Customer Reviews

The B-29 Superfortress Chronology, 1934-1960

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I'm a reference librarian who purchased this for my adult non-fiction collections (specifically for my WWII vets who want more airplane books). While I can't afford the latest Jane's, I saw this and thought it would be a nice compromise. However! The book arrived today and I'm a bit dissappointed -- this is strictly a chronology. No pictures. No illustrations. Only about 3 pages of specs. Just dates. It's not showing changes in the aircraft from one year to the next, it's just giving dates. Useful for the hardcore airplane enthusiasts and military buffs, not for the general layman.

"The B-29 Superfortress Chronology 1934-1960" is exactly what its title suggests. This volume is a chronological summary of the design, development, operational and combat use of the B-29 bomber. It is not a narrative history of men and machines like, for example "Mission to Berlin" Mission to Berlin: The American Airmen Who Struck the Heart of Hitler's Reich. Rather, it is a collection of data, the very kind of data that military and aviation researchers find difficult to track down. I discovered it to be comprehensive, well organized, easy to use, and valuable to have. It is obvious that the author devoted many years of effort into assembling so much material between two covers.

I should have read the other reviews first as this book was not what I was looking for. This book is terrific if you want a Chronology of events pertaining to the B-29. Useless if you are looking for historical narrative.