The Battle of Britain: A Captivating Guide to One of the Most Critical Battles of World War II (European Military History)

If you have any interest in the Second World War, particularly the battles fought in Europe, this work will please you. Written in Captivating History's typical detailed, meticulous, and accessible format, readers from all walks of history life will be able to discover this battle should they so choose. In all, this release is excellent and deserving of your attention.

The battle of Britain vividly showed that Hitler's war machine could be defeated. This book brings new evidence of this crucial historical moment.

Definitely a good read for anyone intrigued by the Critical Battles of WWll. However, it was not as interesting as I had hoped it to be as I found it to be lacking in descriptive language in some areas. Despite this, it is still easy to relate and enjoy the information set forth.I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

In late 1939 and 1940 Germany invaded Poland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, and France. After that, it was logical for Hitler to look at attacking Britain, another country he saw as a major enemy of the Reich.The Dunkirk evacuation occurred from May 26 to June 4, 1940. Historians tell us the Battle of Britain began on July 10th, 1940 and ended on September 15th, 1940. This book covers the period from the fall of France through September 15th, 1940—now known as Battle of Britain Day. It includes the many inaccurate assumptions made by both sides, the tactics and strategies initially implemented and subsequently amended. the heroic actions for individuals as well as the population at large and the politics and politicians that drove the events at the beginning of World War II. If you are looking for a high-level summary of one of the critical battles of the War in Europe, Yu will find a good accounting here.

I found this book to be quite a captivating read. I was familiar with the battle in broader terms after watching numerous documentaries, but I was unaware of many of the details that were covered in this book. Not being British, I wasn’t familiar with the perception of the Churchill family in the years leading up to the war and how this may have affected their trust, or lack thereof, of Winston. Another interesting detail was how the Germans circumvented the Treaty of Versailles to prepare young pilots for battle by sending small groups to the USSR and by cultivating an interest in gliders, which were not prohibited in the treaty. These are just a few examples of the interesting facts one wouldn’t hear in a documentary about the battle. They added a lot to the overarching story and established a foundation for the battle itself.The information about Air Marshall Dowding was interesting. The author mentions how much more credit he deserves for standing up to Churchill during the fall of France at Dunkirk. I would have liked a little more background about him, as he played such a pivotal role in the battle. Still, his critical decisions are made clear in the book.I appreciated the details about the principle planes used in the battle, particularly my most beloved plane of all time, the ME 109 (not the best plane, but it looks cool). This book in many ways brought me back to my youth, when I built model planes of the most famous aircraft of the war. In his book, the leading Japanese ace, Saburo Sakai, mentioned the key weakness of the 109 – its lack of range. This book goes into detail about these strengths and weaknesses without being overly academic. Other key aircraft are given realistic reviews, including the often-overlooked Hurricane, which plays second fiddle to the Spitfire, beautiful feline that she is.In conclusion, this book is a quick read filled with fun facts about the key players, equipment, and general fighting spirit of the people, which boosted the morale of the pilots and crews. As an American, I appreciated the author’s explanation in the Conclusion of the public's general aversion to entering the war stemming from the horrors of WWI, and the influence of the battle’s success on building support for the British war effort on this side of the pond. It’s very well written and avoids viewing a complex situation through a simplistic lens.This would be a great gift for historians, lovers of aviation, and anyone who appreciates a story that adds fascinating details to a topic that many may feel they already know.Well done!-JP Lane, author of The Driftwood Tour.

This is an all-encompassing look at the Battle of Britain. In fact: with so much detail that coverage of the actual 'Battle' does not begin until over 60% through the book.There is heaps of information here to learn about the event from every possible angle - so much so that the telling can wander off the story-line to include yet more personal, or infrastructure details.LOTS of interesting details here to learn more about this significant event.

As one who is familiar with this conflict I was intrigued as not how it would be dealt with. Overall I found this an interesting account that covered the major aspects of the battle as well as illustrating just how close it was. The author revealed the various conflicts that went on in both the British and German sides about how the battle should be fought. It also explained some of the characters involved and the major influence they had.Overall, this was a good summary, easy to read and full of interesting details