Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: angelsandair on June 27, 2008, 04:14:17 AM
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I usually read WW2 books alot and I think I just read my 2nd favorite Auto-biography I've ever read. It's a very short one, but it gets to the chase. It's called "Abandoned at Leyte" written by a FM-2 wildcat pilot Doy Duncan. He got only one kill, but he got shot down during the battle for Leyte Gulf (Tin-Can Sailors battle-also a good book). Only book that has beaten that was Indestuctable, story of Jack Lucas (who died recently :salute :salute).
What are your Favorite reads?
Mine are so far:
Flags of our Fathers, One Square Mile of Hell (that is a really really good book), Indestructable, Abandoned at Leyte, and Citizen Soldiers (I'm still reading this one, but it's been a good read)
I'm sure most of you have read Flags of our Fathers, anybody read One Square Mile of Hell? If not, read it, it's a great book too, most accurate battle description of Tarawa I've ever read.
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'Catch-22' is probably my all time favourite book. Closely followed by Hemmingway's 'For Whom the Bell Tolls' (Spanish Civil War though).
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'Catch-22' is probably my all time favourite book. Closely followed by Hemmingway's 'For Whom the Bell Tolls' (Spanish Civil War though).
Wierd thing with Abandoned at Leyte, the book isn't very gripping, but all the stuff this guy saw from the phillipino people/militia is really cool.
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Winds Of War/War And Rememberence/The Caine Mutiny all tie as my favorite books. Nothing like well written historical fiction for me. Right now I'm in the midle of Flying Tigers by Daniel Ford.
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Winds Of War/War And Rememberence/The Caine Mutiny all tie as my favorite books. Nothing like well written historical fiction for me. Right now I'm in the midle of Flying Tigers by Daniel Ford.
Ohh another good read is
Days of Infamy
A great scenario of what could have happened if Admiral Yamamoto had been in charge of the attack on Pearl Harbor. THATS a good WW2 fiction book. THE best fiction book I've ever read IMO.
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Ohh another good read is
Days of Infamy
A great scenario of what could have happened if Admiral Yamamoto had been in charge of the attack on Pearl Harbor. THATS a good WW2 fiction book. THE best fiction book I've ever read IMO.
Ermmm, as far as I know Yamamoto was in charge of the Pearl Harbor attack. :confused:
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Ermmm, as far as I know Yamamoto was in charge of the Pearl Harbor attack. :confused:
Nope IIRC, it was Nagumo who was actually in charge. Yamamoto was in Japan. Correct me if I'm wrong.
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Ermmm, as far as I know Yamamoto was in charge of the Pearl Harbor attack. :confused:
He was the main planner, but the fleet attacking Pearl was commanded by Vice Admiral Nagumo.
Yamamoto, Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet wasn't present at the attack.
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He was the main planner, but the fleet attacking Pearl was commanded by Vice Admiral Nagume.
Yamamoto, Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet wasn't present at the attack.
thought so.
But yea, what would've happened if Yamamoto had been in-charge of the fleet at the time. Great read.
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Ohh another good read is
Days of Infamy
A great scenario of what could have happened if Admiral Yamamoto had been in charge of the attack on Pearl Harbor. THATS a good WW2 fiction book. THE best fiction book I've ever read IMO.
He was in charge of the attack, he just was not the on-scene commander of the attack. Yamamoto's ultimate resonsibility was the outcome of the attack, not just command of the local forces. Therefore Yamamoto was in charge of the attack as directed by the Japanese government. Don't get "in charge" and "in command" confused.
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He was in charge of the attack, he just was not the on-scene commander of the attack.
Thats what I mean... Typo :rolleyes: Just read it >.<
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No worries, man. Was just trying to clear something up.
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If you want a good book, I recomend The Last Stand of the Tin Can Soldiers. It's about Taffy 3 and how they did some ballsy things against pretty much the might of the Japanese Fleet.
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THE best fiction book I've ever read IMO.
Read Russ Schnieders Siege: A novel of the Eastern Front 1942
Its Fiction, and a great read.
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We Band of Angels : documents the stories of a group of nurses held captive on the Philippine islands, and their rescue.
