Résultats de recherche de titre
Articles 1 à 20 sur 1367
The Utility of Boredom: Baseball Essays
Par Andrew Forbes. 2016
Spitball literary essays on the off-kilter joys, sorrows and wonder of North America’s national pastime. A collection of essays for…
ardent seamheads and casual baseball fans alike, The Utility of Boredom is a book about finding respite and comfort in the order, traditions, and rituals of baseball. It’s a sport that shows us what a human being might be capable of, with extreme dedication—whether we’re eating hot dogs in the stands, waiting out a rain delay in our living rooms, or practising the lost art of catching a stray radio signal from an out-of-market broadcast. From learning about America through ball-diamond visits to the most famous triple play that never happened on Canadian soil, Forbes invites us to witness the adult conversing with the O-Pee-Chee baseball cards of his youth. Tender, insightful, and with the slow heartbreak familiar to anyone who’s cheered on a losing team, The Utility of Boredom tells us a thing or two about the sport, and how a seemingly trivial game might help us make sense of our messy lives.Bravo Company: An Afghanistan Deployment and Its Aftermath
Par Ben Kesling. 2022
A timely, powerful, and sweeping portrait of a company of men who went to war in Afghanistan, their troubled deployment,…
and their lives since returning home “An honest account of bravery, sacrifice, and what it means to seek redemption. As a veteran of combat himself, Ben Kesling is able to intimately and honestly document war and its aftermath in ways others haven’t.” —Jake Tapper, CNN anchor In Bravo Company, journalist and veteran Ben Kesling tells the story of the war in Afghanistan through the eyes of the men of one unit, part of a combat-hardened parachute infantry regiment in the 82nd Airborne Division. A decade ago, the soldiers of Bravo Company deployed to Afghanistan for a tour in Kandahar’s notorious Arghandab Valley. By the time they made it home, three soldiers had been killed in action, a dozen more had lost limbs, and nearly half of the company had Purple Hearts. In the decade since, two of the soldiers have died by suicide, more than a dozen have tried, and others admit they’ve considered it. Declared an “extraordinary risk” by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the members of Bravo Company were chosen as test subjects for a new approach to the veteran crisis, focusing less on individuals and more on the group. Bravo Company has an insider’s eye and ear, and draws on extensive interviews and original reporting. It follows the men from their initial enlistment and training, through their deployment and a major shift in their mission, and then on to what has happened in the decade since as they returned to combat in other units or moved on with their lives as civilians, or struggled to do so. This is a powerful, insightful, and memorable account of a war that didn’t end for these soldiers just because they came home.Men of The Battle of Britain: A Biographical Dictionary of the Few
Par Kenneth G. Wynn. 2015
Since it was first published in 1989, Men of the Battle of Britain has become a standard reference book for…
academics and researchers interested in the Battle of Britain. Copies are also owned by many with purely an armchair interest in the events of 1940.The book records the service details of the airmen who took part in the Battle of Britain in considerable detail. Where known, postings and their dates are included, as well as promotions, decorations and successes claimed flying against the enemy. There is also much personal detail, often including dates and places of birth, civilian occupations, dates of death and place of burial or, for those with no known grave, place of commemoration. There are many wartime head-and-shoulders photographs. Inevitably the high achievers who survived tend to have the longest entries, but those who were killed very quickly, sometimes even on their first sortie, are given equal status.The 2015 third edition will include new names and corrected spellings, as well as many new photographs. Plenty of the entries have been extended with freshly acquired information. The stated nationalities of some of the airmen have been re-examined and, for example, one man always considered to be Australian is now known to have been Irish.Three German Invasions of France: The Summers Campaigns of 1830, 1914, 1940
Par Douglas Fermer. 2013
Tension and rivalry between France and Germany shaped the history of Western Europe in the century from 1860. Three times…
that hostility led to war and the invasion of France - in 1870, 1914 and 1940. The outcomes of the battles that followed reset the balance of power across the continent. Yet the German invasions tend to be viewed as separate events, in isolation, rather than as connected episodes in the confrontation between the two nations. Douglas Fermer's fresh account of the military campaigns and the preparations for them treats them as part of a cycle of fear, suspicion, animosity and conflicting ambitions extending across several generations. In a clear, concise account of the decisive opening phase of each campaign, he describes the critical decision-making, the manoeuvres and clashes of arms in eastern France as German forces advanced westwards. As the 100th anniversary of the start of the Great War approaches, this is a fitting moment to reconsider these momentous events and how they fit into the broad sweep of European history.Disasters Underground
