Daniel Taylor

The Sharpshooters archive has an incredible collection of over 8,000 photographs taken during WWII. Combining this with our Regimental records and numerous personal accounts, they tell a unique and fascinating story about the life of both the unit and the remarkable individuals who took served during the war. This second volume follows the development of both Sharpshooters Regiments from the phoney war to their first deployment overseas, two years later. The story is all the more compelling as they were made up of a blend of part-time soldiers, a smattering of professionals and numerous drafts of conscripts – ordinary people called on to do extraordinary things. 1.Forging the tool This first section looks at the chaos of the first few days of war where the Regiment had to suddenly take on – and find accommodation for – two entire regiments in the centre of London. At that time this was the only armoured brigade entirely composed of Territorial troops – not that they had anything that might resemble a tank. 2\. Working Up Within a few days they were sent to the West Country, around Ilfracombe, where they overwintered, whilst beginning the process of turning a motley but enthusiastic band of novices into an efficient fighting unit. Over the following two years we follow the story of the two regiments as they prepare for War 3\. Deployment After a final embarkation leave, the regiments were brought to readiness with additional personnel to bring them over strength before embarking at Liverpool.

The Commandos stand out as an iconic and fascinating formation who will always be of interest to the reading public. Created in June 1940, just after the fall of France, the commandos were established as a small, elite raiding and reconnaissance force with the express intention of hitting back at the Germans when few alternatives were available. During the war the formation grew in size and complexity, taking part in the most dangerous and compelling actions, and making themselves indispensable.

1. The Voyage Out By liner from Liverpool to Freetown (including a ‘crossing the line’ ceremony), then on to shore leave in Cape Town, crossing the Horn and cruising up the east coast of Africa via Aden to Suez. On arrival, they have just a matter of weeks before the next big push - Operation Crusader. They spent their time acclimatising and adjusting to desert conditions, flies, navigation and a host of other desert novelties. All their vehicles were sent off to be modified for the desert leaving the bare minimum of time for squadron and regimental training. 1. Operation Crusader Soon they are Crossing the Wire to take part in the first full scale tank battle of the war. Their first actions are a nightmare from ill prepared ‘cavalry charges’, supply issues and a litany of mechanical issues with their tanks. In a month of confused fighting, they learn their trade but at a terrible cost. Nonetheless at the end of the battle the Germans quit the field of battle and the shakiest of victories is declared. Wrecked by their experiences the Regiments are pulled out of the line to recuperate. 1. Refit With some time at last to draw breath, the troops explore Cairo & Alex. They take the opportunity to evaluate what has happened and work out what they need going forwards. Whilst they are in Egypt, Rommel makes his next thrust and the Sharpshooters are pulled back into the line. 1. Back into the Blue In order to improve their understanding of the desert they take part in Arthur Columns – mixed forces sent out to harry the Axis forces. They moved up to the Gazala line, west of Tobruk, well aware that Rommel is gearing up for another attack.

A little regarded period of history, the inter-war years were crucial in forging the spirit and ethos of the Sharpshooters. At the time they were little more than a company-strength unit of the Territorial Army based in West London, with few resources, a paltry assortment of vehicles and a drill hall that had seen better days. What they did have in spades was spirit and enthusiasm. These were ordinary men in regular jobs from across London who were mainly seeking a little action and adventure at the weekend. As with any good military unit they had that extra spark that made them stand out. This account details their training, their summer camps, the routine, and their equipment. Most of all it looks at the individuals who made up the unit and made it tick. The 23rd (London) Armoured Car Company (Sharpshooters), as they were styled, was a leader in innovation and excellence, often called upon to train with the regular army. They provided escorts for food convoys during the General Strike, performed at the Royal Tournament, provided honour guards for Jubilees, Royal funerals and Coronations, and took on all manner of sporting activities, including two very active rugby teams. Towards the end of the 1930s they had begun to gear-up for war long before it became an inevitability, constantly recruiting over-strength and hiding the figures from their reluctant paymasters. When, at last, the likelihood of war was acknowledged they swiftly returned to full regimental strength and then immediately started raising a second line regiment.

It seems fair to suggest that Bernard Law Montgomery remains a controversial and divisive figure, even fifty years after his death. Some see him as the greatest military commander and strategist of his generation, others as a deeply flawed character, solely responsible for all the ills that befell the troops under his command. In some estimates he was responsible for ponderous and overly cautious campaigning where he was unable or unwilling to admit to anything that might be construed as a failure. In others that he brilliantly conserved meagre manpower resources whilst overwhelming a series of consummate opponents. Added into the mix is Montgomery’s singular character. He seems able to engender some form of adoration in some and the deepest loathing in others. Certainly, he could come across as abrasive and egotistical, abrupt and inclined toward condescension. At the same time, he was a committed and dedicated professional soldier who was widely respected and adept at nurturing junior officers. This account, then, is an opportunity to look in-depth at the three pivotal years that took him from El Alamein to the Baltic and projected him to world attention. To achieve this the reader is guided through the environment in which his tactical headquarters operated, its organisation and equipment whilst overlaying the campaigns it fought and, most particularly, the sometimes fractious relationships on which much of the history that is handed down is based.

