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Six Weeks of Blenheim Summer

By: Alastair Panton
Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
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Publisher's summary

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Six Weeks of Blenheim Summer by Alastair Panton, read by Jonathan Keeble.

As I write, I can clearly recall the stinging heat of a burning Blenheim, smells, tastes, expressions, sounds of voices and, most of all, fear gripping deep in me.

Flying Officer Alastair Panton was just 23 when his squadron deployed across the Channel in the defence of France. They were desperate days.

Pushed back to the beaches as the German blitzkrieg rolled through the Low Countries and into France, by June 4th 1940 the evacuation of the Allies from Dunkirk was complete. A little over two weeks later France surrendered.

Flying vital, dangerous, low-level missions throughout the campaign in support of the troops on the ground, Panton's beloved but unarmed Bristol Blenheim was easy meat for the marauding Messerschmitts. At the height of fighting he was losing two of his small squadron's crews to the enemy every day.

Discovered in a box by his grandchildren after his death in 2002, Alastair Panton's Six Weeks of Blenheim Summer is a lost classic. One of the most moving, vivid and powerful accounts of war in the air ever written. And an unforgettable testament to the courage, stoicism, camaraderie and humanity of Britain's greatest generation.

©2018 Alastair Panton (P)2018 Penguin Audio
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Critic reviews

"The best account of the chaos and confusion of war outside the pages of Evelyn Waugh." (The Times)

"One can't help feeling awe and reverence for people like this. There are enough adventures here for a lifetime." (Louis de Bernieres)

"Simply wonderful. One of the best accounts of WWII I have ever read." (John Nichol)

What listeners say about Six Weeks of Blenheim Summer

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Excellent short story of the RAF and the short Battle of France

Very good presentation of the heroism of the RAF pilots, crews and ground personnel during the short battle of France.
Definitely worth the listen as Keeble does an excellent narration.

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Enjoyable and quite interesting recollections of the early months of the war

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the recollections of a British pilot in the early months of World War Two in France. It is performed beautifully

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Excellent.

This is a moving, very well written and deeply affecting book. Told without sentimentality, it recalls the drama, tension and futility of that war, at that time. I had wished it was longer… the descriptions in particular of life in their little base in France after a days flying are poignant. The final 5mins left a lump in my throat, and I have found the scenes described have stayed with me for some time.

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