“By repute, he was Winston Chirchill’s fire brigade chief par excellence: the man who was always despatched to retrieve the most desperate situations,” Lieutenant-General Sir Brian Horrocks wrote these words in his descritption of his first meeting in the desert with General Alexander, Commander -in-Chief Middle East, and afterwards Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Eighteenth and Fifteenth Army Groups, Commander-in-Chief Allied Armies in Italy and last, Supreme Allied Commander, Mediterranean.

And at that time, August 1942, a fire brigade chief par excellence was desperately needed in North Africa. Alex brought a new hope to the Desert Rats. He instilled them with his own confidence, thought of victory where others had made other plans against defeat, until under his brilliant command, Montgomery was ready to fight and win the battle of Alamein. It was said that before Alamein, the Allies never knew victory, and after Alamein, they never knew defeat. Much of the credit for this belongs to Alexander. This book is the master planner’s own personal and candid account.