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      Carrier - Jean Hood ed. 

      by
      seaweed
       Number of Views: 956 
      1. Categories:
      2. Non-Fiction,
      3. History,
      4. Military
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      “When word of a crisis breaks out in Washington, it is no accident that the first question that comes to everybody’s lips is “Where is the nearest carrier?” - Bill Clinton, 12.3.1993, quoted on The U.S. Navy, the official website of the United States Navy.

      This book takes the form of an anthology of personal reminiscences by those involved in a century of naval aviation- ships’ personnel as well as aircrew - covering, from Eugene Ely and the very first dope and piano wire machines to the vastly complicated technology of modern air warfare and nuclear-powered ships. Fourteen nations have operated aircraft carriers (six have dropped out) and they are about to be joined by China. Most of the accounts in this book are British or American, for obvious reasons, but Australia, France, Italy and Japan are also represented. The narrative is linked by the editor’s historical overview which sets the external contributions in context.
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      Captain Hepper’s Great War Diary 1916-1919 edited by F. Nigel Hepper 

      by
      Boldnotold
       Number of Views: 1061 
      1. Categories:
      2. Non-Fiction,
      3. History,
      4. Memoire/Battlefield Memoire,
      5. Military
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      Captain Edward Raymond Hepper served as an Intelligence Officer/Observer with the 17th Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment, surviving to return to his job as a Chartered Surveyor in Leeds in 1919. This book, edited by his son, is extracts from the diary he kept from January 1916 when he embarked at Southampton for France until his demob. He seems to have stopped writing during his periods of leave, which is a shame, as I think he’d have written instructively about the difference between ‘there’ and ‘here’. However that did not spoil my enjoyment of a carefully-constructed book.

      The book itself is a nice sized hardback, and the text, maps and photos are laid out in a way which makes it very easy to read. There’s a lovely introduction by the editor, and a useful summary of Capt. Hepper’s movements. In a nice touch, the editor includes some notes in an Appendix about his mother’s brother, Pte Heasman HAC, killed in November 1916.
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      'Lord of Misrule' by Jaimy Gordon 

      by
      BuggerAll
       Number of Views: 899 
      1. Categories:
      2. Non-Military,
      3. Crime,
      4. Adventure/Thriller
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      I was looking forward to reviewing this book. I don't follow racing and don't have any particular interest in horses but I always enjoyed Dick Francis and liked the exciting racing world he created. Unfortunately I was disappointed. I struggled right from the start with this book and ultimately couldn't summons the well to finish it.

      The problem, for me, is the style of writing, grammar and cadence. Before the story begins there is a technical explanation of what a 'claiming race' is. I couldn't understand it. Ultimately I had to Google it as it was quite important to the plot. Right from the beginning of the story I found it very difficult to read. The story concerns 5 principle characters in and around a small seedy racetrack in America in the 70's.
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      London Olympics 1908 and 1948 by Janie Hampton 

      by
      Boldnotold
       Number of Views: 1441 
      1. Categories:
      2. Non-Fiction,
      3. History
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      This author wrote the excellent 'How the Girl Guides Won the War', and when I heard her on the radio speaking about her latest book, I asked A-Y to procure it for the pleasure of the ABC. At 48 pages, it's more of a pamphlet than a book, but it is packed with information, history, pictures and anecdotes.

      Although the book doesn't compare 1908 and 1948 with the forthcoming events in London 2012, it's inevitable that any reader will do so.

      Both the 1908 and 1948 events were conceived, planned and delivered in two years. 1908 was moved from Italy after Vesuvius had erupted in 1906, and 1948 after the IOC decided that Britain was the only country that could possibly organise it after the traumatic events of 1939-45.
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      Where The Bodies are Buried - Chris Brookmyre 

      by
      Fang_Farrier
       Number of Views: 1393 
      1. Categories:
      2. Non-Military,
      3. Crime,
      4. Adventure/Thriller
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      Having been a reader of Christopher Brookmyre books for many years I was slightly amused to see that he was suddenly calling him Chris. Am not sure if this change will continue. For not familiar with his work, he’s a Scottish author who writes good books though often heavily tinged with a black humour. This book is a far more serious read though there are elements of humour within it.

