Another excellent book by Sir William Slim (check out Defeat Into Victory). This is a series of short stories drawn from Slim's own experience. Well written and interesting this book works well on many levels. The stories are great by themselves. They offer a fascinating view into some less well know campaigns. Each story has buried in it a valuable lesson in leadership. Should be included in any discussion on leadership (at least it should if it were in print).

British General William Slim commanded English/Indian forces during most of the "forgotten" war in Burma from 1942 to 1945. Slim is now regarded as the finest English general of the Second World War (yes, better than "Monty"). In this book, written some time after the war ended, Slim tells the reader about the early mistakes which lead to the near total defeat of the English army in Burma in 1942. ----- Slim's efforts to rebuild his army and then take the offensive against the Japanese comprise the majority of the book and it makes for a very interesting story. Considering that the terrain over which most of the fighting occured was even worse than Vietnam, I learned a great deal. Contrasting his experiances in Burma with the U.S. war in Vietnam is a good thought experiment. ---- Of most interest to military historians and people interested in the Second World War. As to personal matters the book is almost completely devoid of details. Slim was very much the English Gentleman and all the interesting personal details of his life you will have to find elsewhere. ---- P.S. It contains an interesting side note about the father of the Burmese Nobel Peace Prize winner: Aung San Suu Kyi. Her father fought against the British in conjunction with the Japanese but later turned against the Japanese when he discovered that they were just going to be new imperial masters, even worse than the English. ---- Colin Glassey

Field-Marshal Slim's memoir of the Burma campaign is one of thefinest generals reports from the Second World War. He outlines thebitter and decisive British defeat by the Japanese in 1942, the slow, painful rebuilding of the British-Indian-African Army and its collaboration with the Chinese and Americans in a see-saw campaign against the Japanese in 1943, the decisive battle of Imphal in 1944 and the crushing victories of 1945. In the mountainous and jungle terrain of the Burma-India theater Slim pioneered in the use of airpower for logistical support and the development of airbridges built around air fields. In many ways this under-supported and often neglected theater fought the most modern campaign of the second world war. Slim is a revealing and deliberate author-teacher who intended this book both as a report on a great campaign and as a series of lessons for future students of the art of war. The opening hundred pages are a little slow and the place names are never easy but the book is well worth reading for anyone who would seek to understand leadership and victory in warfare.

Awhile ago, I read QUARTERED SAFE OUT HERE, the wartime memoir by George MacDonald Fraser detailing his experiences as an infantryman with the 17th Division of the 14th Indian Army as the latter pursued the retreating Japanese through Burma during the closing months of WWII. He had nothing but high praise for the army commander, Field-Marshal William Slim. This prompted me to purchase and read Slim's own account of the time and place, DEFEAT INTO VICTORY. The two books are a perfect pair for anyone interested in the India-Burma Theater of the war - perspectives from both the top and bottom of the British Army's command structure.

Slim's memoirs, first published in 1956 while he was serving as Governor General of Australia, begin with his assignment to command the 1st Burma Corps during it's desperate fighting retreat from Burma into India in 1942 after the Japanese captured Rangoon. Then later, as chief of the 14th Indian Army, he oversees the regrouping and rebuilding of the force that finally decimates the Japanese invaders at Imphal in northern India, and subsequently chases the fleeing enemy back south through Burma.

One of Slim's most notable characteristics is his evident lack of an overbearing ego. Several times in his book, he makes reference to his mistakes, errors in planning or judgement, and his deficiencies as a military commander. (Imagine that other famous British Field-Marshal of the war, the prima donna Montgomery, admitting such!) Much to his credit, Slim apparently learned hard lessons as he went along, and emerged as the better man and general for it. This, combined with his great concern for his men's morale, health, training and supply, justifies the high regard in which he was held by "rankers" such as Fraser. Churchill was wrong when he remarked, "I cannot believe that a man with a name like Slim can be much good."

The author's history of the Burma war is comprehensive - perhaps excessively so for the casual reader such as myself. His narrative includes the movement of troops as far down as battalion level, which is way more than I needed to know. Because of this, I might have awarded 4 stars instead of 5 had I been less mindful of the contribution Slim's memoir makes to the history of an almost forgotten theater of the global conflict. A keener student of the Burma campaigns is certain to appreciate these details more than I did.

