THE WORLD WAR TWO GROUP discussion

Members can talk about any good book or subject covering conflicts and campaigns that occurred after 1945 that are linked to WW2. From 1945 up until 1956.

Thanks for opening this thread. As observant students of history may note, the conflicts of WW 2 didn't necessarily end for those who lived in Eastern Europe. This was especially true for the ethnic Germans in Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary. The installment of communism began with a war of terror on these civilians and any others who may have said or done anything contrary to the new regime.

Rose wrote: "Thanks for opening this thread. As observant students of history may note, the conflicts of WW 2 didn't necessarily end for those who lived in Eastern Europe. This was especially true for the ethni..."

I recently finished reading "Bloodlands" which was a very good account of the German and Russian depredations conducted against the populations living between these two countries prior, during and just after WW2.

Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin by Timothy Snyder

Of the many unread books in my library these two recent additions fit into this category of Post 45 conflicts:

The Battle for Manchuria and the Fate of China: Siping, 1946 by Harold M. Tanner
(read)

Where Chiang Kai-Shek Lost China: The Liao-Shen Campaign, 1948 by Harold M. Tanner
(unread)

I would add many many books to this category but for Vietnam I would suggest the books by David Marr and Stein Tonnesson.

The Middle East is also filled with a rich literature leading up the the the First Arab-Israeli War, War of Independence, Nakba ..take your pick

Events in Korea are covered by many books but a great start to start and then critique are the two volumes by Bruce Cummings
Origins of the Korean War..

Check out The Indonesian Army from Revolusi to Reformasi. (Volume I) The conflict that became the Indonesian Army's struggle for independence began with British forces (in league with returning Dutch Officers) entering the archipelago to recover allied POW's in the territory at the end of World War II. The British ended up losing two Brigadier Generals fighting the Indonesians on behalf of the Dutch.

Here belongs a good account of the other Vietnam War, the one against the French (to be read someday when it sits dustily enough) :
Embers Of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America's Vietnam by Fredrik Logevall

Yes, Fred did a great job with this book..
If people read French There is tons and tons of material on Indochina and Algeria..tons on Algeria

Other good books, aside from "Bloodlands"
are
Stalin's Curse: Battling for Communism in War and Cold War
Savage Continent: Europe in the Aftermath of World War II

One oft forgotten event took place immediately after the German surrender on the Dutch island of Texel, where 800 Georgian members of the 882nd Infantry Battalion rose up and gained control of nearly the entire island, killing about 400 German soldiers in their barracks resulting in a battle that lasted untill the 20th of May, when the Canadians intervened:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia...

This was the only book that I was able to find on it (in Dutch):
Sondermeldung Texel. Opstand der Georgiers

Jim wrote: "Yes, Fred did a great job with this book..
If people read French There is tons and tons of material on Indochina and Algeria..tons on Algeria"

Save the tons, what are the best ones on Indochine & Algerie ?

Jim wrote: "Yes, Fred did a great job with this book..
If people read French There is tons and tons of material on Indochina and Algeria..tons on Algeria"

Agree, Savage Continent is excellent - I found it eye-opening. Shocking in fact.

One book I found to be superb on a battle within the Korean war is this:

To the Last Round: The Epic British Stand on the Imjin River, Korea 1951 by Andrew Salmon

Also consider the Greek Civil War that exploded between the two factions of ELAM and EDES, among others. After fighting Germans, they turned on each other.

A good recommendation Colin. Also worth a read (I still have to get a book on this) is the Indo-Pakistan (Kashmir) war of 1947-48 which stems from Britain's colonial withdrawal post-WWII.

Geevee wrote: "One book I found to be superb on a battle within the Korean war is this:

To the Last Round: The E..."</i>


The follow up is also an excellent read.

[book:Scorched Earth, Black Snow: Britain and Australia in the Korean War, 1950

Some interesting conflicts and some great books being mentioned in the this thread already!

