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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 940.542591092
EAN num: 9781602391901
ISBN number: 1602391904
Label: Skyhorse Publishing
Manufacturer: Skyhorse Publishing
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 358
Printing Date: 2007-10
Publishing house: Skyhorse Publishing
Sale Popularity Level: 55935
Studio: Skyhorse Publishing
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Product Description:
George MacDonald Fraser—beloved for his series of Flashman historical novels—offers an action-packed memoir of his experiences in Burma during World War II. Fraser was only 19 when he arrived there in the war’s final year, and he offers a first-hand glimpse at the camaraderie, danger, and satisfactions of service. A substantial Epilogue, occasioned by the 50th anniversary of VJ-Day in 1995, adds poignancy to a volume that eminent military historian John Keegan described as “one of the great personal memoirs of the Second World War.”
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Rated by buyers -
If you're looking for history that lives, for a first-hand account of what war is really like - or can be - or for an often poignant, often entertaining, occasionally shocking reminder of the bravery and courage of soldiers who have barely escaped childhood, you'll have to look long and hard for better than this.
Fraser gives us 'the other side of the coin' - there's no chest-beating 'War Is Bad' sentimentality here, no complaining, no self-pity. He brings vividly to life a group of comrades who fought because they believed in something, who would have carried on fighting if asked to, and who died, forgotten or demeaned through revisionist histories, for the freedoms and rights that we enjoy today.
But he gives us even more: as you'd expect from such a classy best-selling author, he gives us a riviting, fast-paced soldier's tale, something that were it not true would easily sit with any novel on the shelves of your local bookshop. He gives us something which, when all's said and done, is absolutely readable. And for that, as much as anything else, you should want to buy this book.
Rated by buyers -
It is not often you see this many reviews all of which are 5 stars so when one does you pretty much know that this is a special book. All the reviews for the book are spot on. It rings of authenticity, something that it is usually difficult for a writer do but when you finish this book you have a feeling about this man and his experiences with Nine Section that, at least for me, I never felt before and I have read many military history books. Nine Section is 10 men, like an American army squad led my a non-commissioned officer who is more of of the men rather than an officer. There is no big picture here, just what faced this one small group of men in a very difficult time and place.
Fraser's description of the 50th anniversary of VJ Day and his reluctant participation was very moving.
His commentary on the "spirtual hypochondria" of the modern world was absolutely accurate. (pg. 89-90) I loved his comment on intrusive modern television journalists when he said, "I can regret, though, that there were no modern television "journalists" transported back in time to ask Grandarse (a Nine Section soldier): "How die you FEEL when you saw Corporal Little shot dead?" I would have like to his his reply."
Rated by buyers -
Even when you want them too...
Ok, just kidding. But that is the sort of cynical joke old Fraser would appreciate.
Old soldiers tales are a neglected genre but one thousands of years old, a genre that has produced such classics as Anabasis, and Seven Pillers of Wisdom. While Quartered Safe Out Here does not rise to that level, it is a gem in it's own right.
If there is one word that describes this book, it is authenticity. Fraser sounds like an old soldier. The book reads, not like an intellectual telling of the strange customs of His Majesties Servants, but like what you would expect a veteran telling tales at a pub to sound like. A comparatively well educated, Old Soldier, but an Old Soldier nonetheless and no different from others.
In this book, Fraser tells of his service with the Border Regiment. These are as he puts it, "A martial race of men"; with the fatalistic acceptance of bloodshed, grimly practical outlook on war, and piratical spirit of the Anglo-scottish frontier brigands of yore. As well as the constant grumbling which sounds most soldierly. Fraser mixes with his comrades well. He is often harsh in his outlook, but he does not glorify war and certainly does not pretend it is enjoyabale. Nor does he display the fashionable horror at war which in some writers seems to be an obligatory assurance to the reader rather then an expression of a writer's true outlook. War is a job to Fraser and it was as well that it be done right. He seems to have a rather grim personality and a cynical sense of irony which may grate on some, but sounds like one made coarse by the stress of battle. In other words he sounds believable. His means of narrative is also believable. He gives scenes as they appear in his memory, some banal, some humorous or carrying a bit of pathos. And sometimes even a minor degree of romance(yes, statistically it has to happen like the movies SOMETIMES)as when he hears a man singing the regimental song during an assault on a Japanese position, and comments that he really did hear it sung in battle and that was something worth telling about. Of course Fraser follows by telling how one of his comrades told the singer to shut up. So much for romance.
Those who are uneasy with the values of previous generations might find it hard to take. Fraser is comfortable with his dislike of the Japanese, approves of the British Empire, and has an innate dislike of change and though some readers can accept that not all will. Like Tommy Atkins in Kipling's poem, he could be a rude fellow sometimes but he was there when he was needed and our generation owes something to him.
In any case it was a well written work, that shows a convincing picture of what it was like to do service in those times. Many writings have been written which told of the lives of soldiers. This one tells what it is to be a soldier. And tells it well and enjoyably. To think of Quartered Safe Out Here as giving profound messages would be wrong. Fraser is not shy about his opinions but his opinions, whatever their value, have been heard before and are not either more or less valid because of his experiences. Rather, Fraser gives an authentic picture of what it was like. You can feel your feet ache from the endless marching, feel the weight of your knapsack on your back, smell the smell of death and experience the many and various fears that constitute a soldier's life. It is a great book and well worth your time.
Rated by buyers -
2001's "Quartered Safe Out Here" is George MacDonald Fraser's superbly written and moving recollection of his service wtih the British 14th Army in the Burma Theater at the close of the Second World War.
Fraser was a 19 year-old private, fresh from a "public" school education and assigned to an infantry section full of seasoned veterans in one of the most dangerous combat zones of the war. A journalist and novelist later in life, Fraser didn't get around to writing about his wartime experiences until half a century after the fact. As a result, his narrative is admittedly episodic. Fraser makes an effort to place his often vivid recollections in context provided by the official history, but this account is in no way meant to be a unit or campaign history.
Fraser is that unfortunately rare type, an infantry private with real writing skills. His section mates become living, breathing characters to the reader. His impressions of the jungle, the heat, the monsoons, and combat with the Japanese are heartbreakingly real. The respect of the 14th Army for its commander, future Field Marshal Bill Slim, shines through. Fraser's portraits of British, Indian, and Gurkha soldiers are by turns funny and awe-inspiring in capturing their stotic professionalism under conditions of boredom and terror. His observations of the attitudes and expectations of his fellow soldiers provide some pungent perspective on just how much the world has changed since 1945.
"Quartered Safe Out Here" is very highly recommended as a superbly written and brutally honest account of a forgotten theater of World War II, a reading experience for the casual reader and the student of history alike.
Rated by buyers -
If you have any interest in WWII (or any military conflict), buy this book. It is one of the best, a great read, and great history. One of George MacDonald Fraser's finest works.
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