Forester wrote and published The Ship in 1943 when the eventual outcome of the war was still very much uncertain. There was no opportunity to see the events described in their broader context, no benefit of hindsight, the fighting at this time was desperate and crucial and uncertain. It's precisely for this reason that The Ship is well worth a read for anyone who wants to get a real flavour of what naval warfare was like during the conflict. In the same way that Moby Dick is great source material for whaling techniques in the 19th Century, The Ship manages to create a detailed, accurate impression regarding life on board ship at the height of battle.

True, this is fiction - but only just. Forester follows the Royal Navy light cruiser HMS Artemis, the ship of the title, as it contends with superior Italian forces on an afternoon of scrappy fighting in the Mediterranean. It's never mentioned directly, but this is clearly the first battle of Sirte where a small squadron of Royal Navy Ships was engaged to protect a convoy sent to supply the besieged and strategically vital stronghold of Malta.

Artemis itself is closely modelled on the actions and crew of the HMS Penelope to whom Forester pays tribute to in the book's dedication. As part of Force K, Penelope played an identical role in the battle as the fictional ship and also sustained the same damage. Rich source material for Forester, Penelope was always in the thick of the action. When she eventually made it to port in Malta, the damage she sustained by shrapnel earned her the nickname HMS Pepperpot. At the time the novel was published, Penelope was taking part in the allied landings at Salermo, her ultimate fate still unknown.

As opposed to a military textbook, The Ship offers a glimpse of the action from the viewpoints of the men involved. Tactics, responsibility and the motivation of the crew are all interwoven effortlessly alongside the practical aspects of running the vessel. Not even the smallest, most seemingly insignificant details are neglected because, as military books so often omit, the smallest, most seemingly insignificant details often turn out to have a tremendous bearing on later events.

This is portrayed most interestingly in chapter 24 where the origin of "the shot that changed the course of history" is traced right back to the girls in the munitions factory who manufactured the shell. The significance of this is heightened considerably because the war has not yet been won, everything is uncertain. A later account, written after 1945, would no doubt have dismissed the relevance of a single shell and neglected to provide such a thorough and considered analysis.

Aside from a taste of the cut and thrust of sea battle, The Ship is also of interest when viewed in its historical context. It reveals a great deal about how the war was portrayed to the public at home. As fiction it's much more accessible than sterile, military facts, and Forester, who later achieved fame with The African Queen and Horatio Hornblower, was no stranger to propaganda. He'd spent the early part of the war in America writing pamphlets encouraging the government to join the allied forces.

With such a background, it's somewhat inevitable therefore that Forester does, at times, lean towards describing the sort of typical plucky underdog with a stiff upper lip that was so important to British wartime morale. Fortunately, there are numerous unsavoury characters to balance things out and add to the realism: Jerningham, the arrogant philanderer with questionable courage; Ordinary Seamen Triggs, the lazy and drunken dimwit in the magazine of X turret; and Harris, the rough and unruly gunner with a natural born gift for marksmanship. There are no obvious heroes with lofty ideals of honour and duty, just lots of vastly different characters thrown together doing their jobs as best they can. Ultimately they all unite and perform admirably which is perhaps the ultimate message - whoever you are, whatever your abilities, you can still do your bit.

It's only in the penultimate chapter where Forester openly resorts to the usual wartime stereotypes in depicting the enemy. The Germans are shown to be merciless and restricted by cold procedure whereas the Italians are lazy, disorganised and overly temperamental. This whole chapter, in fact, seems a little tagged on. A reaction from the ship that Artemis fired upon is relevant to the story, but the introduction of enemy characters so late in the book seems a little out of place. It may have been more effective to either keep them completely anonymous or introduce their viewpoint earlier.

But this is a minor criticism. The star of the show is always the ship itself. Early in the novel it is described as a huge marine animal with various sections of the crew performing the tasks of the brain, the eyes, the muscles, the voice, the teeth - even the nerves, which are likened to telephones and voice tubes. The human characters in the book are merely sketches by comparison. They have just enough substance to make you vaguely care about them - probably how the crew themselves felt towards their less familiar shipmates.

