Ju-88, Volume One

[Peter Achs]

Ok, ok. But I feel a latent (or more open) animosity. My review was not gloating, but fairly and objectively. I would have written almost the same thing if the book had been written by a German or Indian author.

When I try, my book can be completed in two years. But I still have a job.
If there is interest, a translation into English is possible.

Regards
Peter

[ChrisS]

Thank you Peter I think we all look forward to your work and here is one that would greatly welcome an English translation.

Yes, Kagero may not be the best publisher in the world but to many it is the 'entry level' into the Luftwaffe interest, unlikely that a newcomer will purchase the Prien JVB set as a starter! Perhaps better to encourage Kagero to higher ideals of accuracy then to 'trash' them?

Best Regards

Chris

[Steve Coates]

Peter - Good luck with your project. I think your two year timeframe might prove optimistic whilst you still have to work even with the research you've completed to date.

Chris - I'm not really clear how encouraging Kagero would get them to be better and exactly how one could really go about this in a meaningful manner. They've been in the market for a long time and work by being at the lower end.

[FalkeEins]

Originally Posted by Peter Achs

I would have written almost the same thing if the book had been written by a German or Indian author.

perhaps drop all references to "non-German" incompetence in future reviews then eh? Maybe we'll take your message with more equanimity then. An audience that doesn't know German is NOT overly concerned by typos and mangled transliteration in the handful of German expressions that might feature therein and the audience that is can spot them for themselves...

Agree with Chris re Kagero - and their artwork is first class. Steve, perhaps contact Kagero and offer to proof, correct and edit their texts as I did for a number of years..(work that I've also taken on at various times for Classic, Eagle Editions, Erik Mombeek & Lela Presse, so not just 'lower end' of the market stuff..)

[Steve Coates]

Fair enough if that works for you but from my perspective, I have limited hobby time available and I'd rather devote that to uncovering new material and gaining fresh perspectives which I can then feed into the subjects which particularly interest me or can be of use to fellow researchers.

[FalkeEins]

of course, but then you did pose the question how to 'encourage' Kagero to do better...I note that just recently they appear to have stopped using Thomaz Szlagor as well so that Murawski's latest 'Air Battles' title is as poor as most Luftwaffe literary luminaries imagine all their stuff must be..

[Steve Coates]

That's a fair enough riposte. On a personal level I have never been convinced that volume publishers will sacrifice quantity for quality as the latter will always inevitably delay production schedules.

[Peter Achs]

Originally Posted by FalkeEins

perhaps drop all references to "non-German" incompetence in future reviews then eh?

Ahm… No.
There is a connection between the home country of the author and the quality. The books from UK/US or Eastern Europe that I know and deal with my field of interest (Junkers, air defense etc) are simply bad. I can prove it.

I do not know who you are. But why are you defending this obviously bad book? You know that it is full of errors and lacks so many things. The typos and howlers are just a small aspect.

Kagero:
I have three booklets about the Ju 88 (issues 13-15). I'm sorry, but the quality of the text and captions of this series is below any discussion. The line drawings are fine. Color drawings are beautiful to look at, but the “scientific” value tends to zero. These (all?) color profiles from this period are 90 percent speculation.

Regards
Peter

[ChrisS]

Peter, don't worry it's an English ingrained personality trait to defend the 'under-dog' against teutonic onslaughts, Belgium, Greece and Norway come to mind

Being serious now: with regard to Kagero's artwork I think 90% is a major exageration, for example in volume III the artist has placed wartime photographs next to his profiles so that the accuracy can be seen. Can we expect that your book will be filled with superbly crafted and accurate profiles then? Do you have an artist in mind? I can recommend a Serbian, a Slovakian, an Englishman, a couple of Polish chaps and even a frenchman. Sadly only one German (and he works for Kagero)

[Richard T. Eger]

Dear Peter,

The more you attack writers of works from other countries, the lower your stature in our eyes becomes. A word to the wise...

Regards,
Richard