      What struck me first is that the two most central characters are female, one a senior police officer and the other a young inexperienced private investigator. An unusual twist for a male author (Though Brookmyre is not adverse to feminine heroes in other books). The story follows several different convergent lines which eventually see the pair working together. It’s allows difficult knowing how to review these sorts of book without giving away too much of the plot. There are several supporting folk who all come to the fore as necessary, some with more character development than others.
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      The Good Jihadist by Bob Shepherd 

      by
      Auld-Yin
       Number of Views: 1139 
      1. Categories:
      2. Military,
      3. Adventure/Thriller
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      This is a story set in the turmoil of Pakistan, with all its internal sectarian troubles, into which is fed the foreign contractor companies carrying out protection duties. The main character is Matt Logan, an ex SAS Sergeant who, following a US led operation in Iraq which caused several civilian casualties, did not like the way he was being set up by his superiors and decided to leave the army rather than be RTU’d. He joins the protection scene bringing his many skills to his, now civilian, employers. In the course of his travels he meets a beautiful TV news reporter, Emma, who is famous on US TV as the face of reporting from many warzones, especially Iraq and Pakistan. Having decided to marry, they both started to leave their employment, planning on living in a wee cottage in Perthshire. However Emma has been given a flash disk with details of corruption and other actions happening in Pakistan and wants to have a last big exposé to go out on. While reporting live from Islamabad she is killed by a suicide bomber – Matt goes to Pakistan to wreak revenge. That is the plot and as you can see it has enough clichés to keep most stories going.
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      The Family Budget, Edited by Paul B Elmhirst 

      by
      Boldnotold
       Number of Views: 1035 
      1. Categories:
      2. Non-Fiction,
      3. History,
      4. Memoire/Battlefield Memoire,
      5. Military
      Article Preview
      This book is a collection of letters written by seven brothers and their younger sister between 1914 and 1919. In 1914 they were aged between 12 and 22 years. Some were in school and some went straight into the military where they served in France, India, Mesopotamia, Gallipoli and various parts of the UK. The word ‘budget’ is a twist on ‘bougette’, a bag or sack with its contents, or an accumulation. Each person added a letter to the bag, which circulated round all of them in order, the sister removing the oldest when the bag arrived at the family home. This ensured that they could keep in touch with one another without writing seven letters each time, and that the Editor, son of one of the brothers, was able to find most of the letters to include in his most interesting volume.
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      In the Service of the Sultan by Ian Gardiner 

      by
      TheIronDuke
       Number of Views: 1671 
      1. Categories:
      2. Non-Fiction,
      3. History,
      4. Memoire/Battlefield Memoire,
      5. Military
      Article Preview
      In the Service of the Sultan is a first hand account of the Dhofar war of 1965 – 1975. No, that’s Dhofar in the south of Oman. Not Darfur in Sudan. An easy mistake to make for those of you who struggle with difficult concepts and spelling.

      Dhofar. A fascinating and little known conflict that the books sleeve notes call an event of greater strategic significance than the concurrent Vietnam war. The foreword is written by Jock Stirrup and tends to agree.

      In the Service of the Sultan is the remembered experience of a young Scottish RM officer who is not a professional writer. The overall experience of reading the book is rather like being in a small hotel bar in Scotland in a blizzard, sitting around a nice fire with a beer or a dram, and somebody starts to tell an interesting story. So you chuck another log on the fire and sit back and listen.

      The author, Ian Gardiner deals with the background to the conflict quickly and without droning on, then gives an excellent narrative of what it is like to be a young Brit dropped into somewhere exotic. The sights, the sounds, the smells. The joy of waking up to the dawn call to prayer and thinking “I’m somewhere exotic”.
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