An extra poignancy is added however, when you discover what eventually happened to the real Artemis, the HMS Penelope. A year after The Ship was published, Penelope was torpedoed by a German Submarine whilst travelling at 26 knots - a unique case as no other ship was ever successfully attacked at this speed. The first torpedo struck the engine room and was followed 16 minutes later by a second which hit the boiler room. She sank immediately, taking the captain and 415 of the crew with her. Most of the characters that served as inspiration for the crew of The Artemis would undoubtedly have perished as only the handful that were on deck managed to survive.

For me in particular, this fact has extra significance. If my grandfather had happened to be a Stoker on The HMS Penelope rather than the Chief Gunner's Mate, I wouldn't be here today.

It's a useful reminder of the long-lasting impact of the Second World War and the importance of all those who fought in it.

The author tries to show that although Turks deny the Armenian genocide ever happened there is more than enough evidence to prove them guilty of annihilating a whole race. The book seems to be a write-up of primary research in which Akcam states facts in a chronological fashion. The author is a well established sociologist and historian who currently works at the University of Minnesota's Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies. The Armenian genocide was undoubtedly caused by the Turks which resurfaces throughout the content of this book. Although I have never before discussed or even heard of the Armenian genocide before this book the Turks who were behind these series of massacres seem even more heinous because they tried to hide such a staggering crime.

The book's content is linear and clarifies on some subjects, but the information can be easy to get lost in because the paragraphs seem to introduce a new character or event if not several which sometimes didn't seem to have any ties to the paragraph before it. Akcam achieved his goal by accurately revealing facts that might have been oblivious to many people because of where they came from, such as Turkish/Ottoman documents found in archives. Akcam made several points to show how a nation could comply with such brutal actions. He also showed that the Turks managed to cover up a large amount of their operations by using the World War as something to keep Europe preoccupied with their own problems rather than those of the Armenians.

The author writes about how the social class kept a sort of traditional role from the medieval period to the modern era, where Turkish citizens were considered of higher class and served in the army while other races such as Armenians, Greeks and so on were just the working class or slaves. In the modernized world the merchant class (Armenians, etc.) began to gain more power and live longer, luxurious lives than their so called Turkish masters who were mostly just soldiers. The government which was still run by Turks began to rally the Empire into a nationalistic state and target the Armenians as the enemy. Akcam writes about how one of the leaders in the Armenian genocide operation would make promises to stop killing to European ambassadors one moment and then send a message to continue, just to get them off his back. Events that the book left out and how it would compare to others on the subject I have no basis of comparison to refer to since I haven't read any other books or heard anything about the Armenian genocide until this book. I found it intriguing how the Turks avoided being caught for a while and still deny that the genocide ever took place. I disliked how the book seemed to drag on and on which made it hard for me to get into because I have trouble reading just a list of facts.

I found several key events interesting such as moving the Armenians and other non-Turk races into the center of the empire in order to control them better. The idea of a Turkish historian writing about something that's considered taboo in his country also gave this book a slight twist from the beginning. I would not recommend this book to most people due to how the information is presented and that I doubt they could get much out of it unless they seriously outlined each chapter after reading it or spent some time thinking over the facts before moving on.

Danny, the Hasidic Jewish boy, is constantly struggling throughout the novel. His father, the leader of the synagogue, wants his son to assume his role. Danny on the other hand, wants to study psychology. He is trapped in this cycle where his father and the rest of society want him to become the new tzaddik, and he wants to turn away from all of them and go off on his own. He describes a trapped feeling. “I'm trapped now, too...It's the most hellish, choking, constricting feeling in the world. I scream with every bone in my body to get out of it.”(Potok, 202) This explanation and description of Danny's problem can be closely viewed as the same problem that the European Jews were facing. They were kidnapped by the Germans and tortured in death camps. They, too, were trapped in the most “hellish, choking, constricting” environment. Danny's character and situation parallel that of the European Jews of World War 2.