Based on true events, The Hazel Boyz takes readers deep into the heart of a justice system gone wrong. In backroom interrogation chambers, the relentless pressure of overzealous detectives overshadowed the truth, determined to close cases at any cost. The four men, wrongfully accused of horrific crimes, were thrust into a battle against the system, fighting not only for their freedom but also for their dignity.This gripping story traces their journey from the innocence of youth to the devastating day of their arrest and beyond. It unveils the personal struggles they faced-broken dreams, fractured families, and a justice system intent on scapegoating them. As their stories unfold, we witness their collective fight for exoneration, enduring years of wrongful imprisonment and relentless legal battles.Through their eyes, we see the weight of injustice, but also the resilience of the human spirit. The Hazel Boyz is not only a powerful account of wrongful conviction but also a testament to the enduring hope and strength of those who refuse to be broken, even when the odds are stacked against them.This is the true story of four men - Deon Patrick, Lewis Gardner, Daniel Taylor, and Paul Phillips, falsely imprisoned and left to battle a corrupt system, determined to reclaim their freedom. After becoming ensnared in a harrowing legal nightmare that would forever change their lives, their fight for justice demands to be told.

VILLERS-BOCAGE Operation Perch, the complete account Villers-Bocage remains lodged in the imagination of many readers as a costly and controversial defeat for the British Army in Normandy. This point of view is entirely reliant on just ten minutes of fighting plucked from a two-day battle. This account sets out to rectify that view. Based on prolific first-hand information, including extensive interviews with veterans of the battle, this book explores every facet of the available information, subjecting it to in-depth analysis. Far from being the crushing defeat popularised in many histories, which tend to rely on German propaganda, Villers-Bocage can, in fact, be viewed as a remarkable and compelling recovery from an ambush. The shortcoming was that much of the territory gained in the advance was relinquished, so the first telling of the story was given to the Germans who, quite legitimately under wartime conditions, made the most of their advantage. In this book, Daniel Taylor provides a minutely detailed examination of the course of the fighting, exploring both sides of the debate, allowing the reader to evaluate the strength of the argument. Dozens of first-hand accounts are brought together and placed into a comprehensible and accurate time-line. Both German and British official histories and personal accounts have been pieced together providing an astonishing level of corroboration. Accompanying the written history is extensive mapping and an unprecedented quantity of photographs, from multiple sources, which add definition and visual verification. This book lays to rest the myths built up around the battle.

This is the story of Manchester City's return to the top of English football as well as their journey to their first ever Champions League final as Pep Guardiola's team battle to secure their place in history. Throughout this historic season of breath-taking football, they were followed by their equivalent from the world of sports writing: a team of elite talents, assembled by The Athletic to leave all competition trailing in their wake. The result is an alchemical blend of inside access and expert analysis; great ideas and beautiful writing. City's triumph is relived in real time, in 360 degrees. Articles include profiles of each of City's title winners by their former youth team coaches; on-the-road features from the hometowns of some of their international superstars, brilliant tactics board breakdowns of key moments in the season; and exclusive interviews with players, coaches and backroom staff.

We try and try only to experience minimal positive results, and over time, we become increasingly frustrated. Maybe we even want to give up. The Christian life is not possible without God's presence and power. It's not about trying harder; it's about abiding more. We must learn to pursue God's presence every day to experience the full, abundant life Jesus promises to give.

In this, the third novel in the Jon Mote Mystery series, Jon and his special-needs sister, Judy, find more bodies showing up in their lives. This time it's Bible translators. In Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees, Daniel Taylor's unique blend of wit, satire, drama, and provocative meditations on the Big Questions is once again on full display. Jon Mote is determined to leave behind forever both the voices that once haunted him and his life-long confusion about the meaning of his life. He reconciles with his wife, Zillah, and takes a job as a book editor. When the publishing company that employs Jon decides to get in on the Bible-selling business, Jon finds himself in the last place in heaven or on earth that he would have expected: as a member of a Bible translation committee. Knowing nothing about the Bible, the publisher assembles a team of translators based on the principles of diversity and name recognition. Wildly different understandings of nearly everything--theology, the meaning of texts, the direction of history, the nature of reality and of the church, among others--leads to take-no-prisoner clashes on issues large and small. While these surface tensions point to a profound collision of understandings of the cosmos and the human condition, Jon soon finds himself asking if they are also a matter of life and death.

