Osprey Aces books

[Dick Powers]

The Osprey books are a mixed bag. Also, I believe that people expect too much from this series. After all, the series (Aces, Elite, and Combat Aircraft) are mass produced and targeted, I believe, for the casual reader, not serious aviation researcher.

As for the text, some are quite good; Polish, Italian, Finnish, French, Hungarian, Slovakian, Rumanian; these are written by qualified researchers and the subject matter isn’t presented on many other (English language) books. Many of the US 8th AF aces and Elite are written by Bill Hess, a long time authority. Several WWI titles are authored by Norman Franks.

And the profiles? Many of the artists are top-notch. OF course this is personal taste; Chris Davey for US WWII, Harry Dempsey for any WWI profiles (captions to his profiles indicate what in the profile is subjective and open to interpretation). Jim Laurier – his profiles for the AVG book are very nice.

On thing the Osprey books have going for them is photo reproduction. Generally, the photo quality is very good; sharply printed good contrast and nice paper.

Many of the books are quite good; particularly considering the price. But don’t expect the same level of original research to be invested in a $20 book that would be invested in a $75 book.

I have some of the “Aircam” series from the early 70s. Same publisher, same story.

So my advice? Chose the subject carefully. Evaluate the author and the artist (if profile accuracy is important to you.)