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didactylos's review against another edition
challenging
informative
sad
medium-paced
5.0
I have read several of James Holland's histories and have to say he is extremely good at movimg from incisive overvioews of what was going to to being down amonst the bullets an bombs. He convesy how it must have felt to in in the action and how totally grim it was.
royzee's review
3.0
Another library book but I shall look out for more of his non-fiction. Had read the novel about the RAF chap shot down in Italy and did not care for it much.
There is no doubt that Burma saw some incredible events, action and success but I hope that it has at least begun to shake off the media's obsession with it being "forgotten". Maybe if there had been more movies about it then things would be different in the minds of the vox pop. We all know of the Kwai escapade and the "Burma Road" but where are the epics on TV and cinema comparable to "The Pacific"? After all, there were many nations fighting out there - some on both sides!
This book does the memory of the valiant men (and a few ladies) great credit as well they deserve. You will learn much from his coverage because I know I did. What is a "parajute"? Fascinating.
And it brings to us tales from all ranks though more from "our" side than "theirs" of course. So even though the course of events was to me hard to follow (the maps are as usual right at the front so beware Kindle readers) and I think I would say this about all too many war books you cannot have enough illustrations, maps most of all. The Osprey books are classics in this respect except for the binding - am always scared of breaking the spine when perusing their excellent 3D effect maps all in colour, maybe buy two copies and cut one up?!)
I did have a few niggles here and there about terminology and perhaps over-colourful language such as "deadly cannons" perhaps.
These books inhabit the middle ground between Kessler style action novels (Commando comics sans the drawings) and stodgier learned tomes written for the real die-hards with good eyesight. Nothing wrong with that I suppose because maybe we might pick up this one and then be inspired to check out others.
All in all a worthy book but am not sure I would pay full price for it.
There is no doubt that Burma saw some incredible events, action and success but I hope that it has at least begun to shake off the media's obsession with it being "forgotten". Maybe if there had been more movies about it then things would be different in the minds of the vox pop. We all know of the Kwai escapade and the "Burma Road" but where are the epics on TV and cinema comparable to "The Pacific"? After all, there were many nations fighting out there - some on both sides!
This book does the memory of the valiant men (and a few ladies) great credit as well they deserve. You will learn much from his coverage because I know I did. What is a "parajute"? Fascinating.
And it brings to us tales from all ranks though more from "our" side than "theirs" of course. So even though the course of events was to me hard to follow (the maps are as usual right at the front so beware Kindle readers) and I think I would say this about all too many war books you cannot have enough illustrations, maps most of all. The Osprey books are classics in this respect except for the binding - am always scared of breaking the spine when perusing their excellent 3D effect maps all in colour, maybe buy two copies and cut one up?!)
I did have a few niggles here and there about terminology and perhaps over-colourful language such as "deadly cannons" perhaps.
These books inhabit the middle ground between Kessler style action novels (Commando comics sans the drawings) and stodgier learned tomes written for the real die-hards with good eyesight. Nothing wrong with that I suppose because maybe we might pick up this one and then be inspired to check out others.
All in all a worthy book but am not sure I would pay full price for it.
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