David HowarthBesprekingen

A Most Wanted Man

Read by: Stuart Langton
Length: 6 hrs and 42 mins

This is a true story of a Norwegian, Jan Baalsrud‘s attempt to escape the Nazi occupiers of his country as he travels alone from the Arctic to southern Norway and from there hopefully to neutral Sweden. He's been injured in a failed attack against the Nazi occupiers. The rest of his group was killed and he survived though injured.

Told in present tense in the third person, we follow Jan on his journey. The background is white, there are no markers to get bearings. He can’t see mountains till he is almost upon them, and then only knows only when he discovers that he climbing.

Are there Nazis following his trail? He’s a wanted man. His injuries increase and the frostbite is working from his toes up his legs. He manages to survive from his own perseverance and with the occasional help from sympathizers who he is able to contact but who cannot accompany him.

As well as the elements and the fear of being discovered by the Nazis, he fears the people he finds in the early part of his trek. Will they betray him to the Nazis? Is it fair to put them in a difficult position. Even if they are unafraid to help, what will happen to their families if they are captured? Jan is an honorable man.

As the book progresses we cannot imagine how Jan can possibly survive. His snow-blindness, his weeks alone unable to move because of his injuries, his hallucinations, his pain, his descent into madness.

I can’t even comment on the prose. I was so bound up in Jan’s struggle I could think of nothing else. And after completing the book I could not take to any other. It’s a compelling and gripping read, expertly executed. David Howarth manages to put us into 1940s Norway, into a landscape the likes of which is far from my own experience. I could imagine the fjords, avalanches and glaciers - words I’ve never really known the meaning of. I was there with Jan, in the bleak landscape of a Nazi Norway.

I highly recommend this book.

A biography of Jan Baalsrud. Jan was a Norwegian who was a British trained commando in WWII. A group of 10 left the Shetlands and landed in Norway to disrupt the Nazi's who had entrenched themselves. Jan's group was betrayed and he was the only survivor. Through amputating his own toes and suffering the interminable cold, he finally was taken by charitable Sami (Northern Scandinavians), who were fired at, across Finland into Sweden. He found the Norwegians very gracious and they helped him even though to do so put themselves and their families in peril. A great survival against all odds story. 257 pages½

A good summary of a pivotal year in English history. Slim book but very informative.

Not a very good title for an excellent book. The title sounds like the gruesome reminder of our earthly end. But, I think it was probably meant to say that "ALONE--we die". As the book is as much about the people who helped Jan, as the man himself. We all need people in this life, and it is never more apparent as when we are in grave trouble. This book will renew your faith in your fellow man. The film, "The 12th Man", which was based on the book, is also excellent.

Great story , well told. Improbable but true. Gets inside the heads of the main characters especially the central one Jan who spends weeks isolated and disabled by frostbite in a remote corner of wartime Norway. The Lapps who come to the final rescue are also brought to life as weird alien beings When the Norwegians themselves already seem alien enough.

Of all the naval battles fought in history, Trafalgar is regarded as the most stunning achievement in the annals of history. Nelson’s greatest accomplishment, though it cost him his life, enabled the British fleet to have complete command of the seas. In Howarth’s account focused on the prelude, the battle itself, and the immediate aftermath, aids the reader to see the complications leading up to, during the chaotic swirl of battle, and the aftermath involving a massive hurricane that forced both friend and foe to survive in a joint effort to save their respective lives. History is not always pretty in spite of what seems clear cut is in reality was much more complicated. An excellent read of the battle of Trafalgar.

Tela editorial con sobrecubierta.
Manchas de óxido. Buen estado.

An excellent exposition of what happens when a ruler of a nation runs a military campaign with basically no input from those in the military and depends on God sending a miracle to make up for any errors he makes.

Truly and epic tale of endurance! Well written and an engaging read. This is a very obscure bit of WWII action, though there is almost no military action at all. A fascinating story.

Concise and readable history of the Norman conquest of England. Does a wonderful job of conveying the lives of ordinary Englanders and French, as well as the mindset of the leaders who drove the events.

The Publisher's review on the book jacket compares this saga favorably to Shackleton's miraculous survival story at the South Pole, and to Krakauer's Mt. Everest adventure tale "Into Thin Air". I wouldn't go that far, and would recommend both Krakauer's book and Caroline Alexander's "The Endurance" over this. But those books are both highly regarded adventure stories, and coming in third to those two is no slight. "We Die Alone" is still a drammatic story of hardship and endurance, detailing the escape to Sweden by Norweigan commando Jan Baalsrud in WW II. A resistance fighter in occupied Norway, Baalsrud is reported to the Nazi's, and alone and ill-equipped, struggles across the frozen land to find his way to freedom.

