{"title":"Books by David Fletcher","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781803131825","title":"I, Baby Boomer","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis book is the autobiography of one of the Baby Boomer generation of individuals who now stand accused of all manner of heinous crimes, including ruining the world and generally enjoying themselves in the process.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is, of course, a fallacious accusation, as is made very clear by the Baby Boomer subject of the autobiography. He does this by recording not just a series of events in his own life, but events that were taking place in the world around him, and what his thoughts were on these events – sometimes with not even a modest helping of reserve, but instead with a fairly large dollop of irreverence. After all, any Baby Boomer worth his salt, is hardly going to be constrained by the dictates of ‘wokism’ or the edicts of modern-day puritanism. Far from it. Indeed, this is only too apparent throughout the whole of the autobiography and even more apparent in the autobiography’s three appendices, three veritable treasure troves of poetic pearls, containing a carefully curated selection of the author’s entirely non-PC verses and his appalling epic odes.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eYou have been warned.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43205496864946,"sku":"9781803131825","price":14.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781803131825_f22fae42-bace-41ba-b018-d944203ef876.jpg?v=1786026702"},{"product_id":"9781472820037","title":"British Battle Tanks","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis lavishly illustrated volume details the design, development and operational history of the British-made tanks in World War II.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePlagued by unreliable vehicles and poorly thought-out doctrine, the early years of World War II were years of struggle for Britain’s tank corps. Relying on tanks built in the late 1930s, and those designed and built with limited resources in the opening years of the war, they battled valiantly against an opponent well versed in the arts of armoured warfare.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis book is the second of a multi-volume history of British tanks by renowned British armour expert David Fletcher MBE. It covers the development and use of the Matilda, Crusader, and Valentine tanks that pushed back the Axis in North Africa, the much-improved Churchill that fought with distinction from North Africa to Normandy, and the excellent Cromwell tank of 1944–45.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt also looks at Britain's super-heavy tank projects, the TOG1 and TOG2, and the Tortoise heavy assault tank, designed to smash through the toughest of battlefield conditions, but never put into production.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56301108986229,"sku":"9781472820037","price":30.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472820037_b980d60a-63dc-4777-835b-8fca8a1fa1ec.jpg?v=1786020511"},{"product_id":"9781472837349","title":"Churchill Infantry Tank","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn illustrated history of the most important British-made tank of World War II, featuring all seven Marks of Churchill gun tank with variations and the curious self-propelled gun of 1941\/42.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Churchill is quite different from any other British tank of World War II, built outside the normal process of British tanks and the Department of Tank Design. It was built under the watchful eye of the Prime Minister, after whom it was named, by a firm with no previous experience of tank production. Despite being condemned as unsuitable and more than once being scheduled to be replaced by a better design this never actually happened. It remained in production and ultimately vindicated itself since, although it was slow and noisy it was found to have superior climbing ability and thicker frontal armour than the vaunted German Tiger.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOpening with coverage of the prototype tank A20, in unprecedented detail, which has not been covered in any detail before, the book goes on to look at all seven Marks of Churchill, in particular their different guns. This book also discusses the tank’s service in Russia and later with the Irish, Jordanian and Australian Armies. It also features the disastrous Dieppe raid of August 1942, ending with a brief look at the Black Prince or 'super Churchill' which was only developed up to the prototype stage at the end of World War II.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56301115703669,"sku":"9781472837349","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472837349_74724cb9-4484-4b5b-b5dc-f88589486c52.jpg?v=1786020696"},{"product_id":"9781805142454","title":"The Radio Ham","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn the middle of the 22nd Century, a time when humanity has lost its grip on all forms of advanced technology, Sidney is one of the few people in the world who still has access to ham radio, and who is making use of this facility to keep in contact with three other ‘hams’ around the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith this small network of remote friends, he has been able for some time to endure his existence as a serf in what is now a rigidly partitioned Britain. However, he now finds himself facing a situation where it seems he will have to look to just his own resources to survive.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThrough overpopulation, ignorance, and an unwillingness to confront the reality of their situation, the people of this crowded country are facing imminent starvation. For Sidney, who lives in the ‘southerner’ part of the country, close to the partition line, this means that soon he will be exposed to a wave of desperate ‘northerners’ as, in their hundreds of thousands, they move south in search of food.