2006-11-09 A good read but not in depth enough

This book follows the crew of a Lancaster bomber based in Lincolnshire in World War II. The crew is very different - ranging from a baronet's son, an American, an Aussie, a young lad, a Scots mechanic and a 34-year old divorced man. The book also follows the women that they get to know and how their relationships are played out as the Lancaster crew go through their tour of 30 sorties.

I really enjoyed the historical detail of this book, which was particularly strong on the superstitions of the men, their outwardly carefree behaviour which masked real fear and the expectation of death, and their extreme youth in outlook.

The women that they come across range from mousy waitresses to `ice maidens' to a Land girl with real issues about men. The women were portrayed less well to my mind, all conforming rather strongly to various stereotypes.

I enjoyed the book although I felt its ending wasn't absolutely as I had hoped in that not all loose ends were tied up, and I also felt that the sorties that the crew flew on were a more interesting part of the book than a lot of their love affairs. Still, it was well written and gave a glimpse into the experiences of so many people thrown together with people utterly different from themselves in time of war.