How the World allowed Hitler to Proceed with the Holocaust

How the World allowed Hitler to Proceed with the Holocaust written by

Tony Matthews and published by Pen & Sword Books - £25.00 - Hardback - Pages 480

In July 1938 the United States, Great Britain and thirty other countries participated in a vital conference at Évian-les-Bains, France, to discuss the persecution and possible emigration of the European Jews, specifically those caught under the anvil of Nazi atrocities. However, most of those nations rejected the pleas then being made by the Jewish communities, thus condemning them to the Holocaust.

There is no doubt that the Évian conference was a critical turning point in world history. The disastrous outcome of the conference set the stage for the murder of six million people. Today we live in a world defined by turmoil with a disturbing rise of authoritarian governments and ultra right-wing nationalism. The plight of refugees is once more powerfully affecting public attitudes towards those most in need. Now, on the 76th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and the end of the Second World War, it’s time to reflect on the past to ensure we never again make the same mistakes.

Tragedy at Évian also shines a spotlight on some of the astonishing and courageous stories of heroic efforts of individuals and private organisations who, despite the decisions made at Évian, worked under extremely dangerous conditions, frequently giving their own lives to assist in the rescue of the Jewish people.

This is one of those books that leaves you astounded with disbelief and bewilderment at how ineffectual people can be. The book focuses primarily on the Evian-les-Bains Conference in France and how a good number of countries knew of the impending problems and disaster for the Jews, and yet very few did anything about it. A book that seems very apt at the moment with the conflict happening in Ukraine with millions of people being displaced to neighbouring countries. In a way, it seems now more and more people are aware of the situation to migrant people, whereas back at the start of WWII it seems the world was far less aware of these situations.

I must admit that when I started reading this book I thought it might be a bit hard going or not the most lively or interesting read when the main focus is on the conference. But actually, it is a very good book, comprehensive and detailed but it runs smoothly and is very interesting, so huge credit to the author Tony Matthews for his writing. Whist the book can be hard reading at times due to the wretched subject matter, it does feel like an important book to read and learn from. Certainly a good book I would happily recommend to others and a good subject matter that needs writing about.

Hindenburg, Ludendorff & Hitler

Hindenburg, Ludendorff & Hitler written by Alexander Clifford and published by Pen & Sword Books - £25.00 - Hardback - Pages 368

They are two of twentieth-century history’s most significant figures, yet today they are largely forgotten – Paul von Hindenburg and Erich Ludendorff, Germany’s First World War leaders. Although defeat in 1918 brought an end to their ‘silent dictatorship’, both generals played a key role in the turbulent politics of the Weimar Republic and the rise of the Nazis.

Alexander Clifford, in this perceptive reassessment of their political careers, questions the popular image of these generals in the English-speaking world as honourable ‘Good Germans’. For they were intensely political men, whose ideas and actions shaped the new Germany and ultimately led to Hitler’s dictatorship.

Their poisonous wartime legacy was the infamous stab-in-the-back myth. According to the generals, the true cause of the disastrous defeat in the First World War was the betrayal of the army by politicians, leftists and Jews on the home front. This toxic conspiracy theory polluted Weimar politics and has been labelled the beginning of ‘the twisted road to Auschwitz’.

Hindenburg and Ludendorff’s political fortunes after the war were markedly different. Ludendorff inhabited the far-right fringes and engaged in plots, assassinations and conspiracies, playing a leading role in failed uprisings such as Hitler’s 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. Meanwhile Hindenburg was a vastly more successful politician, winning two presidential elections and serving as head of state for nine years. Arguably he bore even more responsibility for the destruction of democracy, for he and the nationalist right he led sought, through Hitler, to remould the Weimar system towards authoritarianism.

There are some books that come along that you just want to dive into and this was one of them. I’ve long been learning about the First World War & the Second World War but often some of the most fascinating places in history is the ‘in between’ wars section and this particular part of history is fascinating as Alexander Clifford explores a part of that history, Hindenburg, Ludendorff & Hitler. The period of the Weimar Republic was basically 10 wasted years where life in Germany just festered and all the surrounding upheaval was no surprise that a mangled relationship between these three men would sow the seeds for another global conflict.