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is the story of how Sidney seeks to save himself – albeit not solely through his own resources, but with the help of an improbable new friend.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56307615924597,"sku":"9781805142454","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781805142454_339c1284-e709-473a-b09a-980ab38db534.jpg?v=1786027937"},{"product_id":"9781472820068","title":"British Battle Tanks","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis lavishly illustrated volume details the design, development and operational history of US-made tanks in British service in the Second World War.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe idea of British soldiers using American tanks was not viewed with a great deal of enthusiasm by the British Army. They perceived American tanks as being crudely made, mechanically unsophisticated and impossible to fight in. However, once British crews got used to them and learned to cope with some of their difficulties, such as limited fuel capacity and unfamiliar fighting techniques, they started to see them in a far more positive light, in particular their innate reliability and simplicity of maintenance. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e This book, the last in a three-part series on British Battle Tanks by armour expert David Fletcher, concentrates on World War II and studies American tanks in British service, some of which were modified in ways peculiar to the British. It shows how the number of these tanks increased to the point that they virtually dominated, as well describing some types, such as the T14 and M26 Pershing, which were supplied but never used in British service.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56312438751605,"sku":"9781472820068","price":30.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781472820068_b76035ca-db31-48e4-acec-a977fbd6a462.jpg?v=1786020512"},{"product_id":"9781785216879","title":"Tiger Tank (Icon)","description":"The German Tiger I was the most feared battle tank of the Second World War. Its invincibility lay in its main 8.8cm gun and heavy defensive armour. This book gives a rare insight into acquiring, owning and operating one of these awesome fighting machines, using the UK's Tank Museum's Tiger 131 – the only Tiger I in the world that has been restored to full running order., As well as offering unique insights into maintenance and driving the Tiger, the book includes vivid personal recollections from wartime German tank crewmen and reveals what it was like to operate this 57-ton giant in combat., Authors, The book was written by a team of experts from the Tank Museum who were closely involved with the strip-down and rebuild of the Tiger I., David Fletcher is a historian, a prolific author and a world expert on tanks.David Willey is a curatorMike Hayton is workshop manager, Other members of the writing team include volunteers Darren Hayton and Stevan Case, Mike Gibb of the SdKfz Military Vehicle Foundation and David Schofield, a specialist in forensic science., Icon titles were originally published in the classic, larger manual size and have now been produced in a smaller format containing the same information.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56312850219381,"sku":"9781785216879","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781785216879_70da8ca3-b35a-4052-a814-12a88b454a3d.jpg?v=1786025339"},{"product_id":"9781838593599","title":"A Leap Year of Limericks","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThere was a keen lover named Claude \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhose technique with women was flawed \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eAnd that’s why, you see \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHe had turned sixty-three \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eBy the time he had finally scored  \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis book does what it says on the tin – and more. It not only provides 366 original ribald rhymes, but with this armoury of new 21st century limericks, it also fights a rearguard action against the forces of political correctness, wokeness, unwarranted respect – and decency.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIdeal for Baby Boomers, \u003ci\u003eA Leap Year in Limericks\u003c\/i\u003e is not for the faint-hearted...\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56313010487669,"sku":"9781838593599","price":10.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781838593599_a856007e-ffb6-4376-990e-b690b9d8a135.jpg?v=1786027940"},{"product_id":"9781836285717","title":"Four Widowers and a Funeral","description":"\u003cp\u003eFour old widowers gather in a village pub once a week to share their frustrations with modern-day living and their increasing sense of impotence in a world that is not as they’d like it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn one of their visits, they learn of the suicide of a local farmer, brought about by his despair at having to deal with repeated instances of fly-tipping on his land. 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This book traces the story of Saxton’s life and legacy by reconstructing his extraordinary mapmaking project alongside the crucial nature of the support and encouragement he received from Queen Elizabeth I and her court.   Saxton’s atlas became the template for most detailed maps of the country for almost two centuries: it is hard to exaggerate its importance. For many, his atlas provided the first detailed image of England and Wales they had ever seen, showing the Elizabethan kingdom as a whole and in its constituent parts. This lavishly illustrated book reproduces all Saxton’s county maps together with many other illustrations revealing the forebears and successors to this groundbreaking work. 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