Customer Reviews

One Last Look: Sentimental Journey to the Eighth Air Force Heavy Bomber Bases of World War II in England

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The 50th anniversary of World War II led to the publication of
a huge flotilla of coffee table books, some of them wonderful, some not.
This one, which includes hundreds of historic and contemporary photos
of the British bases of the Eighth Army Air Force, is the best of
the lot. The team that produced the book has worked on other books,
including the enjoyable "Little Friends," about the fighter pilots
of the European campaign, but in this volume it all comes together:
their eye for detail, their graphic sense, and their ability to
capture the look and feel of the 1940s, a time suddenly becoming very
distant as the war's last survivors begin dying. This made a much
appreciated gift for my uncle, who flew with the "Mighty Eighth."
But I couldn't let it go -- I had to buy another copy to keep.

As the son of a surviving B-17 pilot, I have spent considerable time poring over books specific to the subject. This book, along with Half a Wing, Three Engines and a Prayer are true treasures. History books alone cannot convey information to our successors like a story retold by someone who had the events firmly planted in their memory by the first-hand impact of the situation.

This book is an excellent postscript to reading thousands of pages about the air war in Europe. I've always been fascinated by what the air crews did, and how they lived their lives. Part of what makes it so interesting is the vast span of time that exists between now and then. This book, through photographs, documents that span of time... and through these photographs, you can see how something so large as a world war can fade into the past, which in a special kind of way makes the people involved that much more interesting: larger than time... bigger than anything you can see now. The text in this book is limited (by their design), yet concise and informative. Yet, if a picture is worth a thousand words, this book is probably a million words long. I haven't seen pictures as vivid as those in this book anywhere else. Many are in full color, some are vintage WWII color photos spanning two pages. The appendix is filled some pretty amazing statistics, right down to the number of .50 caliber rounds fired by 8th AF bombers.

The foreword by Andy Rooney is pretty revealing as well. You won't watch him on 60 minutes the same way again.

The book was an unbeleiveable look into a life that my grandfather went through, but sadly did not come back from. My favorite part of the book were the quotes from the likes of Steinbeck and Shakespeare. This book is a must for Eighth enthusiasts.

This was so well done!!! The written account was complimented so well by the great pictures that I felt like I could get an better idea of being there. This really needed to be recorded before it was a forgotten era in history. Thank you for doing that.

This is not a formal history, but an attempt to convey the atmosphere and experience of the time. Well written and artfully laid out.

Book to heavy,,to large,,,Very unhappy !!!!!!! will not order again..also the book will not fit in or on my book selves..

A great volume giving a wealth of information of the 'behind the scenes' activities on the many American air bases built in the East Anglia area of England to support what was to become The Mighty Eighth in its somewhat optimistic attempt to bomb Germany into submission.
I have several dozen other books dealing with the air battles and dangers faced by the aircrews, but this one shows daily life and living and working conditions on the bases for the ground crews and maintenance men and women.
Quite an old book now, copyrighted in 1983, the colour plates may have lost some of their vibrancy ---------- but haven't we all ???
An excellent addition to my library of books on the Mighty Eighth.

enjoyed the book and found an artist rendering taken at a train staion, i beleive. the approximate page location is 70 & 71, give or take. what i need to know is where i can obtain a source that has this picture showing this german train station during WWII. it is for a friend who works for union pacific and loves enginges. please contact me about the picture. as for the book i grew up near wright-patterson AFB, Dayton OH and love planes - loved the book - hope to purchace it someday. any direction to a source will be greatly appreciated. thank you. Dave Falknor.