Although in my opinion, Hitler has to carry the can for this relationship and what would eventually happen, it was very much interesting reading about the relationship, conflict and suspicion between these three, it really does enlighten the reader as to how things went wrong and in a way shows clearly who was the aggressor, the yes man and the fooled in this bad political relationship. This has been a fascinating read, comprehensive, detailed and very well written and with all the other characters in the book would in other world’s make a really good thriller. From beginning to end this was a really good book, I would have no other choice but to recommend this book and if you want to learn about the relationship between these three men, this is one of the best books I have read on this subject.

Middlesbrough at War 1939-45

Middlesbrough at War 1939-45 written by Dr Craig Armstrong and published by 

Pen & Sword Books - £14.99 - Softcover - Pages 128

Middlesbrough was of vital importance to Britain’s war effort. The town, and its surrounding area, contained a number of vital industries including shipbuilding, chemicals, iron, steel and other metals, and engineering, as well as a joinery firm that played a leading role in the wartime aviation industry. The ICI plant at nearby Billingham also played a leading role in the creation of petrochemicals and explosives.

As with many communities, the start of the war saw Middlesbrough faced with hastily having to bring its Air Raid Precautions and civil defence services up to full strength. With its strategic importance, it was believed that Middlesbrough would be an obvious target for the Luftwaffe. As a result, schoolchildren and other vulnerable people were evacuated from the town at the very start of the war in a scheme that did not prove entirely successful.

Middlesbrough became the first built-up urban area in mainland Britain to be bombed. In the event, Middlesbrough was raided periodically throughout the war with the worst coming on the night of 25/26 July 1942, when waves of Luftwaffe bombers dropped almost 30 tons of bombs on the town. The raid killed sixteen people and caused very extensive property damage. Meanwhile, just days later, bombs fell on the town’s railway station as a train was waiting at the platform there. The pictures of the resulting damage were wired around the world.

Due to its location on the coast and being a city dominated by industry and maritime, Middlesbrough was always going to be a target for the Luftwaffe. What we did see was the city being under regular attack throughout the war in an attempt to undermine the morale of the community, but also in the hope of hampering the British war effort. In the classic style of the Towns & Cities in World War Two series, we learn how the war affects all aspects of life, from having to rebuild after air raids and losing loved ones from the attacks. Seeing women having to work at the various factories and workplaces to replace the men who were having to go off to war. Then you have the various small organisations having to pick up and help in an hour of need and daily life structures being compromised and changed as everyone has to deal with some aspect of the war on the home front.

As I have said before this series is, in my opinion, fantastic and the author here Dr Craig Armstrong has done another brilliant job in writing about the history of a city but finding a good balance in the telling of the stories and lives of the people of Middlesbrough. The writing is excellent and this is supported throughout with some great ‘local’ pictures from around Middlesbrough. Certainly a fascinating read and an excellent addition to the series.

The Fleet Air Arm and the War in Europe, 1939–1945

The Fleet Air Arm and the War in Europe, 1939–1945 written by David Hobbs and

published by Seaforth Publishing - £35.00 - Hardback - Pages 352

For the first time, this book tells the story of how naval air operations evolved into a vital

element of the Royal Navy’s ability to fight a three-dimensional war against both the Kriegsmarine

and Luftwaffe. An integral part of RN, the Fleet Air Arm was not a large organisation, with only

406 pilots and 232 front-line aircraft available for operations in September 1939. Nevertheless,

its impact far outweighed its numbers – it was an RN fighter that shot down the first enemy

aircraft of the war, and an RN pilot was the first British fighter 'ace' with 5 or more kills. The

Fleet Air Arm’s rollcall of achievements in northern waters went on to include the Norwegian

Campaign, the crippling of Bismarck, the gallant sortie against Scharnhorst and Gneisenau

as they passed through the Channel, air attacks on enemy E-boats in the narrow seas, air

cover for the Russian convoys, air attacks that disabled Tirpitz, and strikes and minelaying

operations against German shipping in the Norwegian littoral that continued until May 1945.

