Finland Books

Tales from a Finnish Tupa is a collection of fairy tales set in Finland and featuring Finnish cultural elements. The stories are extremely good, ranging from very short two page stories for very sleepy children to longer tales for the more rambunctious sort. The writing is very engaging, able to captivate the attention and transport the reader (and the read to) to the exotic and mysterious land to the east, where wizards still walk the land and ask to stay the night, where wise old women defend the farm against mischevious spirits, and where young lovers prevail in spite of wicked step parents. In short, it takes you to that part of Finland (or Upper Michigan) that lies just at the edge of your vision, beyond that large old tree in the swamp or just on the other side of that rock outcrop.

The stories should appeal to just about any child with imagination and a sense of wonder up to that age where they start to cast off such things as not being grown up like them. Adults will find the stories well written and full of bits of humor and wisdom. Persons of Finnish ethnicity will particularly enjoy a glimpse into their cultural heritage, and may find many of the stories familiar, even though they've never heard them before. If I wanted to list books performing an admirable job of delineating Finnish character strengths and foibles, this would be #1, more accurate and more accessible than Kalevala.

I think it is a good book for you to understand the third world. The technological transformation in the book is a really practive transformation. With the easy words, I can read what I want to know.

I became interested in the Winter War while reading one of the excellent Time-Life World War II books, "Battles for Scandinavia. A search led to "A Frozen Hell", a book with much more detail and very well written. While the Time Life book is full of photos, maps, illustrations, and artwork you are left wishing form a more detailed narrative that "A Frozen Hell" provides.

One quibble. Even though "A Frozen Hell" has 14 maps, I was often frustrated when many of the cities and other locations described in the narrative are often not shown on the maps.

The Winter War was a legend from a time when the world needed legends. Finland's sturdy yeomen standing in defense of their homeland against immeasurable numbers and performing the unique achievement of killing enough Russians to give even Stalin a feeling of indigestion. In our iconoclastic age it comes as a bit of a supprise that much of the legend is in fact true. There is another side, as there always is. War is always nasty, brutish and uncomfortable and our age is not unreasonably suspicious of all that seems to obscure that. Arguably Finland's later renewal of the war was an unnecessary aggression, though equally arguably it was provoked because the arrogance,ambition,and ruthlessness of Russia's leaders made it extremely plausible that Russia still intended to swallow Finland. Even Finland's defection gives a very slight hint of dishonor for those with an odd sense of quixotism. Though given their "allies" nature, not more then a whiff. In any case no nation can be expected to commit suicide for the sake of an ally of convenience. And the thought of the politically inexperienced Finnish "rustics" shrewdly outdeviling the devil brings a touch of amusement. The Finns managed to outfight and outwit both Russia and Germany and were the only country in Europe to do that successfully.
Some have even said that Stalin only wanted enough territory to protect Russia, territory which Finland could live without. I find that hard to believe. Stalin's record shows that he kept pushing as far as he could get away with and stopped when he could no longer. Or to put it another way Finland was a bush that could spare a few flowers but unless it proved it could stick Stalins hand full of thorns it would lose all it's flowers.
All that is of course the concern of the high and mighty. As far as ordinary Finns were concerned their own leaderships possible failings were beside the point. They had built an admirable society under very harsh circumstances and it was worth fighting to protect. And fight they did. In doing so they not only protected their own country but proved that the people of democratic countries are not thereby effete and that tyranny could indeed be resisted. They gave hope when hope was needed and for that alone we should thank them.
Someone said that they found Mannerheim a dull character. Personally I found him fascinating. He reminded me a lot of Captain von Trapp as played by Christopher Plummer and had similarities to both the movie one and the real one(especially the movie one). He had the curious attraction of several of the aristocrats of the time that comes from a mixture of nostalgia, fairy tale romance, and "lost causedness". He served Finland rather then Democracy. And the things he stood for had their flaws. However his ideas were far superior to the prevailing ideas of political idolatry that threatend both his way and Finland's way. He was intensely masculine just as the Finnish people were, but in a patrician rather then a plebian way. The Finns were men and he was a man to lead men. Or as the writter said he was a nobleman who was also a noble man. And if the Ancient Regime had had more like him, it would not have been what it was and there might have been no need to overthrow it.
Despite what has been said, Mannerheim would make a great movie hero. He had a fascinating life, from his Indiana Jones like spy mission to Central Asia, to his service in previous wars, to his present service. He new everyone that was "worth knowing." His hauteur might be hard to work with but could be done if acted well and it would be lovely watching him turn it on some arrogant SS Staffie as indeed he did on one or two occasions.
All that aside, Frozen Hell was a fascinating book about a fascinating campaign. I am glad to own it.

