Showing posts with label world war ii. Show all posts
Showing posts with label world war ii. Show all posts

Bitter Seeds Review

Bitter Seeds
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Bitter Seeds ReviewIan Tregillis' stunning debut novel, Bitter Seeds, escapes categories and defies description. It's an alternate history of World War II, in which the Germans truly develop "supermen," battery-powered, and in which the beleaguered British secretly call on malevolent powers beyond our space/time to defend their island, paying in blood. Tregillis bases his fantastic elements so thoroughly in philosophical, scientific, and occult preoccupations from the mid-20th century, however, that the novel reads almost like mainstream historical fiction. The echoing footsteps in the halls of the Admiralty after the blackout curtains have been drawn might almost be sounding in C.P. Snow's Strangers and Brothers novels. Indeed, the escalating cost of defending Britain, though expressed as dark fantasy, resonates strongly of the desperate race to develop a nuclear bomb that Snow recounts in his novel The New Men.The New Men (Strangers and Brothers)
Our primary viewpoint characters are Klaus, proud of his successful engineering as a superman but increasingly haunted by the process, and Raybould Marsh, an intelligence officer who would have preferred to be in an Alan Furst novel. As Marsh begins to grasp how much the Gotterelektrongruppe changes the nature of the war, he turns to William Beauclerk, whose grandfather taught him a secret language that allows negotiation with the Eidolon--a language Will would much rather forget. The internal conflicts that drive the main characters make them complex and interesting. Additionally, both Klaus and Marsh come to realize that they are being manipulated by Klaus' precognitive sister, Gretel, who has her own enigmatic agenda.
The plot runs like an advanced-level ski slope with perfect snow, and the novel can be thoroughly enjoyed just at that level. We are left in the end with a question that drives deeper, however. When you have done the unbearable to keep others from doing the unthinkable, who have you become?
Bitter Seeds is the first volume of the Milkweed Triptych. I strongly recommend it and eagerly await volume two, The Coldest War.
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The Journal of Scott Pendleton Collins: A World War II Soldier, Normandy, France, 1944 (My Name is America: A Dear America Book) Review

The Journal of Scott Pendleton Collins: A World War II Soldier, Normandy, France, 1944 (My Name is America: A Dear America Book)
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The Journal of Scott Pendleton Collins: A World War II Soldier, Normandy, France, 1944 (My Name is America: A Dear America Book) ReviewThe Journal of Scott Pendleton Collins is a historical novel, a day by day journal about a young man, fresh out of high school, who joins the army during World War II. His nickname is Smoothie because he still does not have to shave yet. At his going away party, his uncle gave him a journal. The first entry in the journal is May 25, l944, from England.
This book is so well written that when he described the landing on Omaha Beach I can almost hear the sights and sounds of Private Ryan's landing on the beach like in the movie, Saving Private Ryan. I can almost feel all his feelings. He is saddened by the wounded and dead that he sees, but he is glad that he is still alive. He wants to be brave but he is scared and is ashamed of being scared. He is sick to the point where he vomits. He doesn't want to cry but he cries. He feels sure he is going to be killed.
He knows that he should not be keeping this journal as he is told to destroy all letters from home after they are read. He feels that it is the only thing he has to leave behind if something should happen to him. He has a message in the journal that if anyone should find it to please send it to his family and he gives the address. He often writes about being afraid of dying. This always seems to be on his mind.
This book was so well written that I almost feel as if I lived his war experience with him. The book also includes a lot of historical notes and also some pictures of the war. This author knows a lot about World War II. With this book he has given me a day to day feeling (2 months worth) of the horrors of war.
My great-grandfather McCormick (there was a McCormack in this book) served in the Army during World War II and my grandfather was in the army as a Military Policeman. In this book, Scotty's great-grandfather fought in the Civil War and his father in World War I and Scotty always wanted his picture on the wall with their pictures. Maybe some day my picture will be on my family's wall with my great-grandfather and my grandfather. I am certainly not the best of readers and don't feel qualified to review a writer's work but I can say that I really liked this book. It was a fast read, I almost didn't want to put it down, and it really held my interest.