By the end of the war in Europe the FAA had grown to 3243 pilots and 1336 aircraft.

This book sets all these varied actions within their proper naval context and both technical and tactical aspects are explained with 'thumb-nail' descriptions of aircraft, their weapons and avionics. Cross reference with the Fleet Air Arm Roll of Honour has been made for the first time to put names to those aircrew killed in action wherever possible as a mark of respect for their determination against enemy forces on, above and below the sea surface which more often than not outnumbered them.

The Fleet Air Arm and the War in Europe completes David Hobbs’ much-praised six-volume series chronicling the operational history of British naval aviation from the earliest days to the present.

This book is part of a series of six, I was lucky enough to get to read his last book Taranto, and together with this book, I’ve just finished reading it is a very fine book and written with so much detail and comprehensive detail. These books are certainly ones to treasure as they are not just written by people who know the ‘knowledge’ of the subject, but they have lived their subject and been a part of it, which cements the brilliant knowledge being written. David Hobbs is a 30 year veteran of the Royal Navy serving as a pilot, and later became the curator of the Fleet Air Arm Museum.

The book explains various aspects of the Royal Navy from the planes used, the ships used, the special operations carried out along with the weapons, dynamics and strategies. It does all this very well by writing it in chapters dedicated to each year of the war. I also enjoyed the good retrospective section in the back which preceded the bibliography and the very detailed notes section. The book also contains a large number of good b/w photographs throughout. I really enjoyed this book and would happily recommend it to others and it’s nice to see more books being written in this way about the Navy.

Fallschirm Panzer Division ‘Hermann Goring’

Fallschirm Panzer Division ‘Hermann Goring’ written by Lawrence Paterson published by Greenhill Books - £25.00 - Hardback - Pages 320

In the early years of the Third Reich, Hermann Göring, one of the most notorious leaders

of the Third Reich, worked to establish his own personal army to rival Himmler’s SS and

Reichswehr. The result: a private Prussian police force which grew into one of the most

powerful armoured units in Nazi Germany’s Wehrmacht.

This unit fought throughout the Second World War, meeting Anglo-American forces in vicious battles across the European theatres of Tunisia, Sicily and Italy before finally being defeated by the Red Army on the Eastern Front. The Hermann Göring Panzer Division incorporates technical details of these battles with the turbulent politics and Machiavellian manoeuvring of Hitler’s inner circle, giving military-history enthusiasts fresh insights into the development and role of this unusual division through the war.

Drawing on first-hand accounts and extensive archive material, World War II historian Lawrence Paterson presents a comprehensive and unbiased history of the establishment of the famous 1. Fallschirm-Panzer Division.

When I read the description for this book, I must admit that being called the ‘Hermann Goring’ Division, my first thoughts were that it would not be a great division and it was probably a group of hand picked men and used as a personal bodyguard unit. But no surprise, surprise the ‘Hermann Goring’ Division, it turns out were quite a good and well-trained division with a number of big successes in Italy, Tunisia and Sicily before being forced into the Eastern front in which they didn’t do so well. This was a fascinating read, very well written and the detail is great, the author Paterson has written a really good Division book with a lot of balance and respect. I even enjoyed the notes at the back which also comes with a list of Knights Cross recipients and finally, I really liked the picture on the back of the book.  

The Hitler Myths - Exposing the Truth Behind the Stories About the Führer

The Hitler Myths - Exposing the Truth Behind the Stories About the Führer

written by Sjoerd J. De Boer and published by Frontline Books - £25 - Hardback -

Pages 256

Adolf Hitler remains one of the most discussed figures in world history. Every year, an untold number of articles and books are published, and television programmes and internet pages are produced, by respected historians through to amateur conspiracy theorists.

One of the consequences of this continuous flow of stories is that, over time, increasing numbers of falsehoods and fabrications have emerged about Hitler. Many of these have subsequently gained credence by virtue of their constant repetition – however bizarre they may be.

