''Target Island'' is a 1944

war novel A war novel or military fiction is a novel about war. It is a novel in which the primary action takes place on a battlefield, or in a civilian setting (or home front), where the characters are preoccupied with the preparations for, suffering th ...

by the British writer John Brophy. It was published by Collins in London and

Harper Harper may refer to: Names * Harper (name), a surname and given name and place names, for example: Harper Islands, Nunavut. Places ;in Canada * Harper Islands, Nunavut * Harper, Prince Edward Island ;In the United States *Harper, former name ...

in New York. It takes place during the

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

Siege of Malta during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. While popular, it did not repeat the great success of Brophy's previous novel ''

Immortal Sergeant ''Immortal Sergeant'' is a 1943 American war film directed by John M. Stahl for 20th Century Fox. Set in the North African desert during World War II, it stars Henry Fonda as a corporal lacking in confidence in both love and war, Maureen O'Har ...

'' set during the

North African Campaign The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers. It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts (Western Desert campaign, Desert Wa ...

. John Hampson writing in ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...

'' gave it a fairly negative review alongside

Vicki Baum Hedwig "Vicki" Baum (; ; January 24, 1888 – August 29, 1960) was an Austrian writer. She is known for the novel ''Menschen im Hotel'' ('People at a Hotel', 1929 — published in English as '' Grand Hotel''), one of her first international ...

's '' Berlin Hotel'' and noted "here again are major and minor figures, love-affairs, raids, and alarms, amid the panoply of modern war. And yet nothing has been added to the epic of Malta that we didn't already know. However, its film possibilities will be obvious to the cinema fan".''The Spectator, Volumes 172-173''. F.C. Westley, 1944. p.600-02 In the event the novel was not adapted for the screen unlike several others of Brophy's work, although much of its settings and themes featured in the 1953 film ''

Malta Story ''Malta Story'' is a 1953 British war film, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, set during the air defence of Malta during the Siege of Malta in the Second World War. The film uses real and unique footage of the locations at which the battles wer ...

''.

References

Bibliography

* Watson, George & Willison, Ian R. ''The New Cambridge Bibliography of English Literature, Volume 4''. CUP, 1972. 1944 British novels British war novels William Collins, Sons books Novels by John Brophy Novels set in Malta Novels set during World War II {{1940s-WWII-novel-stub