Forgotten Voices Desert Victory

by Julian Thompson, Imperial War Museum

A gripping account of the first significant Second World War Allied victory: the Western Desert Campaign.
 
Had the Allies lost in North Africa, Rommel's Afrika Corps would have swept through the Middle East, cutting the vital supply line through the Suez Canal to Australia and India, and taking the oilfields of the Persian Gulf. Britain would have been isolated, without oil, and unable to fight.
 
These crucial battles of 1940-1943 were fought over vast distances on rugged terrain, with supply lines often stretched to breaking point. It was here that David Stirling formed the SAS to perform audacious sabotage missions, and the Long Range Desert Group collected intelligence from behind enemy lines.
 
Told in the voices of the men who were there, this is the story of the Allies first victory against Hitler's army, which proved that the seemingly unstoppable Germans could be beaten.

Genres: History, World War II

384 pages, Paperback

First published May 12, 2011

About the author

Major General Julian Harold Atherdean Thompson, CB, OBE is a military historian and former Royal Marines officer who as a brigadier commanded 3 Commando Brigade during the Falklands war.

Thompson, who was British commander on the islands during the final phase of the conflict has written extensively on the Falklands conflict and British military history. He is also a visiting professor at the department of War Studies, King's College, University of London.

Reviews

[Alastair · Rating 4 out of 5]

This superb book describes the allied armies' defeat of the Axis forces in North Africa - but with a twist. Instead of 'yet another' history book - recounting all the action and events drily - this book instead begins each chapter with a couple of pages describing the outline of events, and then walks through those events by piecing together excerpts from combatants who were there.

Not only is this an astonishing feat of editing, but it offers a compelling and unique way of really getting at what it was like to be there. The generals - often the focus of other histories - are present of course but they are subordinate to the privates, corporal, lieutenants, sergeants and captains whose diaries and letters are the primary source of the material.

And their accounts are riveting. We follow certain individuals (John Harding, Peter Lewis and many others) across hundreds of miles of the desert campaign - I found myself looking forward to the next entry by a cast of individuals I'd grown familiar with. There really is surprising continuity in the accounts. The details themselves are (as would be expected) a mixture of the awful details of war, anger-inducing examples of organisational incompetence and a surprising amount of truly touching events - particularly where enemies ensure their opponents make it away from an engagement in peace or receive medical attention. There is also real humour in this - hearing junior troops absolutely tear into senior officers is an absolute treat, as is the stoic endurance and grim gallows humour on display throughout.

The book is not without faults however, and this is what just led me to hold off on the five star review - which is a shame as they would be easily fixed. First, the maps are atrocious. Unless you are a true buff on this particular bit of the war you will struggle to follow the place names and movements of soldiers described. I have no idea why the maps couldn't have been developed to have all the names mentioned in the chapters - it would massively help with readability. A second useful addition would be dates on the diary entries (or letters) - even if approximate - just to help orient the reader as to the rough timeline of what they are reading. Lastly it would be an amazing addition if, on the last entry for a particular soldier, there was a brief synopsis of what they did afterwards, such as where they fought or were prisoner of war, and where they died.

These are frustrating niggles in an otherwise marvellous book. I cannot recommend this highly enough for anyone interested in the human-dimension of war.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

My grandfather fought in the North African desert and told me many stories of his time as a soldier there and as a POW. This book gave me a really good sense of what all these men went through and why the North African Campaign was so important to WW2. I loved that it was told by people who were actually there, as this allowed for a true glimpse into the daily lives and horrors of the soldiers and battles they had to fight. I also enjoyed coming across stories of compassion and sympathy by one side towards the other, showing the humanity of those whose job it was to fight and kill total strangers. An invaluable book that everyone who is interested in WW2 should read. I wish there had been more from German and Italian soldiers to provide more insight from the other side, but otherwise, it was amazing. I highly recommend it.

[Allan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sobering account of the war in North Africa during the Second World War told from the point of view of and mostly in the words of the ordinary soldiers who were there. It's brutal, tragic, human and compelling.
I've read several other Forgotten Voices books and although they deal with difficult subjects they are so well done.
This should be compulsory reading for anyone in Government contemplating taking the country into anther war.

[Ted Horlor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gripping accounts of young men who experienced what no one should have experienced.
Lest we forget

[Robert Hepple · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lost Voices Desert Victory is a series of recollections of the conflict in the North African theatre from mid-1940 to mid-1943. The recollections are sourced from the sound archive held by the IWM, and consequently are predominantly from the British perspective, although a small number of Italian and German recollections are also included. They are grouped into a series of chapters covering each element of the campaign. Illustrations include around 60 black and white photographs, some sourced from the people providing the recollections, and others sourced from the IWM. Each chapter also includes a basic map of the area fought over, together with a summary of the operations covered by the chapter in order to place the recollections in the correct historical context. The recollections themselves are often quite gritty and non-pc, and add quite a personal insight into the campaigns compared to the many other histories published. A fantastic book, and a must-read for those interested in the Western Desert campaign of 1940-1943.

[Paul Collard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book from a series that never fails to captivate and inform. These are the tales that your Grandad would never tell; the real stories of what is was like to fight in WWII. A fascinating insight into what it was like to fight in the desert war, from how to brew a cup of army tea to the brutal reality of the swarming desert war that ground backwards and forwards across North Africa. Some of the stories are so visceral that they bring you up short and I simply cannot comprehend how these great men managed to endure weeks and months of such fighting.