Page 94 - History of War - Issue 30-16

REVIEWS

SISTERS SOMME
OF

RECOMMENDEDREADING THE
Author: Penny Starns Publisher: The History Press Price: £9.99
THE LAST DAYS AREVEALINGANDOFTENTROUBLINGLOOKATTHEOTHERSIDEOFTHEBATTLEFIELD
OF STALIN
If there ever was a case of poetic The Order of St John of Jerusalem Ambulance the grisly effects of industrialised warfare are
justice, it’s that of Joseph Stalin’s Brigade Hospital (better known as the Brigade dealt with. The description of experimental
death. Unconventionally, this is Hospital), accepted its irst patients on 7 techniques to i nd a method for safely removing
where Joshua Rubenstein’s The Last September 1915. As World War I descended shrapnel from the brain, for instance, is not for
Days Of Stalin begins, tracing his into the muddy nightmare of trench warfare, squeamish readers.
past backwards as it follows the this hospital would be at the forefront of the It is common knowledge that the lot of
Russian premiere’s activities in the years following the struggle to keep pace with the murderous the humble Tommy was not a happy one, but
end of World War II, charting his activities and examining advances in military technology. Starns sheds further light on the miseries
what might have been. Inevitably, the answer to this With 18 wards, housed in prefabricated and injustices they faced. For instance, those
question is ‘things would have become a hell of a lot buildings, the Brigade Hospital became suffering from the results of ‘friendly i re’ or
worse.’ More than anything else, this book highlights recognised as one of the inest facilities accidents would not be eligible for a disability
what a dangerous prospect Stalin’s rule would have available for the treatment of the most severely pension after the war, as if their injuries were
been had he survived longer. wounded soldiers from the Western Front. somehow not as deserving as those inl icted by
With an x-ray department and a cardiograph the enemy.
THE TOMMIES’ f l Focusing on the medical staff, especially
MANUAL 1916 the nurses, who did their best in an often
For this work, Hannah Holman nightmarish world, this is an engrossing but
has searched through hundreds uncomfortable read.
of British army manuals and
collated them into a single
volume. They give the reader
a taste of the plethora of
information issued to frontline “IT IS
troops during the war and go
on the Western Front. Need to know how to construct a COMMON
some way to imagining what life would have been like
put a gas mask on a horse? This book has you covered. KNOWLEDGE
trench, distinguish a friendly aircraft from an enemy or

NORSE MYTHS: THAT THE
VIKING LEGENDS OF
HEROES AND GODS LOT OF THE
Viking mythology has lasted HUMBLE
through the ages, and is still
today. With this book, Dougherty TOMMY
prevalent in popular culture
attempts to ind out why these
stories are as immortal as the gods they portray. The WAS NOT A
book also explores the origins of Viking myths and HAPPY ONE,
sagas, and analyses the cultural aspects of their
countries at the time it was practised. This truly is an BUT STARNS
religion and how it linked into cultures in neighbouring
SHEDS
exploration of Viking culture that everyone can enjoy.
THE TUDOR COOKBOOK
Do you love the Tudors? Do FURTHER
you equally love cooking? Is LIGHT ON THE
your love for cooking and the
swans? You’re in luck. The Tudor MISERIES AND
Tudors eclipsed by your hate for
Cookbook collates real dishes INJUSTICES
from cookbooks of old, such
as The Good Huswifes Juwell THEY FACED”
from 1596. The meals, ranging from main courses to
desserts (and home remedies) can all be recreated in
a modern kitchen – but that’s not to say they should
be. The instructions for the recipes range from the
peculiar to the outright hilarious (for example, “For to
seth a pyke. Kill it in the head.”) Needless to say, the
book is not suitable for vegetarians, or really anyone
who gets queasy at the sights of entrails.

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