Reading, and surviving the plague

 Am not getting much done game-related at all this first week of 2022, due to having caught the plague (though I don't think it was at the Regatta, more likely passing out thousands of Covid tests at work). Appropriately, I just finished two books by Martin R. Howard:

 

Thanks to commenters Ross MacFarlane and James Fisher, who recommended the second one. Both are short and contain lots of period commentary. I will admit that, at least, government response to the present pandemic could have been a LOT worse. Walcheren fever (seemingly malaria) is sickeningly and repeatedly described.

Also received two Charles S. Grant volumes from On Military Matters: 

• Refighting History vol. 7: Warburg, Vellinghausen, and Wilhelmsthal
• Wargamers Annual Summer Special 2015

I ordered the latter on a tip from Graham Cummings on the Wargaming the '45 Facebook group, who wrote a very useful article and wargames campaign for the abortive French invasion of Britain in 1744. I may need it, as it looks increasingly like Bonnie Prince Charlie in my '45 campaign is going to run into overwhelming numbers of unhappy Government troops. After the "conventional" campaign ends, I may want to try the '44 too. We'll see!

As for the first book, I have to admit I like the smaller, more compact style of Grant's previous series, Wargaming in History. I have his first two volumes and find them delightful. The newer series is in a larger format, but there's something about it... maybe the lack of artwork by the late Bob Marrion, though the German artist whose characterful, almost cartoony sketches fill the pages is just as good in his own way. Maybe more white space. And maybe the lack of detail about the Lorraine and VFS armies, as the Refighting series uses more deliberately historical units. I won't tire of rereading the Wargaming in History volumes.

That's not to say they're not good. I selected the 7th and 8th volumes specifically because I'm not as interested in Frederick the Great and more in the British and French, and these are specifically about the Western theater. There are useful and beautiful articles about the British, French and German "specialist" units such as legions, early Highlanders and converged grenadiers. They make me want to collect Crann Tara... (No, Jennifer! Bad hobbyist! Stick to stuff you'll actually use!)

I was hoping to spend this week painting a couple 3D prints as samples for the program I keep telling myself I'll do at work. Not happening anytime soon now, though I'll have to delve thru my desk to see what paints I have undried.

Back to bed, with books to finish reading. Hope your turn of the year is better than mine.