- Paperback: 264 pages
- Publisher: BBC Books; New edition edition (2 May 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0563488115
- ISBN-13: 978-0563488118
- Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.4 x 2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 558,716 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Published to coincide with the accompanying BBC television series, this is the fascinating, hair-raising, sometimes hilarious and sometimes tragic account of the brave men and women who went behind the lines in Nazi-occupied territory, with a mission to, in Churchill's words, "set Europe ablaze". The scale of their operations was always limited by lack of funds, military hardware, and, most unbelievably of all, by the continual sniping that the SOE suffered from jealous rival special forces, and the sneering suits in Whitehall. Despite such difficulties, however, their range of operations was impressive: from Gorgopotamos in Greece to Bergen in Norway they did indeed do their very best to set Europe ablaze, with what few resources they had, and faced certain torture and death if they were caught. Their greatest impact was in the Balkans, supporting Tito and his partisans against the Germans, but here, as ever in the Balkans, things were always complicated by ethnic rivalries and atrocious massacres of civilians. In the end, though, the greatest value of the SOE was to boost public morale back home, and it did that superbly. David Stafford's account is excellent, the only reservation being that it leaves one wanting more detail and more characterisation about specific missions. One doesn't often get a sense of being there on the front line but, as an introduction to the subject, this is very satisfactory. --Christopher Hart
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Alan Judd's Book of the Year, The Spectator
It is as good an introduction to this thrilling and moving subject as we are likely to get.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I was looking for an introductory work on the SOE (Special Operations Executive) and a broad look at their activities during World War Two, and so bought this book. It's fairly slim and a brisk read, with chapters usually coming in at around 10 to 15 pages. It covers about as much information as you would find in a modern television documentary (which shows something of the economics of writing versus moving image as an educator) and covers everything with a necessary depth and broad enough sweep, to convey to me the essential story of SOE.
War stories are always more interesting when they're about people and that is something that David Stafford hasn't forgotten. We haven't just got a bare tale of operations, methods and outcomes, we have got a story about people, who through their abilities and backgrounds came to fight the Nazis through "ungentlemanly warfare".
What is truly astounding is that the actions of a few brave individuals, usually behind enemy lines, with the skilled application of targeted strategic action or through espionage, did as much for the war effort as the more orthodox organs of the military machine in terms of the strategic outcomes. All with much less in the way of human casualities.
As good an introduction to the SOE as you'll find anywhere.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Having long been vaguely aware of the existence of SOE I was looking for an introduction, something showing the sweep of the operations. I found exactly what I was looking for in this book. It was well written, and made detailed and extensive use of first-person accounts which made everything seem that extra bit closer.
My only criticism was that there was a lack of detail, particularly noticeable in the run-up to D-Day where we don't find out much about what happened. However, as a book can't do everything, I would be happy to recommend it as a first read, and the bibliography and footnotes give ample opportunites for further reading if you want them.
My only criticism was that there was a lack of detail, particularly noticeable in the run-up to D-Day where we don't find out much about what happened. However, as a book can't do everything, I would be happy to recommend it as a first read, and the bibliography and footnotes give ample opportunites for further reading if you want them.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Although many people have heard of the SOE, few are necessarily aware of exactly what they did or what they contributed to the war effort. This book goes some way to redressing that, and offers a fascinating insight into how SOE was formed and the missions it carried out.
This is a story of struggle to create an agency from the ground up, of political infighting as various government offices have their noses put out of joint, and of tremendous courage. The SOE would train agents, whom were then dropped behind enemy lines to try and organise resistance groups and carry out sabotage.
Over the course of the war, these agents had many notable successes, and made the fighting after D-Day a lot easier than it would have been by harassing the German army.
Secret Agent is well written, and has plenty of first-hand accounts from ex-SOE agents. It grips you from the start and makes you marvel at the bravery and commitment of these people. It is not a comprehensive overview of the service, some areas of SOE are largely ignored, such as SOE's operations in Asia, which receive about one sentence, but it has a personal quality about it that makes you more involved in the whole story.
This book makes you appreciate that Britian never stopped fighting the Nazis, throughout 1940-1944, when finally the Allies were able to begin liberating Europe.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Worthy but a bit dull
A good account of the political origins of SOE and its various machinations and rivalries with the other secret service agencies. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Shupi
A Wonderful Insight into a Secretive World
While the Second World War is probably the most written about war in history, the Special Operations Executive (SOE) remains something of an enigma. Read more
Published on 22 Sep 2008 by Hombre M
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