A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962 (New York Review Books Classics) (Paperback)

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• This item: A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962 (New York Review Books Classics) by Alistair Horne

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• Street Without Joy: The French Debacle in Indochina (Stackpole Military History) by Bernard B. Fall

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• The Last Valley: Dien Bien Phu and the French defeat in Vietnam (Cassell Military Paperbacks) by Martin Windrow

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Street Without Joy: The French Debacle in Indochina (Stackpole Military History) by Bernard B. Fall 4.4 out of 5 stars (5)  £11.89

To Lose a Battle: France, 1940: France 1940 by Alistair Horne 5.0 out of 5 stars (1)  £10.49

The Fall of Paris: The Siege and the Commune 1870-71 by Alistair Horne 5.0 out of 5 stars (3)  £6.99

The Price of Glory: Verdun, 1916 (Penguin History) by Alistair Horne 4.2 out of 5 stars (12)  £9.09

Nemesis: The Battle for Japan, 1944--45 by Sir Max Hastings 4.2 out of 5 stars (17)  £4.85

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Review
"He brings a long historical perspective and six decades of experience to bear on the affairs of the day." -Salon.com
"First the Pentagon plugged the movie, now President Bush is reading the book..."A Savage War of Peace," British historian Alistair Horne's celebrated 1977 account of the [Algerian] war...Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who recommended "A Savage War of Peace" to Bush, said recently on PBS' Charlie Rose Show that he did not believe 'that the French experience could be applied precisely to the United States. But I thought there were enough similarities and enough complexities and enough tragedy for the president to gain a perspective on his own period.'" --"Associated Press"
"Anyone interested in Iraq should read this book immediately." --Thomas Ricks, "The Washington Post"
"[Horne's] tome is so well written it reads more like a novel but is, in fact, a work of superior historical narrative...There are few historical works that provide so comprehensive a treatment of revolutionary and counterinsurgency warfare, domestic and international politics, and economics and ideology." -"Marine Corps Gazette"
"When Horne's book first appeared, it seemed to be an account of one major, but now largely closed, chapter in the history of postwar decolonization. Subsequent developments-in Algeria and elsewhere-have made the past prologue. [It] has become a de facto textbook for American Military officers facing time in Iraq..." --Scott McLemee, Inside Higher Ed
"This thirty-year-old history, written before the Iranian revolution, the Algerian civil war, and Al Qaeda, captures a contingent moment in the conflict between the West and the Arab world, whenpresent-day dogmas were hardly imagined by most. It provides a much needed reminder that modern history is not made by the 'clash of civilizations' but by people." --"Harper's Magazine"
"The present conflict in the Middle East is frighteningly similar, making this book a good volume to have on library shelves. Horne provides a new preface."--"Library Journal" (Classic Returns)
"[T]he read of choice for many U.S. military officers serving in Iraq...[this] universally acclaimed history...should have been mandatory reading for the civilian and military leaders who opted to invade Iraq" --"The Washington Times"
"There is enough to make this the most complete history of the Algerian war yet written, one which will be indispensable for future historians. It is compelling reading, filled with intimate detail about characters and situations that have served as inspiration for a dozen novels from "The Day of the Jackal "on."" "-"The Los Angeles Times"
A "highly readable, toughly edited history that blends the pace and sweep of a work of fiction with a relentless pursuit of every main actor still alive and willing to talk about the war."-"The Washington Post Book World"
"Alistair Horne is one of the best writers of history in the English speaking world. "A Savage War of Peace" shows him at the peak of his powers."-"The Financial Times"
"An awesome and superlative piece of historical narrative...Mr. Horne has a terrible and tremendous tale to tell, one full of omen for posterity."-"The Times" (London)
"An accomplished historian of earlier French wars has written an admirably impartial, lucid and readable book...as full and objective a history of the Algerian war as weare likely to see for some years." -"The New York Times Book Review"
"A book of compelling power...magnificent. It has the poetic sense of place without which no great work of history can be written."-"The Spectator"
.,."brilliantly and compassionately told by an historian whose mastery of this subject is complete."
-"The Washington Post"

