Turning Point: The Battle for Milne Bay 1942 - Japan's first land defeat in World War II


Michael Veitch - 2019
    In the Pacific, Japan's soldiers had seemed unstoppable. However, the tide was about to turn.On Sunday, 6 September 1942, Japanese land forces suffered their first conclusive defeat at the hands of the Allies. At Milne Bay in Papua New Guinea, a predominantly Australian force - including 75 Squadron (fresh from their action in 44 Days) - fought for two weeks to successfully defend a vital airstrip against a determined Japanese invasion. The victorious Australian army units were crucially supported by two locally-based squadrons of RAAF Kittyhawks.The Battle for Milne Bay and victory for the Allies was a significant turning point in the Pacific War, but while it received worldwide publicity at the time, it has since been largely forgotten... It deserves to be remembered. Michael Veitch, actor, presenter and critically acclaimed author, brings to life the incredible exploits and tragic sacrifices of these Australian heroes in another fast-paced and thrilling tale.

The Fighting Tenth: The Tenth Submarine Flotilla and the Siege of Malta (Submarine Warfare in World War Two)


John Wingate - 2021
    

Into the Valley: Marines at Guadalcanal


John Hersey - 1943
    While there, Hersey observed a small battle upon which Into the Valley is based. While the battle itself was not of great significance, Hersey gives insightful details concerning the jungle environment, recounts conversations among the men before, during, and after battle, and describes how the wounded were evacuated as well as other works of daily heroism.

Churchill's War Lab: Code Breakers, Boffins and Innovators: the Mavericks Who Brought Britain Victory


Taylor Downing - 2010
    As a young boy he re-enacted historic battles with toy soldiers, as a soldier he saw action on three continents, and as the Prime Minister only a direct edict from King George VI could keep him from joining the troops on D-Day. "Churchill's War Lab" reveals how Churchill's passion for military history, his unique leadership style, and his patronization of radical new ideas would lead to new technology and new tactics that would save lives and enable an Allied victory. No war generated more incredible theories, more technical advances, more scientific leaps, or more pioneering work that lay the foundation for the post-war computer revolution. And it was Churchill's dogged determination and enthusiasm for revolutionary ideas that fuelled this extraordinary outpouring of British genius. From the coauthor of "Cold War" comes an exciting new take on Churchill's war leadership and the story of a complex, powerful and inventive war leader.

Phantom Warrior: The Heroic True Story of Private John McKinney's One-Man Stand Against the Japanese in World War II


Forrest Bryant Johnson - 2007
    On May 11, 1945, McKinney returned fire on the Japanese attacking his unit, using every available weapon-even his fists-standing alone against wave after wave of dedicated Japanese soldiers. At the end, John McKinney was alive-with over forty Japanese bodies before him. This is the story of an extraordinary man whose courage and fortitude in battle saved many American lives, and whose legacy has been sadly forgotten by all but a few. Here, the proud legacy of John McKinney lives on.

World War 2: Stories Of The Schutzstaffel: True Accounts Of Hitler’s Personal Bodyguards (World War 2, German War, World War 2 History, Irma Grese, Auschwitz, Waffen SS Book 1)


Cyrus J. Zachary - 2016
    Not only was he hated by the whole world, even some of his own military commanders didn’t like him. Most leaders around the world rely on one, maybe two bodyguards to keep them safe. Even the President of the United States today has only one or two teams of security personnel; while there may be many men and women who take turns to protect their leader, the numbers are not as big as you would expect it to be. We will look at the origins of a number of bodies, such as the ‘Sturmabteilung’ or the SA, the Schutzstaffel (the SS) and the many other sub-sections of the SS such as the FBK, the LSSAH, etc., all of which were tasked with protecting Hitler. From the background, we will move on to individual accounts of men who served on these teams – they were Hitler’s personal bodyguards and some stayed with him until the very end. Humanity’s depraved nature came to fore with these men; despite having a master who was truly mad and ravenous for blood, they served him loyally. Was it because they were also as depraved as he was? Or were they afraid for their lives and did what they had to, to survive? We can only wonder... ===>>> Download this book today! <<<===

