David, his younger brother, was … brave but mostly a failure, and he talked. David’s brother was smart, organized, capable, determined, hardworking and humble.

It seems it may really have been formed by his older brother, who worked for British Intelligence. (A dense book, but with amazing research.)Ī lot of stories about Paddy in Rogue Heroes are made up whole cloth, and some of it is made up to cover the moral and organizational failings of David Sterling, the SAS’s “founder.” (There is some doubts even as to whether David Sterling founded the SAS. Little inconsistencies in the writing made me even more suspicious (Paddy was so “mad” except he was meticulously organized and a brilliant strategist and earned the devotion of all who served under him.) So I picked up Paddy Mayne: Lt Col Blair ‘Paddy’ Mayne, 1 SAS Regiment by Hamish Ross which uses more primary sources. I got the book because I thought maybe the docuseries was just playing Patty’s “madness” up for dramatic purposes. However, watching it I was struck by something: the character of “Paddy” Maine the “mad Irishman” seemed to be not of a person, but of a stereotype of an Irish person. The descriptions of the desert and the characters was very entertaining. It tells the adventures of the Brit’s guerrilla fighting force, the SAS, in the Sahara during WWII. I first became aware of Rogue Heroes through the BBC docuseries of the same name. It is also entertaining and informative if one reads between the lines. This book is greatly flawed with factual inaccuracies that make me want to give some people a stern talking too.

'Told with deceptive brilliance.Available at: Amazon US, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, AustraliaĪpple, Nook, Kobo, GooglePlay and your Public Library! 'Impeccably researched, superbly told - by far the best book on the SAS in World War II' Antony Beevor 'Thorough and highly entertaining. It would be nigh on impossible to praise it too highly' Daily Express With unprecedented access to the SAS secret files, unseen footage and exclusive interviews with its founder members, SAS: Rogue Heroes tells the remarkable story behind an extraordinary fighting force, and the immense cost of making it a reality.

Despite the intense opposition of many in British High Command, Winston Churchill personally gives Stirling permission to recruit the toughest, brightest and most ruthless soldiers he can find.Īnd so begins the most celebrated and mysterious military organisation in the world: the SAS. In the summer of 1941, at the height of the war in the Western Desert, a bored and eccentric young officer, David Stirling, has a vision for a new kind of war: attacking the enemy where they least expect it - from behind their own lines. 'A master at setting the pulse racing' Daily Mail From the secret SAS archives and bestselling author Ben Macintyre: The first ever authorized history of the SAS.

Sas rogue heroes book review