Sniper Anthology: Snipers of the Second World War

by Martin Pegler (Editor), Tom C. McKenney, Dan Mills

The remarkable stories of ten combat snipers of the Second World War are told by military men aptly skilled to do so. Drawing on firsthand accounts that have never been published, the authors supply details of their subjects to give graphic insight into each sniper's skill. As well as providing incisive technical information, authors offer a glimpse of the character and personality of their chosen snipers, giving them a human face. The list of snipers includes World War II's most accomplished fighting figures such as Finland's Simo Hayha; Germany's finest shooter, Sepp Allerberger; Russia's famed Vassili Zaitsev and Lyudmila Pavlichenko; and America's Bert Kemp. These stories detail the bitter cold in which Eastern Front snipers Zaitsev and Allerberger often fought; the stinking, steaming jungles where Japanese snipers lost their lives atop palm trees; tales of personal revenge that drove Pavlichenko; how Hayha applied his skills as a moose hunter and skier to become World War II's deadliest sniper; and how West Tennessee farmer Bert Kemp used his amazing ability for precision and almost supernatural marksmanship to become one of America's unsung heroes. These gripping, in-depth narratives go beyond the cursory treatment in existing histories and are essential reading for anyone wanting to learn about the role and technique of the sniper during the Second World War.

Genres: War, Nonfiction, World War II

248 pages, Hardcover

First published November 19, 2011

About the author

Martin Pegler has a BA Hons in Medieval and Modern History and an MA in Museum Studies, both from University College, London, and was for many years the Senior Curator of Firearms at the Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds. He now lives in the Somme, France, where he and his wife run a small bed and breakfast, which is situated on top of the old German front line! Martin has established The Somme Historical Centre (www.martinpegler.com), where visitors can see the technology used in the 1914-18 trench warfare. Martin enjoys shooting historic firearms, and has participated in many shooting competitions. He is currently an author and firearms consultant and he also lectures at local Great War museums. In his spare time Martin runs motorcycle tours of the battlefield. He is the author of a number of books including The Military Sniper since 1914 (Osprey, 2001), Firearms in the American West 1700-1900 (The Crowood Press, 2002), and the highly acclaimed Out of Nowhere: A History of the Military Sniper (Osprey, 2004), and he has also contributed to a number of magazines. In the 1980s he had the privilege of interviewing many World War I veterans about their wartime experiences, and the recordings are now part of the sound archives of the Imperial War Museum, London

Reviews

[Derek Falkowsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were a few stories in this book that really got my attention. They highlighted the true gifts of being a Sniper such as: marksmanship, stalking, tracking, patience, and an incredible temperament. Enjoyable read overall.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some sections were easier to read than others, mostly due to the difference of authors. Basically, this was a good read for the subject matter. My father was a sniper in World War II in Europe. He, like many, would never talk about his experiences. This book helped.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

A couple interesting stories.

[Shaun Yap · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

[Jaromír]

I read this in january was educational and entertaining. good

[Ben Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book features several of WW2s greatest or most well-known snipers. There is a good cross-section from most countries involved in the war, as well as male and also female snipers. The book itself goes into a lot of detail about their lives and war history, while also adding in some general information about sniping.

Didn't ever really get into the book, it didn't draw me in as much as I thought it was, but it is basically a collection of short biographies, not a story.

If you're interested in learning more about snipers, then this book is a good place to start.

[Marcus · Rating 2 out of 5]

As title clearly indicates, this book contains a collection of esseys dedicated to sniping during World War II. All except one of the contributions to this collection are short biographies alt. narratives about successful snipers of different nationalities. To be perfectly honest, the material in this book is very, very bland. If you know what to look for, these short bios will reveal tidbits of interesting information of anecdotal variety. But overall they're just 'stories' without real structure nor solid content about sniping.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

only fair. Easy read but style is poor for this topic.