Beyond the Call of Duty - Isabel George

This book tells the stories of four canine heroes from different eras. For the most part, the stories lead me to other books that are dedicated to the dogs.

First is Smoky from WWII. She's a little Yorkie that meant a great deal to the men around her, especially William Wynne. Wynne later wrote a book called Yorkie Doodle Dandy. The chapter in this particular book was a bit tedious, because there was so much background to the overall war that wasn't really relevant.

Next up is Antis, also from WWII. A Czech soldier takes his dog up into the air. There are two books I found that caught my eye on this one. The first is mentioned in this book, Freedom in the Air by Hamish Ross. Then there's The Dog Who Could Fly by Damien Lewis. I think this was probably my favorite section of the book.

After Antis, I read about Tangye, during the 2000s in Afghanistan. An energetic Labrador, he was important enough that a mission was undertaken by the Nowzad charity to bring him to the UK. The book I feel would pair with this story is by the founder of the charity, Pen Farthing. He's written a few books, but the one I'm referring to is called One Dog at a Time.

Finally, I read about one of the most famous military dogs, Sergeant Stubby from WWI. A lot of books were written about this dog, including one by this author. You can learn a ton about him by reading his obituary from the New York Times. Stubby was a good dog, and while I'm glad they kept his coat, I'm not sure how I feel about displaying his remains. Taxidermy always freaks me out...

Overall, the book is okay. There were some typos here and there, but those didn't bother me much. The writing didn't flow as well as some of the things I've read in the past. The main thing the book accomplished was to make me interested in reading the other books I've mentioned. 

Rather Die Fighting - Frank Blaichman

This book focuses on the important, and often overlooked role, of the Jewish resistance. Frank is not even an adult when the war comes to his town. He ends up in the forest and fighting with others against the Nazis. A key difference is these people went out of their way to make sure they didn't punish the innocent.

This is written in a very easy manner, but it was also incredibly sad. The narrator would mention a person, and most of the time, it was followed up with how they were killed shortly thereafter. The worst were the accidents. On top of that, the people that went through all this don't seem to find peace after the war ends.

I really enjoyed this book. The only criticism I have is the location of the pictures. They include people that haven't been introduced yet, so it was a bit confusing. Other than that, I recommend this book for a different perspective of the Jewish experience during WWII. Good Book!

The Missing Chums (The Hardy Boys #4) - Franklin Dixon

A new year means more public domain Hardy Boys! This one is particularly interesting for a couple of reasons.

First, I loved the recap. "In our first three mysteries..." I can just imagine if they kept this up when we get to book twenty. Half the book would be brief recaps of what the boys already accomplished!

Second, the "chums" are great. Chet and Biff are kidnapped (not why they're great). They are mistaken for the Hardy Boys, but the kidnappers just ignore their pleas. When it comes to escaping, these two aren't the problem.

I hate to say it, but the Hardy Boys actually dropped the ball a bit in this one. First, it took them too long to make the connection that their two friends were missing and the strange ransom note sent to their house. Next, they know their friends are on the island, so why don't they just go straight for help? Instead, they get captured, which is what the kidnappers wanted in the first place. Then they have to escape to do what they should have done in the first place.

Oh well. I did enjoy this one, but not for the Hardy Boys themselves. I was cheering for Chet and Biff! These are always a quick read and fairly entertaining. Good Book!

Berserk - Deluxe Volume 1

This is my first ever manga. I've read comics collections and graphic novels, so I didn't have to make too many adjustments. I just had to get used to doing it all backwards. I chose this particular manga because I am drawn to the Dark Souls universe. Bloodborne is probably my favorite of those video games, and when I found out Berserk was the inspiration for the games, I wanted to check it out.

The deluxe version is very nice, but it's a tome. It's heavy and hard to get in a comfortable position to read. It's also not very good to read in public. There's a parental advisory sticker on the cover, and it earns that sticker on the first page. There is a lot of violence and nudity. A LOT of people are cut in half. If I focus on the story itself, I was interested and wanted to learn more. The cliffhanger at the end was disturbing, and I want to know what happened, but I also don't want to know.

I was invested in the story, but there are two main things that keep it from being five stars for me. Well, I suppose it's one point, but there's two facets to it. To read this whole story, I'd be investing in 14 volumes of Berserk. That's a lot of shelf space. A Kindle version is available, but personally, when it comes to this particular art form, I prefer a physical copy. Also, the really nice, long books aren't cheap. I haven't decided what to do about this series, but the story itself isn't what holds me back. I'm going to give the story itself a Good Book! review, but it's going to take a few days for my back to recover from carrying it around!

The Doom of the Great City - William Delisle Hay

This story is a letter from a man to his family. They've been after him for years to tell his "survivor" story. It's short (52 pages), so I blazed through it last night.

A deadly fog has wiped out London. The survivor (I can't remember his name or maybe he didn't have one) is headed back to check on his mother and sister. He spent the night with friends, and when morning came and London was silent, he had to head into the city.

With it being so short, I was surprised how much of the beginning was dedicated to listing the evils of London. After that, it ramped up a bit when he started his actual tale. This was written in 1880, so having the fog as a destructive force makes a lot of sense. 

I think my main issue with this was the length and calling him a survivor. He wasn't actually in the city, so he didn't technically survive the fog. Anyway, the length...so much potential was lost! It only scratches the surface of the event. The narrator makes his way through the destruction of the city and to his family, but then it ends. I wish there had been more, but I enjoyed about 2/3 of it. Somewhat Good Story?

Escape From Arnhem - Leo Heaps

Heaps was part of the doomed Battle of Arnhem. It was part of the larger Operation Market Garden, which didn't go anywhere close to planned.

Heaps goes through a lot. He is trapped behind enemy lines, gets captured, escapes, and helps the Dutch Underground transport evaders on numerous occasions. The tone is more narrative than internal, but I understand that. This was written a year after the war ended, and the wounds were still fresh. He may not have even had sufficient time to reflect how he felt at that point.

The writing itself is easy to follow, and there isn't any unnecessary flowery descriptions. I appreciated how he gave an update on various people if he knew what happened to them. There isn't any real in-depth intro into his life before the war, and for obvious reasons, his post-war life if a bit of a mystery. Heaps also wrote another book about Arnhem, The Grey Goose of Arnhem, and it looks like that one is focused more on various individuals.

I enjoyed this book. I learned a lot, and that's always a plus. It's on the short side, at a 145 pages, so if you're interested in Arnhem and the Dutch Resistance, this might be a good place to start. Good Book!

Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

I didn't remember anything about this one. I'm just trying to weed out shorter titles in my lengthy list of books waiting to be read. I was immediately getting Apocalypse Now vibes, and then I realized how the book ended up on my list. This was the novella that inspired the movie. It's not quite the same, though. Instead of the Vietnam War, this story deals with the ivory trade.

Marlow is telling the tale of sailing upriver in the jungle. It's harsh, and Mr. Kurtz is waiting for him at the end. He's more legend than man, and Marlow is interested in just hearing him speak.

The writing is what I dread in older books. This was published in 1899, and I think the writing shows it. The racial language hasn't aged well and appears fairly often. The complex language used for descriptions doesn't make it easy to read without paying close attention. Even though I was trying to pay attention, I still had to go back a few times and reread sections.

I will say the inspiration translated well to the movie. It didn't take me long to make the connection, and of the two, I would rather watch the movie again. I wasn't super fond of the it (I was on the fence on whether I liked it or not), but I didn't really enjoy this story. The writing made it an uphill battle, and I needed more interaction with Mr. Kurtz to understand how he impacted Marlow.