Werewolves and vampires, dragons and gorgons, giants and goblins – since ancient times man has invented strange creatures to explain the unknown or caution children. Mythical Monsters includes 44 fantastical beasts ranging from Greek mythology to present day folklore, literature and cinema. Included are such classic mythical beasts as the Minotaur, St. George and the Dragon and the Cyclops, while examples from more recent tales include Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, the Norwegia...

During World War II, it quickly became apparent that the physical and tactical demands placed upon paratroopers required men of exceptional stamina, courage and intelligence. To create these soldiers, levels of training were unusually punishing and protracted, and those who came through to take their "wings" were a true elite.The Paratrooper Training Pocket Manual 1939–1945 provides an unusually detailed look into what it took to make a military paratrooper during the Seco...

Who’s going to guide you when your military boot camp class is over? What’s going to help you prepare for the next boot camp challenge? With the aid of superb line artworks, SAS and Elite Forces Guide: Extreme Fitness demonstrates to the reader how special forces soldiers are trained to reach and maintain peak physical fitness.The book explores the different training methods to build up physical strength, speed, agility and endurance, across running, swimming, weight train...

Using excerpts from contemporary training manuals, this pocket manual is an insight into the preparation of the troops involved in Operation Overlord.The success of the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944, depended on thousands of troops carrying out their mission and the seamless coordination of the amphibious landings with paratrooper and glider assaults. The troops not only had to be trained up ready for their own roles, but to work alongside other troops, often coor...

The Vietnam War is a timely account of the 6,000-day conflict in Southeast Asia. The book begins with the history of South East Asia during World War II, before discussing the French involvement in the First Indochina War, and the subsequent drawing-in of the United States and its allies, Australia and South Korea. The repercussions of this bitter, tragic and costly conflict were far-reaching, for it has affected US foreign policy ever since. As the book reveals, the war remains a fascinat...

With the aid of superb line artworks, the Elite Forces Handbook: Hunting demonstrates the core skills involved in being a self-reliant hunter. From tracking large game to shooting wild pheasant, this book is the essential guide to finding, killing and surviving off animals in the wild. The book offers useful tips on a vast array of topics, including laying traps, building your own weapons, deciphering tracks, skinning and butchering your kill, cooking meat and building smokehouses. It also...

Combat Techniques is a comprehensive reference work on tactical procedures for infantry today. Illustrated with action photographs and detailed artworks, it provides a thorough insight into how the soldiers of today’s armies would fight in any combat scenario they encountered. The book covers all aspects of the battlefield, detailing the various forces and assets at a battlefield commander’s disposal, showing how tactics have changed since the end of World War II, and examining a ...

The dropping of two atom bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and their shocking aftermath finally ended World War II in the eastern theatre. But they weren't the only experimental weaponry at the time.In this fascinating account, Chris McNab examines the development of a range of hitherto unknown and at times shockingly effective weapons that were developed and unleashed on an unsuspecting world over the course of the war.They include the bouncing bomb, t...

A History of War explains the dark but compelling story of warfare, from its emergence in prehistoric tribal disputes, through great imperial and global wars, to present-day counterinsurgency and 'hybrid' conflicts. Two factors sit at the heart of this story: technology - including weapons, vehicle systems, vehicles and tactics. A History of War charts the rise of the army, explaining how primitive tribal war parties evolved through seasonal levies and feudal armies to pr...

You can train all you like, but when it comes to the crunch, do you have the mental endurance to see yourself through combat situations, being held hostage or finding yourself at the mercy of the elements? SAS and Elite Forces Handbook: Mental Endurance examines what it takes to be as mentally fit as a special forces soldier. It is equally important to focus on diet, rest patterns and mental discipline as it is to concentrate on push-ups, sit-ups and other physical exercises. Using simple ...

Twice a year, 150 anxious recruits gather at SAS headquarters in the UK, their minds focused on one objective: to become SAS soldiers in one of the world’s most elite regiments. Yet between arriving and receiving the famous winged dagger badge, stands nearly four months of the toughest military selection process in the world.Could you rise to this exceptional challenge of mind and body? The SAS Training Manual shows you how. Beginning with essential preparation, the book c...

In September 1939, Hitler's Nazi Germany invaded Poland. Thus began the greatest armed struggle in history. Within days of the invasion, Germany was at war with France, Great Britain and much of the Commonwealth, but by the end of 1941 – by which time Japan and the United States had been plunged into war – the conflict had engulfed virtually the entire planet. World War II witnessed the mobilisation of more than 100 million military personnel. Here was 'total war' on a sca...