Wwii

[Kyle Hyde]

Since I've been having more and more time on my hands with nothing to do, I've started watching lots of documentaries. WWII documentaries particularly interest me, and I find myself doing lots of online research and reading. I can feel a WWII fixation kicking in.

Anyone else have a great interest in WWII stuff? Why is WWII so fascinating?

 

[ek.310]

I was a major history buff when I was a kid/teen..I read/watched anything to do with history

 

[David in Boston]

Always had an interest in World War II since I was a kid.

One great documentary was the UK production, "The World at War", narrated by Lawrence Olivier.

 

[Dustinl]

I am very interested in WW2. My grandfather was a silver star winner in the Battle of the Bulge. Family story is that he was recommended for the Congressional Medal of Honor but for some reason, did not win that medal.


DL

 

[jlanger]

just in time for the pacific on HBO

the pacific

 

[Black Adder]

Yes I am. Very much so. When I first got interested in it there really wasn't as much info available as there is now. My main source was the bookrack that was found in any drugstore or town five and dime and peruse the Ballantine series of books that at the time could be purchased for $1.50. They were EXCELLENT reference books that were color coded according to their general topic - weapons, battles, campaigns, etc. Also, my father served on a destroyer escort in the Pacific from early 1944 to the end of the war. He used to bring me in to the local Legion Hall and you'd get to talk to other vets about their experiences. It never got too graphic, because the guys who'd really seen the action were reluctant to talk about it. I believe that a lot of them couldn't.

Why the period is popular, I think, is that it was one of the first wars to be filmed and documented very heavily, and the records still exist. While World War One saw the introduction of some technologies people find fascinating, the Second World War took those technologies to new levels, often at a staggering cost in human life. It was a world event; and the outcome shaped how WE live today.

You learn A LOT by studying history, and you tend to take a lot in that you really had no intention of picking up. You always hear about how bad today's youth are with geography, unable to even locate continents, but cities, towns, rivers, and physical features in Europe and Russia are no problem for me.

I'm moving from my current residence soon and I'm in the process of packing. BY FAR the greatest weight I'll have to move is my WW II library I've assembled over the years, and it's a specialized small niche collection of a very small piece of that great conflict. Find your specialty and have fun!

Don

 

[draysniro]

I've always been really interested in WWII. My grandfather used to tell me stories of his time serving. Also, my great uncle was killed in the Battle of the Bulge while jumping in as he was part of Airborne.

 

[TwelveBravo]

The majority of the books in my modest library have to do with WW II. I have been fascinated since I could understand what I was reading. My grandfather was a radio operator on a B-24 Liberator. He flew 35 missions, the first being in support of the D-Day landings on 06JUN44. My great uncle was with the 101st Airborne. His first jump was D-Day. He jumped in operation Market Garden as well and was in Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. Neither of them talked much about their experiences until I made my first trip home form basic training. What these men and all men of that era experienced is truly amazing. Get to know an older gentleman who served and learn the real un-sanitized stories of the war. If he wants to talk he will enjoy the company and you will gain great insights. The sad fact is that soon all of these heroes, and I do not use this term loosely, will be gone.