Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Rate This Thread
Hop To
#4332150 - 01/27/17 10:03 PM OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves  
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
RAF_Louvert Offline
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
RAF_Louvert  Offline
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
Senior Member

Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
L'Etoile du Nord
.

As many of you know I have been building a WWI library for a good many years and while most of the books I collect deal with combat aviation I am always on the look-out for contemporary works about the Great War in general, and living through it, that I can use as reference when writing my stories. Today I found a gem being offered on eBay at a very fair price. It is "Paris in Ten Days - A Little Guide For Tommy and The Yank", by Sommerville Story. It's hard to find surviving guide books that were actually printed during the war. This one was published in 1918, is 128 pages long, and was specifically aimed at foreign soldiers serving along the Western Front. It includes a pull-out with two maps showing points of interest, train lines, subway lines and such in both central and greater Paris. It even lists the locations of various military clubs. The format is built around the premise that a serviceman has a ten-day pass in which to see Paris and it outlines what to do and where to go on each day. I don't even have the book yet and I can tell already that it will be a superb source for contemporary material. And from the online research I did prior to my purchase it appears this particular little volume is quite rare as only four copies are listed in libraries scattered around the globe: one in France, one in Austrailia, one in Kansas, (of all places), and one in the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. There are no reprints or e-book offerings of it anywhere, at least none that I can find, though I imagine one could request such from one of the four libraries owning originals.



Oh the sweet anticipation. smile2

Cheers!

Lou

.


[Linked Image]

Three RFC Brass Hats were strolling down a street in London. Two walked into a bar, the third one ducked.
_________________________________________________________________________

Former Cold War Warrior, USAF Security Service 1974-1978, E-4, Morse Systems Intercept, England, Europe, and points above.
"pippy-pahpah-pippy pah-pip-pah"

#4332166 - 01/27/17 10:25 PM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 841
Shredward Offline
Member
Shredward  Offline
Member

Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 841
Lake Louise, AB Canada
Lovely find Lou !
I'm anticipating being there this coming April !
Cheers,
shredward


We will remember them.
#4332177 - 01/27/17 11:37 PM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
RAF_Louvert Offline
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
RAF_Louvert  Offline
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
Senior Member

Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
L'Etoile du Nord
.

Lucky you Shredward, Paris is a fantastic city. Send us a postcard! smile2

.


[Linked Image]

Three RFC Brass Hats were strolling down a street in London. Two walked into a bar, the third one ducked.
_________________________________________________________________________

Former Cold War Warrior, USAF Security Service 1974-1978, E-4, Morse Systems Intercept, England, Europe, and points above.
"pippy-pahpah-pippy pah-pip-pah"

#4332189 - 01/28/17 12:23 AM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 841
Shredward Offline
Member
Shredward  Offline
Member

Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 841
Lake Louise, AB Canada
And it's the jumping off point for the Front!
Cheers
Shredward


We will remember them.
#4332194 - 01/28/17 12:29 AM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 1,398
KodiakJac Offline
Member
KodiakJac  Offline
Member

Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 1,398
USA
What a wonderful find, Lou!

That is a gem and will be a lot of fun to read smile


Dogfighting is what you do "after" you drop your bombs and blow something up!
Can you say "JABO!" thumbsup
#4332288 - 01/28/17 10:25 AM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: Shredward]  
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 7,064
Sandbagger Offline
Hotshot
Sandbagger  Offline
Hotshot

Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 7,064
Coningsby, Lincs, UK
Originally Posted By: Shredward
And it's the jumping off point for the Front!
Cheers
Shredward


Sounds like a great trip coming up - what's your plans during the trip?


[Linked Image]

Alienware Aurora R5
Windows 10 64 bit
Intel i7-6700K 4.2Ghz
Two GTX 1080 Foundations in SLI (8 Gig each)
32 Gig DDR4 2133Mhz
1TB SSD boot drive - 1TB SATA storage drive
5.1 Surround Sound
34" Dell Ultra Sharp U3415W (3440x 2440)
CH Pro-Pedals, Stick and Throttle
TrackIR-5 Pro
#4332298 - 01/28/17 11:14 AM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 1,743
Hasse Offline
Member
Hasse  Offline
Member

Joined: May 2012
Posts: 1,743
That's a fascinating find and couldn't have gone to a better new owner! smile

Now you're practically obligated to take advantage of the guide and start a new DID pilot. biggrin

If possible, could you show a few scans of some of the most interesting pages here when you get the book? I'm sure people would be interested in seeing them.

