What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Moderator: maddog986
- rhondabrwn
- Posts: 2570
- Joined: Wed Sep 29, 2004 12:47 am
- Location: Snowflake, Arizona
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Still reading Erick Flint's "Ring of Fire" novels (alternative history of the 30 Year's War period. I was delighted to see AGEOD's announcement of a new game on the topic!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1632_series
If not for these novels, I wouldn't have given it a second thought, but now it's a "must have" for me. [:)]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1632_series
If not for these novels, I wouldn't have given it a second thought, but now it's a "must have" for me. [:)]
Love & Peace,
Far Dareis Mai
My old Piczo site seems to be gone, so no more Navajo Nation pics
Far Dareis Mai
My old Piczo site seems to be gone, so no more Navajo Nation pics
- George Patton
- Posts: 1243
- Joined: Tue Jul 12, 2005 6:38 am
- Location: Lugano, Switzerland
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
The British Pacific Fleet: the Royal Navy's most powerful strike force, by David Hobbs
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
warspite1ORIGINAL: George Patton
The British Pacific Fleet: the Royal Navy's most powerful strike force, by David Hobbs
Please let me know what you think. I have this waiting to be read and am interested to know if it will be worth the wait [;)]
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
- Chickenboy
- Posts: 24520
- Joined: Fri Jun 28, 2002 11:30 pm
- Location: San Antonio, TX
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
ORIGINAL: warspite1
Finally finished Volume 1 of Clay Blair's Hitler U-Boat War.
700 pages + more stats than you can shake a stick at. There were a few niggles - like when he got off his subject (to recap where the war was at various points) he was guilty of hyperbole in some cases, and also he seemed to have a bit of a hang up about the British and a love affair with Admiral King.
However, these are minor niggles; the work gone into this book is staggering and the result is hugely interesting book and really easy to read piece of work.
I would thoroughly recommend this book - and am angry with myself that I have not read it sooner. Having finished it I have dived straight into volume II. [:)]
Between the two, I found the second more interesting personally. Coastal Command gives 'em the what for, I'll tell you what! [X(]
Before reading both of these books, I hadn't realized the scale and scope of the futility that was the German U-boat effort post mid-1942. When compounded with questionable leadership from the top, it made an abattoir for the Kreigsmarine in 1943 and 1944.
I also hadn't realized how many "heavies" (Sunderlands, B-24s, B-17s and the lot) were used in an ASW role by the British and other commonwealth players in Coastal Command. Putting the jackboot on the U-boat throat required an enormous effort.
- Citizen Emperor
- Posts: 69
- Joined: Sat Dec 28, 2013 6:19 am
- Location: Memphis
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Just finished up Napoleon: The End of Glory (Oxford University Press, 2014) by Munro Price.
It's a worthwhile new study of the political moves & military campaigns of 1813-14, which sealed the doom of the First French Empire. Price sheds some interesting light on Austria's convoluted strategy (via recently discovered documents & diaries), and postulates that Napoleon had much more serious health problems than previously believed.
He also opines that Napoleon's near-death at Arcis-sur-Aube (20 March 1814) was likely a battlefield suicide attempt. (An enemy howitzer shell landed in front of troops Napoleon was attempting to rally. He spurred his horse over the sputtering shell, which then exploded, blowing the horse completely apart. When the smoke & dust cleared, Napoleon was revealed miraculously unscathed -- although probably coated in horse guts!)
It's a worthwhile new study of the political moves & military campaigns of 1813-14, which sealed the doom of the First French Empire. Price sheds some interesting light on Austria's convoluted strategy (via recently discovered documents & diaries), and postulates that Napoleon had much more serious health problems than previously believed.
He also opines that Napoleon's near-death at Arcis-sur-Aube (20 March 1814) was likely a battlefield suicide attempt. (An enemy howitzer shell landed in front of troops Napoleon was attempting to rally. He spurred his horse over the sputtering shell, which then exploded, blowing the horse completely apart. When the smoke & dust cleared, Napoleon was revealed miraculously unscathed -- although probably coated in horse guts!)
"A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of colored ribbon."
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
"Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?"
Reduce SP:WaW slaughter, "Low Carnage":
Settings: 80Spot,80Hit,100R/R,XXXTQ,110TkT,150InfT,180AvSoft,130AvArm,150SOFire / Command & Ctrl ON / AutoRally OFF
Enhanced http://enhanced.freeforums.org
Depot https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/spwawdepot/
Settings: 80Spot,80Hit,100R/R,XXXTQ,110TkT,150InfT,180AvSoft,130AvArm,150SOFire / Command & Ctrl ON / AutoRally OFF
Enhanced http://enhanced.freeforums.org
Depot https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/spwawdepot/
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Finished Churchill and the Admirals by Stephen Roskill, a pretty damning book about Churchill and how he treated the Admirals of the Royal Navy. Covered are all his actions, errors, mistakes, intrigues, brainwaves and whatever, from the Great War onwards through WWII. Fascinating read.