Reuven, the Orthodox Jewish boy, helps Danny through his problems in the novel. He is the one who recommends Danny start reading books suggested by his father, and he often helps Danny deal with the challenges of living within the Hasidic society. On page 202, Danny states, “...One day I will...I'll need you around on that day...”(Potok, 202) The author italicizes the word “need", giving the impression that there is something more to that sentence than meets the eye. Reuven helps Danny just like the American and British soldiers helped the European Jews conquer the Germans. The soldiers liberated the Jews from an almost guaranteed death. Reuven helps to liberate Danny from the confusing cycle. He shows him a new independence and confidence that Danny can rely on to get through the social stubbornness. Reuven's character and circumstance parallel the American and British soldiers, and their state of affairs, in World War 2.

Reb Saunders, Danny Saunders' father, is "an extraordinarily limited character, who embodies the stereotypes of the intolerant religious fanatic and of the provincial immigrant father."(Kurshan) Mr. Saunders is endlessly trying to persuade Danny to follow his example and become a tzaddik. Saunders is also a very powerful man of high priority in terms of the Jewish Hasidic Community. As the reader finds out, Mr. Saunders has an odd, unnatural way of teaching Danny how to become independent and less reliant on his father. This process of "changing" Danny through isolation is somewhat like how Hitler and the other fascist leaders tried to "change" the face of the earth by isolating and exterminating the European Jews during World War 2. Reb Saunders exhibits other parallels to Adolf Hitler like the excellent, convincing speaking skills he shows when he communicates with the Jewish and German community. Hitler was known for his persuasive speeches and rallies that convinced the German people to vote the Nazi party into office. In addition, large rallies and speeches motivated the German men to join the army. Adolf Hitler actually coaxed the German citizens into thinking that they were the “master race” and that Germany would become the greatest world power. Reb Saunders' character and condition parallel to that of Adolf Hitler at the time of World War 2.

David Malter, Reuven's father, represents the ideal American Jewish father. "He combines religious rigor with scientific inquiry and a love of knowledge, all of which he tempers with his overwhelming love and respect for his son."(Kurshan) He is always willing to teach one about anything. Mr. Malter is an individual who understands the importance of relationships. He values and accepts the dual perspectives of tradition and secularism. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the US President at the time of World War 2, understands many of the same things that Malter understands. Roosevelt was a respected politician for many years as a Senator, a Navy Secretary, and the President. Mr. Malter is very much like a politician. By definition, a politician is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision-making. Mr. Malter not only teaches Danny the importance of opening up to new opportunities, but he also teaches him how to make decisions for himself, and not his father. Just like Malter believes that tradition and secularism should be balanced, Roosevelt understood the importance of bringing a new era into the White House but not completely stomping out the past eras and accomplishments. David Malter's character and status parallel to Franklin Roosevelt's character during the time of World War 2.

Many of the major elements from the era of World War 2 parallel major characters of the novel, The Chosen , by Chaim Potok. The author of this popular novel, whether purposefully or accidentally, alluded to the parallels present between the elements of the war and the characters of the story. These parallels are not random comparisons. They advance the plot of the novel and directly reveal the theme of the book. These clever equivalents also reveal how intelligent and passionate the author is towards this story.

The book takes place mostly during World War II. However, it does give some information over the time both before and after the war. The years in this book range from Japan's early interactions with America in the 1850's all the way toe the results of the Rape and the war in the 1980's. The main location in the book is Asia, in particular Japan and China. It also mentions a few islands on which the Japanese fought, including the infamous Pearl Harbor bombing.

The first major event that occurs in the book is the visit of Matthew Perry to Japan. This visit gave the Japanese the first glimpse of steam power along with a showing of the military might of America. The visit eventually leads to the industrialization of Japan, the adoption of bushido as the moral code for the people, and the building of its army in hopes to become more powerful than even the Western nations.

