Customer Reviews

Cradle Crew: Royal Canadian Air Force, World War II

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As a historian, I am aware of few books that tell the story of the air war over Europe from the Canadian perspective. 'Cradle Crew' is such a book, and it's a good one that I highly recommend. Written by Ken Blyth, a Canadian who became the pilot of one of the youngest air crews to fly over Europe in the war (thus the name 'Cradle Crew'), this story tells of the entire air crew experience, from enlistment through combat. But it goes much farther, for Blyth and his crew were shot down over Europe and ended up spending time in a German Stalag as POW's. Therefore, the book not only gives the reader an excellent, well-written perspective on the Canadian aircrew experience in the war, but is also a memoir of a POW. Blyth is a strong writer, and his story is engaging and never dull. This is an excellent book, and an important addition to the literature on the air war over Europe. It is invaluable as one of few Canadian books on the subject. Filled with interesting and rare photos of crew life, aircraft, and German Stalags, this is a must-have for any aviation history lover, and should be in every Canadian's bookshelf as a record of how the men from up north helped defeat Hitler and save the world not so many years ago.

I really enjoyed reading Blyth's account of his escapades during WWII. It is one of those "slice of life" books where you can really get a good understanding of his (and his crew's) time in the RCAF and the war. For any students who are studying the treatment of POWs in the different wars, this book would give them valuable insight into the German's treatment of POWs in WWII. Enjoyable!

This book was great because it gave wonderful insight to what it was like during WWII. There is such detail about everything the author experienced from flying night raids, his capture and the surroundings at the POW camp. I really enjoyed all the different stories about his crew and other POWs. The author is a great storyteller!!