Cassell, 2001, $19.95, ISBN 0-304-35646-8, 288 pgs., trade paperback $29.95 Canadian, £ 14.99

As part of Cassell's Biography series (Hess, Donitz, Himmler, Wolfe, and Auchinleck), this reprint of a 1981 biography covers Field Marshal Sir Claude Auchinleck, the "first British Commander to defeat in battle a German General" in WWII.

At a time when Rommel achieved near-mythic status among the British officers, Auchinleck became commander-in-chief of North Africa and the Mideast. The Germans had Tobruk under siege, an uneasy stalemate existed at the Libyan-Egyptian border, and British morale was sinking lower and lower. His November 1941 riposte, Operation Crusader, swept the Germans from Cyrenaica and reached El Aghelia on January 6, 1942.

Two weeks later, Rommel counterattacked and retook Cyrenaica, launched the Gazala battles, captured Tobruk and made his run east to a little town called El Alamein. Although "Monty" gets the lion's share of credit, it was Auchinleck who stopped Rommel at first Alamein. Auchinleck was sacked after Churchill became frustrated with the lack of offensive operations.

Certainly, WWII North Africa forms a dramatic highlight of this soldier's career, but here is much more to his story than that. Warner traces his impoverished past from youth to posting in India. His efforts against hostile tribes in what is now Pakistan and Tibet receive ample attention, as does his WWI experience against the Ottoman Turks. In WWII, prior to North Africa, Auchinleck took over command of the Narvik (Norway) invasion and later India. After North Africa, he became Commander-in-Chief in India during the critical years of 1943 and 1944, when Japanese efforts intensified. And it was Auchinleck as the last British commander who gave the order (August 14, 1947) disbanding the Army of India.

The post army years (age 63 when retired, but lived to age 96) were less than happy as Auchinleck settled in London and UK before his final home at Marrakech, Morocco. In Morocco, he was much happier than the UK as the climate suited him.

Warner's deft touch comes off well, and the book read quickly. It is, of course, very favorable to its subject, especially in regard to North Africa. Still, the subject is often lumped together with all the other career catastrophes before "Monty." So it's good to read a book about a lesser known, or perhaps, less publicized, commander. And this is a pretty good read.