Category: author

20th Century conflict – “The Oil Wars Myth (Cornell University Press, 2020) – Emily Meierding interview

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Check out this book here   https://amzn.to/3elj3PK

Emily Meierding has studied history and political science. She wrote her first book thinking she would prove that a number of wars have been started over oil and found the opposite. We spoke about the book and the research she did for it.

(The audio player is at the bottom of this post.)

0:47 – Emily talks about how she got into writing on oil and international wars.

1:33 – Emily talks about the wars she looking into including WWII and the Gulf War. She looked at conflicts from 1912 to 2010.

3:35 – Emily talks about Japan and WWII and other cases where oil was a goal versus other factors.

6:20 – Emily talks about the Falklands War.

7:59 – Emily talks about conflict in 1912 and on.

9:10 – Emily talks about how WWI affected government ideas about oil and war.

11:29 – Emily talks about peacetime activities to ensure energy security.

12:41 – Emily talks about US goals in the Iraq War.

14:56 – Emily talks about how she divided wars into four categories in relation to oil.

19:44 – Emily talks about Saddam going to war for survival.

20:30 – Emily talks about the Iran-Iraq war.

22:09 – Emily talks about Saudi Arabia and disputes with Yemen.

23:13 – Emily talks about African wars and oil.

25:01 – Emily talks about the influence of oil companies in war.

27:55 – Emily talks about why the wars for oil myth exists and persists.

31:57 – Emily talks about what she used for her research.

33:02 – Emily talks about some work she did in Africa.

34:42 – Emily talks about Iraq and the invasion of Kuwait.

39:11 – Emily talks about her strong interest in the subject matter.

43:58 – Emily talks about the [prevalence] strength of the oil myth over time.

45:37 – Emily talks about US plans to invade Saudi Arabia during the 70s oil crisis.

49:45 – Emily is on twitter @emeierding and on emilymeierding.net

 

Links of interest

https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501748288/the-oil-wars-myth/

http://emilymeierding.net/Welcome.html

https://twitter.com/emeierding

For more “Military History Inside Out” please follow me at www.warscholar.org, on Facebook at warscholar, on twitter at Warscholar, on youtube at warscholar1945 and on Instagram @crisalvarezswarscholar. Or subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify

Guests: Emily Meierding

Host: Cris Alvarez

Tags: military, history, military history, conflict, war, interview, non-fiction book, oil, international war, WWII, world war two, gulf war, falklands war, China, Germany, Japan, coal, Great Britain, Royal Navy, Iran, Mesopotamia, Iraq, Chaco War, South China Sea, Persian Gulf War, Kuwait, Saddam Hussein, Iran-Iraq war, Africa, Nigeria, Cameroon, Iran-Contra, Russia, biofuel, Saudi Arabia, USSR

Check out this book here   https://amzn.to/3elj3PK

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

WWII Royal Navy military history graphic novel – “The Stringbags” – (Dead Reckoning, 2020) – Garth Ennis interview

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Check out this book here   https://amzn.to/2XdDsj2

Garth Ennis is a successful and prolific writer whose best known works are with such comic books as the Preacher and The Boys. However he’s also written many war comics. His latest work is The Stringbags which focuses on a WWII aviation arm of the British Royal Navy. The crews flew in archaic machines to do the jobs that needed to get done. We spoke about this Fairey Swordfish unit, his graphic novel, and a bit about war comic book history.

(The audio player is at the bottom of the post.)

0:44 – Garth talks about writing war comics and reading them when he was a kid in Northern Ireland.

3:34 – Garth talks about his interest in WWII and other conflicts.

4:33 – Garth talks about the development of his writing.

5:47 – Garth explains why he wrote about the Stringbags.

14:00 – Garth talks about how he created the characters that conducted the historical operations.

15:56 – Garth talks about the operation against the Bismark.

17:34 – Garth discusses the thematic focus of his graphic novel.

20:15 – Garth talks about the types of pilots who flew the Swordfish.

22:58 – Garth talks about where the Swordfish flew from and technical details about the plane.

25:46 – Garth talks about how much the Stringbags are celebrated in the UK.

27:20 – Garth talks about Swordfish loses in WWII.

29:56 – Garth talks about the manufacture of the Swordfish and the Albacore.

31:52 – Garth talks about the armament and the radar of the Swordfish.

34:55 – Garth how he did his research for the graphic novel.

37:02 – Garth talks about the additional research he’s done for the novel.

40:50 – Garth talks about the first air museum he saw Ireland.

45:19 – Garth talks about his revival of the war comic Johnny Red and how he helps the reader differentiate between fact and fiction.

48:58 – Garth talks about his surprise that men flew in the Swordfish against much more modern weaponry.

50:51 – Garth talks about the German praise for the Swordfish crews.

53:46 – Garth talks about the promotion of war comics in comic book stores.