In this, the third novel in the Jon Mote Mystery series, Jon and his special-needs sister, Judy, find more bodies showing up in their lives. This time it's Bible translators. In Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees, Daniel Taylor's unique blend of wit, satire, drama, and provocative meditations on the Big Questions is once again on full display. Jon Mote is determined to leave behind forever both the voices that once haunted him and his life-long confusion about the meaning of his life. He reconciles with his wife, Zillah, and takes a job as a book editor. When the publishing company that employs Jon decides to get in on the Bible-selling business, Jon finds himself in the last place in heaven or on earth that he would have expected: as a member of a Bible translation committee. Knowing nothing about the Bible, the publisher assembles a team of translators based on the principles of diversity and name recognition. Wildly different understandings of nearly everything--theology, the meaning of texts, the direction of history, the nature of reality and of the church, among others--leads to take-no-prisoner clashes on issues large and small. While these surface tensions point to a profound collision of understandings of the cosmos and the human condition, Jon soon finds himself asking if they are also a matter of life and death.

A young woman is dead. A man with diminished capacity is accused. His friends, also wounded, try to help him. In the process, they teach Jon Mote a thing or two he desperately needs to learn. Jon no longer hears voices, but he's not convinced a silent universe is much better than a haunted one. He's returned his sister Judy to her group home and taken a staff job there that puts him in the company of six folks who, a bit rebelliously, he calls Specials. Jon thinks his job is to teach these people basic life skills like telling time, making change, and riding the bus. The world says they are to be pitied, perhaps even eliminated. At best taken care of. But he finds that Judy, Ralph, Bonita, Jimmy, Billy the Skywatcher, and J.P. possess something that he and the world badly need. The accused, J.P., is a gentle man who can't tell time or temperature, but wants you to be happy. Is he also a killer? The bureaucracy judges him so and sends him to an institution for the criminally insane. His friends know that if they do not get him back he will wither and die. Meanwhile, Jon has his own problems. He finds himself threatened not so much by disintegration as by normality--the meaningless of the mundane. Alive but trivial. While searching for something to fill the emptiness and for a way to rescue his client and friend, Jon unexpectedly reconnects with his estranged wife, Zillah, and he has an unsettling encounter with an unusual nun who presents him a way of seeing the world that puzzles and intrigues him.

When Jon Mote is hired to investigate the murder of his erstwhile mentor, literary star Richard Pratt, the grad school dropout feels woefully unequal to the task. Skittering on the edge of madness, his only source of hope is the dogged love of his developmentally disabled sister, Judy, who serves as cheerleader, critic and moral compass. Soon the siblings find themselves haunting the neighbourhoods of Minneapolis and St Paul, Minnesota – from crime scenes to the halls of academe – exposing a series of suspects along the way. When he stumbles upon Pratt’s terrible secret, Mote is prompted to discover an equally dreadful mystery in his own past – a revelation that accelerates his descent into darkness and puts both himself and Judy at grave risk. ‘Daniel Taylor’s oddly reluctant Sherlock Holmes is accompanied by the most unusual and heartwarming Watson in my reading experience.’ Paul J. Willis, author of The Alpine Tales

On January 6, 1975, Nottingham Forest were thirteenth in the old Second Division, five points above the relegation places and straying dangerously close to establishing a permanent place for themselves among football's nowhere men.Within five years Brian Clough had turned an unfashionable and depressed club into the kings of Europe, beating everyone in their way and knocking Liverpool off their perch long before Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United had the same idea.This is the story of the epic five-year journey that saw Forest complete a real football miracle and Clough brilliantly restore his reputation after his infamous 44-day spell at Leeds United. Forest won the First Division championship, two League Cups and back-to-back European Cups and they did it, incredibly, with five of the players Clough inherited at a club that was trying to avoid relegation to the third tier of English football.I Believe In Miracles accompanies the critically-acclaimed documentary and DVD of the same name. Based on exclusive interviews with virtually every member of the Forest team, it covers the greatest period in Clough's extraordinary life and brings together the stories of the unlikely assortment of free transfers, bargain buys, rogues, misfits and exceptionally gifted footballers who came together under the most charismatic manager there has ever been.