Terrible Terry Allen pieces of this book are super interesting to read ~ like the treatment of his enlisted men, and the 1921 (or was it 22?) horse race here in Texas. Does also speak about WWII though.
An Army At Dawn listed as one of my favorites only because it is so cram packed with interesting tid-bits of information. I don't necessarily regard it as a book I'd run to go read again.
Here is Your War by Ernie Pyle. Actually, everything by him (not just this book) was amazing. He had a real gift of putting the reader into his shoes.
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Favorite book of all....The 13th Valley by John M. Del Vecchio.
Never understood why this book was not made into a movie, but probably just as well since Hollyweird would have made a mess of it.
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Peter Hathaway Capstick
Death In The Long Grass
Death In The Dark Continent
Death In The Silent Places
Death In A Lonely Land
The Last Ivory Hunter
Maneaters
A Return To The Long Grass
This guy can put you there without a doubt. Great books.
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John Ross
Unintended Consequences
This one I read recently got on a tip from Laz.
Don`t pick this one up if you have anything against red eyes. It`s more than difficult to put down.
A great read with a lot of little known facts worked in.
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John D. McDonald
All of the Travis McGee series.
Great books to kill a rainy afternoon.
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I have too many to list and I have read a few what's has been mentioned. As an all time favorite I would add Len Deighton's Bomber to the list. It's fiction but was carefully researched.
I have just finished The Few - about small number of American pilots in the Battle of Britain. (I didn't know that the first Eagle Squadron did not go operational until just after the official end of BOB). This book is about Fiske, Donahue, Keogh, Tobin and Mamedoff who arrived just as the last boats were leaving Dunkerque. None of them survived to Dec 7. 1941.
I got Hell Hawks for father's day and I'm looking forward tucking into it this weekend. It's about the 365th FG of the 9th AF...air to mud Jug squadrons that did close air support from D-Day to VE-Day.
BTW - Minoru Genda (the Monk) was the staff officer (on Yamamoto's staff (equivalent to CNO in our Navy)) that recognized the significance of shallow-water torpedo technology (Brit Swordfish against the Italian fleet at Taranto) and how it could be applied to the Japanese situation. He developed the idea, submitted it to Yamamoto, designed the shallow-water fins for the JN arial torpedo, supervised the training, and developed the attack plan. Nagumo was the flag officer that executed the plan. Genda was a brilliant man and was the number 2 guy in the Japanese government in the mid-late 70's. He was also a member of the Zero Fighter Pilot's Association and he had the distinction of surviving the sinking of the Battleship Yamato in 1944. He passed away in 1989.
On the point though...if Yamamoto had been the operational commander I think he would have ordered the third attack...arranged a refueling and steamed to the southwest to hunt the US carriers. He knew the value of the US Carriers and the wisdom of the 'hammer blow' at Pearl. Because the carriers escaped, Yamamoto knew it wouldn't be long before the tide turned in the Pacific.
Sorry to spew so much, guys. I think it's great that everyone is reading the really good books about this era of flight, combat and world history.
Raider
PS. For Texas Mom. As a born-again Texan I finished Lone Star: A History of Texas and the Texans by T.R. Fehrenbach over Christmas/New Years. Now if I can just master the long-neck in the back pocket thing, I'll qualify for citizenship. ;)
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PS. For Texas Mom. As a born-again Texan I finished Lone Star: A History of Texas and the Texans by T.R. Fehrenbach over Christmas/New Years. Now if I can just master the long-neck in the back pocket thing, I'll qualify for citizenship. ;)
I must confess, I'm relatively new to Texas. My children learned more about the history of Texas from their grade school teachings than I knew ~ and they don't hesitate to remind me of it. :) I have read a so-so book on notable Texas Women... most of them didn't seem that impressive, although I was struck by Bessie Coleman! What an amazing gal she was!
Thanks for the book title there, I'll find it & read it this summer!
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my favorite book is any Conan, the cool thing is Robert Howard ( the creator of Conan) was from Texas, sad part is he killed himself in 1936, after his mom died.
someone else mentioned "the 13th valley" that was also a very good book. about Vietnam.
if you want a great book read "The Count of Monte Cristo" very good read.
