Landfall

Although I'd heard about Nevil Shute many decades ago, I had never read him before. This book was quite good, and I'll likely read something more from Shute. The writing is a bit spare and to the point, so doesn't flow smoothly is it might in the hands of a language master, such as Dickens. But Shute was an engineer by trade, so I can cut him slack.

The story takes place early in WWII, before the US enters the war. It is about a young RAF pilot who is part of a squadron who flies out over the English channel for reconnaissance and to protect England from German ships, in particular the German U-boats or submarines. The young man sinks a sub that he was pretty sure was German, but the Admiralty thinks he might have sunk a British sub show more that went missing the same day.

While his early flights and then the sub inquiry are going on, the young man begins a romance with a bar girl. They feel increasing comfort in each other's presence. After the inquiry into the sub sinking, the young man is transferred away. But after a few months, he returns to the area as a test pilot, and the romance resumes again. So, in a way, it's the story about how people try to continue with normal life during the very abnormal times that existed in Britain during WWII.

I've always been a sucker for old English books and movies of that period. I adore Vera Lynn songs. Interestingly, in my mind's eye, the action in this book took place in black and white, as would be the case were I watching the action in a movie theater of that time period. The lack of color didn't detract one iota from the story. That's just the way my mind works. I read Jane Austin in color because I've seen her portrayed in color. I read WWII stories and noire detective stories in black and white because that's the way I've seen them portrayed. Weird, huh? show less

I completed this book with a sigh of quiet satisfaction. This copy was one of 'Mummy's' books with her signature on the inside cover dated 1942 - what a gem. A blue hardback copy containing the yarn written on thick paper.
A story set at the start of the second world war with an airman, an officer and a bar maid providing the romantic interest. The airman bombs a submarine and is accused of downing one of his own. The writing is evocative of the period and rather delightfully dated in my opinion.
It is an unpretentious novel of its time and made all the more special as it was read by Mummy at a time when she was living through what 'we' now call history. The book was published well before the end of the war - so the outcome would not show more have been known. A satisfying read and one I would recommend. show less

This novel dates to 1940 both in the time of the story and the year it was published. Although the story is fiction it appears to resemble a true event where a British RAF pilot bombs a submarine that is not German but British (http://www.nevilshute.org/nl060401.html) . Whether true or not the story has a similar starting point and is well told. You get a very clear picture of how it was for the channel patrol pilots in the first months of the war. Here a channel patrol pilot bombs a submarine in the English channel and the Navy believes that the pilot bombed a British submarine in error although the pilot was pretty certain it had no British markings. The naval inquiry board decides to throw the pilot under the proverbial wheels based show more on evidence they knew was suspicious because a British sub has gone missing in the area that the pilot made his attack. Stuffy military types outweigh the more sympathetic ones. Eventually the young pilot is proven right thanks to the smarts of his girlfriend who puts the pieces together. Shute has a number of books written in this time period that really gives one insight into what it was like in WII with a lot of attention to small details of everyday life as well as the stuff of war. That is the value of this book. This is also a war romance which isn't a bad thing but did not pull me in.

I almost took off half a star because of a lengthy section that recklessly endangered the pilot in the development of a secret weapon. It sounds like it was some kind of proximity fuze and endless (meaningless) details were gone over and over until the pilot was critically injured. This book did come out at the start of the war so the Brits were not about to give away secrets to the enemy here so I'm sure whatever was really going on was not going to be told in detail to the reader. However, as the book plays it, doing these tests with a finicky bomb ready to kill the pilot was crazy, even in the time of war. It made little to no sense as described.

As much as possible the book has an ending that is "happy". I did like the appearance of a Dutch freighter and Captain near the end who more or less provides a key bit of information that helps save the day. Not, however, one of Shute's best works. show less

Again I was quickly absorbed into this author's tale. Roderick Chambers, known as Jerry, is a pilot in the R A F. Based in the south of England, he flies reconnaissance missions reporting back on any sightings of ships or submarines. He becomes enamoured with local barmaid Mona Stevens.
On one mission he destroys what he believes is a German submarine only to be informed that one of their own subs has not docked.
This is an enjoyable read, written with authenticity as Nevil Shute was an engineer in the R A F. He creates a social climate of wholesome courtship and the changing social climate with regard to a relationship between an officer and a barmaid in that era.

Landfall - Nevil Shute *****

I love Nevil Shute's books. They have the ability to transport the reader to a time when life was a lot simpler, a lot more gentle. A time when men were gentlemen with high morals, and ladies the same. Of course life was never really like that for all members of society but Shute has the ability to allow us to believe in such an existence.
Landform is no exception. We follow the tale of Jerry Chambers, an officer in the RAF and his relationship with Mona, a barmaid. Jerry sinks a submarine but is later informed that it was a British. Jerry although convinced of his innocence finds little support in the forces and accepts the naval enquiries outcome. Trying to put the incident behind him he volunteers for a show more dangerous new assignment. Mona however listens to all the gossip at the bar and by piecing together little snippets from many conversations sets out to prove that he was not responsible.

Although primarily a love story (something that I would not entertain reading by any other author) there is enough action to ensure the reader is kept on their toes. Written early in the second world war it also depicts Shute as visionary of the future and the way in which warfare would change throughout the war.

An excellent read, for me, not as good as 'On The Beach' but easily worthy of 5 stars. show less

Roderick "Jerry" Chambers is a young and ambitious officer in the Royal Air Force. The story opens with Jerry meeting sweet Mona Stevens at a dance. This chance encounter proves to be a blessing in disguise for Jerry later in the story.
The early stages of World War II serves as the backdrop for Landfall. Jerry has been conducting air patrols off the southern coast of England. He's a good pilot and on one mission he skillfully sinks what he thinks to be a German submarine, only to find all evidence points to it actually being British. While Chambers ultimately escapes disciplinary action, he shamefully retreats to a post as far away as possible from the disaster in northern England. Meanwhile, Mona has been eavesdropping on officers in show more the snack bar where she works. Despite the black mark on Jerry's career Mona has stuck by him. Pretty soon she is able to discern what really happened with Jerry regarding the British submarine business. Only, it might be too late to clear his name. Jerry has been seriously wounded in an bombing experiment and rumor has it he may not make it through the night. show less

A dated book, but a fun thriller to read.
Jerry is an officer in the RAF who sinks an enemy ship during WW2, but was it really a British ship?