Synopses & Reviews
andlt;Bandgt;AGAINST ALL ODDSandlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt; Sixty years ago, Europe lay at the feet of Adolf Hitler. Standing between Hitler and world domination was the just-appointed Prime Minister Winston Churchill...and a few hundred pilots in the Royal Air Force's Fighter Command. Defeat seemed inevitable. Instead, a legend was born. andlt;BRandgt; Taking its readers on a breathtaking journey from open lifeboats in North Atlantic gales to the cockpits of burning fighter planes, andlt;Iandgt;Finest Hourandlt;/Iandgt; re-creates the tensions and uncertainties of the events of 1940 -- months when the fate of the world truly hung in the balance. It is a powerful account, told through the voices, diaries, letters, and memoirs of the men and women who lived and loved, fought and died, during that terrible yet ultimately triumphant year. The personal stories of these soldiers and airmen, diplomats and politicians, journalists and spies, are combined with a fresh and often controversial account of the swirling political intrigues and betrayals of the period. andlt;BRandgt; A testament to a year when a nation's darkest hour became its finest, andlt;Iandgt;Finest Hourandlt;/Iandgt; is a singular achievement and an indispensable contribution to the literature of World War II.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;The Sunday Timesandlt;/Iandgt; (London) In the words of the ordinary people caught up in the war...andlt;Iandgt;[Finest Hour]andlt;/Iandgt; is told with an immediacy that fiction could not achieve.
Review
Terry W. Hartle andlt;Iandgt;The Christian Science Monitorandlt;/Iandgt; Clayton and Craig make the story of this decisive engagement come alive.
Synopsis
AGAINST ALL ODDSSixty years ago, Europe lay at the feet of Adolf Hitler. Standing between Hitler and world domination was the just-appointed Prime Minister Winston Churchill...and a few hundred pilots in the Royal Air Force's Fighter Command. Defeat seemed inevitable. Instead, a legend was born.
Taking its readers on a breathtaking journey from open lifeboats in North Atlantic gales to the cockpits of burning fighter planes, Finest Hour re-creates the tensions and uncertainties of the events of 1940 -- months when the fate of the world truly hung in the balance. It is a powerful account, told through the voices, diaries, letters, and memoirs of the men and women who lived and loved, fought and died, during that terrible yet ultimately triumphant year. The personal stories of these soldiers and airmen, diplomats and politicians, journalists and spies, are combined with a fresh and often controversial account of the swirling political intrigues and betrayals of the period.
A testament to a year when a nation's darkest hour became its finest, Finest Hour is a singular achievement and an indispensable contribution to the literature of World War II.
Synopsis
AGAINST ALL ODDS Sixty years ago, Europe lay at the feet of Adolf Hitler. Standing between Hitler and world domination was the just-appointed Prime Minister Winston Churchill...and a few hundred pilots in the Royal Air Force's Fighter Command. Defeat seemed inevitable. Instead, a legend was born.
Taking its readers on a breathtaking journey from open lifeboats in North Atlantic gales to the cockpits of burning fighter planes, Finest Hour re-creates the tensions and uncertainties of the events of 1940 -- months when the fate of the world truly hung in the balance. It is a powerful account, told through the voices, diaries, letters, and memoirs of the men and women who lived and loved, fought and died, during that terrible yet ultimately triumphant year. The personal stories of these soldiers and airmen, diplomats and politicians, journalists and spies, are combined with a fresh and often controversial account of the swirling political intrigues and betrayals of the period.
A testament to a year when a nation's darkest hour became its finest, Finest Hour is a singular achievement and an indispensable contribution to the literature of World War II.
About the Author
Tim Clayton is a former research fellow at Worcester College, Oxford, and the author of numerous articles and books, including The English Print 1688-1802. He has also worked as a writer and producer of television documentaries, including Voices in the Dark, a film about the historian Carlo Ginzburg.
Table of Contents
andlt;Bandgt;Contentsandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Prologueandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;In Northern France, May 1940andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Entries from the Diary of Denis Wissler, May 1940andlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;1 May 10-14, 1940andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;2 May 14-20andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;3 May 20-22andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;4 May 22-26andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;5 May 26-27andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;6 May 28-June 1andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;7 June 1-10andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;8 June 10-16andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;9 June 16-20andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;10 June 20-July 11andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;11 July 16-August 15andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;12 August 16-20andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;13 August 20-September 4andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;14 September 4-11andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;15 September 11-17andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;16 September 17-30andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;17 Octoberandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;18 November and Afterandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Epilogueandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Acknowledgmentsandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Bibliographyandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Notes on Sourcesandlt;BRandgt;andlt;/Iandgt;