SS Panzer SS Voices (Eyewitness panzer crews) Books 1 & 2: Barbarossa to Berlin


Sprech Media - 2015
    . . within seconds, flaming gasoline was pouring out, burning white and orange . . .”“We shot at the Russian tanks when they came out of the dust cloud . . . the T34 exploded like a rotten fruit . . . engine, turret and deck all going in different directions, with the crew torn apart likewise . . .”Told by the men who fought in the tanks, with all the searing aggression and violence that they experienced . . . these are the shocking first-hand stories of the SS panzer troops themselves. The crews of the Panzer IV, the Stug, the Panther, Jagdtiger, Tiger and King Tiger . . . the authentic voices of the gunners, commanders and drivers who fought some of the deadliest battles in human history.In 1962, German researchers conducted a series of interviews with former members of the Waffen SS panzer troops who had fought in World War 2. The intention was to probe the SS veterans' motivations and psychology, but the men were unwilling to discuss these matters in depth. They were prepared, however, to describe their combat experiences - and they gave astonishing accounts of tank battles in Operation Barbarossa, Normandy, Italy, the Russian Front, the massive conflict at Kursk, the Ardennes and during the final apocalyptic battles against the Soviets within the Reich and for Berlin itself. These were men whose memories of battle were still vivid, and they were ready to relate the physical details of combat – the violent sights, sounds, and sensations of tank fighting, the weapons and tactics that they used, their triumphs and humiliations. Told in ice-cold, clinical detail, with phenomenal drama and sense of crisis, these first-hand accounts stand out today as one of the most remarkable testimonies to the experience of tank warfare in WW2. They will fascinate anyone interested in tank combat, the Waffen SS and the use of armor from 1941 to 1945.This book has the complete set of interviews from Books 1 and 2, with accounts of tank battles in:Operation Barbarossa (Panzer IV) Onslaught in the East (Stug III) Kursk (Tiger I)Italy (Elefant and Panther)Normandy (Panther)The Ardennes (Jagdtiger)Prussia (Stug IV)Berlin (King Tiger and Wirbelwind)A unique and shocking insight into panzer warfare in all its horrors.

Alamein (Major Battles of World War Two)


C.E. Lucas Phillips - 1962
    

Ginger Lacey: Fighter Pilot


Richard Townshend Bickers - 1969
    But who would have thought that the slim and pale looking boy would become one of the most successful fighter pilots of the war? Almost unknown outside the RAF, Sgt. Pilot J.H. Lacey shot down more enemy aircraft in the Battle of Britain than any other fighter pilot. He shot down the Heinkel 111 which had just bombed Buckingham Palace and had the highest score (twenty-three) of enemy aircraft destroyed, as late as 1941. Thereafter commissioned, early in 1941, he was for a time an instructor at an operational training unit, passing on to others the knowledge that he had won in the toughest series of air battles ever fought. Returning to operations, he served under another fabulous air fighter, ‘Paddy’ Finucane; then was posted to rocket (airborne weapons) development, a task almost as dangerous as combat flying. Later he commanded a famous fighter squadron in the Far East. and shot down the first Japanese he encountered. Unorthodox, autocratic in his command but resentful of unreasonable interference from those above him, Ginger Lacey was a boyish-looking figure with a fantastic gift for leadership, and sharp eyes, bravery and an innate sense of timing. He died in 1989, but his amazing story was recorded by an experienced writer who was a fellow officer in the RAF until 1951 and knew him well. It is a memorable and stirring biography. ‘The best all action war story yet produced.’ - Yorkshire Post ‘A top-scoring story.’ - Evening Standard ‘Fast-moving biography.’ - Sunday Times ‘The best biography of a fighter pilot ever written.’ - Yorkshire Evening Post Richard Townsend Bickers volunteered for the RAF on the outbreak of the second world war and served, with a Permanent Commission, for eighteen years. He wrote a range of military fiction and non-fiction books, including ‘Torpedo Attack’, ‘My Enemy Came Nigh’, ‘Bombing Run’, ‘Fighters Up’ and ‘Summer of No Surrender’. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.