These include such claims that Hitler was impotent (contradicted by another myth that he had an illegitimate son), that he had Jewish ancestors, or that he had killed his niece. Another claim, one of the most persistent, is that he did not commit suicide but escaped Berlin to live in Argentina for years after the war, despite his well-recorded failing health. What is the truth about his corpse, his sexual experiences, his years of poverty, his complete dominance of his subordinates? How much of what we think we know is the result of intentional or misunderstood modern interpretations? Many rumours also circulated during Hitler’s life and, with the passage of time, have been presented as facts despite having no substantial foundation.

Was Hitler really a hero of the First World War and, if so, why was he not promoted beyond the rank of corporal? Was he the true author of Mein Kampf and did he write a second book that was never published, and was Hitler initially a socialist?

In The Hitler Myths the author clinically dissects many of these myths, often in a highly amusing fashion, as he exposes the inaccuracies and impossibilities of the stories.

The myths – the familiar and the obscure – are discussed chronologically, following the course of Hitler’s life. In his analysis of each of the myths, the author draws on an array of sources to prove or disprove the rumours and speculations – once and for all!

This book looks at various myths concerning Adolf Hitler from was he a Jew? to was he a Demon? And all sorts in between. These myths have risen from when Hitler was still alive to some coming about many years later. The author Sjoerd J. De Boer looks at the evidence and documents surrounding each myth, and debates as to whether they are true or false based on actual evidence. I really enjoyed this book, yes I had heard of some of them but a good few I hadn’t heard of, but thanks to some good writing by the author it seemed an effortless but balanced read in an enjoyable way. The Bibliography at the back of the book was quite detailed and a decent size, so I will be using that for sure. Would I recommend this book, although a lot is written about Hitler, even today I have learnt quite a bit and I would recommend this book to WW2 fans and non-WW2 fans.

The Waffen-SS Armour on the Eastern Front 1941-1945

The Waffen-SS Armour on the Eastern Front 1941-1945 written by Ian Baxter

and published by Pen & Sword Books - £14.99 - Softcover - Pages 144

Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union, codename Operation Barbarossa, was arguably the pivotal moment of the Second World War. Initially, the onslaught was staggeringly successful with, as the superb contemporary images in this book show, Waffen- SS armoured divisions leading the charge. But the Nazis had underestimated the Russians’ determination to defend their homeland and the logistical problems compounded by the extreme winter weather conditions.

After early victories such as the recapture of Kharkov in early 1943 and the Kursk offensive, commanders and crews of armoured vehicles such as Pz.Kpfw.I, II, III, IV, Panther, Tiger, King Tiger, assault and self-propelled guns had to adapt their tactics and equipment to what became a desperate defensive withdrawal eventually back across a scarred and devastated Eastern Front. Even during the last months of the war as the Panzers withdrew through Poland and into the Reich, these exhausted elite units, broken down into small battle groups or Kampfgruppen, fought to the bitter end.

With authoritative text supported by a plethora of rare fully captioned photographs, this classic Images of War book informs and inspires the reader revealing the key role played by Waffen-SS Panzer units in this most bitter campaign.

The Eastern Front, one of the more important parts of World War Two in which sent many troops and vehicles into Russia during Operation Barbarosa, it also looks at how hard the Germans found the war, enemy and weather conditions. Much like Russia today, even today people (Putin) still haven’t learnt from history in that if you start a war in the winter, your going to get bogged down/stuck and if your far from supplies you're going to run out of fuel. Once again this is another fascinating book as we see a good number of tanks and crew going to war and then being forced to retreat. It’s finally twigged with me especially the ‘land’ books of the images of war series’, that the vast majority of the photos are taken by the soldiers/crews in the situations. This makes the photos all the more better because you have soldiers in the situation knowing what to photograph and what is important. This is why so many of the photos consist of soldiers in their everyday working life, going through the good times and the bad.

Another fantastic book and as you know already I would happily recommend all these

Images of War books. I should also add there are always great appendices in the back

of these books, which probably often get overlooked.

