I believe the Battle of the Coral Sea is vastly underrated and overlooked in its importance, often overshadowed by the imminently more covered Battle of Midway less than a month later. The Battle of the Coral Sea could arguably be more important than Midway, and author Dr Tom Lewis does a fantastic job of not only describing the Battle of the Coral Sea very well, but he also places it where it belongs in history.

Having never read one of Dr Tom Lewis’ over two dozen books before, I wasn’t sure of his writing style. Having been familiar with the Pacific Profiles series, I am happy to report that this book fits in beautifully. Dr Tom Lewis’ background includes serving over twenty years in the Royal Australian Navy, post-graduate degrees in Cold War Politics and Strategic Studies and being awarded the Order of Australia Medal for services to naval history. His research is evident, military service rings true and tells the story well.

From the book’s back cover:

I saw these modeling stands mentioned in one of the chapter newsletters Mark Young compiles and sends to all members (sorry, can’t recall which one). I decided to purchase the sets mentioned above at https://www.wardogmodeling.com/. War Dog also makes a Model Ship Stand and a Model Car Stand. My stands arrived unassembled in a plain white cardboard box, so I don’t have any box art to show you. The box contains the parts in separate plastic bags, a copy of the order information, and that’s it. No instructions, but they aren’t really needed. Assembly is straightforward.

As 1941 dawned, the British were mopping up the last Italian strongholds in Libya after seven months of fighting. The outnumbered British Western Desert force of 30,000 men had effectively defeated an Italian force of 250,000. The British had captured hundreds of thousands of Italian soldiers, plus hundreds of tanks and artillery pieces, and several thousand valuable trucks, and pushed the Italians out of Egypt and then across the coastline of Libya until they controlled only a small section of western Libya.

From the publisher’s website:

Nearly forty years have passed since the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant - the most severe nuclear accident in history and one of the gravest man-made disasters ever recorded. Countless books, documentaries, and films have examined the catastrophe and its aftermath. Yet, despite this abundance of material, a crucial aspect of the story has remained largely overlooked in English-language accounts: the immense contribution of Soviet aviation to the response effort.

In the shadow of the “liquidators” who manually cleared radioactive debris, thousands of aviators - especially helicopter crews - risked their lives flying repeated missions into the deadly plume above Reactor No. 4. Their work was vital in containing the fallout, delivering personnel and equipment, and monitoring radiation in conditions no aircraft had ever been designed to endure. Their story has never received the recognition it deserves.

The IPMS/USA recently began receiving items for review from Gaahleri. The company is relatively new and first introduced airbrushes and has since expanded into the production of their own line of paints. Kaleido ColorWorks is their premium sub-brand of water-based paints, which are developed with RapidAir Technology. In addition to all the individual colors, Gaahleri also has sets of paints available for consumers.