Par N. J. McCamley. 2004
The rapid expansion of the RAF during the mid/late 1930s necessitated a massive storage requirement for high explosive bombs and…
other ordinance. Drawing on the experience of the Great War ammunition factories, the authorities set about identifying underground sites around Britain safe from the threat of air attack. Unfortunately in the haste of the moment safety arrangements were not a high priority and, as a result, there were a number of appalling accidents; the most serious occurred in November 1944 when 3,800 tons of HE bombs detonated at the same time resulting in the deaths of 68 people in a Staffordshire quarry.Frank McClean: Godfather to British Naval Aviation
Par Philip Jarrett. 2011
During aviations pioneering years Francis Kennedy McClean used his vast inherited wealth to help the now famous Short Brothers company…
become established as one of Britains greatest aircraft manufacturers and, in doing so, he helped the Royal Navys first pilots into the air. In effect, he was Godfather to British naval aviation.But McClean did much more than even that. He was himself a balloonist and pioneer aviator, flying with Wilbur Wright in France in December 1908. He provided the Royal Aero Club with one of the first flying grounds in the UK; personally purchased no fewer than sixteen aeroplanes from Short Brothers before the First World War, and also acted as the companys unpaid test pilot. Convinced that aviation was destined to play a vital role in the nations defence, he made his own aeroplanes freely available for training and ensured that the Navy had a suitable site from which to fly, founding Englands first naval flying school, at Eastchurch in Kent. His flight up the Thames to Westminster on 10 August 1912, during which he flew between the upper and lower spans of Tower Bridge and passed beneath the other bridges, caught the public imagination, but despite all these achievements he remained unassuming, modest and reticent. This is a fascinating and informative account of McCleans great influence on early aviation, and his achievements and significant contribution to naval aviation are revealed here for the first time.Pocket Battleships of the Deutschland Class: Warships of the Kriegsmarine (Warships Of The Kriegsmarine Ser.)
Par Gerhard Koop, Klaus-Peter Schmolke. 1990
A concise, authoritative, heavily illustrated summary of this class of German WWII-era warships, covering their design histories and careers. …
The Deutschland class included three ships of a design so revolutionary that it defied conventional categories. Deutschland (later renamed Lützow), Admiral Scheer, and Admiral Graf Spee were simply termed Panzerschiffe (armored ships) by the Germans, but they were known to their opponents by the far more evocative term Pocket Battleships. Part of a six-volume series on the German Navy&’s WWII-era warships written by Gerhard Koop and illustrated by Klaus-Peter Schmolke, this book contains an account of the development of the Deutschland class, a detailed description of the ships with full technical details, and an outline of their service, heavily illustrated with plans, battle maps, and a substantial collection of photographs.Coal Miners (Images of the Past)
Par Brian Elliott. 2015
There have been many books published about the coal mining industry of Britain but relatively few about the miners themselves.…
This book is unique in that it concentrates on the miner, his family and his work through a careful selection of illustrations. Although most of the images are photographic, and therefore relate to the latter part of the nineteenth to the closing years of twentieth century, use is also made of much earlier sources, from woodcuts and engravings to illustrations in contemporary journals and magazines. A good deal of the material has come from the author's own collection, accumulated over many years of research; and also from archive sources. The selection is wide ranging, covering the traditional coal mining regions of Britain, from Scotland and northern England, through the midland coalfields and to Wales, as well as images from smaller coalfields such as Cumbria and Somerset. Today, coal mining is a virtually a lost industry and the men, women and children involved in what was once Britain's most important economic but most dangerous activity deserve both recognition and celebration.Torpedo: The Complete History of the World's Most Revolutionary Naval Weapon
Par Roger Branfill-Cook. 2014
An encyclopedic study of the ship-killer par excellence—from its development to post-World War II usage. &“A well-written book, lavishly illustrated.&”…
