Buy the Book / Hamish Hamilton In the last three issues I appear to have concen trated on hardback books almost to the exclusion of the paperbacks and, while this may give news of what to order from the library, a wider coverage of books in our specialist field is necessary. Let's look first at the Penguin Press and a first book that has nothing to do with Military history! Written by Warren Weaver, "Lady Luck: The Theory of Probability" is a delightful guide to the intricate back streets of mathematics wherein are found the laws which govern the way that dice will roll across the hexes to destroy divisions or capture commanding heights! I promise you that it's not a heavy book but that it is worth taking time over and as well as clear diagrams the author provides some very nice anecdotal humour to underline or highlight his points. A must for designers and an insight to CRT manipulation, "Lady Luck" is published by Penguin at only £1.00. Civil War is the theme of two of the principal titles from the Penguin list at the moment. While both are re issues, both contain new material. "Ten Days That Shook The World" is the title of John Reed's famous book on the seizure of power by Lenin and the Bolsheviks in November of 1917. Written as it was, by a man who was America's foremost journalist, the book is filled with a kind of bated breath excitement and an enthusiasm for the succinct image which vividly conveys all that he felt for the momentous events which were going on around him, for he was there. It is, was and must have felt like the story of a lifetime and so it's all to the good that we have the balancing effect of A.J.P. Taylor's introduction which was previously excluded from the volume while the copyright remained in the control of the Communist party of Great Britain. This copy right has now expired and so Penguin publish for the first time, introduction, book and all, for £1.00; Also dealing with Civil War is the massive book by Hugh Thomas. Now greatly revised in this third edition "The Spanish Civil War" must be the principal book, if not the only book of any real worth in English on this complex, tragic, and most bloody of conflicts. It is difficult to comment on the work in such a limited space but in over a thousand pages of text, Professor Thomas dissects out and lays bare the interwoven loyalties politics and pressure which led to this wasting of a nation. With 36 maps, 8 appendices, a select bibliography, and a good index, this Pelican is well worth the £3.50 asked for it . When are the designers going to look at the Battles for Madrid, Guadalajara and Teruel? Who knows - but when they do you may be sure that a well thumbed copy of Professor Thomas's book will be on the drawing board beside them. One more from the Penguin Press and this time it's a Peregrine. The book is called "A Matter of Honour: An Account of the Indian Army, Its Officers, and Men" and it is by Phillip Mason. More often the butt of jokes about pig sticking Pukka Sahibs than anything else, the Indian Army nevertheless provided a training ground in every aspect of the soldier's job for the hard corps of professionals who were to see Britain through some of the darker periods of her history and although buffoons like Lord Cardigan were to speak disparagingly of "The Indians", the great sub continent was to play a major part in the history of nearly every regiment of the British Army, whether alive or disbanded, from the time of Clive up to the present day. Even now, traditions of dress, custom and courtesy built between the officers of Empire and the troops of the line are still manifest in the modern inde pendent Indian Army. So Phillip Mason's book is important both in the telling of the fascinating story of the Indian Army and in the greater under standing of the British Army. It is not an unsentimental book but even so it well deserves a place on the shelf. £2.50 is the price and this again underlines the value of the paperback. Turning now from an old, established paperback publisher to a relativelv young one which is now serving our specialist interest splendidly. Futura is the name to look for and here are some of the titles you will want to look at. "Panzer Battles" by Major General FW Von Mellenthin is the latest addition to an already impressive list of military books. This one is particularly interesting in that the author served throughout the last war as a Staff Officer and was thus privy to most of the major command decisions made during those six years. Not only did he serve throughout the war but he seems to have served on virtually every front on which the German Army fought, including Poland, North Africa (where he was Rommel's Staff Officer for over a year) and latterly in the Ardennes. There can be no doubt that "Looking Over the Enemy's Shoulder" is one of the more fascinating ways of reading military history and this text, supported by 61 maps, allows us to do just that. We are able to see how lessons learned were used in future planning and how tactics and material in both Panzer Division and Army developed. Altogether not bad value for £1.25. Also worthy of note is that the book was first published in Britain twenty two years ago. I wonder what else Futura are going to blow the dust off for us? One that hasn't been on the shelf long enough to gather dust is David Irving's "The Rise and Fall of the Luftwaffe". In fact, this is a biography of Erhard Milch, Luftwaffe Marshall and, according to the author, a prime moving force behind the reformation of the Luftwaffe prior to the birth of the Third Reich. Irving is the first historian to be given untrammelled access to the Milch private diaries and papers and the result is an important contribution to our understanding of the internecine warfare which dogged the Luftwaffe in its planning, designing and production departments, as well as an interesting study of a man who was first embraced and then rejected by the upper echelons of the Nazi machine. An added bonus to the book is the cartoons by Ernst Udet whose suicide was to be a turning point in Milch's career and an enormous bibliography and index. A first rate work at the very reasonable price of £1.50. Less in price but no less in value is "Convoy Commodore" by Rear Admiral Sir Kenhelm Creighton. Retired from the Navy in 1934 to a life of gardening, sailing and part time Magistrate, the author was recalled to serve as Convoy Commodore in September 1939 and until 1943 he did just that - being torpedoed and sunk once in the process. In 1943 he was asked to take on the job of Director General of Ports for Egypt, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea; and on the voyage out to start the job he was torpedoed again! He tells his story with honesty and humour and at 60p. the book is excellent value. Futura has reissued two useful books - one is Richard Cox's study of Hitler's invasion plans. "Sea Lion" is a novel in form illustrating aspects of the attack and defence as they might have happened. Those who took advantage of SPUK's offer of the "Seelowe" game will be able to test the theories for themselves. 75p. is the price for this interesting volume which also contains essays by such luminaries as Correlli Barnett and Alan Clark. The other is James Campbell's account of the Nuremberg raid of March 194 4, which at 70p. will be a worthwhile addition to the RAF shelf in the library. I must mention one paperback to beware of. It is by Donald Sandford and is called "The Battle of Midway". Published by Corgi at 75p. it is of course) a book based on the film and therefore, as a historical reference, is about as reliable as the Pripet Marshes beneath the tracks of a tiger. The old Purnell book by AJ Barker is now out again in the smaller paperback format. "Midway: The Turning Point" is the title and the illustrations suffer dreadfully in the small size but the text is still worth the 80p. asked for the book. One hardback for "Frigate" fans. Michael Joseph has reissued CS Forrester's ''The Hornblower Companion'' (hurray!) with thirty maps and text detailing the battles. This one will be the source of many scenarios and it is costing only £5.50.