The Bay of Pigs

Very interesting. This was a book about the experiences of Battalion 2506 in the attack on Cuba. How it was created, how it got there, and what happened afterwards. It was certainly interesting. There was very much a pro-Cuban exiles bias, and although it wasn't said in as many words you did get the impression of American bungling, mismanagement and incompetence, as well as betrayal. It drew extensively upon the experiences of the men of the battalion, and included a section on their experiences in captivity and how the money was eventually raised to free them all. What was interesting was that during the Cuban Missile Crisis there were still discussions about freeing the battalion's prisoners. I'm really sorry, but I don't actually know who wrote it. I think it was a guy called Johnson, but I got it through the history book group and forgot to make a note of it, so I don't have a record of who it was actually by. It was definitely an older book, published in the sixties. And it had a blue cover, if that helps :). According to this author at least, the Battalion was nearly successful and might actually have managed to take over Cuba were it not for the fact that the Americans did not give them the air cover they were promised and did not continue to supply them. There was, it has to be said, a lot of emphasis on how honourable and brave their conduct was in captivity and during a trial for treason, but the battle was also well described. An enjoyable and interesting account of the Bay of Pigs.