New Battle of Britain book by Bergstrom

[Modeldad]

Comments, observations, etc.

[F19Gladiator]

Hi,
I have the Swedish edition which I found an interering read but unfortunately marred by the highest number of misspelled words I have encountered so far in a book. Some photo captions were also misplaced.
I don't blame Mr. Bergström for these errors but rather the publisher Leandoer & Ekholm for doing a very bad job in this respect.

The book is 494 pages in A4 size and featuring captioned photos on practically every page as well as 28 A4 size colour profiles by Claes Sundin and Maarten Svärd.
Mr. Bergström has been in contact with several surviving participants over the years why several first hand accounts of these pilots are quoted in the book making it an intreresting read. As always I find a book on WW2 by Mr. Bergström interesting to read as he in my opinion often gives a balanced view of events on both sides.
In this book he for example has a more positive description of the Bf 110 and their performance in the battle contrary to some older books on the subject which are often writing down their performance and battle value quite dramatically.
If the Bf 110 had been allowed to be used to its advantage utilizing its strenghts instead of being tied up as close escort, later judgments would also have been less negative in general - as the Bf 110 did show when allowed to be tactically correctly used.

I will consider to also purchase the English version of this book in order to get around the irritating misspellings in the Swedish language book, why I have to admit that I was satisfied with the content.

I hope the above can be of some guidance to you.

Regards,
Goran

[Modeldad]

Thank you for the information. It is appreciated and useful.

[F19Gladiator]

Originally Posted by Modeldad

Thank you for the information. It is appreciated and useful.

Thanks! Glad it helped.

I can add the names of the veterans which according to the introduction having contributed through interviews, log books, photos and other information. Others have contributed anonymously.
The ranks are obviously not from the BoB but rather their highest rank in service;
Luftwaffe:
Obst a.D. Gerhard Baeker; Maj a.D. Hans-Ekkehard Bob; Oblt Johannes Broschwitz; Hptm Hugo Dahmer; Adolf Galland; Obst a.D. Gordon M. Gollob; Major a.D. Hans Hahn; Obstlt Hans-Joachim Jabs; Maj a.D. Erhard Jähnert; Oblt Erwin Leykauf; Lt Hermann Neuhoff; Genlt a.D. Günter Rall; Maj a.D. Gerhard Schöpfel; Gen a.D. Johannes Steinhoff; Genlt a.D. Hannes Trautloft.

RAF:
Group Capt. Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader; S/Ldr. Cyril Bamberger; Air/C. James Coward; W/Cdr. Thomas Dalton-Morgan; W/Cdr. John Francis Durham "Tim" Ellkington; W/Cdr.John Connell Freeborn; Gr/Capt Donald O. Finlay; W/Cdr, W/Cdr. Robert Foster; F/Lt. John Peter Bowtell Greenwood; S/Ldr. James C.F. Hayter; Air Vice Marshall James Edgar Johnsson; Jennifer Baker-David & Sally Ratledge / F/Lt. Norman Taylor; S/Ldr. Douglas Tidy; W/Cdr. Robert R. Stanford Tuck.

I can also mention that there are three maps in colour, whereof two are marking the RAF and Lw bases with unit and aircraft type respectively.

Br
Goran

[Jim Oxley]

Is there a date for publication of the English version? And who will be the Publisher?

[F19Gladiator]

Originally Posted by Jim Oxley

Is there a date for publication of the English version? And who will be the Publisher?

Hi Jim,
I checked the website of the publisher of the Swedish language version and got concerned when I saw that the very same publisher is planning to publish the English language version in "the autumn of 2006"(!)
Under the headline "Co-workers" ,or "Medarbetare" in Swedish, they present Christer Bergström and his books, mentioning what I have quoted above regarding release date.

http://www.leforlag.com/hw_04medarbetare.asp

Funny that that even on the English language part of their site they present only Christer in Swedish, while the info on the other co-workers are in English.
Fully in líne with their sloppy editing and quality control of the Swedish release of his book.

I wish Christer all success with this book as I consider him a great writer on these topics, but I will take a look at it before I also buy the English version, checking if spelling and photo captions are ok this time!
Br
Goran

[F19Gladiator]

Hi,
I just noticed that Amazon in the US sell the English version with 37% discount.
Br
Goran

[Jim Oxley]

Thanks Goran. I've bitten the bullet and ordered it. Fingers crossed.

[mars]

Originally Posted by F19Gladiator

Hi,
I just noticed that Amazon in the US sell the English version with 37% discount.
Br
Goran

a little tip for you relate to amazon, never believe the avalibity such as "Ship in 2-3 weeks", or even "ship in 10-12 days", those actually means "unavalible" or "We do not know when this book will be avalible", only those books avalibity list as either "in stock" or "ship in 2-3 days" are actually valid.

[F19Gladiator]

Jim,
Honestly, I do not think you will be disappointed - If you will receive it! 'Mars' comment might raise worries regarding delivery capacity but let's hope for the best
I might order a copy as well to have both language versions.....and to find out how Amazon works for better or for worse

Br
Goran