by Lionel Leventhal
'This book combines dramatic first-hand accounts with an historical commentary to paint a complete picture.' – Military Illustrated reviewing China 1900: The Eyewitnesses Speak: The Boxer Rebellion as Described by Participants in Letters, Diaries and Photographs. Edited by Frederic A. Sharf and Peter Harrington. 'This fascinating collection of hitherto unpublished accounts of the Boxer Rebellion ... fresh insight on a largely forgotten conflict ... These accounts bring home the 'realities' of war. Heat, dust, disease and exhaustion are constant factors. The accounts of the most trying situations remain positive, demonstrating a Western arrogance that everything would be fine, based on a contempt for the Chinese ... The photographs provide an excellent perspective on the first war of the 20th century ... An interesting addition to the literature on the Boxer Rebellion, offering a good mixture of sources, covering all the major events, and not a few of those less well-known. This scale of multi-national military effort would not be witnessed again until the Gulf War.' – Andrew Lambert in Soldiers of the Queen reviewing China 1900: The Eyewitnesses Speak: The Boxer Rebellion as Described by Participants in Letters, Diaries and Photographs. Edited by Frederic A. Scharf and Peter Harrington. 'Marvellous ... This is one of the best combat accounts from the Russian side of the Napoleonic Wars ... Davidov appears to have been ... an astute observer of others' strengths and weaknesses - on the battlefield and off. ... From vignettes of great battles to characterizations of French marshals Joachim Murat and Jean Lannes, to descriptions of the odd episode of the capture of Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte's underwear, and the near-capture of Napoleon himself by bold Cossack horsemen, Davidov thrusts the reader into the heart of the scene with an immediacy and intimacy that lovers of military history rarely get. The book closes with biographies of major Russian commanders of the period. All in all, this little volume is a great gem.' – Blaine Taylor in Military History (USA) reviewing In the Service of the Tsar Against Napoleon by Denis Davidov, translated and edited by Gregory Troubetzkoy. 'In an era of dashing young military heroes, Denis Davidov was a hero's hero. He was, in some senses, a Renaissance Warrior: a man comfortable with the men on a battlefield, in a camp singing and telling stories, with the aristocratic leaders who were often both his friend and foe, and also comfortable in his continuous pursuit of ladies. Most unusually, and here is the essence of his Renaissance nature, Davidov was not only a warrior but was also a wonderful writer. ... Until now, Davidov's words were available only to readers of Russian. Now, thanks to the efforts of Gregory Troubetzkoy, they are brought to life in English. And to life they are indeed brought. Translation is not a science, but an art, and a bad translation can kill words as easily as a good translation can enliven them. This is an excellent translation; Davidov's humor, insight, and emotion literally pour from the pages of this book. ... Davidov's descriptions of his 1812 campaign activities make for some of the best reading of that nature, and present a very different picture from that normally read by western readers. Davidov was a true Russian hero whose efforts, especially in 1812, were instrumental to Russian success. But it is his writing ability that brings his campaigns - and his insight - to life, an presents a veiw of this period only now available to the English-speaking public. Thanks to Troubetzkoy's lively translation, amateur and serious historians alike will want to read this book.' – J. David Markham of The International Napoleonic Society reviewing In the Service of the Tsar Against Napoleon: The Memoirs of Denis Davidov, 1806-1814, translated and edited by Gregory Troubetzkoy. 'Anyone with an interest in military matters should have some basic source of reference in their library and this book will fulfil this need. ... I have no hesitation in recommending it to you.' – Max Sarche in Gun Mart reviewing The Greenhill Military Small Arms Data Book by Ian V. Hogg. 'Meticulous editorial comment ... The great appeal of eyewitness material is that it allows the modern reader a window into the past. ... Inevitably, one is drawn to the charge of the 21st Lancers, and this compilation includes two particularly good accounts: one, by Lt. Smyth, vividly sums up the shock of impact and the close quarter fighting in breathless style, while the other, by Major Harry Finn, is valuable as it includes his reflections on visiting the site a year later.' – Ian Knight in Age of Empires reviewing Omdurman 1898: The Eyewitnesses Speak by Frederic A. Sharf and Peter Harrington. 'They provide the military modeller and war gamer with masses of historically accurate information on uniforms, weapons, vehicles and equipment of the WWII GI ... The author has chosen carefully and many of the photographs are new to me. ... Recommended.' – George Forty in Tank Journal reviewing two new books in the G.I. Series, Fall of Fortress Europe: From the Battle of the Bulge to the Crossing of the Rhine and Hell On Wheels: The Men of the US Armored Forces, 1918 to the Present both by Christopher J. Anderson. 