Dr. Larry Smith - Author of “Darwin’s War”

Wednesday, July 1st, at 7:00 Dr. Larry Smith will present a program based on his highly acclaimed and award-winning book Darwin’s War, published in 2008. Dr. Smith’s father served in the 416th Bomber Group in 1944-45 in World War II in Europe. The 416th Bomb Group Light were assigned six A-20 Havocs and two B-25s. They flew 10,009 sorties in the war and boasted 33,479 combat hours. Dr. Smith records the entire history of the group from training to the end of the war. His book is not the typical unit history, however. Dr. Smith’s book weaves together the context of the war itself, from the political events of the 30s to the beliefs that motivated the ideological architects of the Third Reich. While his account of the lives of the bomber crews and their mechanics is personal and many-layered, he is able to penetrate the motivations and personalities of the men and their experience of war in the skies.