Title: Burma :The Forgotten War

Author: Jon Latimer

Genre: Nonfiction: History

Pages: 661

Rating: 4

Through festering jungle and across burning plains to high mountains and lazy rivers, the Burma campaign of the Second World War involved the longest retreat in British history, and the longest advance; long-range penetration miles behind enemy lines, vicious hand-to-hand fighting, and the horrors of forced labour

The Figureheads of the campaign were singular characters like Slim, Mountbatten, Stilwell and Wingate; while its ranks were dominated by ordinary soldiers gathered ‘like a whirlpool from the ends of the earth’ - from Britain, America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, West, East and South Africa, but overwhelmingly from India.

Jon Latimer draws these disparate strands together in a gripping narrative that encompasses everything from the widest political developments to detailed tactical operations. His focus is the experiences of thousands of ordinary people whose lives were transformed by this south-east Asian maelstrom, many of whom feel that they were forgotten. Burma ensures that none of them are


My thoughts

Would I recommend it? yes

Would I read more by this author? maybe

interesting and thoroughly researched book that has many references on the fighting in Burma during WWII. It covers the background, the initial defeats, the slow turning of the tide and the final victories as well as the focus that's on the military campaigns especially those of the English and American forces.It brings to live the characters it talks about, and makes you feel the things they went though ,with that said I want to say thank you to NetGalley for letting me read and review it .

Excellent rather lengthy narrative of the largely unknown and neglected history of the war in Burma. Very good read for history buffs.

I did not finish this book. I couldn't. It was extremely well researched and it was way to dry for me. There was no break and it was just too much for me. I think that if you are a history buff or are very interested in war this book would be for you, but not for me. The description was easy to read, the book not so much. Received this book as an ARC and I gave my review voluntarily.

It is very seldom that i read non fiction. Many years ago, and as a child, i knew someone who spoke about Burma and the Second World War. I was very young at the time to understand what went on in Burma, so when i spotted Jon Latimer's book 'Burma', my interest was aroused.

A very well written book which was very informative and interesting, but due to topic and amount of pages, it was by no means a quick read. i would recommend if you wish to know more about Burma during the Second World War.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy.

(Review has been posted on Goodreads and awaiting Amazon to publish my review)

There is no doubt that the author really enjoyed researching this subject.
Unfortunately too much detail made the story line confusing and tedious in my opinion.
If you need a reference book though this would be ideal.

"Burma: The Forgotten War" eBook was published in 2018 (original paper edition published in 2004) and was written by Jon Latimer. Mr. Latimer published several non-fiction books. 

I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of violence. The book covers the years of World War II detailing actions taken in what was then Burman (now known a Myanmar). 

Most of what I have read regarding World War II has been either centered on the European Theater or the Pacific Theater and focused on the forces of the US. Most of the Burma campaigns were centered around British or Commonwealth ground forces, though the US played a major role in the air engagements. 

I thought that the 16.5+ hours I spent reading this 961-page history were interesting. The page count seems high, but the last third of the book was citations of reference. Certainly, there was a lot of information presented that I had not known about before. Some history books are presented in a very readable fashion. I have reviewed a few of those in the past. This was not one of those books.

This was very dry. It is filled with names, dates, and locations. The fact that the locations are for places I had never heard of did not help. Also, I found that the numerical military unit references used for both British and Japanese units was very confusing. I also felt that the book was very choppy, jumping back and forth in time.

If you are researching military efforts in Burma during WWII, you will find this a very useful book. It does a good job of conveying the misery that troops of both sides had to endure for most of the Burma war efforts.  The perspective presented on the war and especially the Commonwealth troops engaged in it very British. The chosen cover art is OK. I give this novel a 3 out of 5 based on general readability.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/. 

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

This is excellent comprehensive reading of the campaign of Burma during WWII. I was sorry to learn the author has passed away.
This book was written with extraordinary detail of the war effects on Burma, . The author writes of the clash of varied countries involved in the fight and how the fighting affected Burma and its people. .
For all who enjoy WWII history this is fascinating and rich historical book. Very well done and pleasing to read.
Thank you for the review copy which did not influence my review.
This is a book to savor in order to better understand the history.

A brilliant, informative, insightful book. I didn’t know much about the war in Burma before I read this book, but this was rich in detail and fascinating facts.

Burma: The Forgotten War is an intriguing, intense look at the battles fought in Burma, in an attempt at maintaining an Allied toehold in the orient. Roosevelt and Churchill formed a China Theatre of War in January of 1942 in order to protect Australia, New Zealand and the balance of the Pacific as the battles for Europe ground on. Jon Latimer brings us a thorough and insightful entry into this little publicised segment of WWII.

Though I have read other histories of Burma, The Forgotten War is a marathon of information and insight into the why's and how's of the battles fought by the allies in the northern Pacific Theatre. This is a history I can recommend to history buffs, but also to families of those soldiers and sailors who battled in these little known but massive movements to cement our hold in the Pacific. Without their sacrifice, so much of the world we know would have been lost.