A good read but badly needs a post-Cold War update. This book is about a conflict between Russia and Finland, but the only Russian source listed in the "Notes on the Sources" (there is no bibliography) is the English translation of the memoirs of Khruschev, who didn't even participate in the Winter War. Other than a few short, atmospheric accounts by Russian soldiers taken from earlier English or Finnish books, no other Russian source is cited, leaving us almost wholly dependent on Finnish historians and the memoirs of Finnish commanders. This is not a scholarly approach.
Maybe there just weren't any other Russian sources available; or maybe they were only available in Russian (which the author does not know, although he is rightly proud of having mastered Finnish). All that may have been a tolerable excuse in 1991 (when this book came out), but the Russian state archives are now open to all, and certainly much more material has been translated into English in the past 16 years. At the very least, Trotter could speak to some Russians. He found Finnish veterans to interview, and I bet some of their Russian counterparts can also still be found among the WWII veterans who totter around public parks in Russia every May 9.
But to find, you have to look, and what's disappointing is that I have no sense the author feels any need to seek out more significant sources from the other side.

My mother was evacuated from Karelia at the age of 15 years and my father fought in the Winter War. My Finnish parents emigrated to South Africa and I was born here. Therefore my dominant language is english and my sons speak no Finnish. This is a wonderful book to pass on this story to my english speaking children. It is easy to understand and interesting to read. It reads like an entertaining novel. I also hope that it can bring this story and the case for the return of Karelia to the wider world.

Although I was raised in the 70s by uncles full of admiration of what the Finns did to the Russians for three months it is still a profound dissapointment that few people know, and even fewer people care about this profound struggle of 3 Million Finns -- a free people -- against the tyranny of Stalinst Russia.

For a nation this small to have the stomach to thumb their noses at the Russians and then to systematically cut their attacks to ribbons -- inflicting colonial war casualties on the Russians -- it truly one of the David against Goliath matches in history.

But there is more to the traditional interpretation notion of the "plucky Finns" and the "incompetent Russians:" Finns eventually did succumb to the inevitable onslaught of the Russians. There were cases of the Finns actually breaking from the front, and Russians actually adapting tactics to overcome the Finnish ability to use their understanding of their own geography to dominate the Russians. That is perhaps not so hard to believe. What is harder to believe is miracles such as the battle of Soussalmi -- where Finnish ski troops cut to pieces 30,000 Russians for the total of 1,700 Finnish dead.

The book is an overview only and does cover the various stages of the war -- the initial and failed Russian Offensive of December, the holding pattern of January and the final onslaugth that brought the end for Finland. But the book does not pretend to be a total overview of the fighting on the front -- on that point there still needs to be a definitive English edition of this war such as what Norman Davis' "Rising 44" did for the Warsaw Insurrection.

There is also not enough background on the political developments surrounding the war and the geopolitical drivers of policy (the actions of the Western allies are a bit bewildering to those uninitiated in a good understanding of the history of these times).

There is also a good chapter on Mannerheim. This man, so long assciated with both the fighting spirit of Finland is often equated totally as the heart of Finn resistance. His personality was in fact authoritarian, problematic and a direct result of the Tsarist officer corps he was raised within and whose spirit he imbided.

A good read and well worth your time.

I hunted for this book when it was sold out everywhere, finally found a copy and was disappointed. The content of the book was awesome, but the pulpy paper it was printed on was a letdown. I never did buy it for that very reason.

I have owned this book for several years now and never tire of it. Yes, it's over the top and exaggerated, but that's the fun of it. It's hot and worth every penny. Skip the mini version, and get the full-size, hardcover version - this is Tom of Finland, after all!

