John Hersey. Hiroshima. London: Penguin, 2001 [1946]. One of the most important pieces of journalism of the 20th century; with a new final chapter written by Hersey four decades later. I’m teaching Hiroshima mon amour again this semester and so this might be useful preparation. Robert A. Pape. Bombing to Win: Air Power and Coercion […]
Nick Smart. Neville Chamberlain. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2010. I’m not a big reader of biographies, partly because they often aren’t ‘historical’ enough and partly because they usually aren’t about the people I’m interested in. This one satisfies on both counts.
Peter J. Bowler. Science for All: The Popularization of Science in Early Twentieth-Century Britain. Chicago and London: Chicago University Press, 2009. How and what the public learned about science was important in an age of technological warfare, and this has a decent number of entries in the index under ‘military applications of science’. Tom Buchanan.
Christopher Andrew. The Defence of the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5. London: Allen Lane, 2009. Most valuable for me on the Edwardian spy mania, but looks like a fun read for the rest of the thousand-odd pages. R. V. Jones. Most Secret War: British Scientific Intelligence 1939-1945. London: Penguin, 2009 [1978]. A reprint of
Evelyn August. The Black-out Book: One-hundred-and-one Black-out Nights’ Entertainment. Oxford and New York: Osprey, 2009 [1939]. A facsimile reprint containing jokes, puzzles, games, trivia and other bits and pieces: giving a lower-brow (and I’m sure more accurate) impression of what people actually did in shelters than this. Evelyn August was the pseudonym of Sydney and
I bought these at Foyles a few hours before my plane was due to depart, and had them mailed to me. Not necessarily the cheapest way to go, but I was in a hurry! Jeremy Black. Rethinking Military History. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2004. Probably nobody is better qualified to write a book with
I bought these the other day, about 17000 km away — except for one which was a gift. The Battle of Britain: An Air Ministry Account of the Great Days from 8th August — 31st October 1940. London: His Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1941. Thanks, Simon! Angus Calder. The People’s War: Britain 1939-1945. London: Pimlico, 1992
Jonathan Foster. The Death Ray: The Secret Life of Harry Grindell Matthews. Inventive Publishing, 2009. As seen here. Another find in a Welsh museum bookshop — I should go to Wales more often!
Peter London. U-Boat Hunters: Cornwall’s Air War, 1916-19. Truro: Dyllansow Truran, 1999. RNAS airship and aeroplane anti-submarine operations: some success under pretty trying conditions. Richard Overy. 1939: Countdown to War. London: Allen Lane, 2009. I’ve now met the author! Robert Stradling. Your Children Will Be Next: Bombing and Propaganda in the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939.
Peter Neville. Hitler and Appeasement: The British Attempt to Prevent the Second World War. London and New York: Hambledon Continuum, 2006. Takes the pro-appeasement side of the argument. Particularly good on diplomacy and personalities.