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Ones with pictures only...... :rofl
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The Lord of the Rings
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Too long a list (in no particular order).......
All Quiet on the Western Front
A Separate Peace
On the Road
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test
Swiss Family Robinson
Catch 22
Catcher in the Rye
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
(Just to name a few)
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The Lord of the Rings
if you like LOTR,
try out Terry Brooks's The Shanara series, the first three are insanely good, the third one is called "The Wishsong of Shanara" this can be read as a single book it is one of the greatest fantasy books ever written.
way better than LOTR
IMO
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The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Entire collection ( all 5 books of the trilogy )
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I have quite a few books in a collection I started when I was young, believe 3 stand out for me -
Achtung Panzer! (About German Panzer Army)
Iron Coffen (About the U-boats)
Luftwaffe Aces (About luftwaffe pilots and tactics by adolf galland)
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"Enemy at the Gates" about the entire battle at Stalingrad from both sides. Yes they made a movie off of it but its one small part of the book.
"Tigers in the Mud" The combat history of Otto Carius
"The Mighty Eighth" History of the 8th air force.
But my all time favorite book is "Lord of the Rings" and almost all Robin Cook books. Im addicted to them medical thrillers.
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my favorite book is any Conan, the cool thing is Robert Howard ( the creator of Conan) was from Texas, sad part is he killed himself in 1936, after his mom died.
someone else mentioned "the 13th valley" that was also a very good book. about Vietnam.
if you want a great book read "The Count of Monte Cristo" very good read.
Good call on the Count of Monte Cristo. It's nothing like the two movies that have been made. It's so much more evil and devious.
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if you like LOTR,
try out Terry Brooks's The Shanara series, the first three are insanely good, the third one is called "The Wishsong of Shanara" this can be read as a single book it is one of the greatest fantasy books ever written.
way better than LOTR
IMO
Bzzzzzzzzzt!
Read them. Brooks didn't even TRY to disguise having ripped his characters right out of LotR. They were ok, but I never got around to reading the Voyage of the Jerle Shannarra because they just weren't worth it. The Rhapsody series and Wayfarer's Redemption are by FAR superior to Brooks (Rhapsody being the second-best fantasy series I've read). Hell, even the endless and repetitive preaching of Goodkind is more enjoyable, (thank GOD he remembered he's writing a FANTASY series in the Final Three and that the Cold War has been over for 20 years) but even they don't come close to LotR.
Since we're on the classics:
Agreed on Monte Cristo. Also, I LOVED Ivanhoe. The language can be difficult, but well worth the effort.
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"Red Storm Rising" by Tom Clancy Well really anything by Clancy is my favorite. :D
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Military books:
Guadalcanal by Richard Franks. It's a history, but the guy does a great job keeping it a narrative so it reads like the gripping story that Cactus was! Franks makes sure that each part of this combined arms battle gets equal attention - -the naval battles, the ground troops, the air battles get equal time, detail and respect. One of the few books I've read multiple times, and I've enjoyed it every time.
Fire in the Sky: the Air War in South Pacific by Eric Bergerud. He does a magnificent job of tying together oral history, narrative history, and documentation so there's a seamless explanation of what flying and fighting in this nasty theater was like. By the way, at one point Bergerud was an AH player and squad member...not sure if he's still around.
Band of Brothers by Steven Ambrose.
Six Armies at Normandy by John Keegan. Great military history, about the Normandy Campaign. Includes the invasion but unlike many other books it follows what came after, and why the battle went the way it did.
On the Origins of War and the Preservation of Peace by Donald Kagan. Amazing work that looks at 4-5 conflicts from the Peloponnesian War to the Cold War, and explains the common thread that ties them together. Convincingly claims that deterrent strength and clear communication of acceptable limits could minimize outbreak of war.
