Recent reviews of Just A Forgotten Hero
Desmond Clifford for Nation Cymru
. . . the book has heart and purpose. The author is dedicated to recording the story of a man whose contribution to the war should not be forgotten, along with the astonishing bravery of the civilians in Belgium and France who helped him and many others like him evade capture.
Appendices to the main text record the available factual information about the crew members with Griffiths in the stricken Lancaster; the operational history of the aircraft; the escapees Griffiths met during his escape; and information on the civilians who helped Griffiths escape through the Comet Line escape network. The author pays full tribute to the remarkable bravery of these people, motivated by simple patriotism and who faced the most terrible retribution if caught.
. . . his aim was to record a life and a contribution which ought not be forgotten and this he has done.
The next batch of reviews is from LibraryThing which is a US based website for booklovers. Over 3.5M users who have produced over 5.5M reviews, discussion groups and lots more to see and do there. Relevant to us is that they have LibraryThing Early Reviewers. Around 100,000 members have registered there to take part in a monthly draw to receive a free book. In return they write their own review. Most give star ratings.
dsha67 for LibraryThing *****
I received a reviewer’s copy of Rob Moffitt’s, Just A Forgotten Hero which shows the journey in providing closure to RAF tail gunner William Roch Griffiths. The only survivor of a seven man crew, shot down over Belgium in June 1942 while part of the crew of a Lancaster Bomber. The initiative for the research came from a BBC article in which Gregory Delbrouck was requesting assistance in finding out anyone connected to William Griffiths.
The book describes the author’s journey along with a dedicated group of researchers to find out about William and the remainder of the crew and develop a genealogical family tree for William.
The author provides a interesting narrative detailing the numerous steps in researching an individual when initially provided minimal information and the various tools utilized by the research team.
Ultimately the author and the research team are able to provide a family tree and provide the story of tail gunner William Griffiths and the remainder of the crew.
An outstanding book for those interested in both the gunner William Griffiths history as well as the great description of genealogical research.
kayakerchris for LibraryThing ****
From the point of view of a reader who is not well-versed in WWII military history or genealogy research, this book was both fascinating and frustrating. There were interesting descriptions of the Manchester bombers and the deadly conditions their tail gunners endured but I found myself skipping through page after page of totally inane email messages that presumably accurately reflect the frustrating dead ends and false leads and inaccurate records that one encounters in this kind of research but add little to the story of this man’s life. I am tempted to suggest that the author enlist the help of a good editor in a revised version, but he might end up with a magazine article instead of a book.
On the other hand, the fact that our hero seems to have been so thoroughly forgotten not so long after the war speaks to the fate of so many who were lost during the war and remain forgotten.
Fascinating and frustrating.
BookyEd for LibraryThing
I found the methods used to track down and identify the relatives of the WWII RAF ‘Forgotten Hero’ quite fascinating as they seem almost as complex as police detective work. Although it is different, I liked the way the book was written in chronological order of detection, discovery and some failures. It was also interesting to read the appendices at the end of the book about the air crews, aircraft and the Resistance organisation that assisted RAF members (from many countries) to return to Britain.
An easy and enlightening read about genealogical research.
ritad2 for LibraryThing *****
I am amazed at how much research went into this book and amazed at how many people risked their lives for others during WWII. I think fans of history and genealogy would enjoy this book.
It was well written and very informative.
Iberead for LibraryThing ****
Rob Moffitt’s book, Just A Forgotten Hero was started by Gregory Delbrouck looking for information on a RAF veteran. His name was William Griffiths and he was shot down over Belgium in World War 2. William was the only survivor of a Lancaster Bomber with a crew of seven. The book tells of his escape with the help of the Belgian resistance and his downfall in life. Much heavy research in Great Britain records was used.
There are also short stories of some resistance heroes who helped him escape that were very interesting.
Kobzar for LibraryThing ****
Rob Moffitt’s book is a detailed summary of his genealogical research to immortalize a hero of the allied air war against Nazi Germany during the Second World War. William Roch Griffiths joined the RAF in 1941 as a 20 year old and was the sole survivor of a Lancaster bomber which was lost over Belgium in 1942. Griffiths linked up with the Belgium Resistance that helped him cross over to neutral Spain, then Gibraltar, and ultimately back to the United Kingdom, where he continued to serve with the RAF until 1962. Unfortunately Griffiths descended into a life of personal tragedy, disfunction, alcoholism and petty crime ending with his death in 1985.
A man who should have been honoured and remembered as a war hero was instead laid to rest in an unmarked grave, “alone and unremarked with neither friend nor relative to mourn his passing…a war hero, a father, a husband, someone’s son. An incredibly lucky and yet a desperately unfortunate soul.”
The author painstakingly reconstructs the details of Griffiths’s life and his family history before and after the war. He also provides biographies of the crew that flew on his doomed flight, the other evaders with whom he returned to the UK as well as the members of the Comète Line who saved his life as he evaded capture in Nazi occupied Europe.
Moffitt has created a compelling memorial to a single tragic war hero which illuminates the immense human toll of the Allied air war which played a key role in the liberation of Europe. “We Will Remember Them”
J M Gwent
An intriguing insight into the ups and downs of a keen genealogist with a mission to tell the tale of ‘A Forgotten Hero’. The brave RAF Air-Gunner, his journey to freedom and a window into the hidden world of the Belgian Resistance in WW2.
The author has written this book in an engaging and informative style, and clearly very much enjoys his subject.
P W Gwent from an early manuscript
Despite being neither a genealogist nor a WW2 fan I found both your journey and the story you’ve uncovered fascinating. I particularly liked the interest variation between chapters detailing your search and the history of that period.
I must be honest that I struggled a couple of times where the story was heading up blind allies with lots and lots of similar sounding welsh names I nearly felt I should be taking notes to keep track of it all. I loved the use of dates and times to show the fast pace of the search and delays when waiting for offices to open or certificates to arrive.
I like the style of the concluding chapter ‘Reflections’.