Not the best Vanguard
I have to say that this isn't, in my opinion, the best title in the New Vanguard series. Approaching the book from a historical and wargaming (as opposed to, say, a modelling) perspective I am looking for information on the tank. By this I mean information on performance, development, variants, armament, deployment, tactics and action. All of that is present to a certain extent in this book (and some excellent colour plates) but the author includes too much extraneous information that should be located elsewhere. For example, the organisation and tactics section is very general, Panzer III's are mentioned only in passing. Similarly the 'In Action' section, a large part of the book, gives brief summaries of the campaigns rather than detailed comments on particular actions by the Panzer III. This is a waste of about a third of the book! If Osprey allowed these books to be 64 pages, or even longer, this could be justified, but in a 48 page book it is a waste.
Fair book but save your money
The book does say the truth about the Panzer III. This was the tank that Nazi Germany had the most success with. It beat France and went all the way to the outskirts of Moscow. The upgunned Panzer III Ausf J could take a T-34 at close range (not recommended for a long life).
So, I knew quite a bit about the Panzer III going into this book. I was surprised to find out the tank was made with a 37 mm gun because the supply branch wanted the infantry and armor to use the same ammo. This short sighted idea would bite the Germans hard during the battle of Moscow.
But all in all I can't endorse this book. Why? You can find out just as much about the Panzer III by surfing onto Panzerdiesel . com . Indeed, the book has some serious problems. If this book was made by Squadron Signal they would give an overview, a breakdown of a model by model chapters, then follow up with an operational history, and then close with a coda. All this book has are a few dozen pictures, no break downs of arms for the various models, no ammo allotments carried, and a few fair quality color prints of this tank. So, you could buy this book and spend near fourteen dollars or just surf onto Panzerdiesel dot-com and get the information for free. The bottom line here is model makers will not get enough information to help their models and a serious historian will get only a broad overview of the most important tank Germany produced until mid-1943.
But the book is C- fair (that's why it's two stars). If you could get a copy for about five dollars it's worth it. But there are so many websites and better books for the same money that it's adviseable you pass.
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE 'NEW VANGUARD' SERIES & A GOOD - FAST READ TOO!
IN A NUTSHELL:
In this concise, but comprehensive edition, there is a developmental and operational history of the most common [and important] piece of armored hardware in the German Panzers' arsenal. Though, both 'Tiger' and 'Panther' variants were more pwoerfully armed, and armored, as well as of more sophisticated designs, it was this basic medium tank that filled the ranks of the Panzers throughout Europe during WW2 in great numbers.
Panzerkampfwagen III Medium Tank 1936-44 (New Vanguard) by Bryan Perrett, is, [like the other books in this series by Bryan Perrett] a cut-above the usual 'Osprey Military' fare. Divided into two main sections: 'DEVELOPMENTAL HISTORY' & 'OPERATIONAL HISTORY' Perrett lucidly provides both interesting and insightful content through description, quotes and narrative, plus an ample array of photos, illustrations and diagrams. A detailed cut-away section of the tank is provided on 2 full pages and includes excellent detailing and labeling.
BOTTOM LINE:
Although this small volume is hardly the last word on the Panzer 3 Medium Tank, it is a great place to start and delves into the basic important elements including the outcomes of the tank's use, and the evolutionary improvements and develoments that continued during its long mass-production run. Most importantly, Perrett's narrative is filled with very interesting stuff especially in light of the amount of information, data, statistics and documented materials that are included. An excellent read!
One of the better books in the "New Vanguard Series"
The book can bee seen as a first read if you want to start learning specificly about the PzIII. Unfortunantley it's a few pages to thin while it gives a good desctiption of the PzIII's operational history on different fronts, the description of the vehicle itself isn't satisfactory. Usually only 1 variant of the tank is mentioned in any great detail unfortunantley these variants vary troughout the book so that it's hard to get a full picture of the PzIII.On the plus side the book is quite easy to read and has alot of new pictures. It also describes a few not so well known facts about the PzIII and it's cutt away look at the PzIII is quite nice.
Overall description is that if youre an expert on PzIII's there are better books to buy but if you are going to buy your first book on the PzIII and don't know much about tanks this book will be quite helpful.
