TAIL-END CHARLIE. ONE MAN'S JOURNEY THROUGH A WAR

by Wainwright, John

Price: $50.00
Shipping rates & speeds | 30 Day Return Guarantee Ask bookseller a question | E-mail to a friend

Book description: Macmillan, London, 1978.. 187 pp, 8vo (8 1/8" H), hard cover in dust jacket. Ex-library. "The story of one man's journey through a war....including the funny bits, frightening bits and idiotic bits. That is how John Wainwright approaches the subject of how he came to fly . - and to survive - no less than seventy-two night bombing raids in Lancasters in the second world war. It was theoretically seventy-three raids - but he explains the circumstances that made the number officially even greater than it really was. On. all these missions he flew as Rear-Gunner. As an introduction to this daunting experience he tells of his short adult working life in 'civvy street' before the Air Force claimed him. But the book is about flying, the crew he flew with, some ind. i v idual raids, perhaps above all his direct and down-to-earth recollections of 'what it was like'. John Wainwright does not deal in heroics, 'stiff upper lips', the tradition of much recent writing about the war. Factual detail is part of his bu. si ne ss - such as in his description of what gear the rear-gunners donned for each flight, unofficial as well as official: the unofficial armour to protect their manhood, for instance. He defends his generation: 'Occasionally (as in 1939) war beco. mes th e lesser of two evils and, at that moment, it becomes not glorious but urgent....But let nobody suggest that we, who fought that war, enjoyed that war'....It is one man's journey through a war - a fascinating recollection in tranquility by a. man who lived through one of the most terrifying parts cast for those who acted in the Second World War." Ex-library copy with some of the usual stamps, pocket, etc., old tape residue on boards, several pages with very small light stains/marks, . sever al pa ges with tiny dints in top margin, a few pages with dog-ear crease, book is cocked, has moderate edge wear, light browning and soiling to edges of textblock. Dust jacket has light edge wear/wrinkling, light rubbing, is price clipped, re. mnants of ol d label on spine, light color offset from boards on inside surface. Good reading copy only..

Bookseller Terms of Sale

PAYMENT: ALL PRICES ARE IN $ U.S.

We accept the following forms of payment:

VISA & MASTERCARD [If contacting us directly by email please ensure you provide the 'FULL NAME' as it appears on your card, 4 digit expiry date, the full number on card, and the 3 or 4 digit CVV security on the back of the card]; Personal, Business or Cashiers Check; International Money Order or PayPal (PayPal e-mail is capricornbks@sympatico.ca) (Sorry, we are not able to process other credit cards directly at this time). Canadian residents will be charged 5% GST on converted amount.

SHIPPING: Shipping rates are based upon the weight of a standard size book (8vo) or a large format trade paperback up to 1kg (2.2lbs). Larger, heavier books will be shipped at cost. We will e-mail you a quote for your approval, before we ship. Mass market paperback books, in many cases, will cost less to ship to the U.S.A. and Internationally. We will inform you by e-mail or adjust the charge when we process your order.

CANADA: Regular Parcel Post: 2 to 9 Business Days - $8.50 U.S.

U.S.A.: Surface Mail: 7 to 14 Business Days - $10.00 U.S. Air Mail: 4 to 6 Business Days - $12.50 U.S.

INTERNATIONAL: Surface Mail: 6 to 16 Weeks - $12.50 U.S. Air Mail: 6 to 10 Business Days - $28.00 U.S

RETURNS: Books may be returned if not as described within 10 days with prior notice. Please e-mail us prior to returning book - thank you.