We who do not build a lot of armor models, do not think much about the camouflage and markings of US WWII armor. We just assume that one paints everything olive drab and sticks a white star on it. As with most subjects, it isn't quite as simple as all that.

Author Jim Mesko takes us through the subject with this new book of his by Squadron/Signal publishing. As with all similar books, it is full of photos, superbly drawn profiles and some paintings to help to illustrate the subject.

The book itself is divided into several sub sections. First there is a brief history of what came before in a section on WWI to the 1930s. This is followed by one on national markings and the star. This wasn't always worn and wasn't always white as there were many variations.

A section on serial, unit, and classification markings is particularly interesting and clears up what can be a very confusing subject to the uninitiated. This is the largest section in the book, to be followed by vehicle names and personal markings.

The final sections are on US Army and US Marine units in the Pacific. As armor wasn't as heavily used in these theaters, these sections are somewhat smaller than the others, but still give a sense of what these vehicles were like.

Overall, an excellent primer on the subject and one that can easily lead to further investigation by the reader. For those of us still dabbling on the outskirts of this most complex subject, it is a must have.

September 2005

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