We Die Alone, by David Howarth (pp 231). This is the story of a lone survivor of a WWII team of Norwegian saboteurs who escaped German pursuers, survived severe frostbite, and stayed alive several weeks while immobilized and effectively abandoned mid-rescue sheltering in a snow cave. His story was so fantastic that it was not initially believed, until verified by some of the Norwegians he met along the way. Amazing story.

This is not a comprehensive history of the Battle of Hastings, and it is not meant to be. It is a great storyteller's version of events as he understands them.

Howarth uses mostly contemporaneous writings (17 of his 20 sources are within 100 years of the Battle of Hastings) to decipher and tell the history of the battle between King Harold of England and William the Conqueror of Normandy. He infuses the book with his own point of view, which at times can be borderline Francophobic. "[William] was a more barbarous primitive man than either Edward or Harold, but he is not to be blamed: he came from a more barbarous primitive country."

But it is this point of view, and this conversational tone that makes this book so enjoyable. You might not agree with his point of view, but it sure is fun to listen to. "Obviously, nobody could really make a speech to an army, and the chaplain rather gave the game away. He wrote: 'Nobody has reported to us in detail the short harangue with which on this occasion the Duke increased the courage of his troops...' - and he went straight on to quote the speech at great length word for word."

I'll definitely be looking out for Howarth's other books.

This is a very well-written and well-researched book. It's interesting to see how much of our knowledge of the events leading up to, during, and following the Battle of Hastings relies on much conjecture, simply because the few records that exist often conflict with one another. Read my full review here.

The Wooden Horse by Eric Williams, Escape Alone by David Howarth, Return Ticket by Anthony Deane-Drummond,
Eric Williams MC (13 July 1911 – 24 December 1983) was an English writer and former Second World War RAF pilot and prisoner of war (POW) who wrote several books dealing with his escapes from prisoner-of-war camps, most famously in his 1949 novel The Wooden Horse, made into a 1950 movie of the same name.
Compellation of short escape stories from WWII: Downed aviators, resistance fighters etc. devising resourceful ways to escape captivity and then make it to freedom. Their plans, tools and escapes are smart, ingenious and fascinating. They travel trough occupied Europe by foot, trains, boats and even bicycles. Their adventures include jailbreaks, organized escape networks, help form brave citizens and sometimes just plain luck!
The stories in the book are true and absolutely riveting.

Indeholder "Forord", "I. England", "II. De britiske nedkastninger", "III. De amerikanske nedkastninger", "IV. 'Utah'", "V. 'Omaha'", "VI. De britiske strande: Gold-Juno-Sword", "VII. Offentliggørelsen".

Et miks af enkeltpersoners beretninger og det mere forkromede overblik over hele operation Neptune på D-dag, 6 juni 1944. David Armine Howarth (28 juli 1912 - 2 juli 1991) har omhyggeligt udvalgt lidt over 30 personlige beretninger og flettet dem nydeligt sammen. Ordren til at starte invasionen var ikke nem at give for vejrudsigter, tidevandstabeller og månelys passede ikke godt sammen. En chance for rimeligt vejr fik Eisenhower til at trykke på startknappen, men ikke med let hjerte. Bombardementer, landsætninger og svævefly ramte ofte galt, men nok soldater med nok handlekraft kom frem og fik løst målene med at beskytte brohovederne mod de værste muligheder for tyske modangreb. Tyskernes dårlige organisering og modstridende interesser hjalp betydeligt. Fx var admiral Canaris og hele den militære efterretningstjeneste blevet fyret og en ny organisation under Himmler blev af de allierede opfattet som befolket af klumrekokke og amatører.
En general Richard Gale er den første allierede general på fransk jord og trods tabstallenes dystre sprog er han bestemt optimistisk over hvad han ser. Han kommer ind med svævefly og de er designet til at gå i stykker ved landingen, så det er ikke for bangebukse. Landingsstedet ser herrens ud bagefter, men der er forbavsende få sårede og døde. Faldskærmstropperne bliver derimod drysset ned på steder, der ikke passer så godt. Landsætningen ved Utah går fint selv om en stærkere strøm end beregnet flytter landgangen et par kilometer. Ved Omaha går alt tilsvarende galt. Bomberne rammer ikke og amfibietanks synker, så infanteriet er nødt til bare at komme væk fra stranden og begynde at slås. Men tyskerne (von Rundstedt) tøver og er i tvivl om det nu også er selve invasionen, der er i gang.

