Fortress Malta: Under Siege 1940–1944

Proof sampler. 8vo. Pp. v, 105, [1]. Pictorial wraps. Published a full year before the book's eventual release.

Author's first book of Military History. The heroic struggle, as related through both civilian and service personnel testimony, to maintain the strategically vital British naval base in the heart of the Mediterranean from which to attack Rommel's supply lines during the North African campaign. Having suffered more than three thousand bombing raids by the Axis powers, the people of Malta were awarded the highest civilian honour for bravery, the George Cross, by King George VI.

"Holland's stirring account pays fitting tribute to the heroism of the island's defenders and its civil population... the book teems with memorable characters." –Mail on Sunday