Pals Can anyone advise me if the following to 2 titles are infact just the same book. The Bitter Sea:The Brutal WW II Fight For The Mediterranean. The Bitter Sea:The Struggle For Mastery In The Mediterranean 1935-1949
Currently reading The Bitter Sea:The Struggle For Mastery In The Mediterranean 1935-1949 have you read it? I'm about a thrd through and finding it a intersting mix of little known facts and far fetched theories but would love a second opinion ...".
Hi Tired I ordered a copy a few days back. Should have it early next week at the latest I hope. It is the paperback :Brutal WWII Fight edition.
Currently reading The Bitter Sea:The Struggle For Mastery In The Mediterranean 1935-1949 have you read it? Hi TiredOldSoldier. I finished reading it last night. The book is easy to read but covers so much that imho it's probably best to have at least a good overall view of events in the Mediterranean theatre before reading it. I had a good basic knowledge of the 'well known' events, their chronological order etc so that helped me throughout. What I had little idea about was the behind the scenes political manoeuvering, the complexities of trying deal with the different players in Greece & the Balkans etc and the extent to which Vichy leaders were pro German. I'm about a thrd through and finding it a intersting mix of little known facts and far fetched theories but would love a second opinion ...". This certainly got my attention. in December 1941 the Royal Navy suffered a series of heavy blows including brilliant successes by Italian special forces. The author writes on p.121 (paperback) "In December 1941 Britain's Mediteranean Fleet lost the naval war" That pretty emphatic. They hadn't been knocked back or lost a battle, they'd been defeated. They'd lost the war. However, by page 241 the author seems to have changed his mind as to the severity and effect of December 1941 on the RN Med Fleet. Around September 1943 and talking about the Italian Navy special forces ... " ..... whose mezzi insidiosi had, barely two years previously, almost brought British naval power in the Mediterranean to its knees" Two different opinions there of the same events in time. Was December 1941 a knockout blow administered to the RN Fleet in the Med or was it left reeling after a series of heavy punches that nearly put it on its knees?