Good reads:
Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian on through Blue at the Mizzen by Patrick O'Brian. Don't think that the movie in any way represents the stories! There are 20 volumes in this series...and they've been called the best historical fiction ever written by the New York Times Book Review. Somehow O'Brian's writing manages to keep the action adventure people happy, while still being high quality enough that many have called his work "literature" in the college english class sense. The Jack Aubry/Stephen Maturin partnership is one of the best I've ever read, and the characterizations are so good that these guys simply become real. Best of all, O'Brian manages to completely capture the feel of the Napoleonic era so that you walk away thinking "that was what it really was like."
Lord of the Rings
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Good call on the Count of Monte Cristo. It's nothing like the two movies that have been made. It's so much more evil and devious.
Pitiful, pitiful, pitiful compared to the book.
There is just no way that anyone is going to fit the best revenge tale EVER conceived and make a worthy film.
One can NOT cram years of imprisonment, learning, plotting, planning, and execution of plans into 2 hours of video and put the viewer properly in the head of Edmund Dantes.
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Lately I've been considering the value of Mini-series to explore the literature realm. For example, I am very concerned that they are going to try to fit all of Atlas Shrugged into one 2-3 hour movie.
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Lately I've been considering the value of Mini-series to explore the literature realm. For example, I am very concerned that they are going to try to fit all of Atlas Shrugged into one 2-3 hour movie.
Mini-series for most novels would be a much better medium. :aok
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Yep, the miniseries has the only real hope of doing justice to a book.
The Band of Brothers miniseries is the greatest war story ever put on film...and it couldn't have done anything as well if it were a movie
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Agreed.
Although the whole 'TV' thing chaps my arse from time to time. I still make my kids read more than they really want to. Especially if I see them watching something that I know I have the book of, on the bookshelf.
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http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,233903.0.html
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If you want a good book, I recomend The Last Stand of the Tin Can Soldiers. It's about Taffy 3 and how they did some ballsy things against pretty much the might of the Japanese Fleet.
I'm looking to finish that one. But I'm pretty much at the end. The book Abandoned at Leyte is really cool because you can tell what the guy is doing in the Battle of Leyte gulf. Where he was and IIRC from "The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors" (not Soldiers) they mentioned his group attacking the Battleship Yamato.
oh and roundeye, read "Days of Infamy" you'll love it.
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oh and roundeye, read "Days of Infamy" you'll love it.
Thanks, anglesandair...I'll look for it. :aok
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Thanks, anglesandair...I'll look for it. :aok
Brand new book, really detailed.
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Soldier X: its about a young German conscript late in WW2 who is sent to the eastern front as a translator, he is wounded and poses as a Russian soldier (Russian family so hes fluent in Russian and German) soldier in order to avoid capture/execution, he becomes friends with a nurse and couple patients at the hospital he is at, eventually the germans over run the hospital and he makes his way to the American and British front to save his friends from the Germans, eventually the only remaining people in the group is him and the nurse, he is accidentally shot in the arm and faceby an American and is given care. Later after recovering and losing his Arm he reunites with the nurse and they move to the United States and becomes a teacher.
I believe the story is entirely true except the names of most of the characters. Ive read the book probably 8 or 9 times and could never put it down.
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1. Patton: A Genius for War by Carlo D'este
2. Why the Allies Won by Richard Overy
3. Allied Fighter Aces by Mike Spick
4. The Mind of Adolf Hitler by the OSS
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Bzzzzzzzzzt!
Read them. Brooks didn't even TRY to disguise having ripped his characters right out of LotR. They were ok, but I never got around to reading the Voyage of the Jerle Shannarra because they just weren't worth it. The Rhapsody series and Wayfarer's Redemption are by FAR superior to Brooks (Rhapsody being the second-best fantasy series I've read). Hell, even the endless and repetitive preaching of Goodkind is more enjoyable, (thank GOD he remembered he's writing a FANTASY series in the Final Three and that the Cold War has been over for 20 years) but even they don't come close to LotR.
