The Few: The American ""Knights of the Air"" Who Risked Everything to Fight in the Battle of Britain

When Winston Churchill eloquently spoke of the men who fought in the Battle of Britain, "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few," he wasn't just referring to British airmen. As Hitler spread his dominance throughout Europe, the Royal Air Force was the beneficiary of pilots from foreign lands looking to continue the fight. Among the foreign contingent were seven Americans. Having violated US law, travelling from the US, in some cases first to France, then on to England, Alex Kershaw masterfully writes about their lives as fighter pilots for the RAF. Don't read this if you are looking for a history of the battle of Britain. While Kershaw does an excellent job giving the reader a sense of the overwhelming odds faced by Britain just after the fall of Paris, this is the story of the American airmen who flew for the RAF during that crucial period in the war. The most famous of the airmen, as has been referenced in other reviews was two time bobsled gold-medalist, Billy Fiske. But although lacking in fame but not in courage were his fellow airmen Eugene Tobin, Charly Keough, Andrew Mamedoff, Hugh Riley, Art Donahue, and Phil Leckrone. Ultimately, they were the first of some 500 plus Americans who would fly for the RAF. Kershaw certainly writes of heroism, but wonderfully shows how the Battle of Britain, the immense casualties suffered by the RAF, and the constant calls to get airborne, frayed the nerves of these very human, fliers. And not stopping with the Americans, the author provided some very interesting color on their enemy, the Luftwaffe, or the Huns as they were monikered. Included is the almost surreal competition among the top German aces to be the "heir" of Baron von Richtofen. And of course, Herman Gorring's leadership during this campaign is discussed. Of the original seven, all but one made it through the war. Kershaw ends the book just as the 71 Eagle Squadron, the All-American squadron was just being formed and Pearl Harbor just occurred. I would also suggest for any reader to scan through the endnotes. There are some truly classic stories that are revealed in detail. Among some of the things one learns is that the Luftwaffe had a much more capable search and rescue operation than the RAF. You also read about Billy Fiskes sqwuadron, the 601, also dubbed the millionaires. In an effort to ensure that their cars had sufficient gasoline, one of them bought a local gas station. Read for yourself, as the story is quite amusing (Page 252, note 54.). There are also some historical references of the Women's Auxiliary Air Force that highlights their crucial role during the war. I picked this up at the Newark Penn Station Bookstore, a mandatory stop while waiting for my train. The Few was truly a pleasure to read. Not mired in tradition military history minutae, Kershaw masterfully illustrated some of the bravest and often forgotten men of WWII. I highly recommend.

This is the third World War II book from Alex Kershaw. Unlike many other writers who seem to want to cover the big stories of mighty armies, Mr. Kershaw seems to find small bands of American soldiers who just happened to be at a pivitol point in the war. I think this is an excellent approach. By concentrating on just a few men you get the feeling that you know them. And by knowing them you better understand the overall battle, even though you only see their little part. In 'The Bedford Boys' he tracks a platoon of infantry from the very small town of Bedford, VA. 34 Bedford Boys were with the unit when they were the first to hit Omaha Beach. 19 were killed in the first few minutes. In 'The Longest Winter' he writes of the Recon platoon of the 394th Infantry Regiment, 99th Infantry Division. They were ordered to hold a crossroads against the advancing Germans during the Battle of the Bulge while the rest of their unit pulled out. In 'The Few' he talks of the American's who violated a whole bunch of international laws to fight with the British Eagle Squadrons during the Battle of Britain. I highly recommend all of his books, and sincerely hope that he continues this approach of finding interesting small units to write about.

