The good folks over at Osprey Publishing has given the general public something to do over this period of forced isolation. They are gifting us four of their E-Books every week free of charge. These change every week, and we have the first of these four to show you in our preview...
Osprey Publishing's "Great Corona Give Away" - Week I
For some of you that may remember that about ten years ago "The Modelling News" started out as a weekly addition to the Osprey Publishing Website's blog. It soon outgrew the weekly format, but we have always been very keen to see Osprey's releases as they offer modellers so much and their books are very accessible.
This week Osprey Publishing has done something different for their readers, they are giving away E-Books to the general public as an alternative to just doing nothing over this isolation period, you can get some reading and learning in also.
The books up for free this week are:
- CBT 8: US Marine vs Japanese Infantryman by Gordon L. Rottman
- DUE 65: Bf 109E/F vs Yak-1/7 by Dmitriy Khazanov, Aleksander Medved
- ELI 110: Sassanian Elite Cavalry
- AD 224–642 by Kaveh Farrokh
- RAID 37: Blackbeard’s Last Fight by Angus Konstam
- WPN 26: The Martini-Henry Rifle by Stephen Manning
How it works:
Many people all over the world are staying at home to combat the spread of COVID-19. While self-isolation might be a bit daunting, it’s also a great opportunity to catch up on your reading. To help pass the time, we’ll be giving customers five free eBooks each week for the next four weeks. Read through the options, add the eBook to your basket and use the code FREEBOOKS1 at checkout to get your free eBooks.
CBT 8: US Marine vs Japanese Infantryman by Gordon L. Rottman
Illustrated by Johnny Shumate
The brutal fighting between US Marines and Japanese infantry on the island of Guadalcanal in many ways came to typify the island-hopping war in the Pacific. This book not only explores the differing tactics and equipment used by the two combatants but also shows how the challenges of fighting in inhospitable tropical jungles impacted on soldiers on the ground, as combatants had to deal not only with their determined opponents but also the twin issues of disease and stretched supply lines. Written by former special forces veteran with extensive knowledge of jungle warfare, this fully illustrated book lifts the veil on one of the most pivotal and ferocious close combat duels of World War II.
DUE 65: Bf 109E/F vs Yak-1/7 by Dmitriy Khazanov, Aleksander Medved
Illustrated by Jim Laurier, Gareth Hector, Andrey Yurgenson
Step into the cockpits of the Luftwaffe's Bf 109 and the Red Air Force's Yaks 1-7, two fighters which were involved in some of the largest, fiercest aerial battles in history. The Iconic Messerschmitt fighter and its combat hardened pilots inflicted a fearful beating on the Yaks in the beginning of the war. Some of the highest-scoring aces in history benefitted from the Bf 109's technical superiority over the overweight and underpowered Yak 1, racking up incredible successes against their poorly trained and equipped adversaries. And yet, as the Soviets accumulated combat experience, their tactics improved, as did their mounts in the upgraded Yak 1B and gradually, the Red Force eroded the Jagdwaffe's dominance of the skies in the eastern front, though with the 109G they would never lose qualitative superiority. Featuring first-hand accounts from veteran pilots, rare archival photographs and expert analysis, this volume brings to life the vicious dogfights that took place between the Bf 109 and the Yak as they vied for mastery of the frozen skies of the Eastern Front.
ELI 110: Sassanian Elite Cavalry AD 224–642 by Kaveh Farrokh
Illustrated by Angus McBride
The Sassanians ruled the last great imperial Empire of Persia before the Arab conquests of the 7th century. Rome's only equal in the classical world, the Sassanian Empire had an enormous impact on the development of architecture, mythology, arts, music, military tactics and technology. Within the Sassanian military, the cavalry was the most influential element, and Sassanian cavalry tactics were adopted by the Romans, Arabs, and Turks. Their cavalry systems of weaponry, battle tactics, Tamgas, Medallions, court customs, and costumes influenced Romano-Byzantine and medieval European culture, and this book allows the reader to see how a little-studied eastern power affected the development of cavalry traditions in the western world.
RAID 37: Blackbeard’s Last Fight by Angus Konstam
Illustrated by Mark Stacey, Johnny Shumate, Alan Gilliland
In April 1713 the War of the Spanish Succession came to an end. During the conflict hundreds of privateers - licenced pirates - preyed on enemy shipping throughout the Caribbean. These privateers now found themselves out of a job, and many turned to piracy. One of them was Edward Teach - more popularly known as "Blackbeard”. He joined the pirates in New Providence (now Nassau) in the Bahamas, and by early 1717 he had become a pirate captain. From then on he caused havoc off the North American seaboard, in the West Indies and off Honduras, before appearing off Charleston, South Carolina in May 1718. He blockaded this major port for a week, an act that made Blackbeard the most notorious pirate of his day.
WPN 26: The Martini-Henry Rifle by Stephen Manning
Illustrated by Peter Dennis
The breech-loading, single-shot .458in Martini-Henry rifle has become a symbol of both the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 and the numerous battles in Egypt and Sudan in 1884-85, but continued to be used by both British and colonial troops well into the 20th century. Its invention and introduction into British service were in direct response to the success of the Prussian Dreyse needle gun, which demonstrated that the breech-loading rifle offered faster loading, improved accuracy and superior range; significantly, the weapon could be loaded and fired from a prone position, thus offering the rifleman greater security on the battlefield. Due to the longevity of service, many Martini-Henry rifles survive today, both in museums and in private collections, and the weapon is highly prized by shooting enthusiasts. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork and an array of arresting first-hand accounts and written by an authority on warfare in the Victorian era, this engaging study tells the story of the powerful Martini-Henry and its impact on the battlefield, from the Anglo-Zulu War to the opening months of World War I.
You can get these books by simply visiting the Osprey Website and following the normal steps to buy a book or Ebook.
To help those less used to ordering E-Books from the Osprey (or any other) website, we have included a helpful visual walkthrough for you :-)
Steps to get these books in detail:
1 - Go to the Osprey Website "Log In" page and make yourself a free Osprey account.
Then go to the Osprey Website blog page and select each of these books by clicking on the covers of the books. Once on the page, click on the "Ebook" / "Epub" opinion. This is the normal format for a lot of books (like Kindle etc) on the internet. Then select "Add to Basket"
2 - After selecting one of each of the Ebooks, go to your basket and MOST IMPORTANTLY add the code FREEBOOKS1 at checkout to get your free eBooks. Press "Apply Coupon" and you will see the price go from around 11 pounds for each book to zero :-)
3 - In the Checkout page enter "No Payment Information Required", then "Continue"
4 - On the "Order Review" page check to make sure you have the correct books and the cost of the books is zero, then click "Buy Now"
5- A confirmation page will then come up, and you can go from here directly to your library of new free books on a page you can download them to your PC to keep.
6 - You will also get an email to your nominated email account linked to your Osprey account. These have the links to your library also.
7- This is what you will find when you follow the link to your Ebook Library page. Simply download them to your device from here...
8- To read these E-Books on your PC / Linux or Mac you will need an E-Pub reading software. We found a simple and free application that we can recommend called "Calibre" at this link. It is free as we said and no bloatware included :-) but the file is 105Mb.
9 - If you do not want to instal a program on to your computer an extension is available on the chrome browser.
10 - ...And you are good to go! Enjoy :-)
