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A friend gave me a loan of this book recently and I read while on holiday. It's a first-hand account of the experiences of a platoon commander with the 4th King's Own Scottish Borderers, a Territorial unit, part of 52nd (Lowland) Division. The author, Peter White, kept a diary of his 8 months experiences of war, from just after the Arnhem failure, when the Division was tasked with taking the island of Walcheren, to open up the Scheldt estuary so that the port of Antwerp could be cleared for resupply, through the ensuing winter, fighting in Belgium, Holland and Germany, until ending the war in Bremen.
All but 2 of his platoon of 30 or so were hit during this time, with the dead equalling that of wounded and White tells it as it was, warts and all. Some of their worst experiences were at the hands of their own side, from shells dropping short, to tanks shooting up their positions in mistake for the enemy. Through it all, he pays a great tribute to his 'Jocks', for their endurance and bravery.
The book also has sketches drawn by the author at the time these events took place, or shortly thereafter, when the fighting had abated, as well as photographs from his own collection. An excellent reminder of what it was like to be an infantryman in NW Europe during the last year of WWII.
All but 2 of his platoon of 30 or so were hit during this time, with the dead equalling that of wounded and White tells it as it was, warts and all. Some of their worst experiences were at the hands of their own side, from shells dropping short, to tanks shooting up their positions in mistake for the enemy. Through it all, he pays a great tribute to his 'Jocks', for their endurance and bravery.
The book also has sketches drawn by the author at the time these events took place, or shortly thereafter, when the fighting had abated, as well as photographs from his own collection. An excellent reminder of what it was like to be an infantryman in NW Europe during the last year of WWII.
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