas demand for indentured servants practically disappeared while opportunities to earn livable wages in Ireland continued to deteriorate. A pattern of family chain migration developed that financed over half of all Irish migration after 1840.

In 1845, Ireland's population was about 8.5 million. Ten years later, after the worst of the Famine, it stood at 6 million. Many had died from starvation and disease, but most had emigrated to North America. Those who arrived in North America were temperamentally as well as economically less prepared for assimilation into their new lives abroad because of their strong peasant heritage. One Irish emigrant wrote, "Had I fallen from the clouds amongst this people, I could not feel more isolated, more bewildered." Another wrote, "We are a primitive people wandering wildly in a strange land ..."

Miller tells us at least 200,000 Irishmen served in the U.S. Civil War, the vast majority for the Union, which paid lucrative bounties to many recruits. He shares a letter from emigrant Thomas McManus to his family in Ireland in which Thomas assured them he wasn't forced to enlist, but "by `Gor' the bounty was very tempting and I enlisted the first day I came here." Thomas sent $350 of the $700 he received for joining up to help his family in Ireland. $700 was more than ten years' wages for an Irish laborer at the time.

Irish-Catholic immigrants brought their own factions, secret societies, sports and boisterous wakes to their neighborhoods and work sites in North America. Vicious battles over employment opportunities and territory were common among rival bands of workers from different parts of Ireland, as well as between the Irish and workers of other nationalities. The Irish were always sensitive to anti-Irish prejudice, symbolized by the "No Irish Need Apply" slogan, the source of which apparently was a song from England. Irish clannishness was often expressed in allegiance to strong-willed, often stridently Irish priests, to Irish street gangs, volunteer fire companies, political clubs and frequent mob actions against non-Irish competitors. The St. Patrick's Day observance was celebrated to extol Irish Catholic solidarity and build political strength.

This is not to say Irish Catholic immigrants were unified. On the contrary, Miller shows how they were deeply divided in several ways. Significant differences existed between Irish- and American-born generations, between different waves of emigrants in different stages of adaptation and affluence and between those who earned formal educational credentials and those who pursued trades and manual labor. Other factions arose between the English-speaking majority and the approximately half-million who still spoke Irish. Gender equality was also a prevalent issue between Irish men and women. In fact, Miller reports Irish-American women enjoyed significantly greater upward mobility and more successful adjustment to American society than did their male peers.

Kerby Miller's work is unquestionably a rich treasure of outstanding historical scholarship. It should occupy prime space on the shelf of anyone interested in emigration generally or the histories of the United States, Canada, Australia, England and any other country in which Irish emigrants have settled.

Many of us tracing our Irish ancestry will never really know our forebears - we may learn their names and the dates and places of their births and deaths - but we will never know who they really were. It is to sources such as this book that we must turn to flesh out the picture of the Irish emigrant and the forces that drove them from their homes - economic, social, cultural, and psychological, as well as their reactions to and rationalizations of those forces. We must then apply this information on the Irish emigrant milieu to the framework of knowledge of our specific forebears. The book has given me a plausible explanation as to why my County Mayo ancestors did not emigrate until the 1880's while so many from other parts of Ireland came over much sooner. Dr. Miller is quite detailed in his discussion of the differences in the adherence to traditional Irish culture and the Irish language that existed between the inhabitants of western Ireland and the remainder of the island. A must-read for any geneaologist seeking their Irish roots!

An excellent book covering the migration out of Ireland. Miller looks at the different time periods and at the different kinds of immigration, and traces the idea of emigration as "exile." Great background materials are included, as well as good statistical appendices and notes.

This is comparative history at its very best. Elliott superbly describes and chronicles the history of the British and Spanish exploration and colonization of the Americas, as well as the process whereby both the British American and Spanish American colonial societies brought about their independence from the imperial governments. It is a comprehensive, detailed, and yet highly readable overview of the political, economic, social, military, and religious forces at play in the Americas during the time period. Elliott goes beyond the telling of historical events and facts, to provide analysis and interpretation of why history unfolded as it did. The writing is excellent and clearly reflects a highly learned historian who has the ability to tell history in a an engaging manner. His juxtaposition and comparison of British and Spanish America in a single volume results in a very interesting and stimulating way to learn about the two empires. The book contains very attractive end papers, a number of excellent maps and numerous color plates. Very highly recommended.