Paris is indeed a beautiful city. I've been there once, and though the weather during my visit happened to be terrible with almost constant rain, I still thoroughly enjoyed it. Besides, it didn't rain in the museums and cafés. smile


"Upon my word I've had as much excitement on a car as in the air, especially since the R.F.C. have had women drivers."

James McCudden, Five Years in the Royal Flying Corps
#4332489 - 01/28/17 09:47 PM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: Sandbagger]  
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 841
Shredward Offline
Member
Shredward  Offline
Member

Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 841
Lake Louise, AB Canada
Originally Posted By: Sandbagger
Originally Posted By: Shredward
And it's the jumping off point for the Front!
Cheers
Shredward


Sounds like a great trip coming up - what's your plans during the trip?


The objective is Vimy Ridge and the Remembrance Service. A few other stops along the line - Hill 70, Beaumont Hamel, prolly Thiepval, maybe Menin Gate. Can't put in too many Great War stops this time - we are introducing our seven year old daughter to the wonders of France
Cheers
shredward


We will remember them.
#4332634 - 01/29/17 12:56 PM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 2,105
Raine Offline
Member
Raine  Offline
Member

Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 2,105
New Brunswick, Canada
Wonderful score, Lou! I've long been looking for contemporary descriptions of Paris and this is a great find.

#4332667 - 01/29/17 03:51 PM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
RAF_Louvert Offline
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
RAF_Louvert  Offline
BOC President; Pilot Extraordinaire; Humble Man
Senior Member

Joined: May 2012
Posts: 4,879
L'Etoile du Nord
.

Raine, I knew you would be one who'd love to also have such an old account. Once I have it I will look at the possibility of scanning it so that it could be made available to you.

Shredward, oh how I envy you that trip! Be sure and post a few pictures of those sites so that the rest of us might enjoy them vicariously.

Thank you Hasse and Bucksnort, I am dearly looking forward to reading this wonderful old guide book. And as mentioned above, I will look into scanning at least portions of it to make available to others.

.


[Linked Image]

Three RFC Brass Hats were strolling down a street in London. Two walked into a bar, the third one ducked.
_________________________________________________________________________

Former Cold War Warrior, USAF Security Service 1974-1978, E-4, Morse Systems Intercept, England, Europe, and points above.
"pippy-pahpah-pippy pah-pip-pah"

#4333918 - 02/02/17 03:06 AM Re: OT: A wonderful old WWI Paris guide book soon to be on my shelves [Re: RAF_Louvert]  
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 997
HumanDrone Offline
Just shoot me...
HumanDrone  Offline
Just shoot me...
Member

Joined: May 2012
Posts: 997
Near Pittsburgh, PA USA
I'll look forward to the scans as well! Love that stuff. Lou, it couldn't happen to a better guy.

Shred, how fortunate to be able to make that trip, and with your beloved and daughter - I wish you the best, and demand pics! wink


Box: Win7 Pro 64 bit / I72600K @4.1 GHz / EVGA GTX1080Ti/ 16GB RAM / Corsair 240 GB SSD / WD 600 GB Velociraptor / 1050W Power
FS Stuff: Saitek X52 Pro Stick/Throttle & Combat Rudder Pedals, TrackIR 5
Sims: FSX Gold, REX 2.0 OD, UTX-NA, FSGenesis 10m mesh/ CFS3 ETO 1.40/Wings Over Flanders Fields BH&H2 (more gorgeous than ever!)
Proud BOC inductee 4/30/12!

Moderated by  Polovski 

Quick Search
Recent Articles
Support SimHQ

If you shop on Amazon use this Amazon link to support SimHQ
.
Social


Recent Topics
Carnival Cruise Ship Fire....... Again
by F4UDash4. 03/26/24 05:58 PM
Baltimore Bridge Collapse
by F4UDash4. 03/26/24 05:51 PM
The Oldest WWII Veterans
by F4UDash4. 03/24/24 09:21 PM
They got fired after this.
by Wigean. 03/20/24 08:19 PM
Grown ups joke time
by NoFlyBoy. 03/18/24 10:34 PM
Anyone Heard from Nimits?
by F4UDash4. 03/18/24 10:01 PM
RIP Gemini/Apollo astronaut Tom Stafford
by semmern. 03/18/24 02:14 PM
10 years after 3/8/2014
by NoFlyBoy. 03/17/24 10:25 AM
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.6.0