The Slaves' Gamble: Choosing Sides in the War of 1812 by Gene Allen Smith

The Slaves' Gamble: Choosing Sides in the War of 1812
by Gene Allen Smith

 A different book on the war of 1812. It deals with the decision of slaves to either find their freedom with the British or stay with the Americans. It also covers the attempts on both sides to arm them. There's also coverage of the conflict with Spain over parts of Florida. The fear with narratives such as this is that they turn into a list of anecdotes but fortunately that is not the case here. His conclusion that the success of the armed free man for the Americans and runaway slaves for the British increased southerners fears of a slave rebellion in the era between the conflict and the Civil War. Causing more restrictions to be put in place Makes sense.

Highly recommended.

Book was part of LibraryThing's early reviewer program.-

The Great Escape and Revisionist Drivel

So according to this article the Great Escape was militarily reckless and shouldn't have been attempted. I realize he's trying to sell his book controversy being what it is. However the argument on its face value is ridiculous.

Setting aside the obvious that the first duty of prisoners of war is to try to escape the idea of well the war was going to be over so just stay there doesn't pass the smell test. Even if it did when exactly would this sort of logic "be acceptable"? After 1943 or maybe 1942 after the Americans entered?

USMC Professional Reading List

A new one of these was just released this time by Commandant Gen. Jim Amos.  One of those projects I always thought about doing never got around to it was reading through the contents of the various lists.  Last considering it about five years ago but after reading the Air Force list at the time I gave it up. The list is quirky. I'm amazed that On War doesn't appear anywhere. Much of it would be picked up secondhand from the other books but it's so central to western military thought that even people who disagree with it still have to name check it. There's also a smattering of pop history nonsense particularly the Tuchman and Hanson.

 I have actually reviewed some of it here. Links go to my reviews. I liked Supplying War:Logistics from Wallenstein to Patton by Martin Van Creveld and War Comes to Long An: Revolutionary Conflict in a Vietnamese Province by Jeffrey Race I wasn't a big fan of On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society by Dave Grossman. There are some here that I've read that haven't reviewed. Could be worth taking them out particularly the Slim and Rommel.

The Twilight War: The Secret History of America's Thirty-Year Conflict with Iran by David Crist

The Twilight War: The Secret History of America's Thirty-Year Conflict with Iran 

by David Crist

Over the last 40 years there has been a cold and occasionally hot war between the United States and Iran. This history is usually only discussed in academic or service journals. This is the first book that I am aware of that attempts to deal with the interaction between the two countries since the Iranian revolution as a whole. 

Not surprisingly, the book is mostly focused with Washington, D.C. and the various military and bureaucratic infighting about what to do about various Iranian actions. There are so many players discussed in the diplomatic intelligence and military spheres that it can be hard to keep them all straight, even for someone like me who has a deep interest in late 20^th century American politics. That criticism aside, the descriptions of the different groups’ views and the bureaucratic infighting is fascinating, at least to someone like me who took several political science courses. 

If you are more interested in combat and spy craft, you will not be disappointed. There are also detailed descriptions of the various engagements that the two nations have been involved in, mostly over the shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf. 

One of his major points is that both countries—particularly at this stage during the Obama administration—are so paranoid towards the other that doing any sort of confidence building is probably impossible. Whenever one country wished to soften its stance towards the other, they would be pushed away. Naturally the roles will be reversed a few years later. So over the last generation this means that neither side is willing to take an olive branch put forward by the other seriously. In the future, this does not bode well, particularly with the conflict over the Iranian nuclear program. 

The book usually relies on American sources, although there seems to be a few from Iran, although, of course, it would not be possible to go in and do archival research in Tehran. So this isn’t going to be the last word on the topic by any means, but it is an excellent start and well worth your time if you are interested in the subject. 

Highly recommended.

 Note:This book was provided for review by the publisher.

Collapse of the Third Republic: An Inquiry into the Fall of France in 1940 by WilliamL. Shirer

Collapse of the Third Republic: An Inquiry into the Fall of France in 1940
by WilliamL. Shirer

Why did the French Third Republic collapse in 1940?  This book tries to give an answer to that. Unfortunately it doesn’t quite get there. It is 1000 pages of mistakes, disasters, lost opportunities and conflicts, but never quite gets at the central issue.  Oh, there were many reasons why the French state came apart, everything from the conflict between right and left in the 30s, the unwillingness of the upper classes to pay their fair share to, at its end, strategic and tactical failures in the campaign of 1940.  But there never is a central reason given.

