
The Spitfire
Icon Of A Nation
Ivan Rendall(Author)
Weidenfeld & Nicolson (Publisher)
Will be published approx. on 20. August 2009
Book
Hardback
352 pages
978-0-7538-2632-4 (ISBN)
Description
The inside story of an icon with a special place in the affections of a nation.
Designed to be the best fighter in the world the creators of the Spitfire married science, technology and art to create both 'a thing of beauty' and a deadly weapon that changed the course of the war.
'You don't just strap yourself in, you buckle the Spitfire on, like girding on armour...' Squadron Leader William Duncan Smith
The Spitfire is part of popular culture and from the Battle of Britain to the present day it has remained a national celebrity. As a focus of appeals, for scrap aluminium - 'turn your saucepans into Spitfires' - for the 'Spitfire Fund' and 'Wings for Victory Week' the British people had a stake in the Spitfire. Working People contributed through their companies to present Spitfires to the RAF in return for letters from the pilots. After the war, no victory flypast was complete without a Spitfire, and today no air show is over until the roar of the Merlin engine has been heard overhead.
This book, with its wealth of unusual contemporary imagery, modern photography, first-person reminiscence and high production standards is the last word on a subject of enduring appeal.
Designed to be the best fighter in the world the creators of the Spitfire married science, technology and art to create both 'a thing of beauty' and a deadly weapon that changed the course of the war.
'You don't just strap yourself in, you buckle the Spitfire on, like girding on armour...' Squadron Leader William Duncan Smith
The Spitfire is part of popular culture and from the Battle of Britain to the present day it has remained a national celebrity. As a focus of appeals, for scrap aluminium - 'turn your saucepans into Spitfires' - for the 'Spitfire Fund' and 'Wings for Victory Week' the British people had a stake in the Spitfire. Working People contributed through their companies to present Spitfires to the RAF in return for letters from the pilots. After the war, no victory flypast was complete without a Spitfire, and today no air show is over until the roar of the Merlin engine has been heard overhead.
This book, with its wealth of unusual contemporary imagery, modern photography, first-person reminiscence and high production standards is the last word on a subject of enduring appeal.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Orion Publishing Co
Illustrations
240
Dimensions
Height: 171 mm
Width: 195 mm
Thickness: 30 mm
Weight
910 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7538-2632-4 (9780753826324)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Ivan Rendall served in the RAF and was the producer and writer of the major BBC series, Reaching for the Skies. He is the managing director of Zenith TV and the author of six previous non-fiction titles.