Elliott delivers the masterpiece that those who study the Atlantic World have been waiting for. The idea of studying history from the perspective of the Atlantic has been growing in popularity and worth taking a further look at. Britain and Spain established mammoth empires and Elliot looks at their rise and fall. He also considers other powers including the French and Dutch but focuses mainly on the first two mentioned. The age of exploration is put in context and in true Atlantic fashion the slave trade and development in Latin America are very important. The revolutions of the Atlantic world are very clearly explained in this book and Elliott leaves you wondering where else this field can go. Elliott writes very well and this book is a must read for those who want to consider how the Atlantic world impacted Europe and the United States.

In Empires of the Atlantic World, Professor Elliot compares and contrasts Spanish colonial America with British colonial America. I am not aware of any other books that take this is their subject, and I think that it is worthy of attention. Elliot presents 2 very different experiences in terms of government, economy, and culture. For instance, the Spanish conquistadors came upon a very highly centralized political structure, which they were able to penetrate (and co-opt for their own rule) with relative ease. This enabled them to retain the tributary labor system of the Aztecs and Incas, which they labeled the encomienda system. The British in North America did not have the same experience, as the Indians there tended to be far more decentralized. This forced the British to pursue a far different strategy in their efforts at conquest. Also, the scarcity of gold and silver in North America forced the British to diversify the colonial economy, leading to a more developed economic scene.

Additionally, I found Elliot's side-by-side discussion (between the British and the Spanish) of various other colonial themes to be well-developed. In particular, he goes into considerable detail in contrasting Spain's Catholic-only policy in the Americas with the religious diversity that existed in the British colonies. At the same time, he also explores the very different attitudes that the British and the Spanish had toward the Indians, and how those differing attitudes shaped political and social orders in the 2 regions (look at the large "Mestizo" population that exists in many parts of Latin America today, in contrast to the relatively small population within the United States). For instance, the Spanish sought to bring the Indians into the Catholic Church (witness the significant presence of the Catholic Church in the colonies), and even (theoretically) included a measure of legal protection for Indians within the encomienda system. On the other hand, the British did not make christianizing the Indians a high priority, nor did they concern themselves wth any legal protections for the Indians (a notable exception to this was William Penn).

Elliot gives a great deal of space to discussing how the political and religious regimes that existed in Great Britain and Spain were transferred to these nation's respective American colonies. For example, the British colonists were nurtured, to some degree, by the growing "liberal" ideas that were coming out of Great Britain at the start of the 1700s, while Spanish colonists had no such ideas to turn to (at least none in Spanish). Moreover, British control over its colonies was relatively decentralized (many of the colonies were private or corporate, and all enjoyed a measure of self-government), though Spanish colonies were under the tight grip of the Spanish monarchy. Finally, Elliot demonstrates how both Great Britain and Spain began to "reform" their administrative policies vis-a-vis the colonies, and how those reforms triggered colonial resentment (though the 2 nations had different results in quashing this resentment).

This well written and well organized book is a careful synthesis of the enormous secondary literatures on colonial British America and colonial Spanish America. Elliott provides a pair of parallel narrative overviews of British and Spanish America from their foundings to the revolutions that severed ties to their home nations. The narratives provide the basis for some comparative analysis that recurs throughout the book.

Knowledgeable readers will probably be familiar with much of the narrative about British North America. Much of the information about Spanish North American will probably be new to many readers (like me). For example, the small British settlements of the 17th century were dwarfed by the scope of the Spanish colonial enterprise. When Boston and Philadelphia were modest seaports, Spanish America boasted several large cities. At the time of Harvard's foundation, Spanish America already possessed several universities.

Elliott divides this book into three sections; Occupation, Consolidation, and Emancipation. Occupation is devoted to the initial experience of exploration, colonization, and encounters with the native peoples of the Americas. The chapters in Consolidation describe the development of mature colonial economies and imperial government, the challenge of developing European style societies in radically different circumstances, and the sense of identities developed in these new societies. Emancipation describes the 18th century conflicts between the metropolitan centers and the colonies, particularly as London and Madrid attempted to develop closer control and upset traditional arrangements. All chapters are particularly good combinations of political, economic, and social history.