The book is based on a parliamentary report done after the war as well as interviews with those who were alive in the 1960s.  The author, a journalist, does tend to wander into hyperbole on occasion. There are many ominous statements about how this will be key in the collapse of 1940. The problem is: many of them really aren’t, or only partial.  If the French military had had better command and control as well as deployment of tanks, all of the left right debates of the 1930s would have been irrelevant.

I did like that the book dealt with the interwar period from Paris as opposed to most books on this topic which come at it from Berlin, London or Moscow. There are also some interesting character sketches of the major figures.

Mildly recommended, interesting if it never actually answers its own question.

Vulcan 607: The Epic Story of the Most Remarkable British Air Attack since WWII by Rowland White

Vulcan 607: The Epic Story of the Most Remarkable British Air Attack since WWII by Rowland White come to think of it there's only a slight hyperbole in that title. Covers the Stanley airfield attack although mostly talks about the frantic planning and training that went on. The aircraft were actually being phased out and they had to relearn a bunch of things including aerial refueling. Popular history that at least tries to demarcate between dialog he knows took place because of transcripts and dialog he's made up.

Recommended.

Band of brigands: the first men in tanks by Christy Campbell

Band of brigands: the first men in tanks by Christy Campbell superb history written by as far as I can tell a layperson. Campbell is a journalist. The story is mostly about the development of the tanks and it's deployment. What I especially liked was that he's not looking forward to WWII so he doesn't overemphasize the rather limited success they had.

Highly recommended!

303 Squadron: The Legendary Battle of Britain Fighter Squadron by Arkady Fiedler

303 Squadron: The Legendary Battle of Britain Fighter Squadron by Arkady Fiedler this is a new translation of a book first published during WWII. It covers the experiences of a squadron of Polish fighter pilots in the Battle of Britain. It tells a few accounts of combat as well as chapters describing the bravery of the other personnel. Apparently the book is taught in schools back in Poland and I can understand why. This new edition contains new photos, appendices and explanatory notes from the translator. Not exactly a book you would want to use in a scholarly paper but a good read.

Recommended.

Note:This book was provided through Librarything's early reviewer Program.

Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belport by Edith Wharton

Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belport by Edith Wharton  this is a collection of magazine articles the author wrote during the first world war. It covers several trips she took to the French sector of the front lines. There is little here to interest a military historian though perhaps a social historian may find more here. The writing is occasionally beautiful. I'm going to track down some of her novels. This edition has a modern forward as well as a short biography. There are endnotes but it is unclear if they are new or originated in the text. This isn't the amount of apparatus that say Penguin would give but it's better than most of the publishers of public domain texts.

Recommended for the literary craft displayed.

Note:This book was provided through Librarything's early reviewer Program.

To hell with it

I don't give up on books. There are ones sitting in my "currently reading collection" that have been there for years. In the last month I completed a book I had been working on for 4 years. That being said I'm giving up on Why the Allies Won by Richard Overy. I knew it was bad. I tried reading it for the argument. Then I tried reading it for the humor value but I can't. I don't know if it gets better after page 63 and I don't care.

Long road it's been

I'm always looking for material on the Winter War.  Back in 07 I came across info on Amazon for a title TANKS IN THE WINTER WAR: 1939 - 1940 by Maxim Komolyets.  I tried ordering it using a coupon.  The publication passed without any sign of the book.  Then the description changed and eventually listed the book is being unavailable.  Over the years I came across references to it on Ebay but they were always expensive around $50 Canadian.  Recently I came across one nearly at list price.  So I purchased it.  Much to my chagrin it arrived yesterday.  I have to say I'm disappointed so far looking through it.  Looks like it's more pictures then text.  Will comment more when I actually get a chance to read through it.

A Hundred Feet Over Hell: Flying With the Men of the 220th Recon Airplane Company Over I Corps and the DMZ, Vietnam 1968-1969 by Jim Hooper

A Hundred Feet Over Hell: Flying With the Men of the 220th Recon Airplane Company Over I Corps and the DMZ, Vietnam 1968-1969 by Jim Hooper  a collection of remembrances from Bird Dog pilots.  These lightly equipped aircraft acted as forward air controllers.  The often highly dangerous and difficult missions are described as well as attempts to blow off steam back at base.  The narrative is occasionally difficult to follow because Hooper has pulled extracts from his primary sources.  Each is labeled with the name of the witness.  Frequently they overlap giving a different view of the same event [which I like].  The book is very jargon heavy.  A glossary is provided there are explanations in the text as well. 