—International Journal of Maritime History The torpedo was the greatest single game-changer in the history of naval warfare. For the first time it allowed a small, cheap torpedo-firing vessel—and by extension a small, minor navy—to threaten the largest and most powerful warships afloat.The traditional concept of seapower, based on huge fleets of expensive capital ships, required radical rethinking because of this important naval weapon. This book is a broad-ranging international history of the weapon, tracing not only its origins and technical progress down to the present day, but also its massive impact on all subsequent naval wars. Torpedo contains much new technical information that has come to light over the past thirty years and covers all of the improved capabilities of the weapon. Heavily illustrated with photos and technical drawings this is a book no enthusiast or historian can afford to miss.&“The torpedo—one of the most fearsome weapons ever created by man—is well worth its own history.&” —Forum NavaleMan-of-War Life: A Boy's Experience In The United States Navy (Seafarers' Voices)
Par Charles Nordhoff. 1845
Like many a restless teenager before him, Charles Nordhoff craved excitement and in 1844, when barely 14, he managed to…
talk his way into the US Navy. A bookish lad who had been apprenticed to a printer, Nordhoff was better educated than most of his fellow seamen, and was well equipped to describe what became a three-year round-the-world adventure. He was lucky in his ship, USS Columbus, a large 74-gun ship of the line that had been chosen to undertake a diplomatic mission to China, and then to Japan, in an abortive attempt to open the latter to American trade. In the course of this voyage, Nordhoff was to see many countries of south-east Asia and the Far East, before crossing the Pacific, visiting South America, rounding Cape Horn, and finally returning to Norfolk, Virginia, having crossed the Equator six times. Apart from its descriptions of exotic climes, much of the interest in the book lies in a boys view of naval life and how the ship was run. The US Navy was small and followed very conservative principles, with an emphasis on discipline, routine and training that would have been familiar a century earlier. However, it was also subtly different: more humane in its treatment of the crew, less draconian in punishment, and a promoter of what would be considered Victorian moral values. The book offers a valuable and entertaining account of life in the last days of the sailing warship.Germany's High Sea Fleet in the World War
Par Reinhard Scheer. 2014
Anglo-German naval rivalry before 1914 had been expected to culminate in a cataclysmic fleet action in the North Sea once…
war was declared, a battle upon which the outcome of the war would depend: yet the two fleets met only once, at Jutland in 1916, and the battle was far from conclusive. In his own account of the war in the North Sea, first published in 1920, Admiral Scheer, the German commander at Jutland, gives his own explanation for the failure of either fleet to achieve the decisive victory expected of it, particularly the failure of his own operation plans that resulted in the battle of Jutland. This book is an invaluable account of one of the most important theatres of the First World War, written by one of its most senior commanders.In the Words of Napoleon: The Emperor Day by Day (The Napoleonic Library)
Par Philip Haythornethwaite. 2002
A powerful portrait of a complex individual. It uses Napoleons own words to show his genius, arrogance, insecurities, and frustrations.…
The reader will be amazed by Napoleons attention to detail, from those of pressing national interests to the mundane (such as the problem of heartbroken soldiers in his guard.) . . . This makes it an invaluable reference book that should be on the bookshelf of anyone interested in the period. Rob Burnham, Editor, Napoleon SeriesIn the words of Napoleon is a startling insight into the life and deeds of Napoleon I. Derived from Napoleons extensive correspondence and his other writings and recorded speech, this valuable compilation acts as a diary or journal, encompassing the whole of the emperors life. Napoleons words as recorded on a particular day are set down as entries, and these offer a unique glimpse into the major events of the Napoleonic period.The diary reveals Napoleons thoughts and actions as his great life unfolded and throws light on his attitudes to war, politics and the many varied personalities who surrounded or opposed him. As entries appear on an almost daily basis, the reader has the opportunity to trace the surging course of events as they happened, and to witness the emperors response to the rise and fall of his fortunes.Philip Haythornthwaite provides a fascinating introduction which analyses Napoleons words, and includes biographical sketches of the key personalities of the era.Roman Emperor Zeno: The Perils of Power Politics in Fifth-Century Constantinople
Par Peter Crawford. 2019
&“A very useful read for anyone interested in the Later Roman Empire, the fall of the Western Empire, and the emergence of…
