Customer Reviews
The paradox of war - By: Mr. John Evans, 10 Jan 2005 
There is a strange paradox about the bombing war. Aviators fly thousands of feet upin the sky dropping bombs on what are seen merely as targets. At the same time, those on the ground can look up at their enemies, but have no idea what is going through the heads of their attackers. Martin Middlebrook changes that by presenting the bombing raids on Hamburg from both perspectives. He spoke to the airman who flew such vulnerable heavy bombers about their emotions & experiences, then looked at the same raids from those who suffered on the ground. This dual perspective on a series of horrific raids provides no real surprises, but is none the less fascinating for that. Years after the war, when the interviews were carried out, it's amazing how much small detail both sides can recall. It presents a brilliant picture of the futility of warin a very measured, balanced way. The author certainly doesn't take sides on whether the firestorm raids were justifed or not. But he provides a hugely readable account of a desperate battle & leaves the reader to make up his or her own mind. It's a thought-provoking yet strangely compulsive read, &in no way a poor relation to newer war books like Beevor's Stalingrad. The pictures are sparse & poor, but the real pictures arein the words.
An Absorbing Account of the Destruction of Hamburg - By: E. A. Redfearn, 31 Jul 2002 
Martin Middlesbrook, an historian of renown, has written a billiant book on the destruction of Hamburg during the summer months of 1943. The controversies on the mass bombing by the RAF during World War 2 is still felt today. Whether it was right or not is still a matter of debate amongst various historians. Martin Middlesbrook tells the story mainly from the viewpoint of the air crews who took partin the raids. Survivors of the Hamburg firestorms tell their version of events with great courage, bearingin mind the terrible experiences they endured. Not a pretty read, but an absorbing one. You, the reader, will have to make up your own mind whether the mass bombing policy instigated by Bomber Harris was right or not.
A book to be read again and again - By: , 28 Feb 2002 Middlebrook writesin a style which makes his subject come to life. His affinity for Hamburg & his rich sources of information makes this book compelling reading.
A superb account of horror of area bombing for both sides - By: , 22 Oct 2001 Martin Middlebrook pieces togetherin his inimitable style a running chronology of the event surrounding the bombing of Hamburgin the summer of 1943. Put togetherin meticulous detail, for which the author is renowned, the reader feels he is almost part of the aircrew, witnessing events from twenty thousand feet. This is contrasted by the eyewitness accounts on the receiving end of high explosive & incendaries. The reader is leftin no doubt of the appauling results of area bombing, whilst still respecting the young men forced into the night sky to face death by an often unseen enemy. A must read for any WW2 aviation enthusiast.
Middlebrook's masterly narrative describes a British success - By: gfigg@promochem.co.uk, 19 May 2000 In this book, Middlebrook brings his customary ability to blend eyewitness accounts into a compelling narrative describing, perhaps Dresden apart, the most terrifying firestorm created by Bomber Commandin the war. By 1943, the air war over Germany was reaching unanticipated heights of electronic sophistication. While RAF bombers were using both active & passive radar to find their targets, they were tracked by a complex system of defensive radar. It was at this point that Bomber Command decided to "open the window", & deploy bundles of thousands of foil strips dropped from the bomber stream. This "domesday" weapon produced huge numbers of false radar echoes & led to the overwhelming of the defences. Like all of Middlebrook's works, testimony of survivors from both sides brings home just how terrifying a conventional area bombing attack can be, something we have perhaps forgottenin the nuclear age. I first read this book shortly after it was publishedin paperback. Apart from his more recent work on the British operations at Arnhem, this,in my opinion, is his finest book on World War 2.
