Compulsively Aimless

France fell to the German Blitzkrieg in six weeks.  A complete contrast to the four years of trench warfare of WWI.  From the invasion to the occupation to the Allies retaking Paris, I've collected several books on the French experience. 1.  Strange Victory: Hitler's Conquest of France, Ernest May (2000).   Details how Hitler believed in his victory over the French.  Bought new. 2. And the Show Went On: Cultural Life in Nazi-Occupied Paris, Alan Riding (2010).   During the Nazi occupation, cultural life in Paris continued to thrive.  Maurice Chevalier and Edith Piaf sang in night clubs, Picaso continued to paint, and Jean Paul Sartre wrote and produced plays.  Bought used at BJ's books in Warrenton. 3.  Americans in Paris: Life and Death Under Nazi Occupation, Glass, Charles (2011).   A fascinating series of accounts of Americans caught in Paris during the Nazi occupation.  Many heroic stories you've never heard in...

1.  Guadalcanal Diary, Richard Tregaskis (1943).   War correspondent Tregaskis was the original embedded journalist who wrote this classic WWII account of the Marines fighting in the South Pacific.  Written in a series of journal entries.  Black and white photos.  Bought used, no recollection where.   2.  Invasion Diary, Richard Tregaskis (1944).  Tregaskis's follow up to Guadalcanal Diary, Invasion Diary follows the American landings in Italy in 1943.  Black and white photos.  Judging by the map in the book, I may have bought at a used book store on Beaver Island, Michigan.  Once owned by gentleman who lived on Harvard Street, Norfolk, VA.     3.  The Forgotten Soldier: The Classic WWII Autobiography, Guy Sajer (1990). Told  from the perspective of a German soldiers on the Russian front.  Bought from the Department of State used book store.   4.  Soldat: Reflections of German S...