The Waffen-SS in Normandy 1940

The Waffen-SS in Normandy 1940 written by Ian Baxter and published by Pen & Sword Books - £14.99 - Softcover - Pages 128

In June 1944, Operation OVERLORD, the greatest ever amphibious invasion, initially overwhelmed German Normandy defences. To attempt to stabilize the situation, Hitler deployed his elite Waffen-SS divisions to avert the crisis.

This classic Images of War book describes how the formidable Leibstandarte, Das Reich, Hitlerjugend, Hohenstaufen, and the Frundsberg SS divisions with supporting Wehrmacht divisions fought fanatically despite facing overwhelming enemy airpower and determined well-led Allied armies. Mounting losses and supply and fuel problems culminated in the Falaise Pocket defeat, when twenty-five out of the thirty-eight German division was completely destroyed. As a result, the remaining Waffen-SS units had to be reluctantly withdrawn and transferred back to Holland and, Belgium to recoup, or sent to the Eastern Front to attempt to stem the relentless Soviet advance.

With many rare and unpublished photographs with detailed captions, Waffen-SS in Normandy is a graphic account of the Waffen-SS operations in Normandy and their subsequent retreat through France.

This book in the Images of War series looks at the Waffen-SS in Normandy in 1940, a German operation in response to the allied forces' invasion of Normandy in the D-Day landings. Now as this was getting towards the end of the war, Germany was beginning to run out of supportive troops and his army was being stretched almost to the limit. Hence why and you’ll notice this looking through the book at the pictures, Hitler was having to rely heavily on troops formerly of the Hitler Youth. You’ll see from the photos that many of the soldiers in this book look very young, and as leader in a youth organisation personally, some of these soldiers look around the age as some of the young members in my group. But this shouldn’t be seen as a bad thing, as quite a few allied soldiers would go to remark how well these young German soldiers fought. 

This was a really enjoyable book to read, fascinating to see really young men being soldiers and having to endure war at such a young age. I must credit the author Ian Baxter, as it seems when you read an Ian Baxter book, you’ll always get a well written and researched book. This book feels a little smaller than others in the series, but it is certainly an excellent book.

Narvik and the Norwegian Campaign 1940

Narvik and the Norwegian Campaign 1940 written by Philip Jowett and published

by Pen & Sword Books - £18.99 - Softcover - Pages 240

The Norwegian campaign, fought in 1940, early in the Second World War in Europe, is overshadowed by the campaign in Poland that preceded it and the German blitzkrieg in the Low Countries and France that followed, yet it was a close contest from the military point of view and it had a far-reaching impact on the rest of the war. Philip Jowett’s photographic history is a vivid introduction to it.

In a concise text and a selection of over 150 photographs, he traces the entire course of the fighting in Norway on land, at sea and in the air. He describes how important it was for the Allies – the Norwegians, British and French – to defend northern Norway against the Germans, in particular, to retain control of the strategic port of Narvik.

The book documents in fascinating detail the troops involved, the aircraft and the large naval forces, and gives an insight into the main episodes in the conflict including the struggle for Narvik and the major clashes at sea which culminated in the loss of the Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier Glorious.

The photographs are especially valuable in that they show the harsh conditions in which the fighting took place and offer us a direct impression of the experience of the men who were there.

This book is an addition to the brilliant Images of War series created by Pen & Sword Books, the Narvik and the Norwegian Campaign 1940 is in my opinion a part of WW2 that gets very overlooked so I think that this book becomes a valuable part of the series. As you would expect this book as an Images of War book is for the vast majority black and white photographs, but I would say that we shouldn’t underestimate the standard of the supporting text that is part of the main text and the supporting captions to the photographs. 

The book is split into 14 chapters from Defending Neutrality through Invasion, Fall of Denmark, Sea Battles, Airwar over Norway to the end of the Norwegian Invasion. I must admit I do enjoy reading about the Norwegian part of the war, purely as I said this part of the war gets very little attention. This was a good read and thoroughly enjoyable with a good number of excellent photos, an excellent addition to the series.

