May Book Vote and Last Month's Results

For our May book vote we are looking at the Combat series, with 5 titles looking at some fascinating World War II subjects vying for your vote. To help you make your decision the editor has put together a brief description of the kind of material each book could cover.

CBT: Australian Soldier vs Italian Soldier: Tobruk 1941

Australian forces captured the Libyan port of Tobruk from its Italian defenders in January 1941. When Rommel’s army then pushed the Commonwealth forces back, a largely Australian garrison remained in the city and resisted all Axis attempts to storm it. Eventually relieved after more than five months in the front line, the Australians clashed repeatedly with their Italian counterparts in a series of hard-fought battles amid the harsh terrain of the Libyan desert.

CBT: Japanese Naval Infantryman vs US Marine: 1941–43

During the Pacific and South East Asia campaigns in World War II, the highly trained troops of Japan’s Special Naval Landing Forces played a major role alongside much larger numbers of Japanese Army soldiers. Deployed first in a defensive role and then as an amphibious assault force, the US Marine Corps fought the SNLF in three major battles that tested both sides to the limit: Wake Island (December 1941), New Georgia (June–October 1943) and Tarawa (November 1943).

CBT: Soviet Rifleman vs German Pionier: Stalingrad 1942–43

By late 1942, the Soviets held only a tenth of the contested city of Stalingrad. Keen to complete his conquest of the city, Hitler sent in additional German combat engineers who were skilled in all aspects of urban warfare. Facing them were hardened Soviet troops who had perfected the use of defensive techniques in a built-up environment. The two sides fought for control of the Krasnaya Barrikady ordnance factory, which the Soviets defended as ferociously as the Germans attacked it.

CBT: Hitlerjugend Soldier vs Canadian Soldier: Normandy 1944

Canadian and Waffen-SS troops – particularly the hastily trained young soldiers of 12. SS-Panzer-Division Hitlerjugend – faced one another in battle following the D-Day landings of June 1944. Canadian troops from a number of distinguished regiments repeatedly clashed with the Hitlerjugend, notably at Authie, Bretteville and Soumont-Saint-Quentin. The struggle quickly took on an especially bitter nature, fuelled by the massacre of Canadian prisoners by Hitlerjugend personnel.

CBT: British Airborne Soldier vs Waffen-SS Soldier: Arnhem 1944

During Operation Market Garden in September 1944, the glider troops of Britain’s 1st Airlanding Brigade played a crucial role in securing and defending the Allied perimeter around Arnhem. Facing them were understrength Waffen-SS units that were hastily formed into ad hoc battle groups, some supported by armour. The troops on both sides would have their tactical flexibility and powers of endurance tested to the limit in the bitter battles that ensued.

Head onto the homepageto cast your vote!

Now lets look back at last month's Book Vote, which saw 5 aviation titles battling it out for your vote.

It was pretty much neck and neck between Buccaneer Units of the Cold War and A-20 Havoc Units of World War 2, with the other three topics trailing behind by quite some margin. Not quite the epic drama of last month, but interesting nonetheless.