The best books about World War II you can't put down

Operation Mincemeat and The Man Who Never Was were just the tip of an elaborate double-cross system by the British during the Second World War. It consisted of an elaborate group of English spies operating at German agents in England and beyond, feeding false information to the Germans and gaining access to the codes and cypher work of the German Secret Service. Their work was responsible for deceiving Hitler and the German army into believing that the D-Day landings would take place at the Pas de Calais. I love just about every book I read about World War II and this was one of the best. You’ll be surprised as I was about how important their activities were.

I bought this book at an airport. I started reading it as soon as I entered the plane and found it so interesting that I was sorry that the plane had landed. It was the revelations about the war we never knew. For example, William Stephenson and William J. Donovan were credited by Churchill and Roosevelt with delaying the German invasion of Russia. A Man Called Intrepid is a detailed account of Allied Intelligence Operations during the Second World War. Very intriguing was a reference to German interest in Pearl Harbour and its harbour prior to the Japanese raid. Stephenson also played an active role at the Camp X spy school, near Toronto and while acting as a double agent.

"I am by nature hardworking but I always needed a special impulse,” observed Albert Speer, Hitler’s architect, in his memoir about his early life and his days as one of Hitler’s ministers. The impulse led him to write his memories in which he provides portraits of Hitler, Goering, and Gobbles. His accounts are far from flattering and his behind scenes activities in Berlin make for great reading. The book comes with several pictures of Speer with Hitler and other prominent Nazis and his account of Hitler during his last days stay with you for a long time. I was always intrigued about the other side and this book provides an insider’s look at the people involved.

Shapiro, a Canadian war correspondent, landed with the troops on the beaches on D-Day and his other experiences rise to the surface in his novel about life during the blitz and the events leading up to D-Day. Shapiro always considered his a historical novel. His descriptions are those of someone who lived the tale. The hero is a U.S. soldier who found himself deeply in love with an English woman. This book came out a few years after the war when the war was fresh in our minds. It was like reliving those wonderful days all over again.

The war in Africa, where Rommel’s tanks seem unstoppable, sets the stage for this novel of intrigue and spies, with Egypt and The Suez Canal the prize. Follett is a master of suspense and he makes great use of it here as two secret agents lock horns. The German agent with a wonderfully appropriate name, The Spinx, enlists the wiles of a belly dancer and the British agent, seeks the help of a beautiful young Jewish woman, who plays a key role in unmasking the German agent and the final defeat of Rommel. I always love reading Follett. You’re never sure what.