What are you reading….?

Non Air Cadets Film, TV and Music
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Currently reading ‘Entitled’. It’s an interesting insight into Andrew Mountbatten and his estranged wife.

Other good reads are

Nuclear War by Annie Jacobsen

SAS, My Trial by Fire by Des Powell

and for F1 fans

The inside Story Of McLaren Formula 1 by Ben Hunt

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If you get hold of it, try Life at the limit by Prof Sid Watkins the late head of F1 medicine.

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Some other for you

Hercules by Scott Bateman

Concorde by Mike Bannister

Into the Black by Rowland Black

Bringing Columbia Home by Michael Leinbach

3 Para by Patrick Bishop

The Circuit by Bob Shepherd

An Officer not a Gentleman by Mandy Hickson

SAS Seaking Down by Cpl Mark Aston

Chinook Crew Chick by Liz McConaghy

The WorkHorse of Helmand by Michael Fry

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Our very own @Hercules of course :slight_smile:

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Try:

Medic by John Nichol and Tony Rennall

Nurses of Passchendale by Christine E Hallett

Hellfire and Apache by Ed Macy.

Great Escape murders by Stephen R Davies free on Kindle unlimited on the River company site. Well worth a read and to my mind should the Great Escape have been stopped in 1944. Maybe this is a subject on history that is worth its own thread?

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Des is an interesting chap to talk to, should you get the opportunity.

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I’m currenlty reading the Harvard translation of ‘Tacitus - Annals and Histories’, Latin on the LHS and English on the RHS of a double spread. Interesting for me that part of it talks about the Campanian plain and hills - where I was recently.

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Finished depths, quite good

Also finished Hail Mary, very good that one!

And as a small funny one, this site has silly open letters written in fantasy worlds (current top one being Witchers having to change their working style before making themselves redundant)

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Couple of new books have just dropped on my door mat:

Area 51 by Annie Jacobsen

Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir Of My Years At Lockheed by Ben Rich

F1 Insider by Ted Kravitz

Auto Biography by Matt Watson

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Red Storm Rising by Tom Clancy.

Need to do some revision on WWIII is going to pan out.

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Hmmm. Very different theatre of operations if the focus is going to remain on North & South America. Also, Venezuelan navy is an exceptionally small fleet.

Elsewhere, huge changes in tech & tactics across land, sea & air.

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Judging by Ukraine, the Soviets, sorry the Russians will be using the same kit as the 1980s.

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From some of their reserve storage locations, even older than that.

They are not in a good place for kit, personnel or funding. Logistically, manufacture has been hit by drone strikes in some key areas + dilution of personnel who have been drafted. Whilst not 100% effective, prohibition of import of key items has also hit them.

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Red Metal by Mark Greaney makes for a similar WW3 kick off match - still in the spirit of Clancy.

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Fantastic book, although Cardinal of the Kremlin is probably my favourite these days, although Without Remorse is due a reread.

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Proper spy novel. His early work was the best but I did like Clear and Present Danger.

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Just finished

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I enjoy the whole Jack Ryan series. Debt of Honour and the Bear and the Dragon are personal highlights

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Aubrey/Maturin next.

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In honour of it having been World Book Day this week, I’ve got a few on rotation right now:

  • The Flipside: How to Invert Your Perspective and Turn Fear into Your Superpower by Michelle “MACE” Curran - This one has been an absolutely fantastic read so far by former Thunderbird and USAF Fighter Pilot MACE, and is one for how to tackle challenges like imposter syndrome head-on without becoming too arrogant.
  • An Officer and Her Gentleman by Mandy and Craig Hickson - I read Mandy’s first book shortly after finding out she was attending RIAT last year (my dad bought it for me after I got home from Extended Camp), and I was hooked by the stories she told of her time in. This book is no less transfixing - it swaps between Mandy and Craig telling stories of their own experiences in life, and how they’ve picked up all sorts of skills to be able to get through these experiences, and how the reader can do the same.
  • The Women Behind The Few: The Women’s Auxiliary Air Force and British Intelligence During the Second World War by Sarah-Louise Miller - This one is one I’m only just starting out with, but as you can tell from the title it’s to do with the efforts of WAAFs working in the war to support the military intelligence. It’s telling how women were seen as just as important as the men at the time of war in both our country and overseas, but then were not all necessarily given the commendations until long after the wars were over (even today, some are still fighting for their accolades in terms of recognition of the WASPs in the US).

A selection of 3 (of many!!) that I’m currently reading through, hope everyone had a good World Book Day!