AS THEY WERE

AS THEY WERE
by Lt.Col. A. Peter Dewey.


On the outbreak of the second world war, Peter Dewey was living in France with his parents. When US citizens were advised to leave, they returned home, but Peter was desperate to return. With a little help he landed a job as a journalist in the Paris office of the Chicago Daily News.
This book is taken from his own personal journal written at that time.

We find Peter & his fellow Parisians almost carrying on as normal through what we now call the 'Phoney War'. Social engagements, nights at the theatre & meals in nice restaurants continued, but change was soon to come.
With little to sell, shops started to close regularly. The winter of 1939/40 felt even colder as supplies of coal were hard to find. Streets would empty as the 'alertes' became more frequent. 
Were those aircraft flying above the city, friend or foe?

As a boy, Peter had lived for several years in Poland. The country & its people clearly meant a great deal to him. As the German Blitzkrieg moved closer, he volunteered to be an ambulance driver in the Polish Army corps. This would mean saying goodbye to his beloved Paris & eventually,  France.
On his journey South he would see the real horrors of war. The refugees filling the roads were an easy target for the Luftwaffe. His ambulance would take both injured citizens & soldiers to hospitals, often travelling vast distances to find one still in French hands.
Yet this not really a book of war & of battle, but one very much about people.
Peter's journal stops after escaping France, just hours before the Germans closed the border. Readers then learn that he went on to have an incredible military career during the rest of the war, earning numerous awards & medals.
Did Peter continue to write his observations down?
Will another book tell the next part of Peter's war?
I do hope so.

The paperback version is published by Bauhan & is available from Casemate Publishing in the UK & US.
I thank Casemate UK for this review copy. 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

MITCHELL

Image
MITCHELL: Father of the Spitfire  By Paul Beaver. The majority of readers will have heard the name R.J. Mitchell and certainly his most famous aircraft design, the beloved Spitfire. Yet many, myself included, might not have known that his career began in railway engineering. This and so much more is revealed by author , Paul Beaver, who shares the full story of this remarkable man who became Supermarine's chief designer at the age of just 24. Alongside Reginald's career, we also learn how the Supermarine company was founded and then grew during the decades between the two world wars.  Mitchell's answering of Supermarine's job advertisement  would prove to be the beginning of a remarkable legacy. Importantly, o ne the author also states came about with the brains and skills of a talented group of people who have been too often overlooked. This legacy is of course far more than just the Spitfire. Many other types of aircraft especially flying boats were also d...
Read more

ROYAL NAVY FORCE H: 1940-42

Image
ROYAL NAVY FORCE H 1940-42 This is book 14 in Osprey's 'Fleet' series and is written by naval historian, Angus Konstam. If you have read any second world war books on the Mediterranean war and/or Malta, then it is highly likely that Force H and its well respected commander, V.Adm. Sir James Somerville, is mentioned. Based at Gibraltar, Force H patrolled both the Atlantic and the Western Mediterranean often escorting vital convoys to Malta. It was Somerville who led the fleet in the attack on the French fleet at Mers-el-Kébir and they would also be later involved in the hunt for the Bismarck.  As well as describing the fleet's ships, its commander and their wartime endeavors, the role and defences of Gibraltar is also covered. This is an added bonus as most books generally only give Gibraltar a passing mention. With a fascinating narrative, aided with many useful maps, charts and original artwork, it is a book I have certainly enjoyed and would definitely rec...
Read more

THE DUMMY DRONE

Image
THE DUMMY DRONE BY Rob More. Away from the Battle of Britain in the skies over the English Channel and Southern counties, or the devastating blitz bombing of London and other major cities, surely  the far North of Scotland would hardly be effected by the second world war?  Well the opposite was true. In this fabulous new book, local author and resident, Rob More reveals how the county of Caithness was a scene of great change from the coastline and beaches to the farmland, hills and villages. Not forgetting all those who lived and worked there.  With the area hosting a range of wartime installations and airfields it received many visits from the Luftwaffe. As we learn in the book, civilians and their properties would also be caught up in these raids. From the radar stations searching for enemy aircraft, to those recruited for the local Home Guard and the lesser known Auxiliary Units. Communities the length of Britain prepared for an expected German invasion. Ro...
Read more