Book Reviews
Chris McNab’s ‘Waffen SS Soldier versus Soviet Rifleman’
By Christopher MiskimonWaffen SS units made up only a small part of the German Wehrmacht, but they found frequent use as “fire brigades” across the Eastern Front. Read more
Book Reviews
Book Reviews
Ian Baxter’s ‘The Soviet Destruction of Army Group South’
By Christopher MiskimonAfter the destruction of the German Sixth Army at Stalingrad in February 1943, the German Army Group South began a slow westward withdrawal, inexorably pressed by advancing Soviet forces of what would eventually be named the First through Fourth Ukrainian Fronts. Read more
Book Reviews
Peter Harmsen ‘Darkest Christmas’
By Christopher MiskimonThe darkest, deadliest Christmas in human history occurred in December 1942. Around the globe, as Christians celebrated their holiday of peace and goodwill, peoples of many different faiths and beliefs continued to slaughter one another. Read more
Book Reviews
Tim Moreman’s ‘Conquest of Burma 1942’
By Christopher MiskimonThe Japanese invasion of Burma in January 1942 pitted its well-trained, mobile, and hard-hitting Fifteenth Army against a conglomerate Allied force composed of British, Commonwealth, Indian and Burmese troops in various states of training, equipment and experience. Read more
Book Reviews
Otto Henning’s ‘Panzer Leader’
By Christopher MiskimonOtto Henning, born in 1924, joined the German Army in the summer of 1941. Volunteering allowed him to avoid the compulsory labor service and choose his branch of service. Read more
Book Reviews
Pacific War, 1945: The Final Chapter
By Christopher MiskimonManila was the first large city the U.S. Army had to take in the Pacific War. Covering 110 square miles, it had many stone and concrete buildings, perfect defensive positions for the Japanese. Read more
Book Reviews
Robert Forsyth’s ‘To Save an Army’
By Christopher MiskimonThe Battle of Stalingrad consumed human beings and military supplies at a horrifying rate. Once Soviet forces managed to encircle the German Sixth Army, its fate was ensured unless it could be sustained. Read more
Book Reviews
James A. Villanueva’s ‘Awaiting MacArthur’s Return’
By Christopher MiskimonThe first significant guerrilla action against the invading Japanese troops took place in January 1942, while fighting against the combined Filipino and American army was still ongoing. Read more
Book Reviews
Lt. Col., Ret., Timothy R. Stoy’s ‘Sharpen Your Bayonets’
By Christopher Miskimon“Iron Mike” O’Daniel was already an experienced soldier when he took command of the 3rd Infantry Division in World War II. Read more
Book Reviews
Paul Bingley and Mike Peters’ ‘Bomb Group: The Eighth Air Force’s 381st and the Allied Offensive over Europe’
By Christopher MiskimonThe 381st Bombardment Group formed up at an airfield in Texas, trained, and then crossed the Atlantic to England in May 1943. Read more
Book Reviews
Robert Forsyth’s ‘Dogfight Me 262 Northwest Europe 1944-45’
By Christopher MiskimonWhen the Luftwaffe first flew the Me 262 jet fighter against the Allied air forces in the summer of 1944, it made a fearful impression. Read more
Book Reviews
Jonathan Trigg’s ‘To VE Day Through German Eyes’
By Christopher MiskimonWhen the Wehrmacht in Western Europe collapsed in August 1944, it seemed a great opportunity, coinciding with similar great defeats on the Eastern Front that summer. Read more
Book Reviews
Mark Lardas’ ‘The Capture of U-505’
By Christopher MiskimonGermany’s Enigma device provided its navy with secure coding equipment for secret communications. On his own initiative, U.S. Read more
Book Reviews
Wilhelm Langbein and Heidi Langbein-Allen’s ‘Save the Last Bullet
By Christopher MiskimonFourteen-year-old Willi Langbein crouched in a foxhole, four panzerfaust antitank weapons stacked next to him. Ten meters to either side was another foxhole with another teenaged soldier huddling against the chill and the fear. Read more
Book Reviews
Paul Ballard-Whyte’s ‘Lucky Hitler’s Big Mistakes’
By Christopher MiskimonFrom the time he served in the German Army during world War I through to the early years of World War II, Adolf Hitler seemed to lead a charmed life. Read more
Book Reviews
The Russian Army has experienced extensive action—and challenges—in the last three decades.
By Christopher MiskimonThe Wagner Group is Russia’s main Private Military Contractor (PMC), a new term for the age-old concept of mercenary bands. Read more
Book Reviews
Max Hastings’ ‘The Abyss: Nuclear Crisis Cuba 1962’
By Christopher MiskimonThe Cuban Missile Crisis is the closest humanity has come to nuclear war, despite the fact neither side wanted it to happen. Read more
Book Reviews
Michael Lynch’s ‘The Chinese Civil War 1945-49’
By Christopher Miskimon
The years between the end of World War II and the start of the Korean War were relatively quiet years for the United States, but across the Pacific Ocean one of the most significant conflicts in modern history took place, setting the stage for events right up to the present day. Read more
Book Reviews
Nic Fields’ ‘Carrhae 53BC: Rome’s Disaster in the Desert’
By Christopher MiskimonWhen the Roman Legions marched into the dry desert sands of northern Mesopotamia, the Parthian General Surena was ready for them. Read more
Book Reviews
Raymond James Raymond’s ‘Elite Souls’
By Christopher MiskimonLieutenant Nick Eslinger’s entry into Iraq was conventional, almost banal. A contracted airliner flew him and other soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division to Kuwait in 2008. Read more