The training of the army began in frenzy. Starting from elementary school onward, everything taught in the schools helped prepare the people for war. Children would be seen marching by the thousands in straight lines. Also, the abuse used by the teachers, such as slapping the students, hitting them with fists, and smacking them with bamboo weapons, only served to harden them for the future. Only more abuse followed these brutal first years if you wished to continue towards a military career. Military schools were isolated, and while there, you were taught to kill without feeling. In fact, some soldiers lost all feeling to the point where they would compare the Chinese people to pigs. According to the diary of one Japanese soldier, “a pig is more valuable now than the life of a [Chinese] human being. That's because a pig is edible” (page 218).

Finally, in 1894, war broke out between Japan and China over Korea. Within six weeks, the war was over, and Japan had won. Then, in 1905, the Japanese went to war with Russia, again emerging victorious. These victories marked Japan's emergence as a military power in Asia. One activist even went as far as to prophesize that “…these two countries [America and Japan] are destined to fight. Only God knows when it will be” (page 27). As World War I came and went, the Japanese economy flourished. However, this prosperity soon ended with food shortages and thousands of homeless. Radicals in the army soon began to argue that the only solution to these problems is military expansion. Tensions began to grow in the 1930's as Japan took over Manchuria and bombed Shanghai. But these were only minor incidents compared to what was to happen in only a few short years.

Japan soon started a full-scale war with China in the summer of 1937. The invasion of China's mainland began with Japanese defeating the city of Shanghai. However, this task proved to be much more difficult than the Japanese anticipated. When Shanghai finally fell after months of fighting, the city was destroyed. Japanese troops then marched on Nanking with revenge in their minds. While on the warpath, the Japanese burned and pillaged almost everything, from small villages to large cities. One city that was hit particularly hard was Suchow, a city located on Tai Hu Lake. According to China Weekly Review, the invasion “caused the population of the city to drop from 350,000 to less than 500” (page 38). Finally, in December of 1937, the Japanese reached Nanking.

Fighting around Nanking began on December 9 when the Chinese refused to surrender the city. Even though the Chinese outnumbered the Japanese and had enough ammunition to last five months of siege, the city fell in only four short days. This was due to many reasons, including that orders could not be spread among the entire army. Therefore, when the army was ordered to make a retreat, only about half the troops received the order. What started as an orderly retreat quickly became a rout. By the time it was all over, around 90,000 Chinese troops had surrendered. Then the killing and the rape began.

The Japanese killed tens of thousands of soldiers, using the excuse that they didn't have the food to feed so many POW's. Even so, hundreds of thousands of Nanking civilians who possessed no weapons were tortured and killed. Numerous methods of torture and extermination were used. These included live burials, mutilation, death by burning, death by freezing, and death by dogs. At some points, the Japanese would entertain themselves during these mass exterminations by having killing contests. During one of these, the only survivor recounts that “…a pregnant woman began to fight for her life…in the end the soldier killed her ripping open her belly with his bayonet and jerking out not only her intestines but a squirming fetus…” (page 86). Also, tens of thousands of Chinese women became the victims of rape. Many of these women were killed right afterwards or died of diseases after months of continuous rape. However, even in these times of death and despair, heroes emerged from the pack.

Some of these people were attacked by the Japanese, yet survived through unbelievable odds. For example, a rape victim had her head nearly severed down to her vertebral column, yet managed to survive long enough for surgeons to sew her neck back on. Another woman was stabbed thirty-seven times when she fought her Japanese captors, yet is still alive today to tell the tale. Also, the small group of foreigners, consisting mainly of Germans and Americans, in Nanking at that time made valiant efforts to save the Chinese civilians from death and rape. They first established a Nanking Safety Zone which housed over 300,000 civilians by the time the Rape had ended. They managed to feed these people, and continuously patrolled the Safety Zone to prevent the Japanese from attacking the people within the zone. Many of these people ended up suffering for their heroic actions.

