As an amateur historian, I’d always assumed that I had a pretty good handle on my understanding of World War II and its various actions, armies, equipment and consequences. However, reading this book has humbled me considerably. Until now I’d known virtually nothing about the dramatic skirmishes that occurred between the ambitious Italian forces and those of the much smaller but fiercely determined Greek forces in the mountains bordering Albania. When the fighting started, no one familiar with the international scene expected much from the Greeks, who were facing a much larger and well-tested force. In fact, the Greeks proved something of an ugly surprise to the supposedly invincible force of “eight million bayonets” that Mussolini had at his disposal, actually throwing them back into occupied Albania for a time.

This is the second adult coloring book published by MMP following their Classic Fighters book. The Operation Dynamo adult coloring book focuses on the airplanes and military vehicles used at the time of Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940.

The book is 8 1/4“ x 11 1/2“ and includes 32 pages with 15 vehicles on two-page spreads. Each vehicle or aircraft includes a black-and-white photo, technical specifications, and a brief description. The image to be colored is a simple line drawing without a lot of detail, which makes coloring easier.

Aircraft & Vehicles Included:

AK’s Real Colors of WWII is a beautiful publication packed with historical information and photos documenting actual colors and camouflage patterns used on WWII military vehicles.

AK describes the book as a detailed study of documents and original vehicle material from each respective army, plus the synthesis of other publications which are recognized as benchmarks in vehicle color. The intention of the book is to share all this information and provide a guide to the colors that can be used to produce an accurate camouflaged vehicle in a specific theater of operations. The goal to provide a standard guide of colors is a noble one, and will surely generate lots of discussions.

Using the study of preserved military equipment, and scientific analysis, AK has developed the colors used in these paints. AK-Interactive also used the advice of four experts who have years of experience in the inception, development, production, and use of military colors:

Osprey Publishing has previously released books on two iconic side arms: The Colt 1911 Pistol and The Webley Service Revolver. What has been missing from the history of pistols, until now, was one weapon that was developed and deployed in the late 1890's, namely the Feederle Pistol from Mauser. Otherwise known as the 'Broomhandle' Mauser.

While this pistol was manufactured and sold by Mauser and is often attributed to them, the design and development was actually done by brothers Fidel, Friedrich, and Josef Feederle. The Feederle brothers worked for Paul Mauser and, in his defense, it was somewhat standard operating procedure for a company to take credit for any design/development work done by the namesakes employees. [Fun Fact: Paul Mauser once forbade Fidel Feederle from working on a pistol design.]

Drawing heavily upon an unpublished history of Britain’s Air Sea Rescue Service produced after WWII by the Air Ministry’s Air Historical Branch, this softback reprint was originally published in 2005 as a follow-on to a 2003 effort by Pitchfork entitled Shot Down and On the Run. That book dealt with British and Commonwealth aircrew who found themselves on the ground in enemy territory—mostly in northern Europe—but were able to successfully “escape and evade,” often with the help of brave souls who risked their lives—and the safety of their families--in so doing.