'In this book, written in conjunction with the US Army Intelligence Service (who have produced a useful critique of the tactical handling of all arms by both sides), Colonel Rainer Kriebel tells the story and draws conclusions. ... On the particular phases of the mobile operations Kriebel is frank and very lucid about the extraordinary German manoeuvres ... Kriebel - and surely fair in this indeed - reserves his harshest words for Rommel's 'Dash to the wire' when he left his staff and headquarters bereft of direction (and to a large extent of communication) while for several days leading a bewildered German column on a wild goose chase supposed (by him) to frighten the British into premature withdrawal into Egypt. ... The next act followed with remarkable speed. As Kriebel makes clear, early renewal of their offensive was regarded by the Germans as a necessity before the general situation deteriorated further. When British attempts to envelop Agedabia ended in a complete failure Rommel - secure behind Merrsa el Brega and better balanced - once again showed his extraodinary resilience. At first sceptical but then enthusiastic he launched yet another operation for the reconquest of Cyrenaica in superb style and with a triumph of leadership. Soon he would reverse the entire operational situation and be back at Gazala - where this book leaves him - preparing the great offensive of May 1942 which would carry him into Tobruk and come near to destroying his enemies and occupying Egypt. Rommel, as Kriebel, despite his savage criticism, makes clear, was that sort of man; and Kriebel was there. The whole story is told here with great exactitude.' - General Sir David Fraser in the RUSI Journal (Royal United Services Institute) reviewing Inside the Afrika Korps – The Crusader Battles, 1941-1942 by Colonel Rainer Kriebel and the U.S. Army Intelligence Services, edited by Bruce I. Gudmundsson. 'Authoritative. A pure reference work containing fundamental information providing a cornerstone for the library of our many readers who have a deep interest in the German Army: this is not a book for the casually interested. One of the things I look at when examining a book is to try to separate the amount of solid information from padding, there is no padding whatsoever here, just hard facts from cover to cover. As such the price of £35 in my opinion makes it a very cost effective purchase. ' – Max Sarche in Military Modelcraft International reviewing The German Order of Battle: Infantry in World War II by George F. Nafziger. 'A colossal book ... this reference book is scarcely bedtime reading at £35 but for the enthusiastic specialist historian wanting to know much more about the German Army, the book is indispensable.' – Colonel O. J. M. Lindsay in The Guards Magazine reviewing The German Order of Battle: Infantry in World War II by George Nafziger. 'This comprehensive reference book ... The author presents, in an exciting and vivid style and complete with battle plans and maps, all the land and sea battles of the Greek and Roman worlds, based on the accounts by historians of the time. This book is most definitely one hundred percent pure data and therefore represents a wise purchase.' – Max Sarche in Military Modelcraft International reviewing Battles of the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Chronological Compendium of 667 Battles to 31BC by John Drogo Montagu. 'By bringing together these tales in an attractive book, with illustrations and maps, Knight has done a huge favour to anyone interested in Victorian military history ... they are dramatic, even melodramatic, graphic and exciting ... they are meant to stir the blood and do ... a gripping book.' – Soldiers of the Queen reviewing Marching to the Drums: From the Kabul Massacre to the Siege of Mafikeng by Ian Knight. 'Even a passing interest in modern Russian armour will lead you to purchase this excellent new title from Concord Publications. ... The quality of the photos is superb, offering excellent, highly detailed photographic reference material for the model maker and very useful information on some of the more unusual camouflage schemes used on the vehicles. ... This is an excellent reference work that will serve the modeller well, providing useful information and a stimulus to create variants of this modern Russian MBT.' – Max Sarche in Military Modelcraft International reveiwing Russia's Main Battle Tank T-8OU by Steve Zaloga and David Markov. 'This ground-breaking work remains the best treatment of the day's events - a very valuable work for anyone interested in air power or the Battle of Britain.' – The Newsletter of the NYMAS (USA) reviewing Battle of Britain Day: 15 September 1940 by Dr Alfred Price. 'Comprehensive.' – The Newsletter of the NYMAS (USA) reviewing Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350, Western Europe and the Crusader States by David Nicolle. 