Product Description

They had joined an organisation that advertised itself as 'the best flying club in the world'. Now the young pilots of 409 Squadron are flung into battle over Germany where their training, tactics and aircraft are all found sadly wanting. The spirit of the gentleman amateur flickers and dies in the harsh glare of searchlights over the Ruhr. We see the reality of war: chaos, cock-up and comradeship in equal measure. Derek Robinson reinforces his reputation as the best aviation fiction writer in the business with this tragi-comic story.

Product Details

• Published on: 2007-07-01
• Format: Audiobook
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 12
• Binding: Audio CD

About the Author
Derek Robinson's acclaimed First World War trilogy and Piece of Cake have established him as the world's best aviation writer and one of the top authors of war fiction.

Customer Reviews

A witty, tragi-comic tale debunking Bomber Command myths
"Damned Good Show" explores the story of the fictional 409 Squadron RAF between the outbreak of war in 1939 and the end of Bomber Command's "learning" period, summer 1941. It covers the initial Phoney War leafleting, "Gardening" mine-dropping missions, and the commencement of more dangerous missions over Germany.

In this book Robinson attempts to do for Bomber Command what he did so brilliantly for Fighter Command in his novel "Piece of Cake" - strip away the legend and myth, and tell the story of ordinary young men in extraordinary circumstances. Readers familiar with Robinson's work will recognise at once his brisk, witty style. Conversation is a particular strength, as is his grasp of historical fact and the lengths to which he goes to get the details right, so that one can almost sit in the cockpit and sense what went through the minds of those men. That in my opinion he does not quite match the power of "Piece of Cake" is testament to its brilliance, rather than any detriment to this work, which is still a very good book.

Whilst being a good length, it is not as long as "Piece of Cake" or "A Good Clean Fight", which disappoints only in that the reader wants more. It also takes a little longer to get going than those two books, possibly due to the nature of the war at that time (which didn't really take off until May 1940). However readers of Robinson's other two WWII books will be pleased to see the reappearance, half way through the book, of a character familiar to them from those works, and who is up to his usual tricks of getting up the noses of Senior Officers by telling the truth, rather than what they want to hear.

This book is a wellcome addition to the library of anyone who enjoys intelligent, suprising, and witty fiction, and who wants to understand how Bomber Command's 1939-1941 experiences shaped the later Strategic Bombing Campaign.

Very highly recommended.

Derek Robinson does it again!
Damned good show is another witty, well written, well researched novel about bomber command from 1939-1941 and the very steep learning curve they experienced while bombing, mining and leafleting in the period. As well as the day to day life of 409 squadron, Robinson explores the broader arguments about strategic bombing, and the effectiveness of bomber commands efforts. At the beginning of the war, many predicted nations would collapse under the pressure of sustained aerial bombardment. Robinson's novel shows that they didn't and how the experts in Britain reacted to this reality.

Robinson has always had excellent characters in his novels, and there are some in Damned Good Show. For me these were Langham, Silk, Rafferty and the wonderfully sinister yet comical Flight Lieutenant "Black Mac" McHarg.In addition we learn more about one of Robinson's finest characters "Skull" Skelton. Other characters are just ciphers who move in and out of thr action, and are not there for long. There are references to other incidents in Robinsons novels, Hornets sting in particular.

Some have said this is "Derek Robinson by numbers" which I kind of agree with, but when the results are this good it seems churlish to complain!

A Damned Good Read
"A Damned Good Show" is Derek Robinson's latest foray into WWII aviation fiction since "A Good Clean Fight" and I have to say that I was champing at the bit to get my hands on it. This time Robinson turns his attention to Bomber Command with a tale of an RAF Bomber Squadron during the opening years of the War. This is a good read and those familiar with Robinson's previous efforts will appreciate the wry black humour, fantastic inter-character banter and his realistic evocation of 1940's RAF squadron life. However in some ways maybe this is a little too typical of Robinson's work and seems almost slightly a "Derek Robinson by numbers" and hence is my reason for missing out on that fifth star. It is also slightly overshadowed by his earlier masterpieces such as "Piece of Cake" or "Goshawk Squadron". Robinson though is still streaks ahead of anyone else delving into the area of the war novel currently and I always look forward to the next Derek Robinson offering.