Since we're on the classics:
Agreed on Monte Cristo. Also, I LOVED Ivanhoe. The language can be difficult, but well worth the effort.
well of course i read them i would not comment on them if i didnt,
and you are right after the wishsong the rest just didnt cut it for me, seemed like he was just pumpin them out for cash.
how about "The lion of Ireland"? anybody read that? about Brian Boru
UPTOWN
book of Job is very good reading also, and does not sound corny at all, at least not to me.
ya the movie "Count of Monti Cristo" was only "OK" but to be honest the only movie i have ever watched that was worthy of the books were LOTR,
wanna talk about a book they destroyed into a movie was "Battlefield Earth" i was so pissed after watching that movie. waste of two hours, friggen book was something like 1,300 pages took me three days to read it, that was a very good book IMO, HORRIBLE movie.
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Thanks Ink :salute I edited that because I just realized they were asking about WW2 books. But yeah, book of Job is my all time favorite. :aok
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uptown
:salute
Revelation is my favorite book in the bible.
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Ehh. If its an interesting read, I'm all for it.
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Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.
Books are always better.
My first book was "Dick and Jane" my first step towards perversion.
:huh
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I usually read WW2 books alot and I think I just read my 2nd favorite Auto-biography I've ever read. It's a very short one, but it gets to the chase. It's called "Abandoned at Leyte" written by a FM-2 wildcat pilot Doy Duncan. He got only one kill, but he got shot down during the battle for Leyte Gulf (Tin-Can Sailors battle-also a good book). Only book that has beaten that was Indestuctable, story of Jack Lucas (who died recently :salute :salute).
What are your Favorite reads?
Mine are so far:
Flags of our Fathers, One Square Mile of Hell (that is a really really good book), Indestructable, Abandoned at Leyte, and Citizen Soldiers (I'm still reading this one, but it's been a good read)
I'm sure most of you have read Flags of our Fathers, anybody read One Square Mile of Hell? If not, read it, it's a great book too, most accurate battle description of Tarawa I've ever read.
I've got a ton of Stephen Ambrose books. He was an amazing author. He was working on a book about the war in the Pacific in WWII. He died of cancer while he was writing it. :salute Never got published. You'll REALLY like Citizen Soldiers, I've read that maybe 4-5 times. I have no idea, I've lost count on all my books. :lol But my favorite book would would be Red Storm Rising, by Tom Clancy. Amazing book. Some more of my favorites are Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley, D-Day by Stephen Ambrose, Black Hawk Down by Mark Bowden, and last but not least, Making A Killing by Captain James Ashcroft.
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Any of you read Fly Boys by IIRC James Bradley (same from Flags of our Fathers) I never got to finish it.
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The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer
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reach for the sky.....douglas baders story.
combat crew........john comer i think
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The Golden Warrior; by Hope Muntz. this is considered to be one of the top 100 historical novels of all time, which is quite an achievement if one considers that there were approximately half-a-million novels published in the genre during the 20th century. The story of the events leading to the Battle of Hastings, and a biography of Harold Godwinson, William Bastich's opponent during the epic events of 1066.
The Long Ships: by Frans Gunnar Bengtsson. An easy read, despite its 500 plus pages. Highly amusing in places, and entertaining throughout. It was the basis for the movie "The Long Ships" starring Richard Widmark and Sidney Poitier. The only resemblance between the book and the movie is that they both had vikings and a bell. Trust me....the novel is better.
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I posted this in Oct. of last year after being repeatedly asked in game what good books are there.
Excellent reads:
Given Up For Dead - Bill Sloan (this one tops Flags)
Flags of our Fathers - James Bradley
Flyboys - James Bradley (I used to be in very close contact with him circa Flags and we got to know each other vicariously through my grandpa's and his father's lives. A class act.)
The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors - James D. Hornfischer
A Question of Honor - Lynne Olson and Stanley Cloud
The Longest Winter - Alex Kershaw
Eighth Army - Robin Neillands
Ghost Soldiers - Hampton Sides
Left to Die - The Tragedy of the USS Juneau - Dan Kurzman
Armageddon - Clive Ponting
An Army at Dawn - Rick Atkinson (2003)
The Battle for Italy - Rick Atkinson (now) These two are part of the "Liberation Trilogy". These books are very in depth and give a great "objective" look into the WWII ETO.
The Coldest Winter - David Halberstam (I haven't read this yet, but I have been told this is getting RAVE REVIEWS) It is about the The Korean War.