Dimitri wrote: "Jim wrote: "Yes, Fred did a great job with this book..
If people read French There is tons and tons of material on Indochina and Algeria..tons on Algeria"

Save the tons, what are the best ones on ..."

My favourite is The Last Valley: Dien Bien Phu And The French Defeat In Vietnam; I've always fancied Street Without Joy: The French Debacle in Indochina but it's one I've not ever quite bought...

Two great books there Jonny!

"The Last Valley" has been one of the best books on Dien Bien Phu and both of Bernard Fall's Indo-China books are excellent as well.

Hell in a Very Small Place: The Siege of Dien Bien Phu by Bernard B. Fall

This is a fantastic thread! What comes to my mind immediately is the Chinese Civil War. Here are the ones that are still on the shelf:

China's Civil War

The Mandate of Heaven: Record of a Civil War; China 1945-49

Doh! The TBR grows ever larger...

I'd love to see something about the French counter-insurgency campaign in Madagascar after WW-2.

When I was part of the Infantry Company provided security for the Royal Australian Air Force base at Butterworth in Penang this book was almost required reading:

The War of the Running Dogs: How Malaya Defeated the Communist Guerrillas 1948-1960 by Noel Barber

for a short version on the french vietnam war Barbara Tuchman March of Folly is always good

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "When I was part of the Infantry Company provided security for the Royal Australian Air Force base at Butterworth in Penang this book was almost required reading:

[bookcover:The War of the Running ..."

I read that, AR...many years ago.

I read it in 1979 and then lent my copy to someone and of course I never saw it again. I am thinking of buying another copy since Its a classic account.

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "I read it in 1979 and then lent my copy to someone and of course I never saw it again. I am thinking of buying another copy since Its a classic account."

I read Barber's book on the fall of Singapore too.

'Aussie Rick' wrote: "When I was part of the Infantry Company provided security for the Royal Australian Air Force base at Butterworth in Penang this book was almost required reading:

[bookcover:The War of the Running ..."

Nearly next in the pile Rick... might need to bump it up...

I might add this to the thread.

The Tragedy of Liberation: A History of the Chinese Revolution 1945-1957

A nice addition 4triplezed!

DoctorM wrote: "I'd love to see something about the French counter-insurgency campaign in Madagascar after WW-2."

Yes that would be a good area to read about DoctorM. This has some coverage of that uprising. Group member Liam rated it as a 3 star read:
The Wars Of French Decolonization by Anthony Clayton

Thank you!

Geevee wrote: "DoctorM wrote: "I'd love to see something about the French counter-insurgency campaign in Madagascar after WW-2."

Yes that would be a good area to read about DoctorM. This has some coverage of tha..."

My pleasure. Doesn't seem to be much else available though.

Geevee wrote: "DoctorM wrote: "I'd love to see something about the French counter-insurgency campaign in Madagascar after WW-2."

Yes that would be a good area to read about DoctorM. This has some coverage of tha..."

Looks like an interesting book Geevee. Thanks for posting the details.

I recently published a 2nd Edition of a historical fiction set at the beginning of the Korean Conflict:
Hell To Pay: A Korean Conflict Novel: a Navy Pilot's Life-changing Adventure
The link to WW2 is the intent of the (then) Soviet Union to parlay their role as a Pacific ally in the surrender of Japan. The accords assigned the USSR the role of administering the surrender of Japanese north of the 38th parallel. Their plan was to acquire all of Korea via a puppet government they installed in the North. They were foiled when the puppet government flexed its independency muscles and invaded South Korea. It seems the USSR didn't agree with this action, at least at that time and backed away as the United Nations responded with surprising force.

Jonny wrote: "Dimitri wrote: "
If people read French There is tons and tons of material on Indochina and Algeria..tons on Algeria... My favourite is "."

Thx Johnny, I've addedHell in a Very Small Place: The Siege of Dien Bien Phu. Dien Bien Phu is a story with appeal: from the self-sacrifice of the legionaires voluntarily parachuting in to join the others, to the tactical smirk "didn't think we'd get guns up on them hills, did ya ?"

