56 of 57 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Soildier's Up Close Story of The Jungle War in Burma During WWII:, Feb 13 2008
By Daniel Hurley - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Quartered Safe Out There (Paperback)
George MacDonald Fraser, who has written many successful fiction books based on well researched history quite often starring his very British Flashman character, writes a chronicle of his own personal experiences in the final stages of WWII fighting the Japanese as a 19 year old member of a rifle company that is composed of a handful of men run by a sergeant and a corporal. Fraser, who just recently passed away, writes of his first hand experiences in a very descriptive personal way, capturing the various English dialects of his fellow citizen soldiers expressing all their frustrations of life in harsh conditions in the jungle dealing with swamps, leaches, mosquitoes, questionable orders but generally good leadership although sometimes well questioned by the troops. Fraser gives you an excellent description of what it was like in the field, mixed with the real humor from the men who bonded close together, although having their differences with occasional culture clashes; they generally endure their punishment with a delightful sarcasm. And Fraser gives you the full flavor of the different troops in the field such as the courageous Gurkha soldiers, Indians and native tribesmen that fight with the British while also interacting with the tribes inhabiting the Burma jungles often caught between the two sides. Fraser does not write a political correct book and he is quite clear about that, which makes the book a realistic read, he echoes what the troops in the field really felt and he makes no bones how they felt about their enemy. An excellent picture of very young and veteran soldiers in the field that gives you the feel for the tremendous challenges and conditions they faced.
26 of 27 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
At War In Burma...., Oct 1 2008
By D. S. Thurlow - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Quartered Safe Out There (Paperback)
2001's "Quartered Safe Out Here" is George MacDonald Fraser's superbly written and moving recollection of his service wtih the British 14th Army in the Burma Theater at the close of the Second World War.
Fraser was a 19 year-old private, fresh from a "public" school education and assigned to an infantry section full of seasoned veterans in one of the most dangerous combat zones of the war. A journalist and novelist later in life, Fraser didn't get around to writing about his wartime experiences until half a century after the fact. As a result, his narrative is admittedly episodic. Fraser makes an effort to place his often vivid recollections in context provided by the official history, but this account is in no way meant to be a unit or campaign history.
Fraser is that unfortunately rare type, an infantry private with real writing skills. His section mates become living, breathing characters to the reader. His impressions of the jungle, the heat, the monsoons, and combat with the Japanese are heartbreakingly real. The respect of the 14th Army for its commander, future Field Marshal Bill Slim, shines through. Fraser's portraits of British, Indian, and Gurkha soldiers are by turns funny and awe-inspiring in capturing their stoic professionalism under conditions of boredom and terror. His observations of the attitudes and expectations of his fellow soldiers provide some pungent perspective on just how much the world has changed since 1945.
"Quartered Safe Out Here" is very highly recommended as a superbly written and brutally honest account of a forgotten theater of World War II, a reading experience for the casual reader and the student of history alike.
26 of 31 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
War in Burma, Nov 5 2007
By Hedley M. F. Butterfield - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Quartered Safe Out There (Paperback)
The author of the Flashman chronicles has produced a vivid account of what it was actually like to be a young soldier in Burma in the later stages of World War II. Refreshing & politically incorrect.