I can't recommend this for the casual reader but if you have an interest in an unusual facet of the Vietnam War give it a look.

This was provided for review by a PR outfit.

English Civil War Fortifications 1642-51 by Peter Harrington

English Civil War Fortifications 1642-51 by Peter Harrington acknowledges that this is a difficult topic to cover. Fortifications built during the conflict were generally based on European continental designs but at the same time not uniform. Makes dealing with them in this short format difficult. So high points get mentioned as well as background and construction. Fortunately there's a bibliography. I'll be looking for some of the sources mentioned in it.

Mildly recommended.

Ticonderoga 1758: Montcalm's victory against all odds by Rene Chartrand

Ticonderoga 1758: Montcalm's victory against all odds by Rene Chartrand it's an Osprey. Describes the British attempt to seize New France. Plenty of British incompetence on display. As far as it goes this is fine but perhaps one of the weaker campaign titles. There isn't the same level of detail as in others.

Not recommended.

Tudor Knight by Christopher Gravett

Tudor Knight by Christopher Gravett this covers the weapons, tactics and cultural background of knights in the 1500s in England. Typical for titles from this publisher there are lots of pictures and illustrations. Strikes me that they had some trouble getting the right length. There's info on changes in military recruitment and deployment as well as the usual stuff on tournaments and campaigns. There is a bibliography and glossary of terms.

Recommended.

Grant and Lee: A Study in Personality and Generalship by J. F. C. Fuller

Grant and Lee: A Study in Personality and Generalship by J. F. C. Fuller was part of the great reassessment of U. S.Grant The book is a joint biography of Grant and Lee describing their abilities and faults. There's an outline of the war in general to put things into context. It's hard to review something like this. So much of what's here is now part of the accepted narrative of the conflict. There are a few novel ideas. The discussion on tactics and logistics for instance.

Recommended.

The Danger Tree: Memory, War and the Search for a Family's Past by David Macfarlane

The Danger Tree: Memory, War and the Search for a Family's Past by David Macfarlane this is a history of one Newfoundland's family's experiences during and after WWI. Three of the brothers had been killed in the fighting. The book has a lot of literary flourishes. I'm usually not impressed with this sort of thing in a nominally historical work. Just what's been embellished? I'm going to let it slide in this case maybe because it's done so well. It's actually more of a character study of the three brothers as well as the author then of the conflict itself.

Recommended.

A Military Revolution?: Military Change and European Society, 1550-1800 by Jeremy Black

A Military Revolution?: Military Change and European Society, 1550-1800 by Jeremy Black  this is a rather short booklet that tries to argue whether there was a revolution in military affairs or not. Black attempts to make the case that the major changes in tactics were actually from later in the 18th century instead of the 17th. That instead of being created by the absolutist state they were a benefit of the changes in government. Their are lots of citations and a further reading section. There are some illustrations.

Recommended.

The War for All the Oceans: From Nelson at the Nile to Napoleon at Waterloo by Roy Adkins and Lesley Adkins

The War for All the Oceans: From Nelson at the Nile to Napoleon at Waterloo by Roy Adkins and Lesley Adkins this is a rather strange book. It's an introductory history of the Royal Navy in the Napoleonic wars. No knowledge is assumed at all. Terms like "striking the colors" are defined in the text. On the other hand it's an amazing 560 pages long which would be rather daunting for the newcomer. The authors are looking for colorful scenes as opposed to scholarly analysis. It's a decent narrative history although some of the snap judgments can be annoying. There's a brief further reading section. Contains notes and a bibliography.

Mildly recommended.

The Battle: A New History of Waterloo by Alessandro Barbero

The Battle: A New History of Waterloo by Alessandro Barbero a few new insights backed up with the latest in scholarship makes this an excellent history of Napoleon's final defeat. Nice coverage of the Prussians movements during the day including the skirmishes that slowed them down. The introduction and conclusion seem a little rushed. If you're not an expert on the time you may be a bit confused. The different phases of the battle are described in a clear way. It helped me get a few things straight that I hadn't considered before.

Highly recommended!