seaJane Posted 18 June Share Posted 18 June 16 hours ago, Black Maria said: The last two mentioned are both excellent books , E.H Jone's companion in his great deception was C.W Hill who also wrote his account of their adventures called 'The Spook and the Commandant ' , which is also a very good read . Those are vaguely on my list whenever I can find decent copies, but I shall have to unpack the rest of my books first, to ensure that I haven't purchased them and forgotten since! sJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin kenf48 Posted 19 June Admin Share Posted 19 June 8 hours ago, seaJane said: to ensure that I haven't purchased them and forgotten since! At least Amazon on Kindle tell you 'you already own this book" when you press purchase - we've all done it! (by all I mean those of us who are bears of little brain have) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROGSMILE Posted 19 June Share Posted 19 June 18 minutes ago, kenf48 said: At least Amazon on Kindle tell you 'you already own this book" when you press purchase - we've all done it! (by all I mean those of us who are bears of little brain have) We should form a club Ken and start a thread - ‘books I have forgotten I already have’ - and then do swaps between us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin kenf48 Posted 19 June Admin Share Posted 19 June 2 minutes ago, FROGSMILE said: We should form a club Ken and start a thread - ‘books I have forgotten I already have’ - and then do swaps between us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Maria Posted 19 June Share Posted 19 June 8 hours ago, seaJane said: Those are vaguely on my list whenever I can find decent copies, but I shall have to unpack the rest of my books first, to ensure that I haven't purchased them and forgotten since! sJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waddell Posted 16 July Share Posted 16 July I have been following Damien Wright’ s thread on the Russian intervention and his book and have been drawn into the events that occurred there, particularly the involvement of Australians. In what may be a record slow movement of the To Be Read pile I realised that I had bought Michael Challinger’s book on the subject in 2010. So, fourteen years later I decided to read it. This was a well written and interesting book that provided me with a good overview of the how and why the Australians got there as well as describing the actions they were involved in. To be honest, that area of Russia seems to be a miserable place. I have previously read of RAAF involvement there in the Second World War and the terrible summer and winter weather, the Russians themselves and the alcohol seem to be the common experience. The book mainly covers the Australians in Elope Force but does cover briefly Australians operating in other parts of the country. After describing events the author covers what happened to some of the men after the war as well as a late travelogue section towards the rear of the book where he went looking for the grave of Sam Pearse VC. The story of Sam Pearse’s daughter, who he never met, is a particularly sad tale. Another old soldier later enlisted with the 8th Division in WW2, went into captivity in Singapore and died at Sandakan on 9th April 1945- a sad end for a digger. There is a long appendix at the back of the book containing a nominal roll of the Australians who served there and which British units they served with which is very useful. I couldn’t find any soldiers local to my area but realised that the remains of two survivors of those events lie in the Hawkesbury River a few kilometres to the north of me in the wrecks of HMAS Parramatta and HMAS Swan, who operated around Sevastopol. An interesting book. Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonbowen Posted 16 July Share Posted 16 July On 18/06/2024 at 08:20, Black Maria said: The last two mentioned are both excellent books , E.H Jone's companion in his great deception was C.W Hill who also wrote his account of their adventures called 'The Spook and the Commandant ' , which is also a very good read . Just picked up a hard back copy of 'The Spook and the Commandant' for £7 off the back of your recommendation. Looking forward to reading int when it arrives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Maria Posted 17 July Share Posted 17 July 10 hours ago, jonbowen said: Just picked up a hard back copy of 'The Spook and the Commandant' for £7 off the back of your recommendation. Looking forward to reading int when it arrives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geniesoldaat Posted 25 July Share Posted 25 July Finished reading "Het drama van de dodengang: De hel van het IJzerfront" by Siegfried Debaeke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geniesoldaat Posted 26 July Share Posted 26 July (edited) Reading "Patrouilleurs aan het IJzerfront: De helden van het niemandsland" by Robert Lambrecht, a book about changing tactics on the IJzerfront and the forming of specialized groups like patrolling units. Task was a.o. gathering information of what was going on in no man's land, raids and capturing enemies. Edited 26 July by Geniesoldaat spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie2 Posted 26 July Share Posted 26 July Michael - Die Grosse Schlacht in Frankreich im Lenz 1918 by Generalleutnant Ernst Kabisch. Considering the importance and success of the offensive the German side of events is otherwise elsewhere poorly covered. Charlie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Bailey Posted 26 July Share Posted 26 July Finally got round to "Digging the Trenches" by Andrew Robertshaw and David Kenyon. Lots of good insight into the archaeology of the trenches and reads well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geniesoldaat Posted 29 July Share Posted 29 July Another good book i have read is "Ten aanval: De strijd om de voorposten aan de IJzer" by Eddy Lambrecht Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seaJane Posted 30 July Share Posted 30 July Having a binge of modern WW1 fiction, chiefly Max Hennessy (John Harris's nom de plume) and Alexander Fullerton. Mostly competent, workmanlike uncomplicated - sometimes more complicated - heroics with the occasional love interest (not always successfully pursued), but nice to have some naval material in among everything. (Max Hennessy does have a habit of repeating scenes, speeches and idioms transferably from book to book, though). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geniesoldaat Posted 31 July Share Posted 31 July Finished Dutch version of "Les Fusiliers-Marins au combat: Souvenirs de la Guerre (Août 1914- Septembre 1915), "Herinneringen aan de grote oorlog van Viceadmiraal Pierre Ronarc'h: De marinefuseliers aan het IJzerfront 1914-1915" Dutch translation by André Gysel. Another great book that gives you an idea of the complex situation on the Yser front. Maintaining the inundation for four years, repairing dikes and sluices of all kind due to daily bombing and shooting, nightly raids. Admiral Ronarc'h and his Brigade de Fusiliers Marins were on the Yser Front from October 1914 till November 1915. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waddell Posted 31 July Share Posted 31 July 15 hours ago, seaJane said: Having a binge of modern WW1 fiction, chiefly Max Hennessy (John Harris's nom de plume) and Alexander Fullerton. Mostly competent, workmanlike uncomplicated - sometimes more complicated - heroics with the occasional love interest (not always successfully pursued), but nice to have some naval material in among everything. (Max Hennessy does have a habit of repeating scenes, speeches and idioms transferably from book to book, though). Which of the Max Hennessy books do you recommend SeaJane? Have read a few O'Brian's recently and wouldn't mind reading some newer (relatively) naval stuff. Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seaJane Posted 31 July Share Posted 31 July 14 minutes ago, Waddell said: Which of the Max Hennessy books do you recommend SeaJane? Have read a few O'Brian's recently and wouldn't mind reading some newer (relatively) naval stuff. Scott The Kelly Maguire trilogy is WW1 naval - begins with The Lion at Sea. sJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waddell Posted 1 August Share Posted 1 August Thanks SJ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sapper D. Posted 2 August Share Posted 2 August Reading Sassoon's "Memoirs of an Infantry Officer" for the tenth time ... or 11? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeyH Posted 4 August Share Posted 4 August looking forward to reading 'Private Beatson's War', published in 2009 by Pen and Sword. The GWF gets some fulsome praise in the acknowledgements 'A kinder or more considerate bunch of enthusiasts you couldn't hope to meet'. Who am I to argue with that. Sadly Beatson was killed on the Somme in the attack on High Wood, 23rd July 1916. The book was a 50p car boot sale find, in mint condition, seemingly unopened. Mike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cpaige Posted 25 August Share Posted 25 August Finish today reading Marked for death The first war in the air published 2016 James Hamiliton-Paterson Interesting as it open my eyes to different aspect of the air war. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waddell Posted 27 August Share Posted 27 August (edited) I decide to read Hemingway’s ‘A Farewell to Arms’. It took me a while to get into as I adjusted to Hemingway’s style of writing, which sometimes read like a witness statement. However, I persevered and there are some beautiful sections in the book. I’m not sure that I would classify it as a First World War book. Although there are some great descriptions of the war in Italy, I felt that it was a love story that could have been set in any war. In some aspects it felt a bit dated and I grew a bit tired of the ‘Do you love me darling?' dialogue . Hemingway didn’t give the nurse a lot of character depth. This sort of conversation leads to her getting pregnant all of a sudden- I think this must be an example of Hemingway’s iceberg theory of writing.. I guess it is of its time but it doesn’t date well. I’m glad I read it, but I don't think it is one of those books I will re-read. I won't spoil the ending for those who haven't read it. Scott Edited 27 August by Waddell Added more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fellop Posted 27 August Share Posted 27 August Just finished ‘Mother of Eagles’ the war diary of Baroness von Richthofen, though I freely admit it was put down and picked up a couple of times. Kunnigunde von Richthofen first published her War Diary [Mein Kriegsagebuch] in 1937, Mother of Eagles is a translation, including other information not in the original, by American Suzanne Hayes Fisher in 2001. The book reads like a diary with entries headed by day and date, and it is about her war and how she encountered it. There are even a few paragraphs on how she once made a ‘new’ pair of slippers from carpet offcuts. Complaints about Manfred bringing his dirty washing home during visits. Many family photos and other information about the family, visitors and local news from around the area as the war progresses. Published by Schiffer Publishing Ltd in the US they have a European distribution by Bushwood Books Kew Gardens Surrey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Bob Davies Posted 31 August Admin Share Posted 31 August On 25/08/2013 at 11:54, Black Maria said: Just finished "The Motor-Bus in War" by Lieut A.M Beatson , published by Fisher & Unwin in 1918. Mr Beatson enlists in August 1914 as a Private in a Territorial Battalion and in October of that year finds himself a Second Lieutenant in the A.S.C posted to a Indian Cavalry motorised supply Column about to depart for the Western front. It is an interesting book about the workings and daily life of a Supply column up to the end of the Battle of Arras in 1917,being written and published in war time some of the place names have been omitted. One bit of the book that made me chuckle was when the author mentioned there were strict speed limits on roads within the War zone and Military Police would patrol them armed with stop watches catching speeding drivers, they did particularly well on one road that was under enemy observation because drivers would go faster than normal. A rare book to find although I did once buy another copy for a fiver at a military book fair, so worth looking out for. I concur with your thoughts on this book B M. A very interesting read, though as you say ''published in war time some of the place names have been omitted. '' However I do believe these original books written at the time by the people who were there make them more pragmatic. @FROGSMILE, from a recent thread your explanation of the ASC comes to the fore in this book, thank you. ''The army behind the army'', is quoted from Lord Northcliffe. One that made me smile is, from the book, ''Nothing is overlooked: even, in summer-time, fly-papers are issued. Latterly, sardines and pickles, and even rabbits, have become occasionally part of the British ration.'' For those who have not read it yet, I hope you enjoy the experience of one who was there. @kenf48 no need to buy again, it is here on Internet Archive for free. https://archive.org/details/motorbuswar/page/43/mode/2up With my regards, Bob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimberley John Lindsay Posted 1 September Share Posted 1 September Dear All, Thanks for that. I loved the part which stated: 'That part of the line towards which we were working was held by the Anzacs. The Australian Army (Australian Imperial Force: AIF) is a democratic one. Officers go through the ranks first (not all, but by 1918 more prevelent), and all ranks are thus more or less on a footing of familiarity, the officer invariably addressing a man as "Son"...' Kindest regards, Kim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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