This was a book I had to take in smaller doses than usual. About 20 hours of reading time, but another 12 hours of notes, sources and references indicate the intense amount of research involved in bringing this history to life. A reviewer cannot do justice to this work with only five stars to work with. Originally published in 2004 by John Murray Publishers, I am grateful to Thistle Publishing for bringing this back around to the general public. I missed it the first time around.

I received a free electronic copy of this history from Netgalley, John Latimer, and Thistle Publishing in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me

Thank you to NetGalley, Thistle Publishing and the author, Jon Latimer, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of Burma in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
I thought this book was extremely well researched and written. It offered a more in depth analysis of the war in Burma.
Definitely well worth a read for fans of history.

A very detailed account of the war nobody really knew much about. A lot of actors, a lot of political and economic interests concentrated on a tiny territory of Burma. Author did a great job researching this book. There are account of witnesses and eye-witnesses of many events.
Author brings together histories of many countries in the region to explain the reasons and consequences of events.
All of us knew of WWII and it's consequences in Europe and USA. We all know of who did what, why and when. However, what was happening in Asia, was overlooked, was pushed on the back bench of world history and world interests.
This book makes Burma The Forgotten War less forgotten and less unknown.
This is a worthy read for those interested in military history and in the history of international relations.

This book was about a part of history I always considered myself knowledgeable in, but I never knew about this. This was heartbreaking and encouraging and just toyed with your emotions. To know this really happened hits home all the more. This is a well researched read that will have you hooked on the first page. It's entirely gripping and once I started it was something I thought about. I still do, and I finished the book a few weeks ago. If you love history this is the book for you. 4 out of 5 stars.

A very well researched book about a lesser-known war. I am sure readers who enjoy history would be glad to read this one. An insightful read!

Such an interesting and thoroughly researched book. I have a deep interest in WW2 history but the war in Burma was something I knew little of.

It was heavy going at times through no fault of the author. Of necessity, it had to contain so many references to soldiers, regiments, and disparate ethnic groups who fought in this war. In the end, it was worth it.

There is also some useful early explanatory material giving a history not only of Burma, but the often war-like relationships between the major powers in the region - China and Japan. That part also serves as a useful introduction to the different political approaches to this region by the British and the United States.

Recommended to all history buffs particularly those interested in WW2.

I received a free copy of the book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


READING PROGRESS
October 7, 2018 – Started Reading
October 11, 2018 – Shelved

I love History and Military History in particular and this well researched and written book on 'The forgotten war' did not disappoint. The Burma Campaign is a difficult subject for both reader and writer and this book does much to plug the gap. Informative, detailed and covering both the Military and the Human aspect of this terrible conflict. A must read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thistle Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Burma’ in exchange for my honest review.

I love reading history books and when this book become available to read, it gave me a great opportunity to read about a subject I know nothing about and I was not disappointed the book is well researched and well written. and gives a very detailed look at the Burma campaign of WW2 . Highly recommended for those interested in the history World War II but also recommended because it's a history that needs to be told.

I normally read novels, and don't have an interest in combat or warfare; but made a mistake in selecting this book to read in my eagerness to learn more about this region, not realizing this is a military history. In the beginning I found this to be dry and academic, as if reading a compilation of footnotes, but the more I read the more interested I became; so I'm sure every reader reading this genre on purpose gives it 5-stars.

A sprawling yet balanced account of the travails undergone by armies from Japan, Britain, China, and America; including personal accounts of Africans, Dutch, Australians, Indians, et al of warring against the Burmese (Karen, Chins, Kachins, Shans, Mons, Nagas...) with their 126 different languages. It is incredible to me how much these people on all sides endured, and what all they were up against. Latimer's attention to the "pervasive European racial arrogance, which relegated all Asians to a lower tier," along with acknowledging admiration so many of these military men hold for their enemies is commendable. The scope of involvement in this world war is stupefying. I learned so much about empires and alliances, collaboration and deceit, suffering and sacrifice, death and disease, nature and weather, bombing and destruction, cruelty and heroism, rations and famine, stench and pestilence, suicides and desertion. My favorite bits were about elephants proving more reliable than tanks and the discovery of a strange lizard that says "Fuck You".

Wow, what a book. It is chock full of information on their fight during world war II. I recommend this book. It's a great read.

Incredibly detailed history of the fighting in Burma in WW2. Could do with a good editor - there are a number of examples of bad english. Also needed is some means of differentiating Japanese unit IDs from Allied ones - the author often switches seamlessly from discussing British units to Japanese ones in the same paragraph, which I found confusing. Overall the book reads like a PhD thesis given a makeover for general publication.
All that said, I did find the book interesting and worth reading.

No-one could fault Latimer on the forensic research that lies behind his writing this weighty tome on the Burma campaign. His reportage of what really was experienced by the individuals involved is both vivid and gripping. Heroism, stamina and bravery jump of the page and certainly merit telling. I found it a little difficult to follow the geography of this campaign as the combatants covered thousands of miles through jungle and over jagged passes - perhaps a campaign wall-map could be enclosed. Nonetheless, Latimer is to be congratulated on doing a great service to the millions who fought in "The forgotten war" by giving this campaign the respect and analysis it clearly deserves. His book is a worthy addition to the Burma War literature.