New Books

[John 3rd]

Never too early to start a thread on books when Christmas isn't TOO far away!

I have ordered two this week:
Warships After London: End of the Treaty Era 1931-1936 by John Jordan
Warship Builders: Industrial History of US Shipbuilding 1922-1945 by Thomas Heinrick

Both books are highly appropriate for my Mod work and am looking forward to them. Jordan's first book (Warships After Washington) is excellent and I look forward to his new one.

Any other new History out there we should be aware of?

[Jellicoe]

Not massively new I think but I have recently been reading through Jordan & Carrese's French battleships of World War One and French Armoured Cruisers 1887-1932 and perhaps more relevantly Jordan and Moulin's French Cruisers 1922-1956. Looking to pick up his books on French Destroyers and French post WW1 battleships

On a completely different topic have also read 'Treason on the airwaves' by Judith Keene which discusses the crimes and trials of John Amery, Tokyo Rose and Charles Cousens. I was familiar with the first two but not the latter individual and Australian reactions and actions. Very interesting discussion on Japanese propaganda too. Particular interest for me as my great uncle Bernard was one of the psychiatrists who certified Amery as not mad and fit to be hung. (he also pioneered the use of psychotherapy in the treatment of shellshock during the first war)

[RangerJoe]

I don't know if you have read this one, it does not deal with WWII but I did like it. Talk about name dropping, H. Ross Perot told a British customs agent of someone who could vouch for him - Lord Louis Mountbatten . . .

I won't go into more details now but:

On Wings of Eagles

In December 1978 two EDS executives working in pre-revolutionary Tehran are arrested on suspicion of bribery. Bail was set at US$13 million (90 million Iranian toman). When H. Ross Perot, head of the Dallas-based company hears about it, he decides to extract his employees regardless of cost. He orders the firm's lawyers to find a way to meet the bail. He recruits a team of volunteers from his executives, led by a retired United States Army officer, to break them out by force, if necessary. . . .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_Wings_of_Eagles

[drum_taps]

I'm now reading the final volume 3 of Ian W. Toll's Pacific War Trilogy: Twilight Of The Gods. The whole series of books has been interesting in that the author does a lot of myth busting. I also this year found a used set of Samuel Eliot Morrison's 14 volume History Of United States Naval Operations In World War II. (I know those are not the new you were asking about). I am co-reading that along side Toll's set. I am still in the 1st volume of Morrison. I did read his one volume Two Ocean War years ago.

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Jellicoe
.....Jordan and Moulin's French Cruisers 1922-1956.

warspite1

If you found the above interesting then I would definitely recommend

French Battleships 1922-1956 (Jordan & Dumas)
French Destroyers 1922-1956 (Jordan & Moulin)

And if they are up your strasse, then you will absolultely love

The Littorio Class (Bagnasco & de Toro)
Italian Battleships (Bagnasco & de Toro)

Quality books that not only covers the ship details (as one would expect) but also the operations they were involved in. Absolute quality and thoroughly recommended.

[CaptBeefheart]

Richard Frank's "Tower of Skulls," the first of a trilogy which covers 1937 to Coral Sea, came out a few months ago. It has a lot more treatment of China than Toll's trilogy. He also does a lot of mythbusting. If you don't know him, his "Guadalcanal" is probably the best book on that campaign and "Downfall" busts a lot of myths surrounding the end days in Japan.

Cheers,
CB

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: CaptBeefheart

Richard Frank's "Tower of Skulls," the first of a trilogy which covers 1937 to Coral Sea, came out a few months ago. It has a lot more treatment of China than Toll's trilogy. He also does a lot of mythbusting. If you don't know him, his "Guadalcanal" is probably the best book on that campaign and "Downfall" busts a lot of myths surrounding the end days in Japan.

Cheers,
CB

warspite1

Frank’s Guadalcanal is one of my favourite books in my WWII library. Essential reading imho.

Based on the quality of that book I have ordered this today. Thanks for the recommendation, I hadn’t heard of this book before.

[CaptBeefheart]

Glad to pass on the recommendation, Warspite. I eagerly await the next two in the series. Although Toll's trilogy is great, Frank gives the CBI theater its due.

Cheers,
CB

[Sardaukar]

I was really looking forward to this book, but I don't think it ever got published...

Oil On The Water: The Naval War In The South Pacific
Eric M. Bergerud

[spence]

I second the vote for Ian W. Tolls "Trilogy". I am also reading the last of the 3 volume set "Twilight of the Gods". Aside from the myth-busting in all 3 volumes the volumes cover in great detail some of the lesser known controversies and incidents of the Pacific War The imposition by the Army of the Kamikaze mindset is interesting (the IJN initially did not support them in this but in the end ordered a "banzai" charge by their fleet at Leyte Gulf just so the Navy would get a chance to die with 'honor'. The derisive comments of the real sailors on the ships about their superiors in their bunkers are interesting.)

