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Hamish Hamilton

Once again there is a wealth of titles to deal with in a very little
space but let's begin with (as Max Wall would say) "a novelty". Leo
Cooper have just published a fascinating and hitherto unknown book
dealing with WW11. It must be at once the food for argument and
discussion while being to all sides in the arguments totally
enthralling. "The Russian Version of the Second World War" has been
edited and put together from Russian school books and official histories
and gives us a valuable and perspected look at the past which we share
with the Russian peoples. The great patriotic war was the greatest
trauma to afflict the USSR since the Civil War and the picture of the
period presented in this book is that which every citizen of Russia
"knows'' and is taught and so the book gives us not only an insight into
their view of the past but in a way serves as a mirror in which we may
look at our salves through their eyes, in the present. At œ3.95, this
book is astonishing value and if this is your period of history then its
absence from your shelves could mean a lack of depth and reality in your
view of these world shaking events. For all that, as I shut the book I
remembered George Orwell's famous phrase from 1984 - "who controls the
past controls the future".

Also dealing with Russia and the other parts of the USSR is another book
of astonishing value. It is Hamlyn's "The Soviet War Machine" edited by
Ray Brooks and with illustrations selected from many sources including
the American Army this is one of these large format, coloured pictures
and line drawing books which I have always tended to distrust as being
aimed at the very young person and lacking depth and hard fact but this
one is a very different kettle of fish! After a series of introductory
chapters including consideration of the history; military and political
infrastructure and current and political strategy of the USSR, the
format is, like Gaul, divided into three principal parts. One each for
the army, navy and airforce and each with its own section of line
drawings and technical specif;cations. While a book of this sort cannot
be totally comprehensive, the wealth of detail is amazing and the
contributors to each section are amongst the finest available. Prof.
John Erikson, Christopher Donnelly, Air Vice-Marshall S.W.B. Menaul,
Brig. Shelford Bidwell and Captain J.E. Moore R.N. (to name but a few).
It is Professor Erikson's essay on the Warsaw Pact which rounds out a
œ4.95 book which, for the "Red Star - White Star" and similar game
freaks, is worth double.

As a supplement to the Hamlyn book or by itself the revised edition of
that superb book "Missiles of the World" by Michael J.H. Taylor and John
W.R. Taylor has just been republished. Already justly famous this
Cade-Mecum of missile gen is now bang (if you'll pardon the pun) up to
date and is only œ3.30.

They (lan Allan that is) have also published a superb book by Charles
Messenger. "The Art of Blitzkrieg" is a study of the development (and
sometimes lack of development) of the Blitzkrieg tactics and must find a
place in the library of anyone who is at all interested in warfare
and/or in the twentieth century wars in particular.

The author is a regular officer in the Royal Tank Regiment and has
contributed to Purnell's WW1 part work as well as other works, but this
book must be special. Starting with the origins of the theory and
following through the development to the "dress rehearsal" of the
Spanish Civil War and the exercise and use in other countries. "The
Weapon Is Proved" is the title of the chapter dealing with Poland in
1939 and going on via France and the Battle of Britain to North Africa.
In his preface the author states that he has limited his discussior. of
campaigns of WW11 to those which best serve to illustrate his points and
of the Israelis, "The Only true practitioners of the technique since
1945", to Sinai. Nevertheless the book is a must. Supported by ciear
maps and a splendid bibliography "The Art of Blitzkrieg" is going to be
taking a pride of place amongst the reference books not only of gamers
but of designers as well. A distillate of the work of Liddell-Hart,
Fuller and Hobart and the experience of those who followed and all that
for only œ4.50.

"To see ourselves as others see us", the ambition of many expressed so
well by Robert Burns, may be partially realised by buying a copy of "A
Handbook On the British Army" published by Arms and Armour Press also at
œ4.50. Edited and corrected from the handbook issued to American troops
arriving in Britain during the last war, the book is a highly detailed
insight into the methods, terminology, tactics and organisation of the
British Army which at the same time tells us the equivalent, in many
cases of American terminology - so - want to know how to get your tanks
into "close leaguer"? Didn't you know that in the British Army in 1943
there was a stand ing order that all officers below the rank of full
Colonel had to be "proficient motorcycle operators"? Then this is the
book for you, The editors are the ubiquitous Chris Ellis and Peter
Chamberlain and they are to be congratulated on another fine piece of
work.

From MacDonald and Janes comes an excellent study of "The Bomber in
World War 11". Tracing the evolution of the bomber from 1929, the autho
(Alfred Price, FR.Hist S.) with what I can only describe as loving care
and attention, goes through each stage of the design and development of
the bombers of WWII and, in parallel, shows the devel opment of tactics
both for the defence of the bombers and the attack on their targets
Detailed examination is made on each of the six most used bomber
aircraft of the period including layout of tankage crew positions and
subjective reports on the airc;aft taken from the operational trials
which were carried out by the RAF. The detail is immense and absorbing -
now we know what it was like to fly a JU88 or an HE111. The text is
supported by a magnificent collection of photo graphs and superb
diagrams which continues throughout the book. Those of us who have
played "Schweinfurt" will be fascinated by the last part of the book
which deals with the tactics of the attack by the bombers and shows the
development of the amazing close formation tactics developed by the
American Eighth Air Force during their daylight raids. It may be that
this book will inspire a further look into the development of a good
strategic air game which will be a better deal than "Schweinfurt". Who
knows?

Last but not least, from Weidenfeld and Nicolson comes "Jutland 1916".
The authors are John Costello and Terry Hughes who co-operated with
Warren Tute on the massive "D-Day" volume which came out a couple of
years ago and became an international best seller. Like that book
"Jutland 1916" is massively illustrated with maps and pictures and has
been designed to integrate text and illustration as closely as possible.
The present ation is effective in dramatising the brief history of the
events leading to 1914 and then to Jutland but for me the pictures get
in the way of the narrative a bit and I don't believe I altogether agree
with the authors on some of the more controversial points. However, as
an introduction to the period and the battle the book might be worth
while, The authors mention Professor Marder's great work in their
preface and for me that is still the book to look at. One other point
should be made. There is an O.B. given on both end papers and in the
book, and in this the high seas fleet is credited with 22 Dreadnoughts
when in fact there were only 16 as the 2nd Squadron consisted entirely
of pre-dreadnought battleships. "Jutland 1916" costs œ5.95.