.
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by Lucy Betteridge-Dyson.
Hardback (6.3×9.5 inches). 328 pages. 2025.
Subtitle: The Battle for Arakan
I was a tad uneasy by page 50 and moreso by page 71. It took me that long to figure out why I was having concerns — the prose brought in a lot of ancillary information that detracted from the chronological overview. I didn’t seem to be getting any closer to a history of the battle than when I started.
Now, I enjoy a little background to the units and don’t mind a bit of purple prose from time to time regarding the environment and soldiers’ hardships, but it seemed to go on too long without hooking me into the battle.
All is not lost, for the information about the 81st and 82nd West African divisions proved new to me and informative. I read little about them in other books on Burma, but in this case, the presentation was fine. Or I was getting used to skimming the prose, which I did a lot.
The OOBs are generally helpful for an overview and the tactical descriptions once battle is joined offer a fair overview of the movements and actions.
The book contains four color photos, 16 black and white photos, and four black and white maps.
I’ve reviewed a few books on Burma, including Robert Lyman’s inspiring A War of Empires: Japan, India, Burma & Britain 1941-45 (see the review in the September 2021 AAR). I mention this only because he offered up a quote plastered on the front cover of this book: “A brilliant debut”. I’m afraid I can’t agree, but in a stretch I’ll give the benefit of ties go to the author.
Enjoyed it.
— Reviewed by Russ Lockwood
