World War II (1931-1945)
“The Second World War presented a mirror to the human condition which blinded anyone who looked into it.” — Norman Mailer, “The White Negro: Superficial Reflections on the Hipster” (1957)
Of the endless ocean of books on the Second World War, we have dozens and dozens of new and carefully chosen titles. I define it as beginning with the Japanese Empire’s invasion of Manchuria and ending with not only V-E and V-J Days but also the immediate crises of displaced people, the Soviet Union’s creation of the Iron Curtain, and the growing revelations of the extent of the Holocaust.
In significant ways the Second World War was the defining crucible of the 20th Century. The First World War was prelude, the legacy of the 19th Century’s imperialism, and the Cold War was the sequel. Of the making of books about it there is no end — but the persistence of good research and good writing, and good publication underscores the war’s centrality of the world we live in today and the world our descendents will live in for the foreseeable future.
Camp Sharpe's Psycho Boys: From Gettysburg to Germany
Camp Sharpe's Psycho Boys: From Gettysburg to Germany
Merriam Press World War 2 History Series. Drawing on company histories, memoirs, and interviews, Camp Sharpe's "Psycho Boys" traces the history of the men of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Mobile Radio Broadcasting Companies during World War II. The story begins with the establishment of a secret camp in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and the specialized training in military intelligence and propaganda services that the men received there. We then follow these men abroad: to further training in Britain, to the D-Day landings, the Battle of the Bulge, the conquest of Germany, and the liberation of the concentration camps. Camp Sharpe's "Psycho Boys" is enriched with new material - including photographs - acquired through personal interviews and correspondence with nine veterans of the camp. 37 photos, footnotes, index.