Today, July 6, 2017 a new version is being released of:
The Life of Guy
Gibson VC
by Susan Ottaway
FEW MEN HAVE A BETTER
CLAIM TO BE CALLED A LEGEND IN THEIR OWN LIFETIME THAN GUY GIBSON.
Leader of the famous
Dambuster Raid of May 1943, which became part of the popular folklore of the
Second World War after the film in which Richard Todd took the part of the
hero, Gibson himself was tragically in an air crash in 1944.
Born in India in 1918
and brought up in England, Guy Gibson joined the RAF in November 1936. Thereafter
his career can be seen as a battle between, on the one hand, his uncertain
temperament and less than ideal private life, and, on the other, his undoubted
skills as an airman and as a leader of men.
The war was to bring
him adventure and, later, fame. He took part in the first aerial attack of the
war, on the Kiel Canal; he served in Fighter Command and then, in 1943, came
the famous raid on the Mohne and Eder dams for which he was awarded the
Victoria Cross.
By now a hero of
international fame, he was sent on a Public Relations tour of North America,
but he was above all a flyer and, refusing to remain grounded, he died an
airman’s death.
This new edition,
which draws on conversations with members of Gibson’s family and on notes made
by his widow, expands upon his early life in a severely dysfunctional family,
his unhappy marriage and the possible reason for his untimely death in
September 1944.
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About the Author:
Susan Ottaway has
a passion for modern history, aviation, reading, Arsenal football club, animals
and hooded vultures. Following a career in aviation she is now the author of
eight books and her research and writing has led to her meeting many
interesting people. She grew up in
Egham, close to where the Magna Carta was signed, but now lives in Hampshire
with Nick and their dog and three cats. In addition to writing she also speaks
at various events including battlefield tours, literary festivals and
historical societies and has appeared in radio and television programmes both
for the BBC and the Discovery History Channel.
She has recently joined Twitter – try tweeting her @susanottaway
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