Joe Sacco`s latest book is something other than what we are used to. He is telling the story of the first day of the Battle of the Somme in a book that folds out to a 7 meter long drawing, it has no text and it is a quite stunning piece of work. Take a look at some of the links to it.
http://www.npr.org/2013/11/10/243068448/a-panorama-of-devastation-drawing-of-wwi-battle-spans-24-feet

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/oct/09/joe-sacco-the-great-war-interview-first-world-war

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/11/joe-sacco-the-great-war-interview.html

Interesting article about a guy who is searching fallen US Marines on Tarawa.
From The New York Times.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/24/magazine/the-search-for-the-lost-marines-of-tarawa.html?pagewanted=1

Found this clip on Liveleak. Very cool color film footage from the eastern front.

Recently Indonesian archaeologists found the sunken German submarine U-168. Inside the sub they found 17 members of the crew, remains of a torpedo and lots of other relics. I pasted in a few links to articles about the find and the u-boat.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2511249/Nazi-U-boat-sunk-Second-World-War-discovered-divers-Indonesia--complete-skeletons-doomed-crew.html

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/11/21/wreck-nazi-u-boat-submarine-located-java-sea.html

http://uboat.net/boats/u168.htm

Recently another T-34 was found. This time outside Stalingrad,ehm,Volgograd. It
was found without turret, but full of ammunition. The T-34 was pulled out of a
river. When they have gotten it cleaned it will be sent to Moscow for
restoration.

http://www.volgograd-trv.ru/news.aspx?id=24919

I just wanted to share a great website about bunkers in Nordland,Norway. The site is in Norwegian but there is a lot of interesting photos and maps of bunkers and coastal fortresses. Well Worth a look!

http://www.thomaslillevoll.net/

When soldiers had free time when on service or at the front they often made different objects, practical stuff which they decorated,or small toys they wanted to send home for the little ones. War prisoners also often made objects, then mostly for trying to trade it for food, and in most camps it was forbidden to make anything so they often risked their lifes on it. Many objects was also produced after the Liberation when ex-POWs sat in waiting-camps before being sent home. Objects like this is often referred to as Trench Art,and I`ll be posting some here.
These first photos I took when I was working at a museum, so they are not in my collection.

Spoon and fork made by a german prisoner who fought in Kurland.

Cigarette Box.

Belt made of foil from cigarette packs. From a Polish POW.

Ashtray of grenade casing. Commemorative for the Battle of Narvik.

Edelweiss,Gebirgsjäger carving.

Letter opener of bone,made by German POW.

Russian POW Artwork. Wooden box with straw inlays.

Tiger is one of my favorite panzers of WW2 but I never built a model of it. A year ago I braved up and gave it a og,but different Things played in and it got stalled. I recently started it up again and hopefully it wont take too long before I can start painting it. Plans might change but my thought was to make a little diorama of a Tiger getting ready to move back towards the front to fend of some pesky T-34s trying to break out of the ring around Leningrad the Winter of 1942. I plan to use a few figures as well but havent figured (terribly sorry,it just had to be a pun there) out which to use yet. Will be updating here until completion:) The kit is Dragon kit # 6600.

It feels like the roadwheels will take forever to clean and make ready for painting..but,now I have them done..

Optional PhotoEtch fenders,but I  choose to use the plastic ones as they seems to have a better size.

So this is where I am with the Tiger so far. I will put on all the tools and wheels and then start the turret and cannon.

As a backdrop for the diorama I am making a section of a German barrack out of plasticard and strips.

Finally I got all the roadwheels done, this is one of the jobs I hate most when building a panzer, the wheels and tracks, but halfway there now. I made some wear to the rubber rim of the wheels by sanding them and making a few cuts and damages with the scalpel.

Turret,cannon and all the little fittings is glued in place and it is ready for painting.

I started painting the barrack. First I gave it a layer of primer , then a basecoat of Gelbbraun from Lifecolor. To add depth and try replicate unpainted planks I make a few thin paint mixes by adding water and anthrazit grey to the Gelbbraun , and then wash,or glaze it on random planks. This work will take a few evenings and I will use different shades of washes in the end.

I have selected a few figures to add a crew that is preparing the Tiger for the front. This panzer dude from Dragon , and a couple if not all from the Miniart kit.

Nach Sibirien , 1/35

The Diggers , 1/35

The Burial , 1/35

Totenkopf , 1/16

First Encounter 1/35

SS-Skijäger,Finland, 1/35 (sold)

Sinimäed,Vaivara 1/35 (sold)

The Museum 1/35 (sold)

Gebirgsjäger,Nowegen 1/35

Ghost 1/35 shadowbox diorama

Bunkerstrasse 1/35

Autoblinda on the Easternfront, 1/35

Operation Claymore,Lofoten Islands , 1/35

Lindisfarne , 1/35

Close Combat 1/35

SU-100 , 1/35

Mein Gott!!Der Iwan Kommt!! , 1/35 (sold)

Flakpanzer ,1/35

Frozen Grenadier,EasternFront , 1/16 (sold)

KZ-Lager Officer, 90mm (sold)

Chechnya, 1/35