Bomb Run, by Spencer Dunmore
Published by Pan Books, 1971
When I first read the blurb for this book, my immediate impression was that this was Britain’s answer to Memphis Belle. The premise is basically the same – a veteran bomber crew fly their last mission before they complete their operational tour; drama ensues. But the more I read of Bomb Run, the more a hypothesis formed in my head. I know I’m comparing a book to a movie here (bear with me) but both start in exactly the same way, with an operational sortie weathered out, leading us to follow the whole process of preparing for an operation from scratch. Bomb Run was published in 1971, Memphis Belle (the movie) was released in 1990. Memphis Belle, of course, was a reimagining of an original 1944 documentary film, but still. It’s conceivable that it took at least some inspiration from this short adventure novel. We’ll never know for sure because Monte L. Merrick, who wrote Memphis Belle’s screenplay, died in 2015.
The plot goes like this: In the lead-up to his final mission of his current operational tour in 1944, Flying Officer Walter Mann experiences a premonition of his death and accidentally prangs his aircraft. Consequently, he must fly his experienced crew on their final mission to Berlin in an aircraft, M-Mother, that he has no familiarity with. It’s foreshadowing - you know that something is going to go wrong with this job immediately. As the crew prepare for and launch on their mission, Dunmore introduces us to the characters and takes us through their backstories. By and large it’s an interesting and well-researched canter through the tactical sinews of Bomber Command.
Dunmore sticks principally to the 3rd person Point Of View (POV), which is a style that I like. But there are some notable exceptions and occasionally it doesn’t work for me; let me explain. My editor once told me to choose a POV and stick with it, but Dunmore shifts POV from one character to another during the action sequences in a way that can be distracting at times. This is called ‘head-hopping’ and is generally considered a no-no. He also manages to slide into 1st person POV as he brings in the narrative of the German night fighter crew that Mann is destined to meet (I did say there would be plot spoilers, didn’t I?). I get it, it’s a novel way of reinforcing how the storylines will ultimately meet, explosively, and reminding us that bomber crews faced more than just flak in their nightly endeavours. Dunmore even italicised these bits so the reader isn’t confused. But I wasn’t fond of the style and, when you also have to contend with switching between the seven characters that make up Mann’s crew, it becomes tiresome after a while.
It’s salvaged by the action sequences, which are pretty engaging and I definitely felt like I was in the midst of it. Dunmore’s prose is slick and easy to follow, I cracked half the book over a coffee in a morning and the other half between two train journeys. The character arcs are mostly those you can relate to, more or less: Mann struggles with courage and is afflicted with the morality of bombing civilians (quelle surprise); Harry is an adulterer whose mistress has just found out she’s pregnant; Douglas is a virgin, etc. You get the idea.
In between repeated attacks from their stealthy opponent, the characters’ stories play out mostly in their own minds as they go about the actions required to nurse M-Mother back home to base (honestly the parallels with Memphis Belle are eerie). The trouble is, you already want them to make it home because they’re our boys, so character investment feels a little passe here. If I was going to be over-critical, I would add that there are a handful of inaccuracies, for example the crew dining together in ‘the Mess’ when we’ve already been told that they are a mixture of both officers and S.N.C.O.s. I think there are other ways to accomplish this scene. Also, Elmore Leonard would disapprove of the ‘authentic voice’ used in places; most readers can work out what a cockney or a scot sounds like in their head. But those are nit-picking points, by and large the story rattles along at a good pace to its eventual conclusion with a wicked twist (you’ll have to read it to find out).
Overall, I enjoyed Bomb Run and think it’s worthy of 4/5 stars. I did notice that when this book was first published, it was on sale for 90p. According to the Bank of England’s inflation calculator, in today’s money that’s over £14. And this is not a large book, it’s only 189 pages. For that sum today, you could buy a massive tome like Saul David’s SBS: Silent Warriors and you’re more likely to re-read David’s book too. I only make the point because it gives you an indication of where the market has gone in the intervening 50 years. You’d be hard pressed to find a book like Bomb Run in a Waterstones or a WH Smiths today, perhaps because nobody’s prepared to fork out the cost of a pub lunch on it. Happily for us, the second hand market is strong and you can pick this up for a frugal £3.49 on Amazon (other retailers available).