Reasons for a book

My interest in the Battle of Crete primiarily stems from my father's (Leslie 1918-1995) involvement in the campaign. Leslie was a signalman (Reg. No. 4699) and on Crete was attached to the Headquarters company of Divisional Cavalry as part of 2NZEF. Like many other soldiers stationed around Galatas, he thought the Germans had been beaten and was disillusioned to be told to retreat to Sphakia. However, he was one of the lucky soldiers and was evacuated on 31 May by HMS Abdiel. He always considered that Crete should have been won. This in turn sparked my interest in why it was lost.

'C' Section - Divisional Signals. Near Bardia, 1 January 1942
Sgt McPherson, Leslie Power, Don Lane, 'Skeeter' Wells, George Bruce, Mick Davidson, Arthur Kitchingmam

In the last 20 years I have read most of the books on the Battle of Crete and are still discovering important details of the campaign. However my book is not about the reasons why the battle was lost. It is primarily about a group of ordinary New Zealanders performing an extraordinary task under the most difficult combat conditions. It is a story about courage, fortitude and comradeship.

I can be contacted with the form alongside,
or using the details below:

Tel: +64 9 631 7349
or
31A Wairiki Road,
Mt Eden,
Auckland 1024