A Visual History of the Golden State Battleship BB-44The very first in a new series of value-priced hard cover horizontal format books on U.S. capital ships in the Second World War. Part of the “Extended” Visual History format, this 168 page book is packed with large, clear images of the USS California. Coverage begins with the laying of her keel in 1916 and continues with the ship’s launching, commissioning and outfitting. The title then explores the ship’s long history from her days in the “Blue Water Navy” to her sinking at Pearl Harbor using hundreds of detailed photos. Salvaged and refitted, the USS California was back in action at Saipan just 30 months later. The photographic coverage follows the history of the “Prune barge” all though her WWII experience right through to her decommissioning in 1959. The many photos are accompanied by beautifully rendered line drawings and color plates. An essential companion to the Trumpeter plastic kit.

A major event of the Second World War, the landing of June 6, 1944 has been, for more than seventy years, the subject of countless books, films, surveys, reportages and TV series. Nowadays many are aware of the unprecedented technological achievements implied in the planning and construction of two artificial harbours, or of the heroic sacrifice of the Rangers under Lieutenant Colonel James Rudder’s command, who stormed the Pointe du Hoc; or again of the martyrdom the of GIs of the 29th and 1st Divisions of the American infantry on Omaha Beach, which went down in history by the sad name of "Bloody Ohama ". But did you know that the D Day was preceded in late April 1944 by a similar event that took place off the Slapton Sands coast, in Devon, and that caused the death of more than seven hundred soldiers, yet remaining a secret for decades? Did you know that the beautiful Lily Sergeyev, artist and traveller, was considered by the Allies one of their best agents... and by the Germans as one of their most effective spies in Britain? Did you know that Lionel Crabb, sentinel diver of the Royal Navy on the Normandy coast, inspired Ian Fleming to create the character of James Jump? Did you know that the US troops, when completely surrounded in Mortain, were supplied with penicillin, morphine and plasma by dropping empty bomb shells stuffed with chocolate bars used as a cushion to avoid damages? Did you know that Lili Marlene, the Germans’ favourite song, was also popular among Allied soldiers? These are only some of the original and instructive revelations you will find in this book, which is based on the rigorous research carried out in over half a century by Philippe Bauduin, who is passionate about the Landing and the Battle of Normandy since his childhood, and is author of a dozen books on the subject as well as numerous articles.

The second of three volumes, this book is part of a series considered the most complete and detailed study on the uniforms and the equipment used by Second World War German paratroopers (Fallschirmjäger). Virtually every element of the uniforms is presented in detail, including different models of parachutes (Knochensack) and all the equipment used by the Luftwaffe from the mid-30s until the capitulation of the Reich, as well as the typical badges of the Fallschirmjäger and many untold stories. In short, this book accompanies the reader through a visual but detailed reconstruction of the operation of "Green Devils" and the attack Norway carried out during the last days of the Third Reich against the Belgian fortress of Eben Emael, but also through the campaigns in Holland, Crete, North Africa, Russia, Italy, Normandy and the Ardennes. With the help of collectors and museums from all around the world, the author and his German publisher started an unprecedented and prolific collaboration. The three volumes contain thousands of unpublished photos of objects belonging to the Fallschirmjäger, including coins that have never been seen or studied before.

In this engaging book we see how an 18-year-old miner shoveling ore from deep in the ground in Utah suddenly found himself, only two years later, 30,000 feet in the air over Nazi Germany, piloting a Flying Fortress in the first wave of America’s air counteroffensive in Europe. Like thousands of other young Americans, Ray Brim was plucked by the U.S. Army to be a combat flyer, and was quickly pitted against the hardened veterans of the Luftwaffe. Brim turned out to have a natural knack for flying, however, and was assigned to the select squadron developing lead Pathfinder techniques, while experimenting with radar. He was among the first to test the teeth of the Luftwaffe’s defenses, and once those techniques had been honed, thousands of other bomber crews would follow into the maelstrom, from which 80,000 never returned. This work gives us vivid insights into the genesis of the American air campaign, told with the humor, attention to detail and humility that captures the heart and soul of our “Greatest Generation.” Brim was one of the first Pathfinder pilots to fly both day and night missions leading bomb groups of 600-plus bombers to their targets. At the onset of his missions in the spring of 1943, B-17 crews were given a 50-50 chance of returning. Each of his raids were nerve-wracking forays into the unknown; with struggles to survive the damage to his plane due to flak and German fighter attacks, in order to bring his 10-man crew home, often wounded but still alive. After Germany’s surrender, Brim held a number of commands during the Korean War and flew B-17 drone planes during atomic tests, in which the Pentagon wished to see the effects of nuclear fallout on aircraft. Surprisingly having lived on into his 90s, Colonel Brim has provided us a fascinating firsthand memoir of frontline air war during the 20th century.