Agent Provocateur for Hitler or Churchill?

Agent Provocateur for Hitler or Churchill? written by David Tremain and published

by Pen & Sword Books - £25.00 - Hardback - Pages 304

There have been many remarkable women who served British Intelligence during the Second

World War. One whose dubious claim to have worked for them is a fascinating tale involving

three marriages – the first, to a spurious White Russian prince; the second to a

playboy-turned-criminal involved in a major jewellery robbery in the heart of London’s Mayfair

in the late 1930s. After the war, she became romantically involved with a well-known British

Fascist, but finally married another notorious criminal whom she had met earlier during the war.

The descriptions variously ascribed to her ranged from ‘remarkable’ and ‘quite ravishing’ to ‘…a woman whose loose living would make her an object of shame on any farmyard.

Until now, very little has been recorded about Stella Lonsdale’s life. She doesn’t even merit a mention in the two official histories of MI5, even though she managed to tie them up in knots for years. This book will explore the role this strange woman may or may not have played in working for British Intelligence, the French Deuxième Bureau, or the Abwehr – German military intelligence – during the Second World War, using her MI5 files as a primary source.

I should probably admit that I had never heard of Stella Lonsdale, but in a way, I can see why and why not. In a fascinating book that delves deep into the story and the circumstances involved, the information is a lot and very comprehensive. Hopefully, this isn’t spoiling it for anyone but this book clears her name of being any sort of spy for Nazi Germany. Although her lifestyle and friends might not have been to everyone’s taste, this book digs deep and does a lot of research to vindicate her and is very comprehensively written. I think this book could deter some readers because there was a lot of detail and information, but I pushed on through and in the end, it was a good read. Certainly one for those that love their spy game type reads.

The U-Boat War - A Global History from 1939-1945

The U-Boat War - A Global History from 1939 to 1945 written by Lawrence Paterson and

published by Osprey Publishing. - £25 - Hardback - Pages 336

The accepted historical narrative of the Second World War predominantly assigns U-boats to the so-called 'Battle of the Atlantic', almost as if the struggle over convoys between the new world and the old can be viewed in isolation from simultaneous events on land and in the air. This has become an almost accepted error. The U-boats war did not exist solely between 1940 and 1943, nor did the Atlantic battle occur in seclusion from other theatres of action. The story of Germany's second U-boat war began on the first day of hostilities with Britain and France and ended with the final torpedo sinking on 7 May 1945. U-boats were active in nearly every theatre of operation in which the Wehrmacht served, and within all but the Southern Ocean. Moreover, these deployments were not undertaken in isolation from one another; instead they were frequently interconnected in what became an increasingly inefficient German naval strategy.

This fascinating new book places each theatre of action in which U-boats were deployed into the broader context of the Second World War in its entirety while also studying the interdependence of the various geographic deployments. It illustrates the U-boats' often direct relationship with land, sea and aerial campaigns of both the Allied and Axis powers, dispels certain accepted mythologies, and reveals how the ultimate failure of the U-boats stemmed as much from chaotic German military and industrial mismanagement as it did from Allied advances in code-breaking and weaponry.

This book is divided into three parts with the first two-thirds covering the first half of WW2 and the final third covering the second half. With the first half of the book covering the building and supply of U-Boats and their availability, it would seem from reading that Germany wasn’t ready with regards to the U-Boat situation with many not fully finished or engines that were not entirely up to standard. 

Having read a number of books previously about the U-Boats and the war, there were quite a few bits that I already knew about that might be new to other people, like the fact that torpedoes used to be unreliable weapons and in fact mines would often be more dangerous for shipping due to the fact that they could be laid more quickly and could be concentrated or less so.

I’m going to say that the first half of the book was better and it seemed more full of content and specifications, the second half lacked a little, but was still quite enjoyable. I found the bibliography at the back of the book looks very good and I recognised a few of the names mentioned so I will probably follow up by doing some further reading on the subject. As I said I really enjoyed this book, and I find the U-Boat gets relatively less attention than the ground or air-based war combat. It is certainly a good book I would recommend to others that want to gain more knowledge about the U-Boat situation in WW2. I would like to thank Osprey Publishing for allowing me to read this advanced copy.

