DEFEATING THE PANZERSTUKA MENACE; & THE WARSAW UPRISINGS 1943-1944

◗ D. Lister; and I. Baxter

◗ Frontline Books; and Pen and Sword (2021)

◗ £25; and £14.99

◗ 259 pages (hardback); and 127 pages (softback)

◗ ISBN:9781526787156; and 9781526799913

◗ pen-and-sword.co.uk

I have no idea why the first title refers to ‘Stuka’, as this intriguing history of British WWII spigot weapons focuses almost entirely on land and naval warfare. On the land side, it covers mainly the Bombard, Piat, and AVRE weapons; on the naval side, the Hedgehog and Hedgerow; plus a variety of weapons that never got much beyond the experimental stage. It is a compelling mix of science, bureaucracy, and the quirky nature of weapons development, supported by ample (and well explained) technical detail. The author is clearly a supporter of such weapons, and you may feel he goes a little too far in extolling the virtues of the Piat over the German hand-held AT weapons? However, this is finely researched material from original evaluation reports.

The second title covers the grim nature of the 1943 Ghetto Uprising and the 1944 major (and unsuccessful) battle to free the city.Yes, it qualifies as history and may be of interest to some, but the photographs and the limited text are mainly of the dead, the distressed, and the destruction.