Category Archives: Book

This week in the War, 30 Dec 1940–5 Jan 1941: Death of Henri Bergson

Posted on January 1, 2013 by secondbysecond

No food, no fuel, no freedom—and precious little to laugh about in the Nazi Paris of 1941. Santa was dead—maybe the Boches had shot him!—and the lump of coal in the stocking of anyone more naughty than nice would have … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 16–22 December 1940: Death of F. Scott Fitzgerald

Posted on December 20, 2012 by secondbysecond

          Read any book on creative writing or, better still, spend time and money on a course. It’s Dallas to doughnuts your prof will thumb through a dog-eared copy of The Great Gatsby to illustrate a point: … Continue reading →

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In the news: The pigeon who tried to save England

Posted on December 17, 2012 by secondbysecond

Garry McCafferty’s whimsically titled They had no Choice—Racing Pigeons at War (Tempus Publishing: Charleston, SC, and Stroud,Gloucester, UK, 2002) rekindled interest in the homing pigeons of World War II. Interested rekindled once again—veritably caught fire—when news sources throughout Britain (see The … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 9–15 December 1940: “I purred like six cats.”

Posted on December 12, 2012 by secondbysecond

“I purred like six cats,” Churchill writes in his autobiographical The Second World War. He was describing his reaction to General Wavell’s plans for a North African offensive. Archibald Wavell was C-in-C for the Middle East and then some—from Iraq … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 25 Nov–1 Dec 1940: ‘This is London’ — the broadcasts of Edward R. Murrow

Posted on December 1, 2012 by secondbysecond

“This is London.” Such was the signature opening of American broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow, speaking on the radio from Britain’s beleaguered capital. Air raid sirens could be heard in the background. Bombs were starting to fall. His broadcasts were … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 11–17 November 1940: Fleet Air Arm attacks Taranto

Posted on November 13, 2012 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on the night of 11–12 November 1940, Fairey Swordfish biplanes from British aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious attacked Taranto Harbour, the principal naval base of the Italian fleet. For the cost of two aircraft shot down, the … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 4–10 November 1940: HMS Jervis Bay goes down fighting

Posted on November 9, 2012 by secondbysecond

One of the enduring myths of the Royal Navy centres on the idea of a small British force—perhaps even a single ship—holding off a vastly superior enemy. Think Francis Drake versus the Spanish Armada. Think Nelson and any number of … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 4–10 November 1940: Election Day

Posted on November 4, 2012 by secondbysecond

As I write this post on Sunday 4 November 2012, I have no idea who will win Tuesday’s US election. Democrat incumbent Barack Obama is pitted against Republican challenger Mitt Romney, and the race is close. The economy and entanglement … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 21–27 October 1940: Turning point at Hendaye

Posted on October 25, 2012 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on Wednesday 23 October 1940, Adolf Hitler met with Spanish dictator, Francisco Franco at Hendaye, a small town on the French-Spanish border, at the foot of the Pyrenees. In some respects, the two men were … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 23–29 September 1940: Rose Valland—portrait of a heroine

Posted on September 26, 2012 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 24 September 1940, Mademoiselle Rose Valland received a grant of 10,000 francs to conduct research into art. Her adventures are described in Rose Valland: Capitaine Beaux Arts (Dupuis, 2009), a captivating book by Catel, Polack … Continue reading →

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