Innovation is all around us every day; every product we use, every piece of packaging we open, every service we experience; all of these started out as ideas that have been developed and deployed. Yet that path from coming up with ideas to having successful products in the market is incredibly difficult. Many, many more ideas fail along the way, and never reach the market.The challenge of delivering innovation is even harder in big businesses than in start-ups. These corporate giants are designed to optimize their core business, drive efficiency and have many checks and balances to avoid risk. This is the exact opposite of the mantra of innovation, yet innovation is one of the keys to business success. Great companies thrive on innovation, whilst those that fail to innovate wither and die.There are a host of "corporate entrepreneurs" out there facing the challenge of delivering innovation every day, in every big business. They are faced with unwieldy governance, political infighting, traditional thinking, bureaucratic processes, unforgiving targets, unfocused sponsorship and limited resource. All of that on top of the common challenges faced by entrepreneurs launching new businesses.In The Secrets of Big Business Innovation some of the most experienced and successful of these corporate entrepreneurs have contributed their "secrets" – the tips and tricks that make the difference between success and failure and between corporate ignominy and fame. The Secrets of Big Business Innovation sets out the secrets of establishing and sustaining a successful innovation programme and driving great innovation projects through it. The "secrets" are supported by over 100 short case studies giving real-life examples from some of the world's greatest companies.This is a practical guide that works through the typical lifecycle of an innovation programme covering where things go wrong and ways to avoid the pitfalls, whatever business you are in and whatever process you are using. With insights from New Product Development teams, Research and Development Engineers, Marketing Directors, Chief Innovation Officers, Blue Sky thinkers, Customer Insight Specialists, Consultants and CEOS of new ventures, this book is relevant to anybody wanting to drive more successful innovation in their business.

Jon Mote--grad school dropout and serial failure--has been hired to investigate the murder of his erstwhile mentor, Richard Pratt, a star in the firmament of literary theory. Feeling unJon Mote--grad school dropout and serial failure--has been hired to investigate the murder of his erstwhile mentor, Richard Pratt, a star in the firmament of literary theory. Feeling unequal to the task, Mote skitters on the edge of madness, trying to stifle the increasingly threatening voices in his head. His only source of hope is the dogged love of his developmentally disabled sister, Judy, who serves as cheerleader, critic, and moral compass. Death Comes for the Deconstructionist follows Mote and his sister through the streets and neighborhoods of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota--from crime scenes to the halls of academe. Mote's investigation uncovers a series of suspects--including the victim's wife, mistress, and intellectual rivals. Along the way he stumbles onto Pratt's terrible secret, one that prompts the discovery of an equally dark mystery from his own past. These revelations hasten Mote's descent into darkness, putting both him and Judy at grave risk. Death Comes for the Deconstructionist is a tragicomic mystery, a detective story that is at once suspenseful, provocative, and emotionally resonant. It asks not only ""whodunit"" but whether truth is ultimately something we create rather than discover. equal to the task, Mote skitters on the edge of madness, trying to stifle the increasingly threatening voices in his head. His only source of hope is the dogged love of his developmentally disabled sister, Judy, who serves as cheerleader, critic, and moral compass. Death Comes for the Deconstructionist follows Mote and his sister through the streets and neighborhoods of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota--from crime scenes to the halls of academe. Mote's investigation uncovers a series of suspects--including the victim's wife, mistress, and intellectual rivals. Along the way he stumbles onto Pratt's terrible secret, one that prompts the discovery of an equally dark mystery from his own past. These revelations hasten Mote's descent into darkness, putting both him and Judy at grave risk. Death Comes for the Deconstructionist is a tragicomic mystery, a detective story that is at once suspenseful, provocative, and emotionally resonant. It asks not only ""whodunit"" but whether truth is ultimately something we create rather than discover. ""Daniel Taylor blends a passion for theology, civil rights, and the saving grace of story in a mystery involving an unlikely pair of underdog investigators--the psychologically broken Jon Mote and his ever hopeful, developmentally challenged older sister, Judy. Known primarily for his nonfiction books, Taylor displays the natural skills of a crime writer in his debut novel set in the world of academia. His plot begins conventionally, but eventually evolves into something much deeper. Death Comes for the Deconstructionist is a fascinating exploration of what is ultimately good and true, a perfect choice for Slant's first offering in the detective genre."" --Naomi Hirahara, Edgar Award-winning author of the Mas Arai and Officer Ellie Rush mysteries ""This whodunit from Dan Taylor is a cause for celebration. His Jon Mote rivals Harry Bosch, and Taylor's ventures into literature, religion, and notions of progress shine, challenge, and stun. With his remarkable sidekick, Judy, Jon Mote, ""an expert on things he wished he didn't know,"" is not simply looking into a puzzling death. He is exploring his own odds of finding transformative life. Great books are those that force readers to reexamine the very ground on which they stand. Death Comes for the Deconstructionist is such a book--a luminous performance."" --Dale Brown, Director of Buechner Institute ""In Death Comes for the Deconstructionist, Daniel Taylor has written not only a highly engaging murder mystery but also a me