Category Archives: Book

This week in the War, 9–15 September 1940: Luftwaffe bombs Buckingham Palace

Posted on September 11, 2012 by secondbysecond

This week in the war saw the bombing of Buckingham Palace. Queen Elizabeth (mother of the current queen) famously remarked that she was glad it happened because she would be able to “look the East End in the face.” (The … Continue reading →

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Vignette: The art of Jean-Pierre Gibrat—The Flight of the Raven

Posted on September 5, 2012 by secondbysecond

One day, if I write a spy story set in Nazi-occupied Paris, with a bright young heroine named… Maybe her name doesn’t matter, but I would definitely write a scene where she escapes over the rooftops exactly as Jean-Pierre Gibrat’s … Continue reading →

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Vignette: The art of Jean-Pierre Gibrat—The Reprieve

Posted on July 29, 2012 by secondbysecond

La bande dessinée—loosely translated as ‘comic strip’—is a veritable institution throughout French-speaking Europe. Everyone in France (and many in North America) are familiar with the illustrated tales of Asterix the Gaul. Belgian examples include Tintin, the boy detective, and the cowboy, … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 22–28 July 1940: Special Operations Executive

Posted on July 24, 2012 by secondbysecond

The Special Operations Executive (SOE) officially came into being this week in the war, 22 July 1940. Its purpose: to harass the enemy from behind the lines. Churchill supported ‘butcher and bolt’ raids and was an advocate of elitist special … Continue reading →

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In the news: Silver galore!

Posted on July 22, 2012 by secondbysecond

Last week, according to the British newspaper The Telegraph, hundreds of bars of silver were retrieved from the cargo ship SS Gairsoppa, which was sunk by a German U-boat in 1941. The ship went down off the coast of Ireland and … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 15–21 July: An end to the war?

Posted on July 18, 2012 by secondbysecond

The war could have ended this week. It would have been a different end, with Hitler and Churchill, if not exactly shaking hands, at least agreeing to quit fighting and go their separate ways. Britain would keep its Empire, Germany … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 8–14 July 1940: Vive l’Angleterre! Vive la France!

Posted on July 14, 2012 by secondbysecond

14 July, Bastille Day—in happier times a day of national celebration—was observed as a day of mourning throughout France, this week in the war, 1940. In London, General de Gaulle laid a wreath at the Cenotaph and inspected soldiers of … Continue reading →

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Guest blog by Mark Stuart Ellison: Remembering a World War II Radio Man on Independence Day

Posted on July 7, 2012 by secondbysecond

Barbecues, fireworks, and beach parties are fine ways of celebrating July 4, but we should also remember the people who have put themselves in harm’s way to make possible the freedoms that Americans enjoy. My favorite way of commemorating America’s … Continue reading →

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This week in the war, 1–7 July 1940: England’s Last War Against France

Posted on July 4, 2012 by secondbysecond

England’s last war against France—as recounted in Colin Smith’s book of that very title—was not fought in Napoleonic times. We are not talking Wellington versus Bonaparte at Waterloo. Rather: Winston Churchill versus Marshal Philip Petain, leader of Vichy France. Their war … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 24–30 June 1940: ‘A policeman’s lot is not a happy one’

Posted on June 25, 2012 by secondbysecond

Were Gilbert & Sullivan right? In a show-stopping number in their comic musical The Pirates of Penzance, the policemen’s chorus declares ‘A policeman’s lot is not a happy one.’ The action takes place near the English seaside town of Penzance … Continue reading →

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