German Artillery At War 1939-45 - Vol.1

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German Artillery At War 1939-45 - Vol.1
Ref. # 7059
Author: Frank V. De Sisto Publisher: Concord
Pages: 72
Photographs: B&W 203 Price: £12.99

Introduction

Purely photographic books seem to be gaining in popularity lately, and Concord seem to well ahead of everybody else in producing this sort of book. Continuing the theme, here they look at the main artillery pieces employed by German forces during WWII.

The Book

As with all of the 'Armour at War' series from Concord, the book begins with a short section on the main artillery pieces used by the German forces during WWII, breaking them down into Divisional Field Artillery, Divisional Infantry Guns, Divisional Anti-Tank Artillery, and Divisional Anti-Aircraft Artillery. This is followed by a short section explaining how the guns were moved, and another on spotting for he Artillery. Don't be expecting in-depth studies from these sections.....all of them together only cover three sides and are only meant as the briefest of 'scene-setters' for the real content of the book....the photographs.

The black & white photographs, approximately seventy of them, are as said, the real content, or where the real value of this book lies, and that's because of the use of thorough and well-researched captions. Without the captions, the photographs would be interesting to glance through. With the captions, they become something to pour over time and again. Somewhere to spot details never noticed before, check references, and to find inspiration.

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The actual Artillery depicted in the photographs are varied, with some being the subject of just one photograph, whilst others spread over many. Included are the 2cm FlaK30 & 38, 2cm Flakveirling, 3.7cm FlaK 18, 36 & 37, 5cm FlaK41, 8.8cm FlaK18, 36 & 37, PaK 35/36, 5cm PaK 38, 7.5cm PaK 97/38, PaK 40, and lots more!

Conclusion

I'm a big fan of these Concord books. I enjoy returning to them again and again, and I haven't yet failed to find something new each time I do so. In between read-throughs I often refer back to them looking for one specific detail I remember seeing and need confirmation of. Whether you just enjoy looking through extremely well-captioned period photographs, or are looking for inspiration, or details of a specific piece, you can't go wrong by putting one of these on your bookshelf. I'm already looking forward to Volume 2! Highly recommended.

Thanks to Bookworld for the review sample. To see other titles as well as the Concord list, please see their website: BOOKWORLD