Glimrende og meget læsværdig bog. Masser af tilfældigheder, men den kolossale styrke bag ved invasionen tromler alt ned. Fokus i bogen er selve D-dag, så hvordan det siden gik, må man kigge i andre bøger efter.

A thrilling, action-packed account of the battle of Trafalgar that is a real page-turner. What I find astonishing is the idea of those sailing ships in battle, which is described well. Howarth relates the story without getting too deep into the politics of the era but obligingly includes details of Nelson's relationship with Lady Emma Hamilton and their daughter. Even though the battle was won, Nelson's death devastated the navy and that section was very moving to read. Highly recommended especially if a descriptive and succinct book is required.

My son, feeling sorry for me during COVID19 library closure, gave me all his favourite books to read. He was spot on with this one.½

I liked the writing style well enough; however, it felt just old-fashioned enough that I found it difficult to maintain focus. Part of this could be chalked up to personal circumstances, so I wouldn't dissuade anyone from reading the book if it interested them. It's certainly an interesting way to present the events leading up to the Conquest.

A terrific and concise narrative about the Norman Invasion, written in prose so clear that Strunk and White would say, "I don't know how he could have made it any better." Howarth presents the major figures of the Invasion as complicated people, and the Invasion itself as an example of what happens when luck intervenes in the best-laid plans. I woke up early to read it each day: is there a better endorsement?

Real-life story of Jan Baalstrud who survived in the Arctic mountains of Norway while being chased by Nazis. Extremely brave ordinary Norwegians took extraordinary risks in occupied Norway to try to get him to safety. This is an amazing story about what a human can endure and what good people will do to help a fellow human. An excellent survival story on par with Unbroken.½

In many ways David Howarth has done what other historical texts has not. Howarth admits his slight bias beforehand, and then does all he can throughout the text to present a balanced view - he quotes primary sources, and then explains why they are or are not accurate. In short, Howarth has done everything that makes a good historian good, or even great - he has tried to present the truest picture possible, with what scant evidence there is.

While the year 1066 immediately brings to mind the Battle of Hastings, the book itself details what life was like before, during, and after that time. He presents the historical context necessary to try to understand why Norway, Normandy, and England all acted in the manner in which they did. His overview is both in depth and concise, bound together by an unerringly accessible and direct prose.

I would highly recommend this book to just about anyone interested in this time period. Howarth is definitely a master at his trade. There is much to be admired in this book.

An older book (1977) but the author has a gift for explaining the personal side of history. Howarth reflects upon the mystery of the Anglo-Saxon defeat at Hastings, and how William's victory was most likely hollow to him.

I first read of Jan Baalsrud's amazing World War II adventure in a March 2016 NY Times Magazine article. Haunted by the description of a failed attempt by 12 Norwegians sailing from Scotland to land in Nazi occupied Norway in order to sabotage German installations, I had to find the book that chronicled the lone survivor, Jan Baalsrud and his perilous journey to freedom. By turns horrifying, awe-inspiring, and suspenseful David Howarth meticulously introduces the reader to "ordinary" Norwegians, who despite certain death if discovered by the Nazis, aided Baalsrud over a nine week period and ultimately enabled him to escape to Sweden.

Baalsrud's physical and mental stamina despite overwhelming odds, and the stories of the many villagers who bravely assisted him, make for a spellbinding true story that displays the very best of human nature. This is a story I cannot forget.

More than an account of the conquest of England, this book talks about the everyday people and their everyday lives in that pivotal year.

The Normans defeated the Saxons, but it was the English who ultimately won. The Normans were assimilated into the culture, and a new people were born. Howarth tells how this all happened.

Even if you're not into the intricacies of Harald vs. Harold, "1066" is still a good read and a look at how the English world was created.

More reviews at my WordPress site, Ralphsbooks.

Written about ten years after the end of WWII, this is the story of the one man who escaped from a failed attempt to invade northern Norway. The Germans intercepted the disguised fishing boat before the men, eight crew and four trained commandos (who were Norwegian patriots), could find their way to the mainland to set up a sabotage operation behind enemy lines. This one man managed to elude the Germans with the help of many local Norwegian people and was eventually carried into Sweden. It's amazing to read about.