Carpet Bombing in WWII

[Mount Suribachi]

Also does anyone know of any good books on the topic

Tail End Charlies by Tony Renell & John Nichol (yes, that John Nichol). Unbelievably moving book, had me in tears a couple of times. Looks at the war from the Human perspective of the crews (Bomber Command & 8th AF). Also does a good job of reclaiming the reputation Bomber Harris - basically he did what the politicians told him to do, and did it very well. Then when the war was over - in fact before it was over - they tried to distance themselves from him. It presents a very "warts and all" biopic of him, showing how he was often his own worst enemy when it came to his reputation, and refused to admit he was wrong when he clearly was (eg over supporting D-Day, or attacking oil installations) yet to the men of Bomber Command, he remains a hero, their hero. There is also a whole chapter devoted to Dresden, which refutes much of the propaganda that is spread about Dresden - most illuminating is the quote from a pamphlet published during WW2 by the city boasting of the many vital war industries based in the city. I'm also particulary fond of the quote by one RAF POW

We hadn't been fed for 5 days. A blast from the bombing loosened the doors sufficiently for us to get out and eventually find some potatoes to eat. We were marched through the still burning city and that is one of the happiest memories I have of 3 years captivity by one of the nastiest and most poisonous nations ever to seek to rule the world

The book also goes into the detail of the arguments put forward during the war both for and against strategic bombing, and it also highlights something I was never aware of, the number of bomber crewmen murdered by German civilians when they parachuted out. By their own admission, bomber POWs never felt truly safe until they were being gaurded by the Luftwaffe (who often risked their own lives to protect the POWs from the mob).

Also recommended, but not as good as the brilliant book above is Bomber Crew which came out at the same time as the Ch4 TV series. It doesn't go into the for and against arguments as much as TEC, focusing more on the training & experiences of the crews, but an interesting read nevertheless.