'One of the most valuable books to have appeared on the history of the Soviet Union. An extraordinary mass of hitherto unavailable statistics culled from the archives of the former Soviet Union. ... The book also includes analyses of strength figures at various periods, which have themselves been quite elusive. An indispensable reference for anyone with a serious interest in the history of the twentieth century.' - The Newsletter of the NYMAS (USA) reviewing Soviet Casualties and Combat Losses in the Twentieth Century, Edited by G. F. Krivosheev. 'A well-known collection of pictures ... A useful addition to the tank buff's library, and would be of relevance to anyone with a general interest in America's 20th century wars.' - Ron Field in Military Illustrated reviewing Hell On Wheels: The Men of the US Armored Forces, 1918 to the Present by Christopher J. Anderson (G.I. Series). 'This is one for the bookshelf of any 20th century re-enacting society or collector.' – Skirmish reviewing Military Small Arms of the 20th Century by Ian V. Hogg and John S. Weeks. 'This imaginative but well-grounded foray into alternative history ... Macksey constructs a plausible might-have-been scenario ... Macksey succeeds in building a strong case to show that the Germans had the military capability and the technical resouces to successfully invade England in the summer of 1940.' – Colonel D. T. Zabecki, FA, USAR, in the Journal of the Royal Artillery reviewing Invasion: The Alternate History of the German Invasion of England, July 1940 by Kenneth Macksey. 'I highly recommend this book to all those interested in military history and especially to those who have served, or are serving, in Batteries whose honours and titles come from this period of the Regiment's history.' – Alex Summers in the Journal of the Royal Artillery reviewing Marching to the Drums: Eyewitness Accounts of War from the Kabul Massacre to the Siege of Mafikeng edited by Ian Knight. 'This intriguing book ... if the Napoleonic Wars are your subject, it really is a 'must'.' – The British Army Review reviewing The Napoleon Options: Alternate Decisions of the Napoleonic Wars edited by Jonathan North. ''The photographs are suberb. There are numerous photographs of the ships under construction and in service with a fair number of internal views showing life on board. I particularly liked the photograph of Graf Spee with a dummny B turret and a second funnel The quality is generally high except for some of the action shots. There are fairly detailed accounts of the active service life of the three ships.' – David K. Brown in The Journal of Naval Engineering reviewing Pocket Battleships of the Deutschland Class by Gerhard Koop and Klaus-Peter Schmolke. 'A further addition to this excellent series ... profusely illustrated throughout with exceptional photographs.' – Warship World reviewing Pocket Battleships of the Deutschland Class by Gerhard Koop and Klaus-Peter Schmolke. 'It is edited and translated by Jonathan North who provides encyclopaedic information about that period of history as seen by Britain's enemies ... a vivid picture of life 'on the other side'. Brandt writes easily and humorously ... Brandt's experiences in Russia were appalling.' – Battlefields Review reviewing In the Legions of Napoleon: The Memoirs of a Polish Officer in Spain and Russia by Heinrich von Brandt. 'This special, large format book presents magnificent colour artwork by Joseph Wheatley and text by the leading naval historian Stephen Howarth. Combining full colour, large-scale images with a narrative which lucidly presents the rise, development and the fall of the sailing ship, this is a delightful book and a wonderful testament to man's maritime achievement. ... This superbly illustrated book is a brilliant panorama of some of the most elegant ships ever built and an essential addition to literature on this captivating subject. ... Writing as a person who is keen on model boats, I found this book truly delightful and a joy to own; in particular I liked the many superb colour illustrations of the smaller, period sailing vessels such as cogs and carracks. The detail incorporated in the illustrations is first class and I am sure will provide inspiration for new models. Again, many of the ships are unusual and new to me and made fascinating viewing. In addition, each illustration is well captioned with a comprehensive description. Bearing in mind the very high cost of producing colour plates, I can honestly say that this book is a cost efficient and reasonable purchase - certainly the ideal gift for any ship enthusiast. Well done Greenhill Books. I look forward to your next maritime publication!' – Max Sarche in Model Boats reviewing Historic Sail: The Glory of the Sailing Ship from the 13th to the 19th Century by Joseph Wheatley, text by Stephen Howarth. 'This really is the definitive account of an important day in our history, and very readable.' – Cross & Cockade International reviewing Battle of Britain Day: 15 September 1940 by Dr Alfred Price. Back to Greenhill Military Book News No. 102 Table of Contents Back to Greenhill Military Book News List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 2000 by Greenhill Books This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. 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