Customer Reviews

Norway 1940

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This book chronicles the ground fighting in central Norway by British forces from mid-April to early May 1940. It does this through the author's own recollections, as well as from diary entries and personal accounts from dozens of British eyewitnesses. It has a wealth of useful maps, and some decent photo images.

I recommend this book only if you already have solid knowledge of the Norway campaign, and are willing to slog through text of widely varying quality. At times the narrative jumps around, and it can be difficult to separate Mr. Kynoch's eyewitness observations from the general narrative and accounts from different observers. There are numerous small errors. For example, the caption of a photo on p. x refers to "Cruiser HMS Sheffield" when the vessel is a cruiser of the smaller Arethusa class. The image p. 151 really is the Sheffield. On p. 148, an eyewitness account from a sailor aboard the cruiser Birmingham suddenly becomes the author's own account, without a proper change in pattern to indicate the shift in perspective.

Don't let these flaws fool you though. This book is a gem of information, and is in places an exciting, compelling read. British infantry fought panzers with near-worthless Boys antitank rifles and log roadblocks - the 148 Brigade had no artillery and not a single true antitank gun. The men were out of supply, literally starving, as they fought the disastrous delaying action at Tretten. 148 Brigade was made up of under-trained and inexperienced troops, but they fought well considering their lack of equipment, lack of bullets, and want of simple food.

The book gives a good summary of what went wrong with Britain's tentative incursion in central Norway. Ships risked air attacks and U-boats to deliver 4-inch shells that were useless for the army's 3.7-inch AA guns. Soldiers learned not to fire their Bren guns at aircraft because the tracer ammunition with which they had been erroneously supplied gave away their position. There was nowhere to dig in with the ground frozen and waist-deep snow all around. The British had nobody who spoke Norwegian, and precious few Norwegians spoke English. The two armies co-existed rather than fighting together.

Mr. Kynoch has done a service to history by recording his and others' accounts of a campaign that has been little chronicled and mostly forgotten. Anyone who doubts the importance of logistics and planning in war should be required to read this sad, humorous, and memorable account.