56:29 – Garth talks about pitching the revival of the comic book Enemy Ace.

58:55 – Garth talks about the historical accuracy of his war comics and The Stringbags.

1:01:16 – Garth talks about the support the Naval Institute Press gave to the novel.

1:01:55 – Garth talks about the war projects he’d like to write about going forward.

1:05:18 – Garth can be found by looking for him on Amazon, Marvel, DC, Dynamite, Avatar, and Aftershock.

 

Links of interest

https://amzn.to/2XdDsj2

https://www.deadreckoning.org/book/the-stringbags/

https://www.amazon.com/Garth-Ennis/e/B000APF7BM/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1

For more “Military History Inside Out” please follow me at www.warscholar.org, on Facebook at warscholar, on twitter at Warscholar, on youtube at warscholar1945 and on Instagram @crisalvarezswarscholar. Or subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify

Guests: Garth Ennis

Host: Cris Alvarez

Tags: military, history, military history, conflict, war, interview, graphic novel, war comic, Stringbags, Ireland, war comics, Vietnam, Alan Muir, Swordfish, torpedo bomber, Royal Navy, British, Taranto, Bismark, Channel Dash, Tuskeegee Airmen, Tirpitz, aviator, strike arm, torpedo, Charles lamb, Fairy Swordfish, WWII, world war two, world war 2, deflection shooting, Grumman Avenger, Albacore, radar, Taranto, Lancaster Bomber, Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, Hastings, Charnhorst, DC comics, Enemy Ace, Preacher, Dynamite Entertainment, Aftershock, Avatar, TKO, Night Watches, Axis

Check out this book here   https://amzn.to/2XdDsj2

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Viking culture and warfare history book – “Valkyrie” – (Bloomsbury, 2020) – Johanna Katrin Fridriksdottir interview

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Check out this book here   https://amzn.to/2YL6JUu

Johanna Katrin Fridriksdottir studies and teaches Viking era poetry and literature. She recently wrote a book on the idea of the Valkyrie in Viking culture. We spoke about this subject, Viking warfare, Viking sagas and the process of writing the book itself.

(Audio player at the end of the post.)

0:41 – Johanna talks about how she got into writing on Valkyrie.

1:45 – Johanna talks about how she broke the book down.

3:19 – Johanna talks about the date ranges, areas at issue, and the idea of the Valkyrie.

6:01 – Johanna talks about the Valkyrie.

7:45 – Johanna talks about the image of blood covered Valkyrie.

9:58 – Johanna talks about the meaning of Viking war poetry.

13:53 – Johanna talks about where the idea of the Valkyrie first started.

19:02 – Johanna talks about evidence or lack of women fighting.

26:04 – Johanna further addresses the idea of female warriors.

29:07 – Johanna talks about blacksmithing.

31:28 – Johanna talks about the ideas of Valkyries in different places and time periods.

37:37 – Johanna discusses interesting facts about Viking sails.

41:27 – Johanna talks about her written sources and the archaeological evidence.

44:09 – Johanna talks about which stories were passed down over the centuries.

48:38 – Johanna talks about how much the written material supports the archaeological evidence.

50:35 – Johanna talks about the process of writing the book.

51:28 – Johanna talks about the goddess Freya.

57:37 – Johanna talks about crows and battlefields.

58:57 – Johanna mentions crows, eagles, and wolves as images of battle.

1:00:00 – Johanna talks about evidence of women riding horses.

1:03:00 – We discuss the resources a Viking chief needed for success.

1:04:33 – Johanna talks about a touching moment in the sagas.

1:10:38 – Johanna talks about the Viking languages she knows and Viking poets.

1:14:22 – Johanna can be found at vikingwomen.org and on twitter @sagaknitter

 

Links of interest

https://amzn.to/2YL6JUu

https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/valkyrie-9781788314770/

https://vikingwomen.org/

https://twitter.com/sagaknitter

For more “Military History Inside Out” please follow me at www.warscholar.org, on Facebook at warscholar, on twitter at Warscholar, on youtube at warscholar1945 and on Instagram @crisalvarezswarscholar. Or subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify

Guests: Johanna Katrin Fridriksdottir

Host: Cris Alvarez

Tags: military, history, military history, conflict, war, interview, non-fiction book, valkyrie, , vikings, Iceland, Scandinavia, England, Battle of Stamford Bridge, York, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Greenland, Odin, Valhalla, Ragnarok, Raven, Game of Thrones, Saga, Gotland, Freya, Skaldic, dragon, rune stones, wolf, giantess, Eddic, Christianity, ships, sails, Snorri, Vinland, Newfoundland, Freya, Thor, Oseberg, grave, tomb, crows, undead, zombie, reenactments, Beforeigners, Sammi, maritime

Check out this book here   https://amzn.to/2YL6JUu

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.