the Byzantine State.&” —The NYMAS Review Peter Crawford examines the life and career of the fifth-century Roman emperor Zeno and the various problems he faced before and during his seventeen-year rule. Despite its length, his reign has hitherto been somewhat overlooked as being just a part of that gap between the Theodosian and Justinianic dynasties of the Eastern Roman Empire which is comparatively poorly furnished with historical sources. Reputedly brought in as a counterbalance to the generals who had dominated Constantinopolitan politics at the end of the Theodosian dynasty, the Isaurian Zeno quickly had to prove himself adept at dealing with the harsh realities of imperial power. Zeno&’s life and reign is littered with conflict and politicking with various groups—the enmity of both sides of his family; dealing with the fallout of the collapse of the Empire of Attila in Europe, especially the increasingly independent tribal groups established on the frontiers of, and even within, imperial territory; the end of the Western Empire; and the continuing religious strife within the Roman world. As a result, his reign was an eventful and significant one that deserves this long-overdue spotlight. &“Crawford&’s work on the life and reign of Zeno is a good introduction for a general audience to the complexities of the late fifth-century Roman Empire, telling a series of long and complex stories compellingly in a traditional fashion.&” —Bryn Mawr Classical ReviewDreadnought to Daring is an absorbing and highly readable summary of a century of naval thinking which has been written…
by some of the leading lights in contemporary naval history.Founded in 1912 by some of the Royal Navys brightest officers, the quarterly Naval Review has never been subject to official censorship, and its naval members do not need official permission to write for it, so it has always provided an independent, lively and at times outspoken forum for service debate. In broad terms it has covered contemporary operations, principles of naval warfare, history, and anecdotes which record the lighter side of naval life, but sometimes with a bite to them. A correspondence section provides an important barometer of service opinion, while extensive book reviews, written by those with real knowledge of the subject, carry considerable weight. For these reasons the Naval Review is widely regarded as a journal of record.In return for its freedom, circulation is restricted to members and membership to serving or retired officers. However, this volume will give the interested public an insight into its activities, past and present. Intended both to celebrate and to analyse the impact of the journal over its 100-year history, it comprises a series of specially commissioned articles, divided chronologically and thematically, devoted to subjects that have been of importance to the naval community as reflected in the pages of the journal. It concludes with an assessment of how well the Naval Review has succeeded in its founders aim and what influence it has had on policy.No Room for Mistakes: British and Allied Submarine Warfare, 1939–1940
Par Geirr H Haarr. 2015
A new book from this bestselling author covering the events at sea in the early years of World War II,…
in which he has compiled comprehensive research and insight into a highly readable and detailed account of British and Allied submarine warfare in north European waters at the beginning of the war. The early chapters describe prewar submarine development, including technical advances and limitations, weapons, tactical use and life onboard, and examine the men who crewed them and explore their understanding of the warfare that they would become involved in.The core of the book is an account of the events as they unfolded in 'home waters' from the outset of war to the end of 1940, by which time the majority of the Allied submarines were operating in the Mediterranean. It is a story of success, triumph, failure and tragedy, and it tells of the tremendous courage and endurance shown by a small group of men learning how to fight a new kind of war in claustrophobic, sub-sea vessels with limited information about the enemy, or what they would meet off the alien coasts to which they were heading. Extensive primary sources are used to document the many aspects of this war, some of which remain controversial to this day. Max Horton, Vice Admiral Submarines 1940, said: 'There is no room for mistakes in submarines. You are either alive or dead.' This book makes plain how right he was.Sailor in the Air: The Memoirs of the World's First Carrier Pilot
Par Richard Bell Davies. 2008
Richard Bell Davies was one of the most important characters in the history of naval aviation. Despite a traditional naval…
education - he was among the last cadets to be trained under sail - he was quick to grasp the potential of aircraft, and backed his vision by privately learning to fly. This allowed him to join the Naval Air Wing in 1913 and he enjoyed a very active, but hair-raising career during the Great War, including winning the VC for a daring rescue of a fellow pilot while under heavy fire. Because of his unique breadth of experience he was transferred to experimental work, where he played a major part in crucial developments like arrestor gear, deck barriers and the 'island' superstructure that define the modern aircraft carrier. As the first man to regularly land and take off from such ships, he did much to prove the value of shipboard aviation. After the war, in an Admiralty post, he continued to promote the flying interests of the Navy, and the book provides a first-hand chronicle of the struggles with the Air Ministry over policy and control. Although he retired in 1941, he accepted a lower rank to command one of the newly invented escort carriers, so his service ended as it had begun, at the cutting edge of naval aviation. This wonderfully active, and hugely significant career is related with a charm, modesty and humour which make the book enthralling and memorable.A concise, authoritative, heavily illustrated summary of this class of German WWII-era warships, covering their design histories and careers. …