Dimitri wrote: "Jonny wrote: "Dimitri wrote: "
If people read French There is tons and tons of material on Indochina and Algeria..tons on Algeria... My favourite is "."

Thx Johnny, I've added[book:Hell in a Very ..."

All the while standing with their hands behind their backs, whistling innocently and telling the French Air Force "Guns? Little old us?"

I'm making a start on The War of the Running Dogs: How Malaya Defeated the Communist Guerrillas 1948-1960. Interesting to see how exactly to run a counter insurgency campaign successfully.

A classic book Jonny, I read my copy in 1979 but from what I can remember it was an interesting account.

I love sensible post war political considerations;
"And so, ironically, a savage war was joined in which British and Chinese, who for years had shared the hardships of the jungle while fighting as comrades, now became bitter enemies dedicated to each other's deaths. The irony cut even deeper. On one hand, the Communists, instead of waiting, would be fighting for 'independence' which was already in the offing; on the other hand, British planters, miners, policemen, would stay an fight in Malaya, knowing that with independence there would inevitably be Malayanization, resulting in lost jobs for Britons who had spent half their lifetime in the country they had come to love as much as their own."

Some potential bother from an unexpected source in the early days of the Emergency: " The island of Penang was suddenly flooded with what appeared to be violently anti-British leaflets. Presumably the Communists had distributed them - but not until one had been translated did the police discover what had happened. The date was July 4, and a young woman in the U.S. Information Service had thought it a good idea to commemorate this important day in American history by translating into Chinese the American Declaration of Independence."

Two great posts Jonny, I may have to go back and read the book again although I will have to buy a new copy since mine disappeared many years ago.

I just started



I'm very interested in this one, because my father was tangently involved with this. He was assigned to the Division TOC and was one of the Fire Support Coordinators. During his shift, he was in charge of all indirect fires and close air support in the division's AO. He was on the radio with these guys as the battle progressed

I'll be keen to hear your thoughts Happy.

happy wrote: "I just started



I'm very interested in this one, because my father was tangently invo..."


Hello all-

This looks like a good one, happy, thanx for the heads-up; I already had the author's previous book on my "to-read" list, but didn't know about this one until your post...

I found a book the other day, of which I had also been unaware even though it was published a few years back (apparently it was only published in Australia), that looks as if it might be quite interesting: Tiger Territory: The Untold Story of the Royal Australian Navy in Southeast Asia from 1948 to 1971...

Nice find Liam, I've seen that book around locally, glad a copy managed to find its way over to your side of the globe :)

High Commissioner General Templer discovers the difficulty of working with translators:
"A stoic Chinese translated his words - until he came to Templer's next remark. From then, the confrontation descended to pure farce.
'You're a lot of b@$t@rd$' shouted Templer; and Rice, who spoke Chinese, listened carefully as the translator announced without emotion: 'His Excellency informs you that he knows that none of your mothers and fathers were married when you were born.'
Templer waited, then, pointing a finger at the astonished villagers to show who was the Tuan, he added 'You may be b@$t@rd$, but you'll find out I can be a bigger one.' Missing the point of the threat completely, the translator said politely 'His Excellency does admit, however, that his father was also not married to his mother.'
But it was typical of Templer that he immediately sent the Home Guards twenty new shotguns. "

Jonny wrote: "High Commissioner General Templer discovers the difficulty of working with translators: 'His Excellency informs you that he knows that none of your mothers and fathers were married when you were born.'

Please let there be an insult in English that translates to "Your mother was a hamster & your father smelt of elderberries"

That's a great story Jonny, very funny indeed! :)

Hahaha, I had completely forgotten about that story, thanx for the reminder, Jonny! Perhaps I ought to read "War Of The Running Dogs' again- it's been a while, though not as long a while as it's been for Aussie Rick! Luckily, I just happen to know where I can get a nice first edition hardcover dirt cheap (due to the missing dust-jacket, unfortunately, but I suppose one can't have everything). Now I have a good reason to buy it!