Pleasant surprises...

are always very welcome!

Books: We don't make a big thing of Easter but my wife gave me a very interesting book, Crowns in the Gutter by Ted Raicer, published by Strategy and Tactics Press in the US. Ted is the expert on WW1 in terms of board games (Paths of Glory to name but one) and this book represents his analysis of the war as a whole, focusing on military operations. As you can see from the pictures, the book is very nicely produced and the format is very similar to the sort of articles you get in magazines like the now defunct Command. From what I have read so far this is very well written and very balanced. It is not just a collection of old articles. I wonder why this was never published in the UK?

Salvo!: A tiny promotional solitaire naval wargame from Minden Games on a postcard. I have this and a slightly bigger version, Great War Salvo, free from the Minden Games website as an article in Dispatches Magazine.

This afternoon I shall be playing this with my youngest son as my executive officer. I have been incentivised by Marco Arnaudo who reviewed Salvo recently on his You Tube channel, well worth watching.

Birds: Oh yes the feathery ones. I'm happy to report not only a Robin's nest in the garden but the close presence of four or more Goldfinches. if you haven't seen one of these they look very tropical!