All are exceptional books.
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The Golden Warrior; by Hope Muntz. this is considered to be one of the top 100 historical novels of all time, which is quite an achievement if one considers that there were approximately half-a-million novels published in the genre during the 20th century. The story of the events leading to the Battle of Hastings, and a biography of Harold Godwinson, William Bastich's opponent during the epic events of 1066.
The Long Ships: by Frans Gunnar Bengtsson. An easy read, despite its 500 plus pages. Highly amusing in places, and entertaining throughout. It was the basis for the movie "The Long Ships" starring Richard Widmark and Sidney Poitier. The only resemblance between the book and the movie is that they both had vikings and a bell. Trust me....the novel is better.
I recently read The Last Legion, which was ALSO far superior to the movie (which itself wasn't BAD, but nothing remarkable, either. However it was infinitely superior to King Arthur). Not exactly historical fiction, but seeing as the author IS a historian specializing in Ancient Rome, these aspects are generally quite solid and the history is VERY nicely integrated with the earliest Arthurian legend.
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-The Silence of the Lambs
-Hannibal
-Life in the Underbrush
-The Secret Life of Sharks
-About Face
-The Last Citadel
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The Killer Angels - Shaara
Team Yankee - Coyle (series of 6 novels)
Misery - King
It Doesn't Take a Hero - Schwartzkopf
Panzer Battles - Mellenthin
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I posted this in Oct. of last year after being repeatedly asked in game what good books are there.
Excellent reads:
Given Up For Dead - Bill Sloan (this one tops Flags)
Flags of our Fathers - James Bradley
Flyboys - James Bradley (I used to be in very close contact with him circa Flags and we got to know each other vicariously through my grandpa's and his father's lives. A class act.)
The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors - James D. Hornfischer
A Question of Honor - Lynne Olson and Stanley Cloud
The Longest Winter - Alex Kershaw
Eighth Army - Robin Neillands
Ghost Soldiers - Hampton Sides
Left to Die - The Tragedy of the USS Juneau - Dan Kurzman
Armageddon - Clive Ponting
An Army at Dawn - Rick Atkinson (2003)
The Battle for Italy - Rick Atkinson (now) These two are part of the "Liberation Trilogy". These books are very in depth and give a great "objective" look into the WWII ETO.
The Coldest Winter - David Halberstam (I haven't read this yet, but I have been told this is getting RAVE REVIEWS) It is about the The Korean War.
All are exceptional books.
Retreat? Hell, were just attacking in another direction. is a very good read too.
One square mile of hell is another good one.
Oh and Karaya, do you know of a good book depicting the Battle of Anzio? Me and my dad have been looking for a long time, but most of its either the same stuff or it's very incorrect.
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1984: by George Orwell
Stalingrad: by Anthony Beevor
The Mighty Eighth: by Roger A Freeman
Berlin the downfall: by Anthony Beevor
Fighter Pilot: by Paul Richey
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There's a reason I'm a Luftwaffe dweeb.
"6th March, 1944
Last night there were more engines droning overhead. the British attacked Berlin with more than 1,000 aircraft.
At noon we are sent into action against the Americans who are heading for the same objective. Once again I am in command of the Gruppe.
In the first frontal attack I shoot down a Fortress just north of the airfield and leave a second one in flames. I cannot watch it crash, however, because I am fully occupied with several Thunderbolts try to get on my tail.
My Staffel loses Sergeant Veit. The body was found in a cornfield just north of the airfield where he was shot down.
On our second mission I succeed in shooting down yet another Fortress. It also went down during the first frontal attack, aimed at the control cabin. Probably both pilots were killed and the controls put out of action, because the plane crashed without any signs of fire.
During the ensuing dogfight with the Thunderbolts my tail plane was shot full of holes, and my engine and left wing were badly hit also. It is all I can do to limp home to our field. On coming to land I discover my left wheel has been shot away. The right wheel will not retract. I am forced to make a one wheel landing.
Immediately I order a reserve aircraft to be prepared for me to take off on a third mission. It is destroyed during a low level strafing attack. Two of the mechanics are seriously wounded.