This detailed study on the uniforms of the French Foreign Legion during the Algerian War presents more than 400 collector’s pieces and around 200 period photos, giving an unprecedented look at this painful war which ended France’s rule in Algeria and, from 1939 to 1962, represented 23 years of uninterrupted combat by the French Foreign Legion. The first part retraces the beginning phases of the history of this elite army on Algerian soil. The second part is dedicated to the uniforms of the soldiers of the Foreign Legion. The third part presents a complete and never-before-seen study of the uniforms of the Saharan formations of the Foreign Legion. This book is dedicated to the 3,475 legionnaires fallen in combat in Algeria since 1831, and to the Frenchmen and Algerians who died in the conflict between France and Algeria.

Villers-Bocage is undoubtedly one of the most emblematic actions the Battle of Normandy. Many historians have recounted documented way the events of 13 June 1944, including the destruction of a British armored column by Hauptsturmführer Michael Wittmann in a Tiger I.- TEXT IN FRENCH -

A gripping true story of survival set in Hong Kong and Burma, as one family struggles against overwhelming odds in World War Two. Divided by war, in order to see each other again they must overcome terrible danger. The beautiful landscape of Burma and the tragedy of war are evocatively portrayed in this haunting and moving book. Hong Kong. Leading an attack on Golden Hill, Jack Devereux of the Royal Scots is shot through the head. A Japanese officer attempts to behead him, in order to blood his samurai sword; waking momentarily, he kills his would-be executioner. His head swarming with maggots, he survives capture as the Japanese are both impressed and fascinated by his wounds. Alive, albeit in a dangerously precarious physical state he then goes on to experience and escape the horrific and tragic incident of the sinking of the Lisbon Maru, in which hundreds of POWs drown, the sharks of the South China Sea, the mines of Nagasaki and the atom bomb. Burma. Jack’s wife Kate Devereux, her infant son (the author) and mother Harriet desperately try to avoid the unstoppable advance of the Japanese; they flee their home, taking only what they can carry and walk the jungles foraging for food while avoiding predators, snakes and armed bandits (dacoits). Terrified Kate’s marriage certificate will be discovered by the Japanese, they adopt the guise of the Mons Burmese tribe. The once prosperous family becomes destitute and starving. Their chance of survival was slim; multitudes of people like the Devereux’s fleeing the Japanese died of exposure and starvation, were shot by dacoits or killed in bombing raids. They are kept alive by the author’s incredible grandmother, a strong-willed resourceful woman with a proud bearing, able to speak fluent Japanese but also to pass herself off as native Burmese. Their destination is the deserted and mystic city of Pagan. The beautiful but deadly landscape of Burma is the setting for their adventure-filled story.

When Germany’s Sixth Army advanced to Stalingrad in 1942, its long-extended flanks were mainly held by allied armies—the Romanians, Hungarians, and Italians. But as history tells us, these flanks quickly caved in before the massive Soviet counter-offensive which commenced that November, dooming the Germans to their first catastrophe of the war. However, the historical record also makes clear that one allied unit held out to the very end, fighting to stem the tide—the Italian Alpine Corps. When the Don front collapsed under Soviet hammer blows, it was the Alpine Corps that continued to hold out until it was completely isolated, and which then tried to fight its way out through both Russian encirclement and “General Winter” to rejoin the rest of the Axis front. Only one of the three alpine divisions was able to emerge from the Russian encirclement with survivors. In this all-sides battle across the snowy steppe, thousands were killed and wounded, and even more were captured. By the summer of 1946, only 10,000 survivors returned to Italy from Russian POW camps.

In their own words the Aussie diggers provide a fascinating glimpse of the many funny and touching moments that our Diggers often hold to their chest. This collection of stories in this book provides a taste of what a soldiers life is like in both war and peace.

The nearly half-million American airmen who served during World War II have almost disappeared. And so have their stories. In Unsung Eagles, award-winning writer and former fighter pilot Jay Stout has saved an exciting collection of those accounts from oblivion. These are not rehashed tales from the hoary icons of the war. Rather, they are stories from the masses of largely unrecognized men who―in the aggregate―actually won it. These are “everyman” accounts that are important but fast disappearing. Ray Crandall describes how he was nearly knocked into the Pacific by a heavy cruiser’s main battery during the Second Battle of the Philippine Sea. Jesse Barker―a displaced dive-bomber pilot―tells of dodging naval bombardments in the stinking mud of Guadalcanal. Bob Popeney relates how his friend and fellow A-20 pilot was blown out of formation by German antiaircraft fire: “I could see the inside of the airplane―and I could see Nordstrom's eyes. He looked confused…and then immediately he flipped up and went tumbling down.”

