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Library | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
Searching... Dallas Public Library | 940.5449 Crosby | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Independence Public Library | 940.54 CROSBY (AVIATION) | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
The true story of a World War II air force navigator and his courageous peers in a bomb group that flew missions over Germany. The book describes the missions the author flew, accounts of life with the boisterous 100th and an evaluation of the strain of the constant exposure to death and danger.
Summary
A personal account of a 1943 Group Navigator for the Bloody 100th Air Force bomb group describes his thirty-seven missions aboard the B-17s, recounting his team's triumphs, losses, near-escapes, and aerial warfare adventures. Reprint.
Reviews (8)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Crosby ``did everything wrong'' on his first WW II mission as navigator in a B-17 crew, but soon demonstrated a natural talent that elevated him to the position of navigator of a bomb group. This meant he was responsible for assembling as many as 2000 warplanes from various bases in England, leading them to their targets, then guiding the air crews home. The casualty rate was frightful, and Crosby here describes how he accomplished his intricate work despite growing fears of death or maiming. Anecdotes abound in these incident-rich pages, some funny, others cruel, like the tale of how a crew rid itself of an obnoxious member by convincing him that their plane had been hit so seriously that they had to bail out, and he alone did--over Germany. Written from the unusual perspective of a navigator, this is a compelling account of the air war against Germany. Crosby, now retired, is former director of Harvard's Writing Center. Illustrations. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
An affecting, ambivalent memoir from an Army Air Force veteran who survived the savage aerial engagements of WW II's ETO. Lead navigator in the 100th Bomb Group, which sustained staggering casualties at the Luftwaffe's hands, Crosby was responsible for guiding flotillas of UK-based B-17s to targets throughout occupied Europe. An archetypal straight arrow from mid- America, the well-educated and happily married author had little use for daredevils, drunks, goldbricks, lady-killers, or anyone else who treated combat as a less-than-serious business. Nor did he much appreciate the USAAF's bent for giving pilots preference (over bombardiers or pathfinders) on promotions, decorations, and command billets. Crosby provides a vivid account of what life was like on and off the flight line in East Anglia, as well as in the unfriendly skies above the Continent, where his notable accomplishments were matched by his hairbreadth escapes. During his extended tour, for example, he directed missions against objectives so remote that the raiders had to land in Africa or Russia rather than return to their home fields. On another occasion, his plane, badly damaged by flak, was obliged to shoot down ten German fighters to make it back for a crash landing on British soil. As his squadron lost men and machines, the high cost of conflict became an increasingly grave concern for Crosby. The author soldiered on, however, and he recalls now the relief he felt when Flying Fortresses began delivering food supplies (not ordnance) to the long-suffering people of liberated countries. In a low-key epilogue, he discloses that, though a regular attendee at his outfit's reunions, he turned actively anti-war during the 1960's. Uncommonly thoughtful recollections that address the moral ambiguities of a great cause without in any way denigrating the selfless valor or camaraderie that helped ennoble it. (Thirty-two pages of b&w photographs--not seen.)