Elliott points out the common problems faced by both British and Spanish colonial efforts but also how the different features of the home nations and different circumstances in the Americas produced different outcomes. The Spanish, for example, were confronted with very large native populations that they attempted to incorporate into their empire. This fact, plus traditions inherited from the Reconquista, would contribute to the generation of the very racially differentiated society in much of Spanish America. The existence of enormous silver deposits in Mexico and Peru drove the Spanish Crown to exercise considerably closer control of its colonies than the British monarchy would exercise over its colonies.

In his comparative analysis, Elliott deals with the major differences in British and Spanish America, and implicitly how they led to such differing outcomes after the revolutions at the end of the 18th century. Elliott's answers are surprisingly traditional. He stresses the centralized bureaucratic nature of the Spanish empire, the more 'commercial' nature of British settlements, the religious pluralism of the British colonies, and the more liberal/representative political traditions that the British brought with them. Elliott is careful to point out that many of these ultimately beneficial features were essentially inadvertant. If the English crown had been stronger or if rich gold mines had been found in the Blue Ridge mountains, the path of British colonization might well have been closer to the Spanish model.

This was an eye-opener for me as I knew very little on Spain's American territories, besides brief descriptions of some of the conquistadors such as Cortes and Pizzarro. What Elliott has done in this book is to show the comparisons and contrasts between England's New World Colonies and Spain's. There are many fascinating facets underlaying the reasons for acquiring these territories, how both sides viewed their mission and goals, and how they governed them. This is without a doubt a remarkable book that revealed a lot for me.

The first colonization was begun by the Spanish in the early 16th Century. The English made their first successful attempt in the early 17th Century. Both South and North America posed different challenges for both governments, i.e. the size of the indigenous populations, the geography and climate, natural resources and so forth. For me, the real fascination was learning more about the Spanish colonies and the establishment of the viceroyalties of New Spain (based in Mexico City) and Peru (based in Lima) with additional ones developing over time. The interaction with the natives, the attempts at Christianization, trade, and many other aspects of Spain's colonization were quite enlightening.

Being more familiar with United States history, I felt more familiar with the material covered on England's planting of settlers in Jamestown and later in New England. However, the real education was in Elliott's efforts to show how each of these two powers (Spain and England) confronted the realities and challenges of establishing their presence in these very different regions. The differences were often quite stark. Some of the points of contrast that most differentiated the two powers included each nation's attitude towards the Indians (including the attempts or lack of evangelization) and the extent of imperial bureaucracy brought over from the mother countries.

Elliott also describes how world events had helped to shape and or guide the developments that occurred in both country's territories. The Reformation, the British Commonwealth under Cromwell, the Restoration, the Glorious Revolution, the French and Indian War, the French Revolution and so forth, all served as factors in shaping the events that transpired in North and South America. The role of various monarchs, religious, military and political leaders, as well as indigenous leaders, are also discussed.

Elliott does try to take an even-handed approach in acknowledging the strengths and weaknesses of both government's endeavors. Of course it goes without saying that the notion of empire, with the connotations of exploitation of natives and their cultures, is unpopular in most peoples minds nowadays. Yes, it was and remains a blot on the records of all nations that engaged in replacing the livelihoods and cultures (sometimes more like extermination) of indigenous peoples, or those who engaged in the slave trade, but we must keep in mind that we have to try to keep modern standards in check for historical purposes.

This is such a broad subject that I find it hard to even begin to touch on more specific details found in this book; I'm just trying to outline the broader contours of Elliott's book. Having some introduction to this time period will help you, but you need not be an expert on this particular topic. An illuminating read.

The book is engaging and unique. Tells about a personal story and also explains the historical background of this period which is invaluable part to understanding the chain of events, events which are often overlooked.

This book expertly combines historical revelations and insights with an against-all-odds survival story!

This is a extremely engaging and informative book about a long overlooked aspect of the Holocaust. And it's a real page-turner. Whiteman's background as a Holocaust survivor and psychologist shines through her astute observations. Whiteman also gives wonderful presentations on Holocaust-related issues.

Through the eyes of a boy battling history, Escape Via Siberia tells the long overlooked story of Eastern Europe during WW II. This willful and wile boy somehow manages to always give the slip to the Nazis and Stalin's forces, which both hunt him throughout Eastern Europe. This true story packs so much suspense and history that it should be made into a movie! It is a must-read for historians and lay audiences alike.