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: CaptBeefheart

Richard Frank's "Tower of Skulls," the first of a trilogy which covers 1937 to Coral Sea, came out a few months ago. It has a lot more treatment of China than Toll's trilogy. He also does a lot of mythbusting. If you don't know him, his "Guadalcanal" is probably the best book on that campaign and "Downfall" busts a lot of myths surrounding the end days in Japan.

Cheers,
CB

warspite1

Frank’s Guadalcanal is one of my favourite books in my WWII library. Essential reading imho.

Based on the quality of that book I have ordered this today. Thanks for the recommendation, I hadn’t heard of this book before.

warspite1

I am really pleased I bought Tower of Skulls. It's really nice to read something about WWII that is totally and completely new to me (The Sino-Japanese War is probably the last area of the war I know absolutely nothing about) - whatever I read in Toland's Rising Sun is so long ago that I can't recall anything. Frank writes clearly and knows how to tell a story. I am keen to begin drilling down on some of the episodes (without distracting from getting the book finished) so have ordered this from Osprey to get a bit more detail on the first major engagements following the Chinese decision to fight:

[fcooke]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: CaptBeefheart

Richard Frank's "Tower of Skulls," the first of a trilogy which covers 1937 to Coral Sea, came out a few months ago. It has a lot more treatment of China than Toll's trilogy. He also does a lot of mythbusting. If you don't know him, his "Guadalcanal" is probably the best book on that campaign and "Downfall" busts a lot of myths surrounding the end days in Japan.

Cheers,
CB

warspite1

Frank’s Guadalcanal is one of my favourite books in my WWII library. Essential reading imho.

Based on the quality of that book I have ordered this today. Thanks for the recommendation, I hadn’t heard of this book before.

Frank's Guadalcanal is pretty much required reading for anyone that has an interest in WW2 in the Pacific.

The 'First Team' is another I would put in that category.

[fcooke]

ORIGINAL: Sardaukar

I was really looking forward to this book, but I don't think it ever got published...

Oil On The Water: The Naval War In The South Pacific
Eric M. Bergerud

That is odd. Fire in the Sky is a really good book. Did he pass?

[fcooke]

Not new, and almost too detailed, even for us grognards, are Friedman's various books on US ship classes.

[Sardaukar]

ORIGINAL: fcooke

ORIGINAL: Sardaukar

I was really looking forward to this book, but I don't think it ever got published...

Oil On The Water: The Naval War In The South Pacific
Eric M. Bergerud

That is odd. Fire in the Sky is a really good book. Did he pass?

I haven't found anything that'd say he has passed away on net. Maybe just ill or something. He was born 1948, so not *too* old yet...

[Buckrock]

Bergerud's still an active member of faculty at Lincoln University. You could even try emailing him there and ask him whether the book is still on his to-do list and if not, why not.[:'(]

[Wirraway_Ace]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: CaptBeefheart

Richard Frank's "Tower of Skulls," the first of a trilogy which covers 1937 to Coral Sea, came out a few months ago. It has a lot more treatment of China than Toll's trilogy. He also does a lot of mythbusting. If you don't know him, his "Guadalcanal" is probably the best book on that campaign and "Downfall" busts a lot of myths surrounding the end days in Japan.

Cheers,
CB

warspite1

Frank’s Guadalcanal is one of my favourite books in my WWII library. Essential reading imho.

Based on the quality of that book I have ordered this today. Thanks for the recommendation, I hadn’t heard of this book before.

Nice. Ordered. I have not read any of Franks' stuff.

[Buckrock]

It's a good book. A more modern equivalent to Willmott's Empires in the Balance but now with added China. The only downside for me was I'd really been looking forward to reading Frank's own analysis of Japan's opening clashes with the Western Powers. It turned out to be a bit less extensive than I'd hoped for but perhaps that's the price of bringing China's contribution to the Asia-Pacific War into better perspective.

[Sardaukar]

ORIGINAL: Buckrock

Bergerud's still an active member of faculty at Lincoln University. You could even try emailing him there and ask him whether the book is still on his to-do list and if not, why not.[:'(]

Good idea, maybe I do, since it is very interesting book about logistics. Though there is at least one other book, but I think it's exclusively fleet logistics. This one would have been more strategic view.

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: CaptBeefheart

Richard Frank's "Tower of Skulls," the first of a trilogy which covers 1937 to Coral Sea, came out a few months ago. It has a lot more treatment of China than Toll's trilogy. He also does a lot of mythbusting. If you don't know him, his "Guadalcanal" is probably the best book on that campaign and "Downfall" busts a lot of myths surrounding the end days in Japan.

Cheers,
CB

warspite1

Frank’s Guadalcanal is one of my favourite books in my WWII library. Essential reading imho.

Based on the quality of that book I have ordered this today. Thanks for the recommendation, I hadn’t heard of this book before.

warspite1

Has anyone heard anything about Frank's volume 2 of his Pacific War trilogy and when its due for release? I'm hoping those on the other side of the pond may have more info?

For those who haven't taken the plunge, volume 1 (Tower of Skulls) is a stonking good read.