The Admiral Hipper class was among the largest heavy cruisers to serve in World War II. Intended to be a class of five, they enjoyed contrasting fortunes: Seydlitz and Lützow were never completed; Blücher was the first major German warship sunk in action; Admiral Hipper became one of the most successful commerce raiders of the war; while the Prinz Eugen survived to be expended as a target in one of the first American nuclear tests in 1946. Part of a six-volume series on the German Navy&’s WWII-era warships written by Gerhard Koop and illustrated by Klaus-Peter Schmolke, this book contains an account of the development of the Admiral Hipper class, a detailed description of the ships with full technical details, and an outline of their service, heavily illustrated with plans, battle maps, and a substantial collection of photographs.Operation Iraqi Freedom: The Inside Story
Par Marc Kusnetz; William M. Arkin; General Montgomery Meigs, retired; and Neal Shapiro. 2003
Go inside the historic Iraq War coverage of NBC News with this in-depth, illustrated history—with a foreword by Tom Brokaw.…
Operation Iraqi Freedom marked a new era in television war coverage. On-the-spot reporting by journalists, photographers, and cameramen captured combat in ways that are nothing less than historic. Viewers were transported to the front lines and embedded among the troops. Among all network and cable news organizations covering the Iraqi war, NBC news was the acknowledged leader. This book, written and produced by NBC News, presents a chronological narrative of reporting from the field supplemented by interviews and anchored broadcasts from Qatar, Kuwait, and the United States. Thousands of hours of images and words have been molded into a concise, eloquent summary of the historic events of the conflict. The book also includes an introduction by an NBC military expert, and a special dedication to fallen colleague David Bloom.A guide to understanding and leading today's US military force.Significant shifts in military culture have created a complex set of…
challenges, impacting morale and motivation, recruitment and retention, and program participation. Military Culture Shift presents the story of US military service members, their families, and the institution itself, through the lens of multiple generations, and the major factors impacting modern-day recruitment, retention, leadership, and wellness. A licensed counselor and leadership consultant, author Corie Weathers draws from her own military spouse experience, her professional work with military families and leaders, and more than 15 years of research, to offer narrative history, insights, and perspectives on: Generational viewpoints, from World War I veterans to today&’s recruits (Gen Z) Short- and long-term impact of Department of Defense budget decisions Emerging social trends within the military community, especially post-9/11 Cumulative effect of two decades of war on military family wellness Of special interest to military leaders, service members, military family members, as well as historians, politicians, educators, and counselors, Military Culture Shift helps readers understand and embrace: How past decisions have led to the current state Generational differences in motivation, trust in authority, and learning styles Why families aren't turning up for in-person and social events Communication shifts that impact cohesiveness Leadership strategies to influence positive changes going forwardThe Fatal Alliance: A Century of War on Film
Par David Thomson. 2023
“A marvelous bombshell of a book, by one of our most formidably knowledgeable and insightful writers on film, it is…
filled with surprises and witty asides. Though Thomson is quick to pounce on the hypocrisies and historical omissions of some of these war movies, there is nothing compromised about his own daredevil judgments. We are in the hands of a master critic/essayist.”—Phillip LopateFrom one of the greatest living writers on film, a magisterial look at a century of battle depicted on screen, and a meditation on the twisted relationship between war and the movies.In The Fatal Alliance the acclaimed film critic David Thomson offers us one of his most provocative books yet—a rich, arresting, and troubling study of that most beloved genre: the war movie. It is not a standard history or survey of war films, although Thomson turns his typically piercing eye to many favorites—from All Quiet on the Western Front to The Bridge on the River Kwai to Saving Private Ryan. But The Fatal Alliance does much more, exploring how war and cinema in the twentieth century became inextricably linked. Movies had only begun to exist by the beginning of World War I, yet in less than a century, had transformed civilian experience of war—and history itself—for millions around the globe. This reality is the moral conundrum at the heart of Thomson’s book. War movies bring both prestige and are so often box office blockbusters; but is there something problematic at how much moviegoers enjoy depictions of violence on a grand scale, such as Apocalypse Now, Black Hawk Down, or even Star Wars? And what does this truth say about us, our culture, and our changing sense of warfare and the past?