Declarations of War - Softcover

Deighton, Len

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1402790600 ISBN 13: 9781402790607

Publisher: Sterling Pub Co Inc, 2011

Synopsis

This dazzling array of stories, Len Deighton's only collection of shorter fiction, spans 23 centuries of warfare.

Deighton's gripping tales range from Hannibal's march on Rome--when strange, moving objects terrorize the troops of one of the toughest, most skilful armies in history--to a belittled Civil War general's efforts to get his men to face the Confederate army; to the dawn skies above an artillery-blasted French battle-line where a dogfight unfolds; to Vietnam, where two lost American soldiers stumble across an abandoned military airfield.

Each tale in Declarations of War explores the effects of war upon man's character, how it pushes him to act in a dehumanized, machine-like, and sometimes extraordiary way that can lead to both good and ill. Deighton portrays human conflict through a series of devastating experiences and shows how great deeds are often but the smallest thread in the large fabric of war.

About this title

Review

‘As in all Mr Deighton’s books, the incidental detail is impeccable: as well as the hardware, military idioms, superstitions and attitudes are convincing.’ Financial Times

‘The stories are written with economy and grace. They’re highly readable and succeed in passing on to the reader... the fascination the author clearly feels for examining life lived at an extreme. His wars are often exciting, sometimes eerie, always sad.’ Evening Standard

‘They show an acute understanding of how men behave under stress, and when action is involved it comes across jabbingly and persuasively.’ Listener

‘Mr Deighton really is something special’ Sunday Times

About the Author

Born in London, Len Deighton served in the RAF before graduating from the Royal College of Art (which recently elected him a Senior Fellow). While in New York City working as a magazine illustrator he began writing his first novel, The Ipcress File, which was published in 1962. He is now the author of more than thirty books of fiction and non-fiction. At present living in Europe, he has, over the years, lived with his family in ten different countries from Austria to Portugal.

Edition details

• Publisher: Sterling Pub Co Inc
• Publication date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1402790600
• ISBN 13: 9781402790607
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 176