Eighteen months before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941, the United States was at "peace", its citizens barred from joining the armed forces of any other nation. America's cowardly, anti-Semitic Ambassador to England, Joseph Kennedy, (the father of John F. Kennedy) was telling President Roosevelt and everyone else that Britain would lose to the Germans, that the Germans were invincible. Eight Americans, however, made their way to England and joined the Royal Air Force (RAF). Some came simply because they wanted to fly Spitfires, one of the best performing aircraft of the day. A few were there to fight for freedom. All were liable to arrest and possible imprisonment at the time if they set foot in the United States. Kershaw follows these brave young Americans and their role in the fight for freedom. Today, almost 70 years after they fought the Germans to preserve British - and the world's - freedom, you still want to suck in your breath at reading of their bravery. To Kershaw's credit, he does not lionize these more-or-less typical American boys. Rather he presents them as young men, brave in that way only young men can be. Most were outgoing and ebullient. One of them came from a filthy rich family; most of the others were more typical of the Depression. All had flown small aircraft in their short civilian lives. Now they were flying in what came to be known as the Battle of Britain, a part of the amazingly small corps immortalized by Churchill as the few to whom so many owed so much. Kershaw is a marvelous writer, able to weave the stuff of ordinary life into a larger fabric of the constant fear these young men faced as their comrades spun into the English Channel or their planes dove into the ground. Kershaw captures the feeling of both sides of the conflict, spending considerable time on the German pilots. There are glimpses of the leaders: Churchill, Goring, Hitler. But the focus is always on the "few", that handful of Americans who were first to reach out in the cause of freedom by putting on the uniform of the Royal Air Force. It's a moving book and Kershaw is to be thanked for reminding us all that true heroism does exist and that freedom is worth fighting - and dying - for. Jerry

"The Few: The American 'Knights of the Air' Who Risked Everything to Fight in the Battle of Britain" is Alex Kershaw's third foray into the Second World War non-fiction genre, and once again he has amply demonstrated his abilities to weave a story and capture the attention of the reader. With his first book, "The Bedford Boys: One American Town's Ultimate D-Day Sacrifice", Kershaw had as his centerpiece the story of National Guardsmen from the little town of Bedford, VA who comprised Company A 116th Infantry Regiment (29th Division) who took part in the initial Omaha Beach landings on 6 June '44, and lost 19 of its members KIA on D-Day alone. In the "Longest Winter: The Battle of the Bulge and the Epic Story of World War II's Most Decorated Platoon", Kershaw's sophomore effort, the historical centerpiece was the Intelligence and Reconnaissance (I & R) Platoon, 394th Infantry Regiment, 99th Infantry Division - a small group of men whose heroic stand at the small Belgian town of Lanzerath on 16 December 1944 against an overwhelming force (1st Battalion, Fallschirmjager Regiment 9) significantly stalled one of the main German efforts of the Ardennes Counteroffensive. So what is the 'small unit theme' of Kershaw's current effort "The Few"? From the subtitle one would assume that the story in "The Few" revolves around a group of American aviators who flew with the RAF during the Battle of Britain. While this is not an entirely incorrect assumption the subtitle oversells the reality a bit. Certainly the central characters through which the string of narrative is connected are this small group of American fliers. Yet, in reality the overall story gains its real momentum and bite from the prose dedicated to the bigger picture of the Battle of Britain as told from the perspective of RAF fliers they fought with, and Luftwaffe fliers they fought against. By using this latter approach Kershaw weaves a fabulously engaging story of the Battle of Britain. This is a book that is hard to put down. It is unfortunate that Da Capo Press has chosen subtitles for Kershaw's last two books that don't fairly represent the book's contents. Kershaw however should not take the rap for his publisher wanting to sell books. Hopefully Da Capo now recognizes that they have a winner in their stable and they no longer need to hype Kershaw's books to sell them. Anyone with even a passing interest in the Battle of Britain should give "The Few" a chance, they may find a deeper interest in the topic and delve deeper into the plethora of books out their dedicated to this topic. "The Few" is a 5 star read as primmer to the Battle of Britain from the perspective of individual and small groups of aviators on both sides of the Channel.

When war broke out in 1939, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt quickly issued a proclamation, making it illegal for any American citizen to join a warring power's military. Thankfully, a group of American men, committed to the cause of liberty, journeyed to Britain to do just that. And when the Battle of Britain raged, and that glorious "Few" saved Britain from Nazism, amongst them were a group of American pilots. This is the story of those wonderful young men who risked their lives, and often lost them, for the freedom of the world. This is a fantastic book! The author does an excellent job of telling the story of the Battle of Britain, and the American fighter pilots who were a part of it. I could not put the book down, but just had to keep reading. This is one of the best books that I have read this year, and I highly recommend it to everyone!