#HAWMC: I'm writing for April

I did the 'blog post a day' thing in November, but it burned me out a bit. But I loved doing it.

For April's challenge, I'm going to aim for 10 posts in 30 days. I think I can do that.

And here are the prompts.

Book Review: Tonight We Die as Men

Tonight We Die As Men: The untold story of Third Battalion 506 Parachute Infantry Regiment from Toccoa to D-Day by Ian Gardner
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I wanted to love this book, and parts of it I did. It certainly covers a lot of detail, with loads of personal anecdotes from veterans and from the civilians who encountered them. What it's missing is the big picture. Towards the end there's a line that says something like "The battle at Bloody Gully was the most important engagement for the 101st during the D-Day invasion" but it didn't explain why. I felt that way for most of the book. I knew what individual men were doing, but I couldn't quite put it into view as to what it all meant in terms of the war. It is fair to add that if I'd been able to see the maps (not legible on my kindle screen), I might have had better luck.

As a historical record, this is a valuable book. As a narrative, not so much. I don't regret reading it, but I doubt I'll ever read it again.

View all my reviews

Book Review: A Plunge Into Space

I got this book from Singularity: Save the Sci-fi. If you're a fan of classic science fiction, a membership in Singularity is a worthwhile investment!


A Plunge Into Space by Robert Cromie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is not meant to be a comedy, but it's absolutely hilarious in its use of outdated tropes (no doubt cutting edge at the time it was written) and Victorian age prejudices regarding class, race, and sex. If you aren't a fan of classic sci-fi, I doubt you'll enjoy it. I am, and I did, but more as a curious historical artefact than as a story in its own right.

View all my reviews