Fubar: Soldier Slang of World War II

Soldier slang of World War II as colorful and could range from insults to witty sayings: any collection strong in World War II history thus needs FUBAR: SOLDIER SLANG OF WORLD WAR II, a dictionary defining World War II slang from all armed forces sides. From conscripted 'koala' Australian soldiers to identifying a 'Chinese attack', this is loaded with phrases and insights. Diane C. Donovan California Bookwatch

Now I've seen military slang dictionaries before, but this one is different in several ways. It covers World War II army and marine slang, not just of the United States, but the British Commonwealth with a heavy dose of often humorous or rather cheeky Australian slang, and, something seldom attempted, Landserspeak, the slang of the German soldier. As a bonus there is something else one seldom sees, Japanese and Russian soldier's slang. There is something else about this book though. It does not just give a cut and dried definition of the word, but often its origins, the nuances of its meaning, and examples of its use if it's not apparent. This work provides a window into the mind of the World War II soldier. One sees a commonality among them regardless of the uniform they wore and the ideology they fought for. There is a certain dark humor in the face of adversity that helped carry them through their trails. One can see the cynicism dripped off their words. Regardless of the army, they all had slang words to describe the food they ate, abbreviated terms or nicknames for their weapons and equipment, often unflattering terms for their leaders, rather cavalier words with a double meaning in regards to the opposite sex and its pursuit, items of uniform, the holes and other places they called home, the regard they had for rear service troops, and the trails of their daily lives. Just flipping through the pages and reading entries at random are a joy in and of itself.

My grandfather served in WorldWar II, but he would never talk about it. After seeing this book in an advertisement, I decided to pick it up because I've always been curious about what it was like to be in that terrible war. I really liked reading through FUBAR because it gave me a quick snapshot into what my grandfather and so many other went through.

A war like the Second World War is a kind of pressure cooker for language. Words like FUBAR and SNAFU spring out of the terrible circumstances that soldiers in battle find themselves. This is probably the most poingant dictionary you'll ever read. If you watched Ken Burns' The War, then you must read this book.