The Silent Service in World War II: The Story of the U.S. Navy Submarine Force in the Words of the Men Who Lived It


Edward Monroe-Jones - 2012
    Navy had a total of 111 submarines. However, this fleet was not nearly as impressive as the number suggests. It was mostly a collection of aging boats from the late teens and early twenties, with only a few of the newer, more modern Gato-class boats. Fortunately, with the war in Europe was already two years old and friction with Japan ever-increasing, help from what would become known as the Silent Service in the Pacific was on the way: there were 73 of the new fleet submarines under construction. The Silent Service in World War II tells the story of America’s intrepid underwater warriors in the words of the men who lived the war in the Pacific against Japan. The enemy had already begun to deploy advanced boats, but the U.S. was soon able to match them. By 1943 the new Gato-class boats were making a difference, carrying the war not just to the Japanese Imperial Navy, but to the vital merchant fleet that carried the vast array of materiel needed to keep the land of the Rising Sun afloat.As the war progressed, American success in the Solomons, starting with Guadalcanal, began to constrict the Japanese sea lanes, and operating singly or in wolfpacks they were able to press their attacks on convoys operating beyond the range of our airpower, making daring forays even into the home waters of Japan itself in the quest for ever more elusive targets. Also taking on Japanese warships, as well as rescuing downed airmen (such as the grateful first President Bush), U.S. submarines made an enormous contribution to our war against Japan.This book takes you through the war as you learn what it was like to serve on submarines in combat, the exhilaration of a successful attack, and the terror of being depth-charged. And aside from enemy action, the sea itself could prove to be an extremely hostile environment as many of these stories attest. From early war patrols in obsolescent, unreliable S-boats to new, modern fleet submarines roving the Pacific, the forty-six stories in this anthology give you a full understanding of what it was like to be a U.S. Navy submariner in combat.

A Fine Night for Tanks: The Road to Falaise


Ken Tout - 1998
    Using eye-witness accounts from tank crews and infantry, Ken Tout reveals how on 7 August 1944 a combined Canadian and British force sent four armoured columns south of Caen to close the Falaise gap. Caen had been an objective of the British forces assaulting Sword Beach on D-Day. However, the German defences were strongest in this sector, and most of the German reinforcements sent to Normandy were committed to the defence of the city.Driving through the night, the British tanks reached their objectives behind German lines and linked up with their Canadian colleagues.The elite Wittman Troop counter-attacked with Tiger tanks, the most feared weapon of the Normandy campaign, only to be wiped out for minimal Allied loss. Operation Totalize I was a stunning success and sealed the fate of the German forces now encircled and trapped in the Falaise Pocket.Ken Tout served with the 1st Northamptonshire Yeomanry during the Second World War, fighting in Sherman tanks and seeing action in Operation ‘Totalize I’. Tout’s books have attracted many plaudits and have been described as Second World War classics. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.

Africa Lost: Rhodesia's COIN Killing Machine (SOFREP)


Dan Tharp - 2013
    Everyone knows about Navy SEALs and Green Berets but nobody knows about the deep recce, sabotage, and direct action missions conducted by the Rhodesian SAS. The Rhodesian Light Infantry was a killing machine, participating in combat jumps every night during the heat of the Bush War. The Selous Scouts were perhaps the most innovative and daring unconventional warfare unit in history which would pair white soldiers with turncoat black “former” terrorists who would then infiltrate enemy camps.US military veteran and historian Dan Tharp covers each of these three units in depth.(18,000 words)