Now reading Churchill's Anchor: The Biography of Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound OM, GCB, GCVO by Robin Brodhurst.
Now reading Churchill's Anchor: The Biography of Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound OM, GCB, GCVO by Robin Brodhurst.
"A big butcher's bill is not necessarily evidence of good tactics"
- Wavell's reply to Churchill, after the latter complained about faint-heartedness, as he discovered that British casualties in the evacuation from Somaliland had been only 260 men.
- Wavell's reply to Churchill, after the latter complained about faint-heartedness, as he discovered that British casualties in the evacuation from Somaliland had been only 260 men.
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
A interesting rebuttal to Roskill is in 'Churchill and Sea Power' by Christopher Bell. Bell tries to show (with limited success) that Winston wasn't so bad.ORIGINAL: Hotschi
Finished Churchill and the Admirals by Stephen Roskill, a pretty damning book about Churchill and how he treated the Admirals of the Royal Navy. Covered are all his actions, errors, mistakes, intrigues, brainwaves and whatever, from the Great War onwards through WWII. Fascinating read.
Now reading Churchill's Anchor: The Biography of Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound OM, GCB, GCVO by Robin Brodhurst.
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Thank you, on my list. It's always good to see both sides of the coin - that's what I always try to achieve, to get more than just one opinion (or book) about the same issue. No author is in the sole possession of the truth.
"A big butcher's bill is not necessarily evidence of good tactics"
- Wavell's reply to Churchill, after the latter complained about faint-heartedness, as he discovered that British casualties in the evacuation from Somaliland had been only 260 men.
- Wavell's reply to Churchill, after the latter complained about faint-heartedness, as he discovered that British casualties in the evacuation from Somaliland had been only 260 men.
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
I entirely agree.ORIGINAL: Hotschi
Thank you, on my list. It's always good to see both sides of the coin - that's what I always try to achieve, to get more than just one opinion (or book) about the same issue. No author is in the sole possession of the truth.
I haven't read Roskill, but mean to.
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Kiev 1941 by David Stahel
"I hate newspapermen. They come into camp and pick up their camp rumors and print them as facts. I regard them as spies, which, in truth, they are. If I killed them all there would be news from Hell before breakfast."- W.T. Sherman
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Anybody here read 'Land Battles in 5th Century BC Greece: A History and Analysis of 173 Engagements' by Fred Eugene Ray ?
It looks interesting.
It looks interesting.
- Saint Ruth
- Posts: 1384
- Joined: Wed Dec 16, 2009 1:39 pm
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Any good?Kiev 1941 by David Stahel
Looks interesting.
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Vichy France Old Guard and New Order 1940-1944
A couple of chapters in and really enjoying this one [:)]
A couple of chapters in and really enjoying this one [:)]
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
- IronWarrior
- Posts: 796
- Joined: Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:57 pm
- Location: Beaverton, OR
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Rereading "Somme" by Lyn Macdonald (again). A bit of self-indulgence as my grandfather had an interview in the book.
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Barbarossa Unleashed by C Luther is superb. I can't recommend it enough. Great value for money aswell..with fold out maps etc, quality paper and a superb read.
LINK
LINK
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
warspite1ORIGINAL: warspite1
Vichy France Old Guard and New Order 1940-1944
A couple of chapters in and really enjoying this one [:)]
Finished the book. Bit of a strange one actually. At its best it is very good - but too much of the book is written in a language that I completely fail to understand [&:]
Wordy and, to me, largely incomprehensible Sentences like the one below abound. If not entirely incomprehensible, they do make the book feel like one is wading through treacle:
At stake was a dim groping toward another conception of representation to replace the Third Republic's equal and atomized voters.
As an introduction to Vichy, I suspect I could have picked an easier to read tome, but this book did at least leave me with a much better understanding of where Vichy fitted in to the bigger picture of WWII.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
- TulliusDetritus
- Posts: 5581
- Joined: Thu Apr 01, 2004 1:49 am
- Location: The Zone™
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Since the last book mentioned here, I have read like 10 books (history and political economy basically).
Currently reading Rome by Mikhail Ivanovich Rostovtzeff
Currently reading Rome by Mikhail Ivanovich Rostovtzeff
"Hitler is a horrible sexual degenerate, a dangerous fool" - Mussolini, circa 1934
RE: What Book Are You Reading at the moment?
Taking a break from war books.
Currently enjoying Centennial, by James H. Michener.
Currently enjoying Centennial, by James H. Michener.
"I hate newspapermen. They come into camp and pick up their camp rumors and print them as facts. I regard them as spies, which, in truth, they are. If I killed them all there would be news from Hell before breakfast."- W.T. Sherman