I purchased "The Few" after reading several other reader reviews. I must admit, I wasn't sure if I would enjoy another Battle of Brittan book. I feared it would be a story of how a couple of Yanks saved England. I was wrong! It is a book of how a group of Americans from all walks of life risked their citizenship, wealth, and lives (many gave) to fight for freedom against Nazi Germany. These flyers flew and fought during the darkest hours of World War II, against better trained German pilots and against superior numbers until the United States entered the war a year later in December 1941.
Anybody interested in adventure tales, flying stories, or accounts of risking everything to help the underdog will enjoy "The Few". Alex Kershaw tells the stories of these famous and not so famous Americans that join the RAF and defend England before the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. The reader will experience many of the emotions these pilots would have experienced through the powerful telling of their stories. I couldn't put the book down. I almost looked forward to my two hour bus commute so I could read more. My only disappointment was finishing the book.

The other reviews and comments on here suggest that this is a remarkable book containing a wealth of insight and information about the handful of American pilots who flew with the RAF in the Summer of 1940 and afterwards. Besides a few tantalizing snippets of primary documents and descriptions of specific aerial battles, Kershaw really doesn't do much to provide his chosen subjects with a lot of depth.

The book starts off strong with an account of how three American civilian pilots secretly signed up with the French air force, first traveling to Canada and from there to Brittany and eventually Paris, all while the Germans were busy invading and the British army was evacuating at Dunkirk. To liven things up, Kershaw frequently tells events from the perspective of Churchill or a number of German pilots. This was the most interesting part of the book to me, because it was the part I hadn't known of before -- that American pilots risked losing their citizenship by breaking the neutrality laws.

After the three pilots reach England and are quickly accepted into the RAF, things get a bit simpler. Kershaw retells the familiar story of the Battle of Britain with plenty of action, dialogue, and other devices of creative nonfiction. But his original premise wears a bit thin. The five American pilots he focuses on didn't seem to be very involved in things, and if they were Kershaw doesn't really make this clear. By making his book such a quick and easy read, he's left out many details of setting and background that would have fleshed out the story he's telling. It reads largely like a rough draft or outline. Additionally, he intercuts his main narrative with a "Top Gun" story about two competing German aces - Adolf Galland and Werner Molders - which, rather than presenting the other side for reasons of even-handedness, merely distracts from the less famous people in the book.

It's the kind of book that makes you want to go out and read more, because it only scratches the surface. Billy Fiske, Eugene Tobin, Art Donahue, and the others surely deserve a book twice the length of this one.

A great piece of little known WWII history about "the few" American fliers who flew for the British in the Battle of Britain. A solid book in every way. Alex Kershaw brings it all together by doing excellent research of the events as they unfolded. From the varied backgrounds of the individual fliers, the politics of the war, and the battle strategy of the Germans and British including quotes from Winston Churchill and Hermann Goering. Kershaw even throws in some vignettes of the German aces into the mix. The actual Battle of Britain is compelling and moving. As an aside, after I finished the book I watched the classic 1969 movie, "Battle of Britain". Even though some of the special effects are dated it is STILL a great movie and the facts and events of the book underpin the movie perfectly. There is nothing quite like the sight and sound of a Spitfire even on celluloid. A definite read for any WWII history buff!

I learned of "THE FEW" while watching "Yanks in the RAF" on "War Stories with Oliver North" on television. I immediately ordered a copy and upon reading found it difficult to put down. In addition to being well researched, comprehensive and very well written it strikes me as a labor of love. This book should be number one on every WWII American aviation enthusiast's book shelf.

Having read Kershaw's two previous WWII narratives, The Bedford Boys and The Longest Winter, I was interested to read the stories he'd collected for The Few. As he's done previously, he scored some great stories of real people, real lives and unreal heroics in the face of the global tragedy of WWII as the Germans sought to destroy England.

I've read some minor criticisms of Kershaw's writing that state he doesn't give enough detail to overall contexts of the battles he references or that his historical facts seem to sometimes be in error. Well, anyone looking for names, dates, places, etc., can look in some dry old history text book for that kind of information. However, if you're interested in reading the personal stories about the people who made history and, in this case, who faced down the evils of those who sought to destroy Britain in 1940-41, then this narrative from Kershaw will be worth your time. Kershaw hasn't just devoted these stories to the American fly boys that skirted American neutrality laws for the chance to fly with the RAF (and mostly were killed long before America even entered the war), but also their British counterparts in the RAF as well as stories from pilots of Germany's Luftwaffe who flew against the RAF.

What I find most intriguing about Kershaw, who is English, is how he has chosen in each book to highlight a small group of Americans. Given that he's a Brit, I would think he might highlight stories from the history of the UK's involvement. If I could ask Kershaw only one question, I'd be most curious to find out his motivation for researching and writing about these small groups of Americans.

Mr. Kershaw's research and access to Art Donahue's and Eugene Tobin's private papers provide a wealth of background never seen before. Kershaw also gives us the details of the efforts to reform the Escadrille Lafayette before the fall of France. Highly Recommended!

Excellent book and the true story of the first American pilots in WWII. The air war battles are discribed in great detail - makes you feel as if you are in the cockpit. How much we owe to these and the brave British and other pilots that made up the RAF in 1940.

I learned much about the "Battle of Britain" and the eight Americans (one was listed on the RAF rosters as Canadian) who faught in it. Occuring before the US entered the war, this account is about the people who defended Britain from Hitler's attempt to destroy the RAF and London before invading the island. Hitler almost succeeded but for the heroism of the entire RAF including the eight Americans who, against the laws if the US enlisted and fought. Well written. Battle accounts are riviting. I highly recommend this book.

This is a great read. So young were these boys who gave their lives for another country before the US entered the war!
Wonderful history!

Exceptional narriative with awsome attention to detail. A great tribute to those who flew. Well done!