Booklist Review
This memoir of World War II service with the Eighth Air Force has several things going for it that others of its ilk do not. Crosby was a navigator (eventually a group and even a wing lead navigator), which enables him to give a new slant on the art of war in a B-17. What's more, he served almost throughout the war with the famous 100th Bomber Group, the "Bloody Hundredth," known for its horrendous casualties and numerous eccentric or charismatic leaders and members. Finally, Crosby is an exceptionally clear, even colorful writer. The strategic bombing campaign has been nearly done to death in the memoir literature, but here is one that most World War II and aviation collections should seriously consider. ~--Roland Green
Library Journal Review
A navigator with the Eighth Air Force in England during World War II, Crosby served in one of the most badly mauled groups of the theater, the famous ``Bloody 100th.'' He rose through the ranks, by his own admission blundering through his first few missions, then gained skill and a professional reputation to become group navigator. Along the way there were more than 32 missions over German-held territory and the loss of many friends and fellow air crew. Crosby's name has figured in nearly every history of the Eighth; it is valuable to have his lucid and careful descriptions of action in his own words. He re-creates for us the sense of how it was when European skies were filled with noise and danger, when the fate of millions hung in the balance. An evocative and excellent memoir for general and specialized collections.-- Mel D. Lane, Sacramento, Cal. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Crosby ``did everything wrong'' on his first WW II mission as navigator in a B-17 crew, but soon demonstrated a natural talent that elevated him to the position of navigator of a bomb group. This meant he was responsible for assembling as many as 2000 warplanes from various bases in England, leading them to their targets, then guiding the air crews home. The casualty rate was frightful, and Crosby here describes how he accomplished his intricate work despite growing fears of death or maiming. Anecdotes abound in these incident-rich pages, some funny, others cruel, like the tale of how a crew rid itself of an obnoxious member by convincing him that their plane had been hit so seriously that they had to bail out, and he alone did--over Germany. Written from the unusual perspective of a navigator, this is a compelling account of the air war against Germany. Crosby, now retired, is former director of Harvard's Writing Center. Illustrations. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
An affecting, ambivalent memoir from an Army Air Force veteran who survived the savage aerial engagements of WW II's ETO. Lead navigator in the 100th Bomb Group, which sustained staggering casualties at the Luftwaffe's hands, Crosby was responsible for guiding flotillas of UK-based B-17s to targets throughout occupied Europe. An archetypal straight arrow from mid- America, the well-educated and happily married author had little use for daredevils, drunks, goldbricks, lady-killers, or anyone else who treated combat as a less-than-serious business. Nor did he much appreciate the USAAF's bent for giving pilots preference (over bombardiers or pathfinders) on promotions, decorations, and command billets. Crosby provides a vivid account of what life was like on and off the flight line in East Anglia, as well as in the unfriendly skies above the Continent, where his notable accomplishments were matched by his hairbreadth escapes. During his extended tour, for example, he directed missions against objectives so remote that the raiders had to land in Africa or Russia rather than return to their home fields. On another occasion, his plane, badly damaged by flak, was obliged to shoot down ten German fighters to make it back for a crash landing on British soil. As his squadron lost men and machines, the high cost of conflict became an increasingly grave concern for Crosby. The author soldiered on, however, and he recalls now the relief he felt when Flying Fortresses began delivering food supplies (not ordnance) to the long-suffering people of liberated countries. In a low-key epilogue, he discloses that, though a regular attendee at his outfit's reunions, he turned actively anti-war during the 1960's. Uncommonly thoughtful recollections that address the moral ambiguities of a great cause without in any way denigrating the selfless valor or camaraderie that helped ennoble it. (Thirty-two pages of b&w photographs--not seen.)
Booklist Review
This memoir of World War II service with the Eighth Air Force has several things going for it that others of its ilk do not. Crosby was a navigator (eventually a group and even a wing lead navigator), which enables him to give a new slant on the art of war in a B-17. What's more, he served almost throughout the war with the famous 100th Bomber Group, the "Bloody Hundredth," known for its horrendous casualties and numerous eccentric or charismatic leaders and members. Finally, Crosby is an exceptionally clear, even colorful writer. The strategic bombing campaign has been nearly done to death in the memoir literature, but here is one that most World War II and aviation collections should seriously consider. ~--Roland Green
Library Journal Review
A navigator with the Eighth Air Force in England during World War II, Crosby served in one of the most badly mauled groups of the theater, the famous ``Bloody 100th.'' He rose through the ranks, by his own admission blundering through his first few missions, then gained skill and a professional reputation to become group navigator. Along the way there were more than 32 missions over German-held territory and the loss of many friends and fellow air crew. Crosby's name has figured in nearly every history of the Eighth; it is valuable to have his lucid and careful descriptions of action in his own words. He re-creates for us the sense of how it was when European skies were filled with noise and danger, when the fate of millions hung in the balance. An evocative and excellent memoir for general and specialized collections.-- Mel D. Lane, Sacramento, Cal. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.