Synopsis
British historian Horne spent much of his career studying French military history. In this 1977 work, he turned his eye on France's failed colonial war in Algeria. His narrative is constructed through a synthesis of France's secondary literature on the bloody conflict and interviews with many of the key actors. He combines discussion of the conflic

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5 Reviews 5 star:  (4) 4 star:  (1) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.8 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   21 of 21 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars A lesson not learned, 18 Dec 2006 By  Teemacs (Switzerland) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    I am somewhat of a fan of Alastair Horne's, having come to him via his trilogy of books on Franco-German conflicts, and I went looking in Amazon to see if there was anything new from him. And I came across this book, whose purchase many years ago was prompted by the desire to know more about the world of Freddie Forsyth's outstanding thriller "The day of the Jackal". Seeing it again on the Amazon website reminded me as to how relevant it is to the modern story of the US and Iraq. Of course, there are substantial differences; the US is not Iraq's colonial power and the US most certainly does not regard the place as part of the USA, the way the French did Algeria. And because of the lack of a US equivalent of "pieds noirs" (French settlers in Algeria), no matter how bad George Bush messes up, no US paratroop regiment is going to mutiny, try to assassinate him and bring the US to the brink of civil war. However, the similarities are scary - the reliance on pure military power to win, the use of tactics (particularly in the battle of Algiers) that alienated the locals and effectively made them into allies of the FLN rebels or at least tolerant of them, and the widespread use of torture (a subject that touches raw nerves in France to this day). As with Iraq, the FLN didn't confront the French military head-on, but relied on ambush and, more particularly, on intimidating and murdering local allies of the French, policemen, local officials and the like. There were also French near-equivalents of "Mission Accomplished", even as the war was being lost where it desperately needed to be won - in the hearts and minds of Algerians themselves. As I write this, Zinédine Zidane is in Algeria, being feted as a hero. He is the son of harkis, the Algerians who fought on the French side and who had to leave Algeria or face severely curtailed life expectancies. Time has finally healed the wounds. One hopes it will be so with Iraq. One wishes that the Bush Administration had read this highly perceptive book before launching its ill-considered venture - and that it had had the honesty and wisdom to see the lessons therein. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   38 of 40 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars Gripping, 31 Dec 2002 By  "ataction" - See all my reviews This review is from: A Savage War of Peace (Paperback) I ordered this book as a result of a recommendation by the journalist Robert Fiske. I worked in Algeria in 1975 and the country has been under my skin ever since. This book is a fantastic distillation of the recent history of Algeria, I wish I had read it along time ago. What lessons can be learnt for the modern world and the threats that exist, and perhaps even more relevant in the post Sept 11th world. It was a gripping read, encapsulating the drama completely as it unfolded. An intellectual challenge, sumptous writing. A profound and shocking learning experience. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   11 of 11 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended by President Bush! , 13 Jul 2007 By  SJ SMART "Smartie" (London) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    Alistair Horne's masterful study of the French War in Algeria has been read and studied by President George W Bush it was announced on Radio 4 yesterday. According to the news report he was so interested in the book he contacted the historian and they spoke for an hour discussing President De Gaulle and how he dealt with Algeria in the 1950's and 1960s, comparing it with the situation in Iraq today!! Alistair Horne made it very clear that he did not support Bush's policy in Iraq or the the Middle East but had found the conversation interesting. I found the book very interesting. I have seen the amazing French black and white film "Battle of Algiers" and wanted to know more about this war/campaign, Hornes book was very informative and interesting. If you are interested in the politics of the Middle east you would enjoy this and find it interesting. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review › See all 5 customer reviews...		Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars Worth the Wait The book took a while coming but it was worth waiting for. As a story in itself the Algerian conflict is gripping stuff - the wrangles between the leading figures in the... Read more Published 21 months ago by Karl White 5.0 out of 5 stars War and no Peace At the outset Alistair Horne bemoans the complexities and difficulties involved in writing recent history, where many of the main players are still alive and active. Read more Published on 11 Oct 2002 by talba Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 5 customer reviews...

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