The British bombing of Caen beginning on D-Day in particular was stupid, counter-productive and above all very close to a war crime.
— Antony Beevor
When I was younger I used to get my best writing done at night, but now it has to be during the day. I usually finish work at half past seven, then go back to the house to open a bottle of wine, have dinner, and then read or watch television.
It was only after five years in the army, when I was having to do a very boring job in a very boring place, that I thought: 'Why not try writing a novel?' partly out of youthful arrogance and partly because there had been a long line of writers in my mother's family.
The majority of soldiers and officers of the Soviet Army and the allied armies treated the local population humanely.
I expect the worst both from reviewers and sales and then, with any luck, I may be proved wrong.
When my first novel was published, I went in great excitement round bookshops in central London to see if they had stocked it.
When I was a child I had something called Perthes' Disease which meant I was on crutches, so I was bullied at school and all that sort of stuff.
One has this image of the Soviet state and the Red Army as being extremely disciplined but in the first four months of 1945 their soldiers were completely out of control.
To begin impatiently is the worst mistake a writer can make.
The duty of a historian is simply to understand and then convey that understanding, no more than that.
I think it's outrageous if a historian has a 'leading thought' because it means they will select their material according to their thesis.