I bought this book after talking to Dorit Whiteman at her book signing at the Holocaust Museum and seeing her engrossing presentation at a library. She is an utterly charming and thoroughly knowledgeable individual! Her book expertly weaves together history with the true story of a how a resourceful, clever boy repeatedly gave the slip to German and Russian forces. I stayed up all night reading this book even though I already knew the end!

This is truly a most enjoyable book! Written with honesty and clarity of thought, it is an excellent window into the mind of an exceptional man in extraordinary circumstances.

It is a far cry from the all too common "hooray for me" war memoirs... the authors recount the exhilaration of victory, but along side it is the fear, the frustration, the loss.

It flows easily and logically and reads very well. It might not be the best WWII flying memoir I've ever read, but it isn't far below the mark. If you are interested in the era and its participants you WILL enjoy this book!

I found The First Hellcat Ace to be a thoroughly enjoyable chronicle of Hamilton McWhorter's experiences in World War II. The book reads well and the story is engaging, providing a balanced view of his personal and professional life as a Naval aviator. The deprivations of shipboard life, the risks of combat, and the pain of separation from loved ones provide a solid foundation for "One-Slug" McWhorter's story.

Professional writer Jay Stout and WWII air ace extraordinaire, CDR Hamilton McWhorter III (USN Ret) have captured a great piece of personal history in their non-fictional book, "The First Hellcat Ace." This is truly one of the all time greatest stories of U.S. Naval aviation history. The authors take us along as we follow a young Hamilton go through his training (During the time of Pearl Harbor) and off on his battles over North Africa against the Vichy French and in the Pacific against the Japanese.

This is not just a story of how one man becomes the first air ace in a Hellcat Fighter but it deals with accounts of other men from "Fighting Squadron 9." These were America's best young men who fought in the skies above the likes of Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and Tarawa Atoll among other places. They risked their lives daily in air to air combat and from hostile ground and ship fire.

There is much depth to the story telling as we get to look at McWhorter's experiences as he reflects back on those days during the war. It is told as if it had just recently happened. The writing style is easy to read and follow and creates great excitement. It also gives us a more personal view of the men and what their lives were like. This book is suitable for most all readers.

If you enjoy aviation, or naval war stories, history, or just like to read about heroes, then this is the book for you. This is an important book that needs to be discovered by young Americans looking for old fashioned heroes. Commander McWhorter is the real McCoy and it would be good to honor him and others like himself before the Greatest Generation becomes just a memory. But when they do, I hope that this book will still be there casting long shadows over future generations.

Given the MWSA's Highest Rating of Five Stars!

Well written, honest and easy to read - this is the kind of book that gets dusted off every year or so and re-read.

I found The First Hellcat Ace to be a thoroughly enjoyable chronicle of Hamilton McWhorter's experiences in World War II. The book reads well and the story is engaging, providing a balanced view of his personal and professional life as a Naval aviator. The deprivations of shipboard life, the risks of combat, and the pain of separation from loved ones provide a solid foundation for "One-Slug" McWhorter's story.

Wow. Possibly the most amazing book I've read. Elkins is furious and angry and this oozes from his writing. How then does it not come across as an emotional diatribe??? This was simply great writing and story telling. The events are interesting. The people are interesting. That the book is fact shocked and depressed me. How much have I already heard about the holocaust? I've seen Schindler's List. I've seen footage of the bodies on the History Channel. I'm reasonably well informed. But this book......this book not only seemed to make the known more real and vivid, it told an incredible and dramatic story I never heard before. I loaned my only copy to a friend and he is just as blown away. I think I'll buy another.

Though horrible and shocking, this book shows how the human spirit cannot be surpressed. In spite of an absolute impossibility of success, a small handfull of men kept the spirit of survival and revenge alive during the darkest period in history. While revenge may seem inappropriate in our concept of ideal society, at that time, no other emotion is conceivable! This book very clearly shows how revenge was a natural outgrowth of the horrors of the holocost.

Elkins keeps his work to the point. He does not hide the facts, but tells them as they really were. For a real close look at the holocaust, this book is a perfect read

A comprehensive chronology of Jewish resistence to the Nazis and their collaborators from the late 30's through the war. It also details complicity of the Central and Eastern Europeans with the Nazis, the apathy of the "Allies" during the war, and the shameful behavior of the world after the war with respect to refugees, Nazi criminals and Israel. This book will make you proud if your Jewish and angry if your human (Jewish or otherwise).