After about six main weeks of torture, rape, and mass murder, the majority of violence ended. Finally, World War II came to an end with the dropping of the Uranium bomb on Hiroshima, and the Plutonium bomb on Nagasaki. Finally, on August 14, the Japanese surrendered. Following this were the war crime trials. Thousands of Chinese citizens attended these to act as witnesses while tens of thousands of others came to see the execution of Japanese war criminals. For example, on the day when one criminal, Tani Hisao's verdict was announced, the “courtroom was not large enough to accommodate everyone who wanted to attend. More than two thousand spectators packed the courtroom while loudspeaker [broadcasted] the proceedings to tens of thousands of residents gathered outside” (page 171). However, only a small portion of the Japanese criminals were caught and executed. This was brought upon by the Cold War, and America's desire to make Japan a sort of “puppet” so that all of Asia would not be lost. Therefore, the amount of money Japan had to pay was minimal and many former criminals were allowed to stay in relative comfort.

I felt that all of the information that the author presented was relevant, though some aspects of it may have been repeated more than enough. At some points, the details were extremely gruesome and gory, but were necessary for the overall gist of the book. I felt it was important that all these facts be placed in here because people need to know everything that has happened, especially those in denial about the Rape of Nanking's occurrence. This is especially important in that “[t]hose who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” (page 16). I learned lots of information from this book, and would definitely recommend it in the future to any looking to learn more on this topic.

This book begins in a military boot camp in Germany where we are introduced to the main players in this story. After a brief time training these German soldiers are sent to a motor vehicle unit for a time. At this time these German soldiers meet conflict with some non-military Russian citizens but manage to leave this quarrel in victory with the vehicles still in their possession.

This account leads from the soldiers' duty in a motor vehicle unit to sentry duty of small Russian villages to guard duty of a German prisoner of war camp to the front line. After time spent at the German P.O.W camp, several of the soldiers were frustrated with their role in the war and volunteered for front line duty. These soldiers fought their enemy and followed orders to bring power to their fatherland.

This book demonstrates what life was like for a German soldier fighting on the eastern front during World War II. It explained just how difficult on the mind and body war is. The author explores the psychological journey from young recruits to war hardened veterans. The mindset of a soldier at several stages during a combat experience are written about in this book and with the wealth of characters present the reader can relate to someone at one point or another.

The part of the past that this book explores the most is the motivations and feelings of German soldiers. This book is an account of the psychological impact of war, harsh environments, comradery and death on German soldiers during the time of the Second World War

Reading this book feels like reading a diary, in that the author is living these events shortly before he writes them down. His feelings and thoughts of the events surrounding him are apparent and are given a large place in throughout the book. The author's word choice provides great clarity to the mood of the soldiers he writes about. The language the author uses helps to clarify the time of the past from the perspective he represents.

This author has several comments to make about his view of World War II. One being that war is not glamorous. Because the author includes the actions and some of the thoughts held by the other members of the platoon, he can explore different perspectives on the subject at hand.

The author devotes several pages to the feeling that a soldier is fighting to be a hero, to be the savior of his homeland, and to be remembered. Benno Zieser, the author, felt this way for a time before he volunteered for front line duty. At the time of his front line duty, Zieser found that heroism was not necessarily something worth valuing to the point of death. The author was torn between the significance of dying for ones country and the fact that dead is dead.

The type of evidence produced for this book is merely an account of what this particular soldier in this particular platoon in this particular war saw and experienced. This style of story telling is an accurate way to depict the type of message the author is attempting to pass on. The author presents his feelings about certain events that take place and from those feelings he establishes his viewpoints about the subject.

This book affirmed what I thought about some of the aspects of war and enlightened me to several others. Understanding that war is harsh and grueling is a valuable lesson to learn and while it is easy to say that war is hard, it is a very different thing to know the hardships of war. This book paints a picture of what front line battle on Germany's eastern front was like in a few specific situations. I by no means know what this must have been like but I have a better idea that I once did. This book does well to explain that war is not a pleasant experience by any means, or for any causes.

I can only hope that the information from this book will provide me a foundation to build on when the class covers the information discussed in this book. This book made learning about World War II much more interesting than I had expected and I look forward to discussing it in class.