Unexplained Mysteries of World War II

Rating:
Summary: Research?
Review: Having recently completed this book I have to agree with a previous reviewer, the inaccuracies (despite claims of extensive "research" in the introduction) destroy its credibility, at least in my eyes. In addition to the already quoted errors I found that the Gestapo was not controlled by Heinrich Himmler but rather it fell under the auspices of Herman Goering. And the Wellington bomber had not four but two engines. I may have misunderstood the intent in the particular passage but Germany invaded Russia on the 22nd of June not the 21st.
The point is I am not an expert on the subject, I have not carried out formal or extensive research, and yet I can see these glaring factual errors. As a final point any serious book on this subject might perhaps avoid historical figures "barking" or "growling" at their subordinates. I guess men were tougher in those days and sounded a lot like canines. A potentially interesting subject flawed by poor research and, perhaps, editing.

Rating:
Summary: A little from column A, a little from column B...
Review: I thought it was a fairly interesting book with a lot of interesting WWII trivia that you won't get from many other places. The thing that brings this book down is the fact that if you decide to look deeper into a story, one has to wonder if the author didn't just convienently ignore facts to keep things interesting. I must agree with what the other reviewers have said about the sloppy research when dealing with stories. The author finishes the story about the Lady Be Good with this ominous sentence: "No skeleton or other signs of the Lady Be Good's crew have ever been detected." That piqued my interest, as it would for many other people. A quick internet search turns up information that 8 out of 9 of the crew were found. My book was published in 1997- the crew members were found in late 1959 and early in 1960. The worst part is, at the end of that sentence, the author had the gall to put a footnote, which when looked up reads: "Author's Archives". It would seem as if anyone with internet access and even a little interest is better informed than the author of this book.
Although I'm sure some of the information in this book is completely true, the glaring errors that are there make it hard to seperate the two. And no one reading what is supposed to be nonfiction should have to find out for themselves what is true and what isn't.

Rating:
Summary: A little from column A, a little from column B...
Review: I thought it was a fairly interesting book with a lot of interesting WWII trivia that you won't get from many other places. The thing that brings this book down is the fact that if you decide to look deeper into a story, one has to wonder if the author didn't just convienently ignore facts to keep things interesting. I must agree with what the other reviewers have said about the sloppy research when dealing with stories. The author finishes the story about the Lady Be Good with this ominous sentence: "No skeleton or other signs of the Lady Be Good's crew have ever been detected." That piqued my interest, as it would for many other people. A quick internet search turns up information that 8 out of 9 of the crew were found. My book was published in 1997- the crew members were found in late 1959 and early in 1960. The worst part is, at the end of that sentence, the author had the gall to put a footnote, which when looked up reads: "Author's Archives". It would seem as if anyone with internet access and even a little interest is better informed than the author of this book.
Although I'm sure some of the information in this book is completely true, the glaring errors that are there make it hard to seperate the two. And no one reading what is supposed to be nonfiction should have to find out for themselves what is true and what isn't.

Rating:
Summary: Good for a Fun Read
Review: This compilation of about 100 "strange coincidences, ominous premonitions, and baffling mysteries" contains a lot of tantalizing little tidbits, but one has to be a little dubious about some of the stuff. Especially since others with much more detailed WWII knowledge than me have pointed out factual errors that undermine the entire book's credibility. Even so, it's worth reading for some of the incidents are remarkable and would make great grist for the Hollywood Mill. If you've got limited time or interest, the sections "Puzzling Events," "Uncanny Riddles," and "People Who Vanished" are much, much stronger than "Odd Coincidences," "Curious Happenings," "Peculiar Premonitions," and "Strange Encounters."

Rating:
Summary: Good for a Fun Read
Review: This text provides an interesting overall account of oddities that happened during one of the greatest conflicts of all time. There are some factual data within the book that well-versed readers have identified that could possibly be considered in a later edition. For these individuals, there are countless multi-volume and 500+ page accounts of the history of World War II. However, to a novice, this work provides short, readable sections about interesting and less known aspects of the Second World War. This book makes one reflect on the strange little things that can alter the course of human history. If nothing else, it raises your curiosity to read more works on the topic or the issue or story that you are most interested in. After all, isn't that what reading and exploring information is all about?