4 Staffel places one of its aircraft at my disposal by order of the Commanding officer. Specht and I take off together, with Flight Sergeant Hauptmann and Sergeant Zambelli as our wingman.
When we attempt to attack a formation of Liberators over Lueneberg Heath, we are taken by surprise by approximately forty Thunderbolts. In the ensuing dogfight our two wingmen are both shot down. After a wild chase right down to ground level the Commanding Officer and I finally escape with great difficulty.
After landing I receive word from Diepholz that Flight Sergeant Wenneckers is in hospital there after being shot down and seriously wounded.
In a telephone conversation with Division during the night, the Commanding Officer requests that the Gruppe be withdrawn from operations temporarily. We cannot continue.
The request is refused. We are to continue flying until the last aircraft and the last pilot. Berlin, the capital city of the Reich, is ablaze from end to end.
It has become very silent in the crew room. Jonny Fest and I it there alone in our two arm chairs far into the night. We do not speak much. The pile of cigarrete butts in the ashtray grows steadily, as we extinguish one cigarette after another.
Jonny keeps staring in a distrait way at the pictures on the wall. To me it seems as if we might expect to see the faces to move and hear the familiar voices of our late comrades break the silence in the room....
Wolny.... we were returning from his funeral in the Chief's car, when a girl suddenly dashed into the road carrying a wreath of pine on here arm. It was his fiancee. She had been ashamed to stand beside us at the grave, because she was afraid that she still could not control the grief which overwhelmed her when told of his death three days before...
Steiger.... looked exactly like his twin brother. I met him at Tuebingen last year, and at first thought he was Gerd. The resemblence was startling: their mother claimed to be the only person who could tell them apart....
Kolbe... they found his body in the wreckage, but it was minus both hands. Then his wife asked for the wedding ring. How could we possibly tell her the truth?...
Kramer... why, oh why did that boy have to lose his head that time his aircraft went down in the sea?...
Gerhard... his mother writes to me often, and I have to tell her all about her brave son. She hopes that his death for the freedom of our people and the survival of the Reich will not have been in vain...
Fuehrmann.... on the spot where his Messerschmitt carried him down when it plunged into the Moor we erected a tall oak cross. At its base we nailed two five franc peices....
Doelling.... did not return from his second mission. His body was claimed by the sea.
Killian.... his perpetual affairs with women caused me plenty of trouble....
Dolenga... whatever became of his very charming wife? I was best man at their wedding at Jever...
Nowotny... his father in Bruenn wrote to me that two of his brothers had also been killed in action...
Raddatz.... his darling Myra Lydia shed enough tears at the time, but did not take long to find consolation elsewhere. Still she was not the only one who found his charms irresistible....
Arndt... did not return from his first mission....
Reinhard... my good buddy once showed me a photograph of his six brothers and himself, all together, all in uniform, all wearing the Iron Cross First Class...
Zambelli... used to play the accordion. His alert came when he was int he middle of playing a lively dance tune. His accordian was still lying on the table when the rest of us returned from the mission on which he was killed....
Weissgerber....
Hetzel...
Kreuger....
Veit....
Hoefig...
Trockels....
Troendle...
Now only Jonny and I remain...."
To better explain the gravity of the situation even this early in the war, in the third mission he describes his Gruppe, II/JG11, taking off with 4 aircraft. Generally full operational strength of a Gruppe is around 40 aircraft, which means that by March 1944 II/JG11 was operating with 90% of its pilots killed or wounded.
Heinz Knoke's "I Flew for the Fuehrer" is at this point my favorite book in my rapidly expanding library. It's a very interesting insight into the German point of view on the war, as the memoirs start directly before the Blitz of Poland through the BoB until the end of the war. He served in JG52 during the Battle of Britain and Operation Barbarossa, then was transferred to JG1. The majority of his career was as staffelkapitaen of 5 staffel of JG11. He served in combat on Reich Defense duties until October 9th 1944 when he was crippled during relocation by a roadside bomb planted by Czech terrorists. At this point he had 33 kills including 20 heavy bombers.