This book really inspired me. The quality of the writing is great, the subject matter is great and I would definitely put it in the "great books" category.The Journal of Scott Pendleton Collins: A World War II Soldier, Normandy, France, 1944 (My Name is America: A Dear America Book) Overview

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Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed: The Story of the Village of Le Chambon and How Goodness Happened There Review

Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed: The Story of the Village of Le Chambon and How Goodness Happened There
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Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed: The Story of the Village of Le Chambon and How Goodness Happened There ReviewHallie is a brilliant writer and researcher who tells an amazing story of courage and faith. In it he demonstrates how "decent" people who stay inactive out of cowardice and indifference--when around them human beings are humiliated and destroyed--are the most dangerous people in the world. I didn't need his closing thoughts on ethics, and I would like to have learned more about what the villagers themselves did to protect the refugees. But the parts the author did well were so astonishing, it still gets five stars. It left me asking myself, "What exploited people groups can I help and how?"Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed: The Story of the Village of Le Chambon and How Goodness Happened There Overview

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Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS Indianapolis Review

Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS Indianapolis
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Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS Indianapolis ReviewCaptain Charles Butler McVay, skipper of the USS Indianapolis, was court-martialed after the tragic sinking of his ship on July 30, 1945. Despite the objections from Admiral Nimitz, Admiral Ernest J. King, chief of U.S. Naval Operations, insisted that the court martial proceed. What occurred was one of the most incredible cases of injustice in U.S. Naval history. McVay was convicted for failure to steer in a zigzag pattern. This manuver is supposed to make a ship more difficult to hit in case of a torpedo attack, although this theory was completely disproved during the trial. The Japanese captain of the submarine which sunk the Indy was brought in to testify against McVay. It was his opinion that he still would have sunk the Indy regardless of the zigzagging. Another charge of failing to order abandon ship in a timely fashion was overturned. The survivors of the Indianapolis always felt that their captain was used as a scapegoat by the Navy to cover up their own mistakes, and they have spent years trying to clear their beloved captain's name.
In 1996, a young boy named Hunter Scott was watching the movie Jaws. One of the characters in the film portrayed a survivor from the Indianapolis. After seeing the film, Hunter became more interested in the story of the Indy. He used its story as a theme for a history project he was working on. This 11-year old boy did the unthinkable. He made it his goal to clear McVay's name. He sent out numerous questionnaires to survivors and conducted personal interviews as well. Newspapers picked up on Hunter's crusade and soon the whole country was aware of his efforts. Appearances followed on Late Night with David Letterman as well as trips to Capitol Hill to lobby members of Congress. A meeting with the Senate Armed Services Committee took place on September 14, 1999. Hunter, with the help of Senator Bob Smith, told the tale of the Indianapolis and her survivors to the committee. By the time they were finished, they had swayed Senator John Warner, chairman of the committee. He now felt that McVay should be exonerated. The Senate resolution passed in October of 2000, but on July 11, 2001, Hunter received the news that McVay had been exonerated.
Author Pete Nelson does a fine job of telling the story of the Indianapolis, her sinking, the struggle for survival, and the exoneration. I've read numerous books about the saga of the Indianapolis, but this is the first one I've read that explains the efforts of Hunter Scott. This is a truly moving book. We are lucky to have people such as Hunter Scott, who sacrificed so much for a person he never even met.Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS Indianapolis Overview

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The 900 Days: The Siege Of Leningrad Review

