Weary the Life of Sir Edward Dunlop

A very disappointing bio. After 150 pages I was overwhelmed with the miniature, there was lack of economy of the author's writing and there seemed an inability of the editor's to cut some far too long sentences and paragraphs back. As the read reached the times I was specifically interested in, it did not get any better, it took a lot of energy to complete this read. Having to reread areas that were of much interest to me such as Weary Dunlop's courageous work on the Thai Burma railways during World War 2 was dissatisfying.

The main text is 640 pages long. Major historical figures have biographies half this length, such was the depth of the research. There are very good Maps and Line Drawings throughout, and the plates sections are excellent. Endnotes states that “All unsourced quotes in this book are taken from many hours of tape-recorded interviews.....” that the author had with Weary Dunlop. In my opinion, this is a mistake for obvious reasons. The Select Bibliography is very useful. The author states in the acknowledgements Weary Dunlop was the main source of information, and unfortunately this leads to what is almost hagiography.