Now THIS is how the art of Tom of Finland SHOULD be represented...in a volume large enough for us to appreciate the great detail in his work. UNFORTUNATELY, the people at TASCHEN and the Tom of Finland Foundation found it necessary to re-release this wonderful volume in a SMALLER, cheaper version, and that trend has only gotten worse with the recent release of Tom's "COMIC COLLECTION" - which I reviewed negatively only to see that entire title WITHDRAWN from Amazon in less that 24 hours after my review appeared...so to read THAT review, you'll have to click "SEE ALL MY REVIEWS".

Isn't CENSORSHIP, especially in the Erotic Art World, a real PITY! -- Click on "SEE ALL MY REVIEWS"

When I first discovered this book in a London bookshop, I decided at once that I needed to own it. It's large, it's bulky, but it's beautiful. It needs the large pages to illustrate the finest examples of Tom's works. As an artist myself, who learnt a lot from Tom's unique techniques, I appreciate what a fantastic collection of art, both colour and black and white, has been compiled into this collection. But it's not just pictures; there's an insight into the man himself, a delightful tribute to the Master of Homoerotic Art. This volume is a great tribute to Tom and a valuable tool for the new breed of erotic artists, like myself, waiting for recognition.

This review will be very short. If you fancy the art and eroticism of "Tom of Finland", then this is the QUINTESSENTIAL collection to own. IT IS JUST PLAIN AWESOME.

The American critical writer Edmund Wilson attempted in this book to give an overview of the historical development of socialism, or rather the many socialisms, until the 1930s. However, the result is a very mixed bag: sometimes Wilson reaches great heights, but sometimes it is bare nonsense too.

The best description I can give of the nature of the work is that it is very much a literary overview of socialism rather than a political-historical one. Wilson concentrates in all mini-biographies of early socialists as well as the pieces on Lenin, Marx & Engels on the particulars of their life. Larded with many details and amusing anecdotes revealing the personality of the main socialist leaders, this book is very much at its best when describing the human interactions between various socialists and the world around them, and in portraying how their ideas were formed by their life experiences.

The big downside to this book is, however, Wilson's complete lack of understanding of any theory whatever. He clearly has neither knowledge of nor interest in any of the real tenets of socialism, Marxist, Lassallean or otherwise, and has not taken any trouble to look it up either. The result is that the passages which mean to give quick overviews of the Marxist or Leninist positions on certain issues are almost invariably simplistic, confused and wrong. The worst example of this (as a prior reviewer also mentioned) is the chapter on the dialectic, which immediately reveals to the reader that Wilson didn't have the slightest idea what dialectics is, and the childish simplicity of his view on it makes one think he probably got his information from a dictionary or something equally useless.

For these reasons, it is hard to say whether the overall result is positive or negative. If you are looking for a good insight on the development of the theoretical aspects of socialism or the political issues of those times, absolutely do not rely on this book. If you are however interested in the personalities and life histories of the main socialists until WWII, then Wilson's book will be a high-quality, pleasant and sympathetic guide. If there were a 3.5 star rating, I would give it that; but I will err on the side of a positive review here since I suppose most people reading popular literature about socialism are not going to be interested in the the technical details of the theory, unless they are socialists themselves - in which case they should read Marx & Engels directly anyway.

One final word of warning: the introduction by Louis Menand is terrible, and is best skipped altogether.

It has been several months since I finished To the Finland Station, and I'm still in awe of the scope of this book and its sensitive author. To the Finland Station is a world-class work of scholarly non-fiction. It reads like a novel partly because there are no endnotes or footnotes--though a handy index--but largely because the highly-perceptive writer, Edmund Wilson (1895-1972), mastered three elements of the novelist's craft: the narrative arc or rising and falling action, the reader's need for sensory language which shows the characters in action, and the relationship of geographic location to action and character. Through Edmund Wilson, we "see" Karl Marx courting his wife, the daughter of the Baron von Westphalen, in Trier, Germany; we "see" Lenin in a harsh Siberian winter, we "see" the cast of hundreds of thousands oppressed under absolute monarchies.