Finally, there is the Field-Marshal's dry British wit, which shows all too infrequently. For example, when discussing his opposite number in the Japanese Army, Lieutenant General Kawabe, Slim writes:

"I did, however, manage to get a photograph alleged to be that of Kawabe. It showed what might have been a typical western caricature of a Japanese; the bullet head, the thick glasses, and prominent teeth were all there... When I needed cheering I looked at it and assured myself that, whichever of us was the cleverer general, even I was, at any rate, the better looking."

William J. Slim was an interesting soldier. He served for forty years in the British and Indian armies, rose to be a field marshal, served as governor general of Australia, and wrote what is considered to be one of the best memoirs to come out of the war, certainly among the best written by a senior officer. All of this, and many who read about World War II have never heard of him.

Slim was born the son of an unsuccessful businessman from Birmingham. His father sold wholesale hardware, and went bankrupt when Slim was in his teens, prompting the young man to look for a job that would afford him a paycheck for little outlay. He joined an army officer training course at Birmingham University (somehow without being a student of that institution, and neat trick) and when World War I started, he was mustered into the army as a lieutenant, and sent off to war.

He served first in Gallipoli, then Mesapotamia (later known as Iraq) and when the war ended, joined the Indian army, serving mostly with Gurkha regiments. By the mid-thirties, he'd seen enough service that when the war started he soon bounced up to corps command, and was instrumental in the retreat of the British army from Burma. The first offensive back into the country (the Arakan offensive) almost got Slim sacked, but someone perceptively relieved his senior instead, and he got the man's job. He fought, and won, the battles of Kohima-Imphal, and later Meiktila, and reconquered Burma. Afterwards, he was again almost sacked, instead promoted Field Marshal, and made Chief of the Imperial General Staff over the objections of his predecessor, Montgomery. From there, with some diversions, he became the Governor General of Australia, which he did almost until his death.

Lewin is a competent writer, but no master of prose or anything, and he concentrates on Slim and his career. There's little information on Slim's family, such as when his parents died, and almost nothing on his silblings. The author does spend a little bit of time on Mrs. Slim, and the children, but not much. There are some amusing anecdotes (especially concerning his time as Governor General of Australia) and a few myths get put to rest. The most prevalent one is the story that Slim enlisted in the army as a private and was eventually promoted all the way to Field Marshal. This is shown to be just not true, unfortunately: he joined the army through an officer's training course, much like the American ROTC.

The middle part of the book covers the war in Burma, and does a good job of it. The principle issue in a book dealing with Burma is whether you come down on the side of Orde Wingate and the Chindits, or against them. Wingate was a strange, fanatical, brilliant, annoying soldier who formed the Chindits, a unit of light infantry that fought in the jungle behind Japanese lines, supplied by air. Slim, and many soldiers in the conventional army, thought Wingate heedless of difficulties, and unscrupulous, to say the least, while his defenders think he won the war in Burma, and despise those who tried to "hold Wingate back." Lewin comes down gently on the side of Slim, as you might expect, but carefully lets you know how deceitful and devious Wingate could be when he wanted something.

Altogether, while this isn't a masterful biography, it is a good book and a worthy tribute to a wonderful soldier.

Read in conjunction with William Slim's "Defeat into Victory", Lewin provides a superb appreciation of the forgotten WW2 battles in Burma and the life and times of Britain's outstanding Army commander of the 20th century. A splendid portrait of the soldier, general, proconsul and man. A must read for any serious student of 20th century warfare.

This book concisely tells the story of an indomitable, brilliant in a practical way, yet wonderfully human warrior. It is a must read for anyone who wants to find out about the embodiment of leadership.

I am a great admirer of Field Marshal the Viscount Slim, who in my opinion was the finest general officer of the war anywhere in any army. He molded the magnificent British 14th Army and led it in a victorious campaign against an implacable, often fanatical enemy, performing the impossible against insurmountable odds.

It is interesting to speculate on how differently Slim would have handled matters had he been in command of the British-Canadian forces on D-Day instead of Montgomery. Slim, who was accustomed to having to get along on a shoestring, but who also moved boldly and decisively whenever opportunity presented itself, would almost certainly have taken Caen on D-Day given all the men, munitions and air power which Monty possessed. That achievement alone would have shortened the war.

On the other hand, I don't believe Monty would have fared well in Burma. He was far too cautious and always refused battle until he had amassed overwhelming superiority in manpower and munitions. I doubt he'd have ever gotten round to attacking the Japanese given the threadbare logistical situation in India and Burma.