John Oliver (Jo) Lancaster DFC had a remarkable career in aviation spanning half a century. Starting out in 1935 as an engineering apprentice with Armstrong Whitworth Jo went on to fly an extraordinary 54 operations against the enemy during the Second World War, piloting Vickers Wellingtons and Avro Lancasters with RAF Bomber Command’s 40 and 12 Squadrons. Jo also took part in the ‘Thousand Bomber Raids’ in 1942 while an instructor at an operational training unit. Subsequently Jo was posted to the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment at Boscombe Down, during which he flew a wide range of types, including captured German aircraft, and this was followed by training at the Empire Test Pilots’ School. Post-war Jo took up numerous appointments as a test pilot including duties with Boulton Paul and Saunders-Roe, where he test flew the revolutionary Saro S.R. A/1 single-seat jet flying boat fighter. On 30 May 1949, while carrying out test pilot duties with Armstrong Whitworth, Jo was flying the A.W. 52 Flying Wing and became the first pilot to use a Martin-Baker ejection seat in an emergency. Retiring as a test pilot in 1962, Jo was later involved in aerial crop spraying in the Middle East before becoming Aviation Manager for Meridian Air Maps, carrying out aerial survey work from the West Indies to Central Africa and Portugal to Cyprus. By retirement in 1984 Jo had accumulated 11,000 flying hours on some 150 different aircraft types. Author David Gunby, through extensive interviews and correspondence with Jo, and complimented with diligent archive research, has written a highly detailed account of this outstanding aviator. First Out In Earnest, featuring numerous previously unpublished photographs, is the remarkable account of a life dedicated to flying by one of the rapidly diminishing number of survivors from the golden age in British aviation.

John Boileau and Dan Black tell the stories of some of the 30,000 underage youths - some as young as fourteen - who joined the Canadian Armed Forces in the Second World War. This is the companion volume to the authors'’ popular 2013 book Old Enough to Fight about boy soldiers in the First World War. Like their predecessors a generation before, these boys managed to enlist despite their youth. Most went on to face action overseas in what would become the deadliest military conflict in human history. They enlisted for a myriad of personal reasons -- ranging from the appeal of earning regular pay after the unemployment and poverty of the Depression to the desire to avenge the death of a brother or father killed overseas. Canada's boy soldiers, sailors and airmen saw themselves contributing to the war effort in a visible, meaningful way, even when that meant taking on very adult risks and dangers of combat. Meticulously researched and extensively illustrated with photographs, personal documents and specially commissioned maps, Too Young to Die provides a touching and fascinating perspective on the Canadian experience in the Second World War. Among the individuals whose stories are told:Ken Ewing, at age sixteen taken prisoner at Hong Kong and then a teenager in a Japanese prisoner of war campRalph Frayne, so determined to fight that he enlisted in the army, navy and Merchant Navy all before the age of seventeenRobert Boulanger, at age eighteen the youngest Canadian to die on the Dieppe beaches

Through various hundreds of “clichés d’époque”, the journey of this American division that landed in Provence in August 1944 after a long campaign in Italy, leads us just to the heart of Germany, where this military unit is the first to enter the concentration camps of Dachau. This American division had formerly freed a part of Southern France, and then went back up the valley of the Rhone up to the Vosges. As its squads are made up of numerous native american soldiers, the 45th division has achieved copious honours during the three hard battles which could be compared to the battle of Normandy that took over the spotlight the following years.

Having left Gotenhafen July 3, 1940 for a campaign that will last 516 days, the Komet is one of the cargos transformed by the Kriegsmarine to operate as an auxiliary warship for the allied commercial ships. Spreading over the Pacific except the partly frozen waters of the Arctic Ocean, this predator camouflaged as Japanese ships leads the attacks on all oceans, up to the Antarctic, searching for ally ships, creating insecurity across the Australian and New Zealand coasts up to the surroundings of the Panama canal. A fascinating adventure that gives us 200 inedited pictures. The secret meetings with the German supply ships at open sea, the seizure and destruction of the enemy ships, the prisoners gathered aboard, the daily life, the ceremonies, those who fled on land or the meeting with the U-Boote in the Atlantic.

This second book presents the reader with the Northern attack on part of the 6th Panzer army whose commitment in the Battle of Ardennes represented the “baptism of fire.” By studying the thousands of archives on the American and German forces, the author revisits this division that must have been the main way through which Hitler hoped to reverse in his favour the outcome of the war.In this work, Philippe Guillemeot invites us to follow the ferocious and bloody cavalcade of the Kampfgruppen of the 1st SS-Panzer Division, the unsuccess of the “Hitler Youth” against the fierce resistance of the GI’s, and the force of the II. SS-Panzerkorps.One chapter is clearly dedicated to the special operations schemed by the German parachutists and the ineffable Otto Skorzeny.

The latest in this long-running series showcases the S35 SOMUA tanks in French and German Service; the British Sexton Self Propelled Gun; the German Horch 108 Heavy Car; the Char B1s in French and German Service, and the U.S. Quick-Way Crane and Coleman Tractor. Like others in the series, Allied-Axis 33 presents individual articles that are composed of large, clear historical photos that are often accompanied by contemporary walk-around images.This issue features such a series with its article on the Sexton, which also includes beautifully reproduced stowage diagrams. Walk around photos also appear in the article on the S35. Perhaps the highlight of this installment are the full page wartime images depicting the interior of the Char B1s. Scale models are currently available of the Char B1s, the S35 and the German Horch 108.