When my first novel was published, I went in great excitement round bookshops in central London to see if they had stocked it.

I can't envisage stopping writing.

The British bombing of Caen beginning on D-Day in particular was stupid, counter-productive and above all very close to a war crime.

I think one of the great disasters (in military history) is the way that the Second World War has become the defining reference point for every crisis and every conflict.

I just love the days when you come out of the archives with half a dozen excellent descriptions or poignant accounts of personal experiences.

I feel slightly uneasy at the way historians are consulted as if history is going to repeat itself. It never does.

To begin impatiently is the worst mistake a writer can make