101 Nights (Paperback)

The bombing campaign to destroy Hitler's Nazi Germany was waged by Allied flyers from not only England and the US, but also with many Australian men like Ray Ollis. Flying as a navigator, Ray was assigned to 101 Squadron operating the famed Lancaster bomber, fitted with the latest electronic warfare measures.

Ray Ollis's lightly fictionalised record of his own experiences flying over the heart of Germany at night provides a gripping account of this critical phase of history.

101 Nights is a remarkably accurate depiction of a Bomber Command station at war. With the special nature of 101 Squadron thrown in, the novel is that much more compelling.

A forgotten classic, first published by Cassell in 1957, this new edition includes editor Robert Brokenmouth's essay on the book, the author, and significant history, along with notes on the text.

Born in Waratah, New South Wales on 4 February 1924, Raymond Bernard Ollis was the youngest of three sons.Excited about ideas and experiences, Ray was larger than life to those lucky enough to come into his orbit. He played the piano beautifully, had an excellent singing voice, and was well-read in what his widow Margaret calls 'high-brow' literature. In December 1938, Ray Ollis passed his practical examination in pianoforte and won a scholarship to Sydney's prestigious St Andrews College; his older brothers had gone to college in Newcastle. Ray Ollis's first job was at the Herald Sun as a newspaper copy boy, journalist being the first step in a writer's career.Ray waited for his eighteenth birthday in February 1942 when he asked his parents for their consent to enlist. Ray was training with an artillery unit when his call-up came several months later. Ray attended Number 2 Air Observer School at Edmonton; it was an intensive three months. After obtaining an average of 75%, Ray qualified as an Air Navigator; the class then travelled by train across Canada to the port of Halifax before sailing to Britain, where he arrived at Gourock, Scotland, in December. It is here that Ray found his first crew.

Robert Brokenmouth is a war historian and music writer who has edited books published by Wakefield Press, including They Hosed Them Out and 101 Nights.