Keep in mind that the subtitle of To the Finland Station is "A Study in the Writing and Acting of History." This book is just as much about the historical actors as it is about Edmund Wilson's ability to trace the history of an idea. In order to understand the later chapters on Marx and Engels and Lenin, one must understand this "idea"--the main character of the book--and why Wilson begins his narrative with Jules Michelet and Giambattista Vico. Quite simply, Wilson wrote a modern history with which the world should now be familiar: that idea is that the development of democracy is inevitable, particularly because industrialization enabled people to organize based upon their economic class, which was partly determined by their relationship to industrial development. Edmund Wilson says that Michelet, who loved to read and write, was looking for a way of writing history that would account for how people feel about their lives, how industrial life, and the new, ugly slums affected the formation of nations--as well as the individual person. In a phrase--though I'm being very brief--thinkers from Michelet to Marx and Lenin were looking at ideas of human progress: how can people improve themselves, become better people, have justice served, what is the capacity for human beings to govern themselves, and what stands in the way of human development? What I'm writing here can't give you the beauty of Wilson's succinct prose, his ability to capture the essence of human history.

All my questions were answered by To the Finland Station: What were the working conditions for factory employees such that they had to revolt? How did rich people respond to these conditions? Was it inevitable that the Czar of Russia and his family be executed in 1917? What was Lenin trying to do that was perverted by Stalin? How or why was Communism different in Russia than in England or Germany? What is the difference between Communism and Socialism? Why do the people of France still seem proud of their 19th-century revolutionary history? How might Europeans today think of their history with each other such that the United States would be affected?

If you are not a specialist in 20th-century history, and do not have time to consult the original documents written by everyone Wilson mentions--from Giambattista Vico and Hegel, Jules Michelet, and Robert Owen to Karl Marx--To the Finland Station sorts it all out and sheds light on so much.

Months after I finished reading this book, I'm still typing up my notes on the sections where I left little x's in the margins to note areas of critical, topical concern. But knowing bits of To the Finland Station is more than about being conversant in American and European history; it's about knowing who we are and have been and where we are going. Wilson concludes: "To accomplish such a task will require of us an unsleeping adaptive exercise of reason and instinct combined."

I didn't make it the whole way through this densely written and intimidating book, but I was absorbed by one aspect: its portrayal of the human interaction between Marx and Engels.

Karl Marx was a psychologically warped semi-genius who continually begged money and favors from his hardworking and enabling friend Friedrich Engels. Sometimes Marx would agree to write articles or essays that he couldn't produce - he manipulated Engels into ghostwriting, and still collected the pay himself.

I also found it interesting that Engels developed his ideas on the class system while he was in England, observing the human experience in industrialized Manchester, which was at that time economically depressed and in a state of social unrest, with a great disparity between the factory owners and workers.

Marx and Engels wrote each other numerous multi-language letters over the years, and _To the Finland Station_ does a nice job tracing this correspondence. It was interesting to learn that spreading their doctrine into Russia was sort of an incidental afterthought, but I'm afraid I could not bring myself to sift through the intricacies of the development of socialism/communism.

This is a weighty book, and will not be of interest to every reader.

