Mushroom Publications

"Codename Swallow" British Sherman Tanks at Alamein

by  Dennis Oliver

Reviewed By  Laramie Wright, IPMS# 36156

MSRP: $22.50 ISBN: 83-89450-33-X Format: 36 pages, softcover. Available from Squadron (www.squadron.com) and Roll Models (www.rollmodels.com) among others. This title from Mushroom Publications concentrates on the 250 or so Sherman II's (M4A1) and Sherman III's (M4A2) used by the Eighth Army in the Alamein Battles in 1942. There is a great deal of information packed into Mr. Oliver's slender volume, divided into sections as follows:   1. Introduction   2. Markings       Color Profiles   3. Camouflage   4. The Armoured Brigades       Color Profiles       Scale Plans Part One tells of the events leading to the decision by President Roosevelt to strip the US First Armored Division of its new M4A1's to quickly shore up the badly weakened British Eight Army following the loss of Tobruk and other defeats. M4A2's were also sent and the British christened the M4 series as the General Sherman. Details of items changed and local improvements prove of interest and "Swallow", as the Sherman acquisition operation was codenamed, was in high gear. Part Two describes the markings for various formations as laid down in regulations and field orders gives a refreshing sense of what the markings meant and how they were assigned. Regimental tactical signs, aerial recognition markings, WD registration numbers and pennant assignments are all covered. The print section is followed by four pages of 1/35th scale color drawings of assorted Shermans, illustrating markings as described in the previous pages. Part Three tries to sort through conflicting information that has accumulated over the years about the camouflage carried by Shermans in North Africa. Oliver makes reference to photos, film and numerous books in his footnotes to support his conclusions. Part Four covers the Armoured Brigades at Alamein. He identifies brigades and their assigned regiments, and then describes their markings and camouflage. Three pages of color profiles follow beautifully illustrating some of those brigade/regimental schemes on Shermans. Finally, the last section is five pages of what appear to be very accurate 1/35th scale line drawings of Sherman II's and III's. There are only a few period photos of Shermans sprinkled through the text and some of those appear to be digitally reproduced at low resolution which caused a loss of sharpness and detail. That is the only area where the book falls short though. In conclusion this book is highly recommended to those interested in the historical record and the North African war in general. It is very useful for the modeler as well and I recommend it unreservedly. Review copy courtesy of Mushroom Model Publications.

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