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Alecras234
Senior Airman
- 346
- Sep 6, 2018
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Hi AshHi im trying to learn European theatre of WW2 by reading things off this site - European Theater of World War II I have typed out Questions and answers to try and remember facts. My mate who knows about WW2 told me to learn when the outbreak of ww2 was and where it started which i know, then read about Dunkirk and what happened. War started in 1939 with Germany attacking Poland, they used the Blitzkrieg tactic, then 2 days later Britain and France declared war on Germany. That's what i know so far. I have read a little on the Battle of France, I don't really understand it, was the battle of France the battle of Belgium and Holland too? So the Germans attacked France through the Ardennes forest, then what, attacked Belgium? How did the british get to Dunkirk beach?
Interesting. I like the sound of autobiographies. Is this book any good?Hi Ash
I think reading endless "facts" about WW2 and aircraft is too much kike swotting up for school exams. Instead, I have gained what I consider a fair knowledge of what happened in the war through reading autobiographies by people who experienced the events at first hand. Many wonderful books were written in the 50s, and some as late as the 2000s. Escape books come to mind, such as "The Wooden Horse" and "They Have Their Exits". Then there are all the wonderful fighter pilot memoirs like "Wing Leader" (Johnnie Johnson", "Nine Lives" (Al Deere). "The Last Enemy" (Richard Hillary) and many more. One of the best bomber pilot autobiographies is "No Moon Tonight" by Don Charlwood. You don't have to buy these books; your local library will order them for you from libraries all over the country, and you can fill in an online request. My rule of thumb is not to read biographies (written by someone else in the third person "he"), but only AUTObiographies in the first person "I". Churchill's 12-volume "The Second World War" is very readable. As you read more and more your knowledge grows, and you find yourself taking with a pinch of salt some of the opinions or claims by individual writers, e.g. the conflict of opinion on fighter tactics between Leigh-Mallory and Park. Since you are disabled, you'd probably enjoy "Best Foot Forward" by Colin Hodgkinson, the other Spifire pilot who, like Douglas Bader, flew with tin legs.
Happy reading!
Hi Ash
I think reading endless "facts" about WW2 and aircraft is too much kike swotting up for school exams. Instead, I have gained what I consider a fair knowledge of what happened in the war through reading autobiographies by people who experienced the events at first hand. Many wonderful books were written in the 50s, and some as late as the 2000s. Escape books come to mind, such as "The Wooden Horse" and "They Have Their Exits". Then there are all the wonderful fighter pilot memoirs like "Wing Leader" (Johnnie Johnson", "Nine Lives" (Al Deere). "The Last Enemy" (Richard Hillary) and many more. One of the best bomber pilot autobiographies is "No Moon Tonight" by Don Charlwood. You don't have to buy these books; your local library will order them for you from libraries all over the country, and you can fill in an online request. My rule of thumb is not to read biographies (written by someone else in the third person "he"), but only AUTObiographies in the first person "I". Churchill's 12-volume "The Second World War" is very readable. As you read more and more your knowledge grows, and you find yourself taking with a pinch of salt some of the opinions or claims by individual writers, e.g. the conflict of opinion on fighter tactics between Leigh-Mallory and Park. Since you are disabled, you'd probably enjoy "Best Foot Forward" by Colin Hodgkinson, the other Spifire pilot who, like Douglas Bader, flew with tin legs.
Happy reading!