of Marx's study. That's how this book makes you feel. Wilson's mastery of prose, artistry of language and clarity of vision draws you into the lives of his subjects so you feel you're there. You can almost smell the smoke from Marx's pipe as he writes, feel the boils on his butt, and hear his grandkids whinning on his knee as he plugs away at Kapital.
And this is just one of his subjects. Wilson has given us a living, breathing history that reads like an epic novel. One of the, if no THE best histories I've ever read. Once you dip in you won't be able to pull yourself out.
Allow me now to address a previous review which says Wilson just skims over Marx's "most important" idea of value. That being that value is determined by the amount of labor that goes into an item. Wilson clearly states the idea and dismisses it. Rather than being a great contribution to the world of ideas it's one of Marx's most obviously flawed ideas. You can spend a million man-hours making something no one wants and it'll be worthless. Marx overlooks Demand (as in supply and demand) in his analysis, as Wilson points out. For those interested in a more detailed critique of Marx's ideas I refer you to Karl Poppers "Open society and its enemies" part II about Hegel and Marx.
But Wilson's aim wasn't so much to critique the ideas as it was to present them clearly and give the reader a riviting understanding of the environments from which they sprang.
Also, the reviewer complains of Wilsons sympathetic approach towards Lenin. Finland station was written in the 30's. Wilson had travelled in the Soviet Union but of course accurate materials concerning Lenin were not made available to him. Thirty years after writing the book he addressed his Lenin chapter in a prolog. But even so the Lenin material is riviting. One reads along with Wilson, arriving at Finland Station with Lenin in the wee hours of the night and through Wilsons lense one can almost feel history unfolding, the fate of Russia (and the world) feels palpable.
The reviewer also complains that Wilson didn't go into the revolutions of 1848 et al enough. Once again this misses the point of the book. Wilson is exploring the personalities and lives of the men behind the ideas that shaped the movements. He is not writing to analyse the tactics or outcomes of the Hungarian or Italian or French or polish revolts circa 1848. There are many other books whose intent are just that, but not this one.
This is about the lives of individual men who shaped history and Edmund Wilson with his literary sensibility has done us an astonishing service by creating a port of entry for us into their lives and times.
History that reads like a novel that you can't put down. You can eat it with a fork but use a spoon, you'll want to get every drop. Thank You Edmund!!

For a reader looking for insight into the nature of revolutionary struggle, this widely-touted book was disappointing. The interlaced series of biographical sketches of communist and socialist figures of the late 19th and early 20th century are engaging, thoroughly researched, and well-written, but often border on caricature. Lenin is painted as a saint, and the anarchists are given short shrift, represented only by a sketch of Bakunin as a vicious nihilist. Wilson gives voice in analyzing his characters to form of ethnic essentialism that is now discredited, starting more than a few sentences with phrases like "Only a Jew...".

The actual details of organizing, strategy, tactics, mistakes, and successes that went into the uprisings of 1848, 1871, 1905, and 1918 are ignored in favor of intellectual history and personal/family anecdotes of the figures involved, which, though understandable given that the writer relies on published writings and personal correspondence to construct his narrative, isn't particulary useful. Marx's labor theory of value, which is to my mind perhaps his most powerful insight, is hastily dismissed by the author, and Wilson's brief attempt to paint America as a virtually classless society seems like naive apologia given the rapidly increasing inequality of wealth in our society.

The first couple chapters, a historiographical analysis of French writers, is boring-- I recommend that those interested start with part 2 of the book.

I did appreciate very much the author and his book. He's a fine Professor and understands everything people must know to understand finnish way of life.

Finland, Cultural Lone Wolf
Bought this to get a better undertanding of Finland and it's people to put in perspective the family stories of family members who emigrated to the US at the turn or the century.
Got more than I asked for. I am beginning to understand why I get along with some people better than others. I also can understand why some do not like "Americans".
This was written in an easy to read style. It was written by someone who likes and understands Finland and its people while not being Finnish.
I would recommend it highly.

This author writes with zeal and passion about the people of Finland; and gives a true picture of their character, warts and all. He reveals the secrets of their heart. After reading this book, you the reader get an accurate picture of the history of Finland and the Finnish people, what makes them tick, and a clear indication of life in Finland today. You'll find out why Finland is such a successful country in the world. Very enjoyable reading. Highly recommended.

This book if for anybody who has been to Finland or has dealt with Finns or plans to do either of the above. The author is an Englishman who has dealt with Finns for years in business ventures. He is also somewhat of a social historian and that makes his book very enjoyable. The book is a fast read filled with anecdotes and jokes and also covers how many other
cultures do business in contrast to the Finns including Americans and Japanese. I have dealt with Finns in business and in teaching and this expained a lot of my observations and added some insights.

If vacation or business brings you to Finland this is a must read.

I immediately lent my copy to a friend who has been mystified by his occasionl dealings with this interesting culture.

