What Pacific based book are you reading at the moment?

[Andy in West Oz]

Just thought this'd be a good post to keep going.

Funnily enough, I'm reading a Bomber Command Pathfinder book at the moment but hope to start Black Cats in the near future.

Over to you guys...

[Daniel Leahy]

Good idea for a thread...

I have quite a few on my "to read" list. Currently however, I am reading John Wurkovits' One Square Mile Of Hell - The Battle For Tarawa.

[Mr.Chris]

I am reading "Woodbine Red leader".

[corsairfreak]

I just finished reading "The First Team: U.S. Naval Air Combat from Pearl Harbor to Midway".

Now I'm reading "Japanese Aircraft: Codenames and Designations".

After that, it'll be "Shattered Sword: The untold story of the Battle of Midway".

Cheers! :)

Dan

[whitesharkseeker]

Reading "Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors" by Hornfischer. Excellent read. Also reading "Destroyer Captain" and "Cutthroats" (The adventures of a Sherman tank driver) by Robert Dick.

-Eric

[Andy in West Oz]

Hi guys

Been a while. Am about to start reading Kristen Alexander's Clive Caldwell Air Ace.

[richard rudd]

Just re-read "Nanette" by Edwards Park. A classic tale of a P39 pilot, his aerolplane, and his New Guinea adventures and the air battles for Port Moresby. Not a lot out there covering that specific period. His expanded version is "Angels Twenty" Top reads!!!

[Andy in West Oz]

G'day Richard

I recently bought Angels Twenty after discovering it online (on a dead website) a few years ago. No idea when I'll get to it as the reading pile is rather large but I won't hold off for long as I keep hearing good things about it.

[Andy in West Oz]

Just re-read "Nanette" by Edwards Park. A classic tale of a P39 pilot, his aerolplane, and his New Guinea adventures and the air battles for Port Moresby. Not a lot out there covering that specific period. His expanded version is "Angels Twenty" Top reads!!!

Richard, have you come across Jim Morehead's In My Sights?

[richard rudd]

Negative on that one Andy. Can't recall ever hearing of it. Got a publisher? IBSN No? I'll chase one up.

My many times read "Nanette" Hard cover,First published by Andre Deutch Ltd, London, 1977. IBSN 0 233 96977 2
For others interest.. Angels Twenty, University of Queensland Press, 1994. IBSN 0 70222555 X

As a long term flyer, Ive been moved by Parks writing to make up an "art installation" re "Nanette" with old aircraft sheet metal, old phographs and pictures in the inspection holes, page of text and William Phillip's pencil sketch of "74".
This was the preliminary to his painting of the bunch of Airacobras over the jungle clad mountains of PNG, escorting C47s to Wau.

[Andy in West Oz]

Here's the Amazon link with all the details, RR.

http://www.amazon.com/My-Sights-Memoir- ... 089141634X

Would love to see a pic of your 'installation'. accemagATbigpond.com

[Andy in West Oz]

Been on holiday and moved interstate but have recently knocked over Drury's wordy Halsey's Typhoon and Hornfischer's brilliant The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors.

[Andy in West Oz]

Just started Crosley's They Gave Me A Seafire - his wartime career sees him end up in the Pacific with the RN's 'forgotten fleet'.

[richard rudd]

Just finished "The Diamond Dakota Mystery" about the Dutch DC3 shot down north of Broome by Zeros on the way back to Timor, after giving Broome its devastating raid.
Crash landing at Carnot bay, half way up the Cape Levesque Peninsula, crew and refugees suffered great privations and death for some, in the dry hostile terrain. Insult to injury as well with an attack by a passing "Mavis".
The Bank satchel handed to the captain before departure from Java was of diamond "parcels", at todays value some $20million. Lost in the wrecked aircraft, found by a beachcomber... where did the diamonds end up...???

Ripping yarn... and true!

[Boba]

I'm two thirds the way through Jiro Horikoshi's Eagles of Mitsubishi The Story of the Zero Fighter. Orbis. 1981.

I would not ordinarily consider any book on the design and production of an aircraft as anything other than a reference work, however this one is a great read, made all the more interesting in its style and way of putting across the personal side of the story.

If you want a book that is an interesting read whilst also providing information re a research project then this is one.

Cheers,

Bob Alford
Lampang Thailand

P.S. For the officianados of the Zeke colours, Horikoshi describes the colour as 'ash green' - so much for the pale grey 'factory finish' so often espoused.