The 900 Days: The Siege Of Leningrad
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The 900 Days: The Siege Of Leningrad ReviewFew events in the annals of modern history compare to the saga of the terrifying siege of Leningrad for almost three years by the German Wehrmacht during World War Two. In this classic historical work, "The 900 Days" written by long-time New York Times correspondent and editor Harrison Salisbury, the incredible toll in terms of blood, sweat and tears of the millions of Russian protagonists trapped by the Nazis in the city is told. The story is told in such a graphic and moving fashion that the individuals involved are portrayed from a common sense, human perspective, in terms of describing breathing, struggling individuals locked into a living nightmare, each of them having to make a titanic effort day after day just to endure the hardships and survive.
The scale of the siege itself boggles the mind; some three million residents and soldiers were encircled and entrapped at the beginning of the Nazi incursion into Russia in Operation Barbarossa, intensifying with a ruthless German offensive in early October of 1941 that literally strangled the lifeline for food and critical supplies from the embattled urban area. Of those trapped, almost half succumbed, and most of these fatalities were in a relatively brief period of time, commencing with the events of October 1941 and climaxing in early April of 1942. People starved, froze, drowned, were run over by tanks, walked into mine fields, succumbed to a wide range of diseases, were murdered by German soldiers, and sometimes were caught in artillery fire. In all, almost one and one half million people were lost during the siege.
Yet in the midst of all this immense suffering and the degraded conditions that forced many to the brink of extinction, the people of Leningrad consistently fought back, fighting environmental conditions, temperatures that dipped below 30 degrees below zero, with no heat, no light, little or no food or water. Yet the fighting on the front went on, supported by the inhabitants, who did everything from digging ditches to helping to care for the wounded in the midst of their own daily struggles to survive. In this instance, they didn't merely endure; in fact they prevailed against incredible odds. In the final analysis, it was the German army that was destroyed.
The scope of this achievement seems to be little appreciated today. And while Salisbury traces the causes in the tragedy of Leningrad in Stalin's sectarian governmental policies that ultimately played into Hitler's plans for capturing the city, he also describes the incredible contributions of a cross-section of the citizenry of the city, including artists, factory workers, soldiers, teachers, housewives, children, writers, and others engaged in the common daily struggle to survive without ever ceding the ground or the war to the foe. Even more impressive is his unflinching attention to detail, and his retelling of the final coup-de-grace delivered by Stalin, jealous and politically fearful of the genuine heroes made by the siege, who then arranged to charge, convict and execute all the principals of the city's campaign against the Germans based on trumped up charges of treason. This was one of the first books to deal with the levels of Soviet suffering and contribution to the war effort, and it has been praised quite consistently by readers and critics alike. I can recommend this book without reservation.
Enjoy!The 900 Days: The Siege Of Leningrad Overview

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Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War Review

Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War
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Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War ReviewIf one could read two accounts of the Pacific War written from the perspective of Americans this book and Sledges "With the Old Breed at Peleliu and Okinawa" would be the best that one can get. There are a lot of very good narrative history books on all aspects of the Pacific War, but the poet-gone-to-war genre is something that really the British usually do much better than the Americans. That is why when I stumbled upon Manchester's memoirs I was immediately sucked into the guts of wartime experience.
Manchester writes with passion borne from desperation and experience of long times in the firing line. He waxes from the lyrical experiences of a fireside chat on the battle-line with a student of philosophy (himself?) regalling the troops with an exposition on the nature of time. One is left with the images of hard worn veterans from small American towns, experiencing the wonder of ideas for the first time on the eve of battle. Their far off, empty stares as the philosopher marine finishes his exposition in sheer silence is something that one can almost feel. That very same night they cut up a large Banzai charge on Guam --- one can cut the atmosphere of the book with a knife.
Manchester can then go on an describe his visceral uncomfortable feelings of being close to the Japanese today. Their inability to admit to former attrocities is something that Manchester admits, planted the seed of dislike deeply inside him. Try as he might he cannot shake it and we are at least amazed with his honesty. This contrasts with the cerebral, fair-minded Manchester we all know from his biographies.
I have read more than 200 narrative histories and memoirs of the Pacific War, British, American, Japanese, Indian and Chinese, Australian, Canadian ... and this is one of the best. Like all good books, it stays with you for a long time....Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War Overview

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The Kommandant's Girl Review