The author has a business which provides training in languages and cross-cultural communication, primarily to business persons. I can imagine this book stemming from a series of Powerpoint slides, with bulleted lists, from a course on doing business in Finland. It has a narrow agenda, focusing on patterns of communication and leadership. There is very little on Finnish life and culture - on marriage, family, religion, work life... You will come away from it with a lot of generalizations about the Finnish people but no clue as to how they live their lives. The book begins with a brief introductory sketch of the history and geography of Finland and the Finnish language. This is followed by a more detailed discussion of communication, leadership, national character or identity, humor, and comparisons of Finns with other peoples. The author presents a very favorable image of Finns and Finland. In particular, he ceaselessly cites ways in which Finland leads the world. One thing that annoyed me is an excessive reliance on stereotypes and cliches, which are confidently presented as facts, when in fact there are no citations or references to research to support them. Also annoying is the frequent reduction of complex patterns of behavior to simplistic diagrams and typologies (such as "linear-active," "multi-active," and "reactive cultures"). The book is easy to read but redundant and simplistic. I can't recommend it. Try Culture Smart Finland instead.

I really enjoyed this book. It had lots of incredible action and romance. Jonas was a master of inventiveness and very aware of the subtle signs of the outdoors that many people completly miss out on. I notice much more when I am out in the woods now because of it. I would like to see it made into a movie!

I hoped for a lively fictional dramatization of a difficult time in which Finns endured hardship, then won freedom; which I could share with my children.

The premise that the stories were related GrandFather to GrandSon is good.

The multiple sex scenes take this book from their young hands.

When, after conflict lasting a year and a half, a Russian army of 85,000 finally defeated a force of 12,000 Finns, Finland became a Grand Duchy of Russia in 1808, and a rebel movement was born. Jonas Wisuri emigrated from Finland near the turn of the next century, after Finland had been under Russian rule for nearly a hundred years, bringing with him stories of the "Ghost", a Finnish freedom fighter. Leslie Wisuri has collected these stories in Jonas Of Kiivijarvi: Finnish Freedom Fighter into a book that reads like a finely crafted novel, but which Leslie believes were true stories from Jonas' own life and experiences.

The writing isn't great. The story IS interesting. But this isn't literature. To be appreciated mostly by the younger teens. True story or fiction? Doesn't matter. If you've read anything about the Finns you'll already know that they're a tough and resourceful people. In this book they're nearly psychic. The russians cop an awful beating though, at times made to look almost sub-human. It's cheap. Buy it. But not if you're a russian.

Interesting subcurrent is the obvious anti-russian sentiment. Considering the time this was written, maybe it was subconsciously also anti-soviet?

A great read! I really enjoyed the book. Great story line that made you keep reading. Interesting even if you know nothing about that time period.

"New" E-Mail:jtymon@hotmail.com Love to hear from you.Your Book is Great! Jane T.

Hi Taimi! It's been 40 Years, since we arrived from Our Homeland "Finland" to this land of Opportunities. I never knew you could Cook. Congratulations to Your Book. (Old Room-Mate Jane) If you get this, E-Mail me: jtymon@4link.net

Hi Taimi! It's been 40 Years, since we arrived from Our Homeland "Finland" to this land of Opportunities. I never knew you could Cook. Congratulations to Your Book. (Old Room-Mate Jane) If you get this, E-Mail me: jtymon@4link.net

I have tried for years to duplicate my Finnish grandmother's cooking. Asking for her recipes is hopeless...in her mind she just throws things in a pan and they come out that tasty. (She is constantly telling me it is not worth my time because her only secret is that Finnish cows, chickens, and fish are much happier and treated nicer than American animals, and therefore taste better.) This book is the first (and only, so far) Finnish recipe book I've found that carries many of our family's traditional recipes. It is easy to follow and I have had success with every recipe I have tried.

Pity there's no pictures, but the food is filling and tasty. I expect almost all sales will be to Americans of Finnish and part Finnish descent, like my wife, but I'm not and I can tell the rest of you - Finnish food is good! And these recipes make it easy to cook.

title is readily available in shops in england at a cheaper price. delivery was a little lengthy. content of book: not the best osprey title but useful considering lack of material on this subject.

This book is very well written and easy to read. It gives a very good overview of the Finnish military during WWII. If you don't know about heroic little Finland, and their fight for survival against Russia, then you are missing some great inspirational history. I consider this book a must-have for the Finnish military history buff.

