[b]Rating[/b]: 5 out of 5 stars The importance of being Ernest? Well over forty years after his death in 1978, post-war Tory Transport minister, Ernest Marples remains a deeply controversial figure.. Emerging initially as a relatively dynamic, young thrusting politician in the comparatively placid world of 1950s Conservative politics, today there are more than a few clouds over his character namely the apparent conflict of interest between his pro-car transport reforms and personal business interests, his tax exile and his penchant for being whipped while wearing women's clothes. But these aren't even the most controversial things about him as he is strongly associated with Lord Beeching whose 'reforms' devastated the British railway industry. in the 1960s. David Brandon and Martin Upham's extremely thorough biography covers both the details of Marples' own life while also thoroughly exploring the history of the transport network and providing a context for Marple's controversial decisions.
NetGalley, Chris Hallam

The Death Railway is an accurate account of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Kappe. He experienced the atrocities of the PsOW that the Japanese forced to build a railway through Western Thailand to Myanmar. The terrain of this area was rugged, the temperature was hot, and the treatment of these men was abysmal. What these prisoners underwent was horrific and unimaginable... If you are interested in WWII history that is more obscure and less talked about, this is a great book to read! It was very educational but also truthfully graphic.
NetGalley, Meradith Thayer

There is—fortunately!—a steady stream of books these days restoring the rightful place of women in history. These include neglected figures in the women’s suffrage movement in the US and the UK. The story of Lydia Becker is among the latter, and I am very pleased to have made Becker’s acquaintance, however belatedly. Before there was Emmaline Pankhurst or Millicent Fawcett, there was Lydia Becker. Or more accurately, because there was Lydia Becker, there were Emmaline Pankhurst and Millicent Fawcett. And the enfranchisement of British women. Becker was a gifted orator, writer, administrator, publicist, propagandist, strategist, and politician. She was the leading British suffragist of her day—a celebrity of international stature. Her prominence and power are evident, in part, in the degree to which she was publicly attacked and ridiculed in newspaper cartoons and other forms of invective. You have to be a household name for that type of thing to find an audience. (There was also.. Read more
NetGalley, E W Parker

[b]Rating[/b]: 5 out of 5 stars Wow! This is a fascinating and well documented look at the myths surrounding the 20th Century’s most evil dictator.
NetGalley, Caroline Palmer

“One of the finest Falklands accounts, written by a man who was in the heart of the action. Phil Neame brings alive both the grit of the men at the sharp end, and the decision making of their commanders.”
Dan Snow, Popular Historian and Television Presenter