Jun 1, 2020
Peter Fitzsimons is my favourite Aussie historian. His books about WW1 and WW2 are on my research bookcase. His book about the legendary Nancy Wake is now $2.99!
Click here to buy
The gripping true story of the woman who became the Gestapo’s most wanted spy. In the early 1930s, Nancy Wake was a young woman enjoying a bohemian life in Paris. By the end of the Second World War, she was the Gestapo’s most wanted person.
As a naïve, young journalist, Nancy Wake witnessed a horrific scene of Nazi violence in a Viennese street. From that moment, she declared that she would do everything in her power to rid Europe of the Nazis. What began as a courier job here and there became a highly successful escape network for Allied soldiers, perfectly camouflaged by Nancy’s high-society life in Marseille.
Her network was soon so successful – and so notorious – that she was forced to flee France to escape the Gestapo, who had dubbed her “the white mouse” for her knack of slipping through its traps. But Nancy was a passionate enemy of the Nazis and refused to stay away. Supplying weapons and training members of a powerful underground fighting force, organising Allied parachute drops, cycling four hundred kilometres across a mountain range to find a new transmitting radio – nothing seemed too difficult in her fight against the Nazis. Peter FitzSimons reveals Nancy Wake’s compelling story, a tale of an ordinary woman doing extraordinary things.
For fans of A Woman of No Importance and Code Name: Lise comes the true story behind the historical fiction novels Code Name Helène and Liberation.
May 29, 2020
In 1982, Elspeth Beard embarked on a two-year solo journey with her motorbike that would take her around the world. She is the first British woman to do so. The great stories behind these places and her achievement as a solo rider have been turned into a brilliant book, Lone Rider, in 2017. More: Elspeth Elspeth
Source: Stunning Portraits Of Elspeth Beard, The First British Woman To Ride A Motorcycle Around The World
May 28, 2020
In this riveting account, a Navajo veteran shares how he and his fellow Navajo recruits created the US military’s only unbroken code during World War II. “You don’t need to be a fan of World War II literature to appreciate this memoir” (Associated Press).
On Sale for $1.99 on Amazon
Publisher Description
The first and only memoir by one of the original Navajo code talkers of WWII.
His name wasn’t Chester Nez. That was the English name he was assigned in kindergarten. And in boarding school at Fort Defiance, he was punished for speaking his native language, as the teachers sought to rid him of his culture and traditions. But discrimination didn’t stop Chester from answering the call to defend his country after Pearl Harbor, for the Navajo have always been warriors, and his upbringing on a New Mexico reservation gave him the strength—both physical and mental—to excel as a marine.
During World War II, the Japanese had managed to crack every code the United States used. But when the Marines turned to its Navajo recruits to develop and implement a secret military language, they created the only unbroken code in modern warfare—and helped assure victory for the United States over Japan in the South Pacific.
INCLUDES THE ACTUAL NAVAJO CODE AND RARE PICTURES
May 12, 2020
When I was doing research for my first book “In The Blood of the Greeks” – I wanted to give my character, Zoe Lambros, a role model that she was inspired by. I just love research and this led me down a whole different rabbit hole.
I discovered the heroic Laskarina Bouboulina – with a name like that you have to be special. Laskarina Bouboulina was a Greek naval commander, heroine of the Greek War of Independence in 1821, and allegedly first woman-admiral of the Imperial Russian Navy. Pretty nifty.
Here’s a great article about her here:
http://neoskosmos.com/news/en/Laskarina-Bouboulina
May 3, 2020
My interest in History is usually centered around WW1, WW2. I had a passing knowledge about American history but that’s changed recently when I’ve been reading more about the Civil War and now the Revolutionary War. This article from Mighty Girls is fascinating.
Sybil Ludington: The 16-Year-Old Revolutionary Hero Who Rode Twice As Far As Paul Revere
The courageous teenager rode 40 miles on horseback to muster local militia troops in response to a British attack on the town of Danbury during the U.S. Revolutionary War.
On the night of April 26, 1777, 16-year-old Sybil Ludington climbed onto her horse and set off on a mission: a 40-mile ride to muster local militia troops in response to a British attack on the town of Danbury, Connecticut. Riding all night through rain — and traveling twice the distance that Paul Revere rode during his famous midnight ride — Sybil returned home at dawn having given nearly the entire regiment of 400 Colonial troops the order to assemble.
Following the battle, General George Washington personally thanked Sybil for her service and bravery. Although every American school child knows the story of Paul Revere — largely thanks to the famous poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow — unfortunately few are taught about Sybil Ludington’s courageous feat.
Read more about Sybil here: Sybil Ludington: The 16-Year-Old Revolutionary Hero Who Rode Twice As Far As Paul Revere
Peter Fitzsimons is my favourite Aussie historian. His books about WW1 and WW2 are on my research bookcase. His book about the legendary Nancy Wake is now $2.99!