Finland at War 1939-45, # 141 in Osprey's Elite series, is an excellent introduction to the role of the Finnish Army in the Second World War. Authors Philip Jowett and Brent Snodgrass demonstrate a firm grip of this subject and provide a wealth of useful and hard-to-find information on the Finns. This volume belongs on the bookshelves of anyone seriously interested in the Eastern Front.

The opening section spends about 12 pages outlining the chronology of the three wars that Finland fought in the period 1939-45; the 1939-40 Winter War and 1941-44 Continuation War against the Soviet Union and the 1944-45 Lapland War against the Germans. However the chronology section actually has a fair amount of detail and provides a good introduction to the subject. The heart of the volume lies in the 25-page section which discusses the organization of the Finnish army, covering all the major branches as well as paramilitary formations such as the Civil Guard and Foreign Volunteers. A brief section discusses tactics, including the use of "motti" encirclement attacks and snipers. A final section discusses weapons, including small arms, machineguns, anti-tank weapons and artillery (unfortunately, mortars were omitted). Overall, there is a wealth of information in this thin volume and it is one of the better of Osprey's Elite titles.

Eight pages of color plates by artist Raffaele Ruggeri depict the Finnish military and para-military forces from 1939-45. The photographs in the volume are also very good and most have not been printed in English-language books before. Perhaps the only area that gets a bit skimped on is in the areas of training and higher staff functions at corps-level, but this is understandable given the size restraints. Overall, a superb volume.

This book has the best illustrations I've ever seen. It includes black and white photographs, colored illustrations, clearly defined timelines and some very taut, straightforward writing.

I'm not Finnish and my interest in it and its role in World War II was slow developing. I'd read bits and pieces about Finland's stand against impossible odds in military histories.

One thing led to another and I finally ended up buying some books and trying to figure out how this tiny Nordic nation managed to fight off the Red Army and survive the vicissitudes of World War II. Jowett and Snodgrass bring a clear, well-organized summary of this very complicated period of history.

When did the "Winter War" end? What was the "Continuation War" and the "Lapland War?" How did Finland manage to avoid being occupied by the Red Army like Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were?

This brief (64 page) book provides very clear answers to these questions. It's easy to read and organized so that it makes a great quick reference.

If you're interested in military history, Finland, World War II, Germany, Russia, 20th century European History, collecting militaria, or if you like a good David and Goliath story, this book's for you. I like it and gave it five stars.

A good book explaining the war between Finland and USSR, lists the equipment, vehicles and artillery.

All gay men should know who Tom of Finland is. You're bound to see a picture or two in gay bookstores, bars and galleries. If you're not familiar with Tom, then you need to get out more often!

I found *Dirty Pictures* not just fascinating with these wonderful and eye-catching pictures but educational with Tom of Finland's background and his intentions/purposes behind each pictures.

It's amazing how having a network with friends can lead one to be legendary, if you could call it that. Prior to meeting Andy Warhol and Robert Mapplethorne, Tom of Finland's works were just considered pornographic. Over time, that gradually changed.

I wished this book contained all of Tom's pictures, along with a background for each of them. However, with what knowledge that I've learned here, I cannot wait to see the other works of Tom's and do my own analyses. That's the fun part.

"The art of Touko Laaksonen (1920 ­ 1991), famous throughout the world as Tom of Finland, has had an incredible and defining impact upon the culture at large ­ an impact that arguably exceeds that of any other artist working in the latter half of the 20th century. It is perhaps even more remarkable that Tom of Finland was not a traditional fine artist ­ his work was most commonly regarded as gay pornography, and rightly so. Yet it is art that not only had a tremendous impact upon the emerging gay culture worldwide but whose erotic and emotional power remains unabated to this day. For millions of fans throughout the world, as well as those unfamiliar with Tom of Finland¹s art, this book brings uncommon insight into a decidedly uncommon body of work." - text excerpt from Stonewall Inn

If you love Tom of Finland, you will absolutely love this book. Seemingly hundreds of his prints, even such rarities from his early work, grace this book and give it a flavor that seems to be lacking from other pictorials. This book is utterly delightful and insightful as to the man himself. It was wonderful and I'd recommend it to anyone. Five stars all the way!

tom of finland is a demonstration and if you re intrested in gay-art you must have this book as soon as you can ....so this masculity is supported by heavenly drawings