The events are set out not just from a high command perspective but from grass-roots, with all the human suffering, trauma, compassion and even survival. There is real compassion and human understanding, especially in Bosnia, with sufferings of all sides.

The writing is attractive and very readable , modest, self-effacing, honest, with hints of P G Wodehouse(!), and intimate. Readers will feel involved and brought into author’s confidence - and this is a gift of good authorship.

There are deep and important themes apart from immediate policy and action, notably the nature of war and warfare as a fundamental human condition, the real-life horror of war, and self-sacrifice. And examination of leadership is very impressive, with the trust which is vital to success. A chapter on ‘surprise’ in political and military history is fascinating for historians. Technology is a vital theme and covered for the lay reader to grasp and even cyber technology. The chapters on relations with other arms, government bodies including the MOD and distinguished colleagues, and all ranks, are highly informative and reveal what to some is a secret world.