Insignia of World War II [Hardcover]

Leslie McDonnell (Author), Peter Darman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1999

Contains over 1,000 of the most important badges worn on uniforms between 1939 & 1945. These include insignia of all the major protagonists: Germany, Japan, U.S., Italy, Great Britain, France, Russia, & Brit. Empire. Each badge is illustrated in full-color, with detailed & fascinating text, plus the war record of the unit. All of the different categories of insignia are included: cap badges, shoulder sleeve insignia, rank insignia, collar patches, cuff bands, & breast insignia. Also, full-color artworks of all the major medals, such as the Medal of Honor, Purple Heart, Knight's Cross, Victoria Cross, & Iron Cross; & superb full-color rank insignia spreads. Breathtaking!!

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Documents the sleeve patches, shoulder emblems, cap badges, and medals from over thirty different armed forces, both allied and axis powers, used to identify the various services, rank, battalion, and division. Includes medals for valor, for service in a specific theater, for participating in combat, and for wounds received. All of the emblems are identified by country and by service.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Book Sales (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785811354
• ISBN-13: 978-0785811350
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,252,969 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Insignia of World War II, April 21, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Insignia of World War II (Hardcover)

I waited over a month for this book to arrive and when it arrived I found that it was well worth the wait. The book is not, nor does it claim to be, the definitive reference on military insignia during the WWII period. It is a solid secondary reference source though, and contains a great amount of information conveyed through excellent illustrations and interesting text. The major and minor participants are covered in a clear format that makes searching out specific information quite easy, although a "beefier" index would have helped. All in all this volume is an excellent addition to my "library" and would easily find a home in collectors and history buff's collections. Besides, where else could you find the rank insignia for a Captain of Engineers in the Finnish Navy?

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good but not enough, April 26, 2000

By 

Sean Newman (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Insignia of World War II (Hardcover)

This book is a damned good book for the average person interested in WW2. It tells all about the major medals, ranks, patches, etc of the big countries like England, US, and Germany. It also has really brief showings of other axis/ally countries. However, it is nowhere near in depth enough. I bought it expecting to find all of the pilot's brevet wings and explanations. Items like Japan's pilot wings aren't even in it at all, nor are Russia's. Even for RAF, USAAF, and Luftwaffe, it just shows them, and doesn't tell you any more. You only get descriptions about the medals. If anyone out there has a better book to recommend on this exact topic, please email me: [e-mail] I'd be happy to answer any other questions about this book, too.