Written by the British Author Keith Lowe, Inferno is, quite simply, one of the best history books that I have ever read. In the Summer of 1943, RAF and USAAF bombers dropped 9,000 tons of bombs on Hamburg in the course of 10 days. In one raid alone, the RAF sent 792 bombers over Hamburg. Because of the blend of incendiary bombs, the architectural make-up of Hamburg and the meteorological conditions on that particular night a fire Hurricane, complete with lightening was created. Many cities, such as Dresden and even Hamburg on a previous raid, had experienced firestorms, but this "was in a whole different league. The winds reached speeds of at least 120 mph and in some places as high as 170 mph." The victims trying to flee the flames, also had to fight the winds because the winds were blowing in the direction of the fire to feed the flames. The heat in some areas climbed to an incredible 800 degrees Celsius!
The horror experienced on the ground is well documented in this book and Keith Lowe has a real talent for bringing the past to life. One horrific scene that was seared into my memory was of one mother who evacuated the city to Bavaria with the corpse of her child: The woman had dropped her suitcase and its contents were spread "across the platform, among the toys, manicure case and singed underwear was 'the roasted corpse of a child, shrunk like a mummy, which its half-deranged mother has been carrying about with her, the relic of a past that was still intact a few days ago.'" In the end about 44,000 people lost their lives in these raids.
Lowe tells both sides of the story very well. He also describes the bravery and horrors that were experienced by the men that flew the bombers. Of course, I read a lot about the USAAF in England, but until I read this book, I didn't have much knowledge of the RAF's Bomber Command and the various aircraft they flew, such as the Short Stirling, which he describes in British fashion as a "gentleman's aircraft". Lowe treats the experience of both sides with historic fairness.
Even though Lowe is usually a novelist, he writes history so well, that I recommend this book to everyone, even to those who don't normally read history.
The horror experienced on the ground is well documented in this book and Keith Lowe has a real talent for bringing the past to life. One horrific scene that was seared into my memory was of one mother who evacuated the city to Bavaria with the corpse of her child: The woman had dropped her suitcase and its contents were spread "across the platform, among the toys, manicure case and singed underwear was 'the roasted corpse of a child, shrunk like a mummy, which its half-deranged mother has been carrying about with her, the relic of a past that was still intact a few days ago.'" In the end about 44,000 people lost their lives in these raids.
Lowe tells both sides of the story very well. He also describes the bravery and horrors that were experienced by the men that flew the bombers. Of course, I read a lot about the USAAF in England, but until I read this book, I didn't have much knowledge of the RAF's Bomber Command and the various aircraft they flew, such as the Short Stirling, which he describes in British fashion as a "gentleman's aircraft". Lowe treats the experience of both sides with historic fairness.
Even though Lowe is usually a novelist, he writes history so well, that I recommend this book to everyone, even to those who don't normally read history.
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