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Date	Original Topic
10th December 2002	Hill of the Sphinx By David Glynne Fox I have just received my copy of the above, signed and numbered 18. Excellent piece of work. I thought I ought to mention that the website hosts the price at �19-95, whereas it is actually two pounds cheaper at �17-95. The publishers were very kind to refund my two pounds, so I thought it prudent to inform all who view/use this site of the price discrepancy and so save the publishers hundreds of two pound cheques. So sorry to hear of the death of Donald Morris, like virtually everyone else on this site, I purchased my first copy in the 1960's. I still have it, very tatty but it has several understudies to replace it. Had it not been for the film Zulu, and Donald Morris, I may well have missed out on a fascinating and lifelong interest. Thank you Donald and I can only echo everyone else's statements, Rest In Peace.
Date	Replies
10th December 2002	Clive Dickens David I too have just received my copy of the "Hil of the Sphinx" but mine was much cheaper from the shopof The Royal Regiment of Wales at � 14.89 inc p/p and of course the money helps the museum Clive
10th December 2002	Peter Ewart Can certainly echo what David says. Excellent value - when I go to my shelves next time to look up something I want to verify about this battle, it will be this volume I snatch at first. It is completely devoid of personal views, surmise or speculation (except where offered as such, and that very rarely). The prose is tightly written, not a word wasted and virtually every sentence (certainly every para) is backed up by a note to a primary source or first-hand account. Now and again the odd sentence or succinct aside adds immediately to one's understanding and can change long held suppositions (or has in my case) and one or two beautifully crafted and under-stated assertions are very powerful indeed. I still think Knight's "The Sun Turned Black" & L&Q's recent "Epic & Cover-up" are excellent but Jackson's account lays matters bare & simply states the facts as the (reliable?) sources present them. To me, the most fascinating aspects of that day are the supposed timings of each event and, with so much ambiguity about them, they must be the hardest part for any historian to piece together reliably. While waffling on, I'll add that my tattered hardback copy of Morris's work is a lucky replacement of one I lost years ago & I managed to get hold of it before prices of the 1st edition went up so much. I smiled at John Young's memory of reading Furneaux's work when there wasn't much about. I repeatedly borrowed this little book from Rye Library in the mid-60s & was lucky that they also had a copy of CT Binns' "The Last Zulu King" which was a superb read. I discovered them as a result of seeing "Zulu" at Rye Cinema in the spring of '64 and again when it returned in the autumn - then spent the next three or four years scanning the Sussex papers for cinema listings showing where "Zulu" was on & going by bus around the county to watch it when I could - sad or what? Nine times by the early 70s & being able to recite almost every word wasn't a bad record long before its annual Christmas Day airing (which I never saw) or video release. But it put me off cinema for life because of comparisons! Incidentally, I distinctly remember Stanley Baker being interviewed by Tony Bilbow on Southern TV ("Day by Day") in the winter of 63/64 plugging the film and his saying that the locals had never seen a cine camera & yet were performing perfectly within 3 weeks. While sorting out some shelves the other day I came across Jack Hawkins' autobiography. His opinion of the film, his part in it and his reaction to it at the premiere are very noteworthy indeed. If they haven't surfaced already on this site or if anyone is interested, I'll post here what he wrote. Going back to dear old Rupert Furneaux, I see Ian Knight not surprisingly describes the book as "not highly regarded" but it was still rattling bed-time reading for a 14 year old who thought primary sources were something to do with school dinners! And from there to Bryant's "Shaka Zulu" & Peter Becker's "Path of Blood" and "Rule of Fear." Couldn't find any thing else at all. Missed Morris's book for 5 years! Blimey! This is a bit long - sorry! Peter
10th December 2002	Peter Ewart I know, I know - Ritter, not Bryant! Peter
10th December 2002	Diana Blackwell Peter, Thanks for your kind offer to share what Jack Hawkins wrote. I for one would love to read it. Diana