The Hitler Assassination Attempts

The Hitler Assassination Attempts written by John Grehan published by Frontline Books - £20 - Hardback - Pages 296

Throughout his political life, Adolf Hitler was the subject of numerous assassination plots, some of which were attempted, all of which failed. While a few of these have become well known, particularly the bomb explosions at the Bürgerbräukeller in Munich in 1939 and the Stauffenberg Valkyrie attempt carried out at the Wolfsschanze on 20 July 1944, many others have received far less attention – until now.

In this book, John Grehan has examined the known planned or proposed assassination attempts on Hitler, from Chicago to London and from Sweden to Ukraine – some of which have not previously been presented to the general public by historians.

All manner of methods were proposed by those willing to bring Hitler’s life to a premature and sticky end and Hitler was well aware of the danger which lurked potentially around every corner of every road, railway track, every building and even every individual. As a result, an immense, multi-layered security apparatus surrounded the Führer day and night. Despite this, and knowing the risks they faced, many people sought to kill the German leader, and some very nearly did. Yet Hitler survived, often by just a minute or a millimetre, to die ultimately of his own hand.

These plots and conspiracies are detailed in this book, along with a unique collection of photographs of many of the proposed or actual assassination locations. All will be revealed in this fascinating compilation of the obscure, the fanciful and the carefully considered attempts to assassinate Hitler.

The Hitler Assassination Attempts tries to explain the often many number of attempts to kill Adol Hitler. Now it seems from reading this book that Hitler was never popular anywhere or with anyone, and this ranged from the ordinary person right up to highly promoted people within his own military. Also it should be said that there were attempts on his life all over Europe, with that being said it is strange how his personal protection was not better or closer. This if you know what Hitler was like as a person should come as no surprise. He was often very narrow-minded in his views and opinions and certainly, his personality never gave him any favours.

In this book the author John Grehan writes very well and informed, the many chapters come across as very concise and snappy, which did make the book very good and a very easy read. Whilst I had heard of many of the attempts before, reading through this book made it feel fresher and more interesting if that makes sense. I enjoyed this book a lot and would certainly recommend it to anyone with an interest in Hitler as the person.

Tiger I & Tiger II Tanks

Tiger I and Tiger II Tanks written by Dennis Oliver and published by Pen & Sword Books - £16.99 - Softcover - Pages 64

By the first weeks of 1945, the Eastern Front had been pushed back to the Carpathian mountain passes in the south and Warsaw on the Vistula River in the centre while in the north the German army was fighting in East Prussia. The Wehrmacht's armoured and mobile formations were now employed exclusively as fire brigades, rushed from one crisis to the next as the Red Army pushed inexorably westward. Critical to the German defence were the army's heavy Panzer battalions whose Tiger tanks, with their 8.8cm guns, were almost invincible on the open plains of central Europe. In his latest book in the TankCraft series Dennis Oliver uses archive photos and extensively researched colour illustrations to examine the Tiger tanks and units of the German Army and Waffen-SS heavy Panzer battalions that struggled to resist the onslaught of Soviet armour during the last days of the conflict which culminated in the battle for Berlin. A key section of his book displays available model kits and aftermarket products, complemented by a gallery of beautifully constructed and painted models in various scales. Technical details, as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field, are also examined providing everything the modeller needs to recreate an accurate representation of these historic tanks.

I do love a nice Tiger tank, personally, I think one of the more beautiful tanks, if a tank can be called that. So you can see that if I love a Tiger tank, then I must have enjoyed this book, and I did indeed. As usual with these books, they are very well written and informed, the research that goes into these books, although small is no less than a standard-sized book. You have all the tank dimensions, specifications and theatre of war camouflage, the history and the operations they are specifically well known for. Now obviously, these books are twinned with being aimed at model makers/collectors, now I’m not one of these but this particular section of the books always seems very well done. So in all, this book hits the mark in all ways, another good addition to the range.