I've been tagged

Don has tagged me for the latest blog fad meme.

OK. Here goes.

The rules are:

1. Pick up the nearest book of 123 pages or more. No cheating!
2. Find page 123.
3. Find the first five sentences.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people.

My three sentences:

True, German propaganda had built them up as a force to be dreaded, and their tough reputation alone worked wonders - many an enemy unit threw in the towel just knowing they were coming, whether they parachuted behind enemy lines or not. On the other hand, thought Linton more practically, the boots had not been very warm nor sufficiently sturdy for the tough winter conditions they had just endured.

So the rumors about Berlin electrified everyone at the base.

They're from David Stafford's excellent "Endgame, 1945: The Missing Final Chapter Of World War II". It's a superb reconstruction of the last days of the war in Europe, seen through the eyes of carefully selected participants: an American soldier in Italy, a war correspondent travelling with General Patton, a Canadian soldier in Holland, a female relief worker trying desperately to save survivors in the newly-discovered Nazi concentration camps, and others. It's my current nightstand book. Very highly recommended.

I'm not going to tag anyone, though. Those who feel like playing, go for it.

Peter