W. Stanley Moss (1921–1965)

An end of holiday read and a ripping yarn. Having spent a sleepless night half way up mount Toubkal this week I can almost smell the cold and damp discomfort of their nights and days hiding with no warmth and little shelter. The joy of good food and wine after a few days without is palpable. The fellowship between the Allies, and their admiration of and gratitude to the resistance fighters makes it a warm-hearted read. I have never considered the extent of the commando missions happening all show more over Europe during the war so it feels like a window into one small escapade out of many! show less

Stirring and jaunty memoir of a famous wartime adventure carried out by British agents in German-occupied Crete. Most memorable is the insouciance and cameraderie of the youthful agents, and the colourful characters and resourcefulness of the Cretans that assist and support them as they move on foot or mule between caves and goatfold hideouts up in the stony mountains. That all their exploits and interactions in the resistance to the harsh occupying forces were purposeful and bore huge risks show more is downplayed, matching the tenor of this operation itself, the kidnapping of the German commander, designed not to harm but to embarrass the enemy. Moss’s spirited description, taken directly from the day-by-day notes he scribbled down during the operation itself was in progress, is augmented by prologues and notes, giving context, and in Leigh Fermor’s case, the panache of his usual rich and referential prose. show less

An audacious but risky adventure, recalled with panache by the author. Notable for the accounts of the uneasy relationships between the Cretans and the occupying forces and between the British-led partisans and the Communists, something that the rather irritating Powell & Pressburger film managed to miss completely. All the same, you can't help feeling that if General Kreipe's abduction had taken place a year or two earlier, the German response would've been much harsher.

Classic true story, modestly told, of the abduction of General Kreipe on Crete during the second world war. I came to this because of Patrick Leigh Fermor's part in the tale, but thoroughly enjoyed the telling by Billy (W. Stanley Moss). Well worth the read.