The Kommandant's Girl
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The Kommandant's Girl ReviewFor me this was a four-star book up until about the last 50-60 pages or so, at which point I'd have to drop to 3 1/2 stars. The plot is simple and straightforward. There were a few twists along the road, but nothing extraordinary and perhaps even a bit predictable. I thought the protagonist Emma/Anna was well developed and the story was well supported by other applicable characters. I got to know about Emma/Anna, her life and the great personal conflicts that erupted for her with the onset of the German invasion of Poland.
However, as the final pages of the book played out the author inserted a few occurrences that were just too coincidental. The types of coincidences that make me just role my eyes and say "oh, please", situations that were just a bit over-the-top and contrived, even for a novel. For the sake of those who wish to read the book I won't give details because they effect how the story ends, or course.
All in all, Jenoff did a nice job for this being her first book. Her style is very reader-friendly. I would recommend it if you're looking for a quick read with substance and a good story.The Kommandant's Girl Overview

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When the Emperor Was Divine Review

When the Emperor Was Divine
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When the Emperor Was Divine ReviewWhen people--any people--cease to be seen as individuals, they become "them"--the faceless, nameless "enemy." In this exquisite short novel, a shameful episode of American history is re-examined--the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. It was a time when everyone of Japanese descent was somehow "them"--the enemy. And in becoming "the enemy" they lose much of what it means to be human.
The tiny family--mother, son, daughter--is devastated when their father is suddenly taken away in his robe and slippers, suspected of who knows what. A few months later they are forced to give up everything and move to a dusty prison camp somewhere in Utah.
After more than three years they return home, changed and traumatized. Eventually they are reunited with the father, but he too is changed, a broken shadow of himself.
The story is told in eloquent, simple, spare prose, in small but telling details, in the fragmented but powerful insights of the two children and their mother. It is never over-stated, never sentimental, yet it will bring you to tears.
The book concludes with a short but powerful epilogue, a fierce and powerful essay on what it means for anyone to be "them," to be "the enemy."
This is a painful book, but it is important for you to read it. I cannot recommend it too strongly. Reviewed by Louis N. Gruber.When the Emperor Was Divine Overview

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Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II Review

Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II
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Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II ReviewThis book is a true story, but Mitchell Zuckoff does such an amazing job of telling it that reads much like a novel in that it grabs you right from the beginning, and for me, was darn near impossible to put down. Imagine going on a fly-over sight seeing tour of one of the most beautiful mountain jungle areas in the world to see an almost hidden, untouched valley and then crashing into a mountain and being one of the few survivors trying to find a way out. But getting out or back to the base isn't easy in a place with no roads or paths, just dense rain forest vegetation, a huge tree canopy and tangled vines both above and below you. Imagine being injured with open wounds and having to exist in a place that's perpetually wet and steaming with all sorts of bacteria and fungi and little to keep it out. You don't even want to think about all the bugs and critters that call this place home. Add to that the stories you've heard about spear throwing, cannibalistic natives and you wonder how these people didn't give up right then and there.
Having read the description of the book and knowing that it was a rescue and reading pretty much what the outcome was, I was a little concerned that the book might not hold my attention. But, not to worry, as soon as I started reading I was mesmerized by the amount of detail and how gripping the story was. Mitchell Zuckoff notes that no liberties were taken with any of the facts, characters, dialog or chronology which must have made it a double challenge for him to put the diaries, notes, news stories and newsreels and interviews all together in a way made me feel like I was there, personally involved with these people.
Besides being such a good read, it added to my knowledge of the history of WWII. With so many battles going on all over the world, New Guinea isn't a place that you read that much about in history books on the war. This book tied a lot of what was going on in that area together for me. There are lots of characters in this book besides just the survivors and Zuckoff gives us the background stories on several of the rescuers and people at the base camp as well as some of the politics of the time. He does it in such a way that it doesn't interrupt the main action, but rather adds to the insight and makes it that much more interesting.
This would be a good book for any World War II buff, history lovers, action adventure enthusiasts, and really, anyone who just loves a good read. And because one of the main characters in this story is a woman who enlisted in the WAC, I think it would be equally interesting for both men and women. Two thumbs up for this great book that left me blurry eyed this morning after "just one more page" kept me up the better part of the night to finish it.
Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II Overview

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