A very good book that makes you feel the pain that the Jews have felt. To try a turn this around and say look how horrible the Jews are is totally insane. The Jews should be commended on being able to keep a cool head after so long. Any other ethnic group of people who would have experienced this would have carried out equal horrible attrocities upon their oppressors. To whine and say what was mentioned in the book was cowardly is pothetic.

This is an excellent book about an ignored group of heroes from the Battle of Briton. It is well written and documented. It gives a gripping and true account of the gallant Polish airmen who helped save England from Nazism. It also sadly shows how they were mistreated after the war. I would highly recommend this book for anybody studying World War II history and / or Polish history. It is rich with details but not boring. I could not put this book down and began reading large segments to my wife. She previously had minimal interest in history and found the book very facinating!

This book recounts the role of Polish pilots in the Allied war effort. It discusses how the Poles accounted for a disproportionate share of German planes downed over England. It also discusses the personal lives of the pilots, including the homesickness felt every Christmas. The all-but-forgotten sufferings of the Poles under both German Nazis and Soviet Communists is recounted in some detail. There is discussion of the heartbreak and outrage experienced by the pilots once they learned that the western Allies betrayed Poland to Soviet control after the war, ruling out a return home for most of the pilots. The postwar lives of some of the pilots are also recounted. The ingratitude of the British shown in politics was duplicated by much of the civilian population soon after the war. The short memory of the British, who forgot that Poles were fighting for the very survival of Britain a few short years earlier, were now clamoring for the Poles to go home. Other details are also provided. There is even mention of a Polish pilot, decades after the war, locating, in Bavaria, the German pilot he had shot down back in September 1939.

This book beside being interesting and intelligently written is unique in showing the "reverse of the coin". It is the book which shows the reality of the (sometimes mundane) life endured during II world war by people described in it. It was refreshing to read it. After reading many historical books I was almost always left with feeling that something was missing. Of ourse yes, the ordinary every day life was omitted in those books, but not in this one. I am looking forward to the next book of this author !

When I was growing up, I never was able to read much about Poland's role in WW2, except that it was conquered in less than a month by the German army. The only documentary I saw on the subject was Frank Capra's "The Nazis Strike", part 2 of his famous "Why We Fight" series on the war. Unfortunately, the documentary gets the facts completely wrong concerning the Polish Air Force. Believing the German propaganda version of the invasion of Poland, it claimed the Polish Air Force was caught on the ground and quickly wiped out by the German Luftwaffe.

It is true that many airfields were damaged and many planes were destroyed on the ground, but those planes were either training or sporting planes. The Polish Air Force were equipped with old-fashioned fighter planes and each fighter had only two machine-guns, compared with four machine-guns and two cannon on the Me-109. Even the German bombers were faster than the polish fighter planes, but many were still brought down in daring ariel attacks.

During the German invasion of Poland, the Polish pilots had to suffer many hardships. There was virtually no coordination with Polish army forces, and indeed quite a few Polish planes were mistakenly shot down by Polish troops! Also, as the Polish army retreated, the lack of gasoline as well as suitable airfields became a big problem for the brave airmen who were trying desperately to save their country.

After the surrender of Poland, much of the air force (without their planes, though) found their way to France where they continued the fight against Hitler's Third Reich. But France was quickly captured by the bold "Blitzkrieg" tactics of the German army, and so the Polish Air Force left for England. It was in England where the Polish Air Force became legendary, making a huge contribution to the British victory against the Luftwaffe. There were even movies made about Polish airmen, but their popularity in England was eventually poisoned by Stalin and the Soviet Union, who weren't about to help Poland win back its country.

Although the Polish army and air force constantly made big contributions to the Allied effort, Poland was betrayed by the Allies following the end of WW2. Many refused to return to their once beloved country that was now controlled by a communist dictator in Russia. This is a tragic, compelling, and very important story from WW2 that all history buffs should read. For the very best on the Polish Air Force, you can't do better than Jerzy B. Cynk's massive 2-volume official history of the Polish Air Force, packed with hundreds of photos. As an introduction to the subject, this awesome book is highly recommended.

This book is for you if you want to learn little-known facts about World War II, as well as the under-rated and often minimized contributions of Poland to the Allied war effort. This book is NOT for you if you are content to wallow in false stereotypes of Poles charging German tanks with lances.