T-Bone Posted January 19, 2015 Posted January 19, 2015 I like to read and watch shows about WWII, particularly the European theater. Anyone else interested in this with some recommendations on new reading?
joejoevapekins Posted January 19, 2015 Posted January 19, 2015 This was a good read to me...The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich T-Bone 1
jasonculp Posted January 19, 2015 Posted January 19, 2015 I don't have any reading for you, but I share your interest. I especially am a nut for WWII aircraft. I have been very blessed to live in Breckenridge TX where my dad was an aerial sprayer (crop duster) Breckenridge at the time had a great WWII aircraft collecting community (old oil $$) It was also the home of one of the best restoration shops in the country (still is) My best friend was the son of the owner. It gave me access to things that many people never get to see. I have played on, and ridden in a lot of them. I left Breckenridge as a freshman in high school (1984) and lost touch with them. My job has allowed me to reconnect with them and even do some custom work on one of their projects last year (Rare Bear). T-Bone 1
T-Bone Posted January 23, 2015 Author Posted January 23, 2015 My ex-wife's Uncle (the only person in that wretched family whose company I enjoyed) was a plane nut too. Seemed like he could name every single airplane ever. We went to a few airshows and he was like a library of info.
jasonculp Posted January 23, 2015 Posted January 23, 2015 I am an all around aircraft nut. I do really enjoy the history of WWII. I just don't read much about it. I do really enjoy the stories of the guys who were there, I have lost 3 in the last few years and don't have many left. One was a radio operator in a plane that flew "the hump". The other 2 were trainer pilots. I also love going to the Museums. I wish I had the patience to read. I can read tech articles, magazines, blogs...etc. I just can't sit and read books. Even a movie that is over 2 hours is too long! All the books I have read in the last few years, either took many months, or I listened to in an audio book. Don't get the wrong impression. I can sit on my butt for hours at a time...I am fairly lazy... I just have a short attention span! T-Bone 1
Jeffb Posted January 23, 2015 Posted January 23, 2015 If you like fiction, I enjoyed Fatherland T-Bone 1
T-Bone Posted January 23, 2015 Author Posted January 23, 2015 Man, I can't remember the book I read about WWI fighter pilots. Had a lot of great info...I think one of the Roosevelts was a pilot in the first World War. If you like fiction, I enjoyed Fatherland Just checked that out...seems pretty cool!
Jeffb Posted January 23, 2015 Posted January 23, 2015 Rutger Hauer starred in the movie fatherland T-Bone 1
T-Bone Posted January 23, 2015 Author Posted January 23, 2015 I found the book I was talking about, Echoes Of Eagles. Awesome read and lots of cool airplane info that someone like me was able to understand. jasonculp 1
kerk Posted January 26, 2015 Posted January 26, 2015 I like to read and watch shows about WWII, particularly the European theater. Anyone else interested in this with some recommendations on new reading? Highly, highly recommend 'The Forgotten Soldier' by Guy Sajer. An autobiographical account of a German infantryman sent to the Eastern front. Started reading it with a 'what the heck' motivation and then found it intriguing. You follow the transformation of a bright eyed, enthusiastic 17 years old (in 1943), to an emotionally broken and disillusioned 19 year old, during a retreat to (unbeknown to them) a country that no longer existed. One thing that stuck with me was that after other reads and all the movies, nothing ever relayed to me the absolute terror of being on the receiving end of an artillery assault as his book did. BTW, as a kid in the early 60's, got to hang out a lot in a gun shop 'loaded' with Garand's, M-1 carbines, K98's, Japanese Arisaka's, etc.......unbelievably cheap too. Also, not actually the European theater, but one that I really enjoyed was 'Battleship...the sinking of the Prince of Wales and the Repulse', by Martin Middlebrook. "..On Wednesday, December 10, 1941, two British battleships were sunk off Malaya by a Japanese air torpedo attack. They did not request the air support that could have saved them. 840 men died, and the survivors have not forgotten. This is the story of this torpedo attack..".
MudDrum Posted January 26, 2015 Posted January 26, 2015 Not about the European theater, but one of the best books I have read about WWII was James Clavell's " King Rat ". About the struggle in a Japanese POW camp in Singapore. Unforgettable characters. My Dad was a Marine in the Pacific during the war, so was a nature choice.
T-Bone Posted January 26, 2015 Author Posted January 26, 2015 Thank you for the great recommendation, Muddrum, just looked it up and it seems exactly the type of stuff I like. Thanks to your Father as well, for his service and sacrifice.
Jeffb Posted January 27, 2015 Posted January 27, 2015 I was watching a documentary on WWII on the Smithsonian channel yesterday and learned something I never knew. Eisenhower made the German locals visit the concentration camps to show them what was happening in their backyards. They could no longer claim ignorance. I know this may not be news to others here but I am now more edumacated.
T-Bone Posted January 27, 2015 Author Posted January 27, 2015 (edited) A lot of German soldiers didn't know the atrocities done on behalf of their sacrifices. Many went AWOL, or even attempted to kill Hitler for it. Rommel, one of the greatest field Generals of warfare history, even disagreed with the high, high level of fascism and downright genocide. Edited January 27, 2015 by T-Bone Slums
T-Bone Posted January 27, 2015 Author Posted January 27, 2015 (edited) Click for one of the greatest books on these two men... Edited January 27, 2015 by T-Bone Slums
Tug Posted January 27, 2015 Posted January 27, 2015 I'm related to Audie Murphy.Just thought I'd throw that out there.Despite his personal life,he really was an incredible person and an american hero. T-Bone 1
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