The Nazi Murder Machine: 13 Portraits in Evil


Ben Stevens - 2014
    The world can only be ruled by fear...'  So declared Adolf Hitler, the Fuhrer of Germany. A leader of millions, served by men and women of such appalling savagery, such merciless evil, that they make the words 'barbarians' and 'pitiless' seem all but redundant.  This book features 13 such 'servants of Hitler'. Included are names almost as infamous as Hitler's own - Heinrich Himmler, Joseph Goebbels - yet also the cowardly, but wholly sadistic Irma Grese (female guard at the Auschwitz concentration camp, in sole charge of some 30,000 inmates) and Bruno Tesch, one of the owners of the pest-control company Tesch and Stabenow, who amassed a fortune through the sale of the Zyclon-B gas crystals, used in the concentration camp gas chambers, to the Nazis.(Originally published with ten entries. Three extra entries added 2014/11/06)ALSO AVAILABLE: 'Auschwitz: A Short History' (Ben Stevens).THE WHISTLER: A MURDERER'S TALE     '5 stars for a gripping and gritty read... The ending won't be what you think it will be... it's far better...' Lloyd Tackitt (Bestselling author of the EDEN series)'Moves easily between eras... Arrives at an ending I never saw coming...' Stephanie De Pue'Literary brilliance... A very dark story of Germany's past...' Shelby Austin'The power of music can touch your heart and save your life...' Shirley Waayenberg'An engaging book and totally believable...' Marti C Temple 'Excellent story...' Glora Hawthorne'Many twists and unexpected side issues. Author's long research paid off big-time...' Richard Milbrodt 'Read this after the Book Thief... The same genre and very well written...' Christopher Doyle'Authentic... An engaging story...  A brilliant half-Jewish violinist on the run from Nazis...' Rachel D. Reyes'A story of beauty and brutality during WWII...' Kadee from Littlerock, CA 'Passionate and powerful. I read it in a day as I had to understand... Gives numerous perspectives with intelligence and care. Outstanding!' SamL 'Haunting and rivetting...' hitza 'Great use of flashbacks to tell of what was going on during World War II... Hard to put it down...' Edwin E Hooker 'Compare this to the Book Thief... Blends past and present in a new and exciting way...' Lou Zitnik 'Engagind... Had me turning the pages wanting more...' K DeGrazia  'Great writing can be done about those ghastly times...' AvdE'A marvellous book...' Carole Weinstein       'The characters are very strong...' Amanda'A chilling insight into life in WW2 Germany...' Meesh J 'I got more and more engrossed...' Alan G 'I became totally absorbed in this novel after reading just the first few pages...' Bonnie Gleckler Clarke

Over There: War Scenes on the Western Front (Collected Works of Arnold Bennett)


Arnold Bennett - 1915
    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Ours to Hold It High: The History of the 77th Infantry Division in World War II


Max Myers - 2002
     The soldiers of the 77th Infantry Division saw some of the bloodiest action of the Second World War. Ours to Hold It High is brilliant history of the division’s actions through the course of World War Two as it island-hopped its way towards victory in the face of ferocious Japanese resistance. The story begins in America in 1942 when the division was re-activated and the units were formed and given training before they sailed west to fight. Part one of the book covers these initial two years and the various forms of rigorous training that the men went through to prepare them for the amphibious warfare that they would meet in the islands of the Pacific Ocean. Parts two, three, four, and five of the book provides brilliant insight into the combat history of the unit from Guam to Okinawa. The actions of each unit of the division are uncovered to give a thorough overview of the tumultuous and chaotic action that the men saw. This is account is not written by a historian sitting at a desk in the United States, instead it was written by the soldiers who were there on the frontlines. Max Myers, the unit historian, has compiled their accounts to form this fascinating book. The actions of the 77th have become famous throughout the globe, particularly with the assistance of films such as Hacksaw Ridge that have immortalized the division. Almost every member of the 77th contributed in one way or another to this history. The Commanding General and members of his staff, the commanders and staff members from the organizations, and many other individuals devoted some of their time to revision and correction of preliminary manuscripts. Ours to Hold It High was initially published in 1947 and Max Myers, the main editor, passed away in 2011.