Revelationary first person accounts reveal what actually happened during the second Great War. Shoking information that was previously TOP SECRET is laid bare for the first time. Find out what happened in the War Cabinet; read of the miserable ration queues; discover the plight of child evacuees. Be moved by this ground-breaking book that catalogues a turbulent but defining era in modern history.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By Reviewer 133
I was interested in researching world war II, and found this book as a special offer. I do not regret buying the book because it is a highly visual, exceptionally interesting, thorough, and at times shocking, book, giving the reader a complete overview of what happened in the war.
The book is set out almost in the form of a contemporary newspaper, with each week given a general summary and then the major events explained alongside this.
Not only does it give a fantastic picture of what happened, but it also explores other ideas - such as the successes or failures of offensives and why this was the case, top secret events and even what was happening in the movies and music at that time. Numerous maps and photos help to give a further picture of the war.
The major dates - Dunkirk, the Battle of Britain, Operation Barbarossa, Singapore, D-Day, the Battle for Berlin etc. are given large sections of the book which proves invaluable.
At the end of the book there is a chronology of the war and a 'Who's Who' guide.
All in all this is an exceptional book about an unforgettable period of modern history. To get a really good overview of what happened between 1939 and 1945 this book is highly recommended. A first class read.
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By M. Ives
Amazon Verified Purchase
I'd like to recommend this book, but I can't really. It is written as a journlistic newspaper giving a day by day account of what happened in the papers on that day.
The only thing it might be good for is as a date reference - infact, in that it is good. I would most certainly NOT buy this book as a factual reference of the war as it most certainly doesn't give you an unbiased point of view and as a historic stance you wouldn't learn anything.
The only thing it might be good for is as a date reference - infact, in that it is good. I would most certainly NOT buy this book as a factual reference of the war as it most certainly doesn't give you an unbiased point of view and as a historic stance you wouldn't learn anything.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars
1 review
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent overview of WWII in an accessable format
30 Mar 2011
By Thomas E. Tweedel
- Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase
This is an excellent book to gives you a unique and comprehensive view of War II.
The aim of the book was to give you an account of what happened day by day in WWII. It begins with several pages that discuss the history and developments that lead up to WWII and then the book really begins on Sept 1, 1939 with the invasion of Poland.
What makes this book really unique is the layout and presentation of the information. It makes the information very accessible on several levels. Each page has a calendar which shows the time frame covered, it has a sidebar which dates and a summary annotation of what happened (like "Japan launches attack on Hong Kong). The main content of the page are little snippets or stories about the event. The style and appearance of the article is very similar to that of a newspaper clipping of the time. Almost as if your reading a newspaper of the days events, except that it has the benefit of knowing the ultimate outcome of what they are reporting on. Most stories are 1-3 paragraphs in length, though major events (like the attack on Pearl Harbor or Normandy invasions) are given a full page spread. For events that developed or continued for some time you will see a series of articles on different days tracking the progress.
This approach, putting information about multiple events on one page and then updating you on subsequent pages is really different from other books which usually cover an event start to finish in one continuous discussion. This approach allows the book to cover a LOT of ground, reporting on minor developments that many books gloss over. It also makes the information very accessible. You can open the book to any page, see what date you are looking at and quickly scan and get some details about the events of the time. You don't have to read the previous 3 pages to understand the context of what they are talking about. In this respect it is probably one of the best "Intro" or "Overview" books of WWII, though there is a LOT of information and you'll never digest it all in one sitting. Think of it as a great way to "snack" on history.
The strength of its format is also its weakness. By covering a vast array of material it doesn't get too in depth on any one subject. Its more of "this happened and here is a little bit about it". You won't get a blow by blow account of battles or in depth analysis of the significance of this event or that. What it does is let you know that something happened and if you find yourself wanting more its a good starting point for further reading from other sources.
The articles are more or less written from a british perspective in terms of content and tone. They are factual and objective, they don't have slanderous language or anything, but they report most on the british experience, especially the "homefront" type aticles which talk about rationing and call ups. There is significant American content as well and to some extent German focused to give a broader picture. Also the dates are reported in the DD/MM/YYYY style.
I found this broader perspective to be interesting. Most American books on the war classify anything that happened before Pearl Harbor as the events leading to the war and don't go into detail. With this book and its chronological layout you get a real sense of how much had happened BEFORE Pearl Harbor. I was reading though, realized I was almost halfway through the book and America hadn't been bombed yet.
They also seem to have made sure to give plenty of coverage to the holocaust. Headlines of Jews being rounded up everywhere the Germans went are all over the book. Other books I've read don't cover this as much as it wasn't a significant "military" development.
Overall I think this is one of the best WWII books I've seen. If you are looking for a comprehensive guide to events this is a good choice. It is also an excellent book if you have kids interested in the subject. I figure its written around a 5th grade level. Kids will find the book accessible, its easy to pick up, enjoy for a while and put down without having to get to involved all at once. Highly recommend it for anyone interested in WWII.
The aim of the book was to give you an account of what happened day by day in WWII. It begins with several pages that discuss the history and developments that lead up to WWII and then the book really begins on Sept 1, 1939 with the invasion of Poland.
What makes this book really unique is the layout and presentation of the information. It makes the information very accessible on several levels. Each page has a calendar which shows the time frame covered, it has a sidebar which dates and a summary annotation of what happened (like "Japan launches attack on Hong Kong). The main content of the page are little snippets or stories about the event. The style and appearance of the article is very similar to that of a newspaper clipping of the time. Almost as if your reading a newspaper of the days events, except that it has the benefit of knowing the ultimate outcome of what they are reporting on. Most stories are 1-3 paragraphs in length, though major events (like the attack on Pearl Harbor or Normandy invasions) are given a full page spread. For events that developed or continued for some time you will see a series of articles on different days tracking the progress.
This approach, putting information about multiple events on one page and then updating you on subsequent pages is really different from other books which usually cover an event start to finish in one continuous discussion. This approach allows the book to cover a LOT of ground, reporting on minor developments that many books gloss over. It also makes the information very accessible. You can open the book to any page, see what date you are looking at and quickly scan and get some details about the events of the time. You don't have to read the previous 3 pages to understand the context of what they are talking about. In this respect it is probably one of the best "Intro" or "Overview" books of WWII, though there is a LOT of information and you'll never digest it all in one sitting. Think of it as a great way to "snack" on history.
The strength of its format is also its weakness. By covering a vast array of material it doesn't get too in depth on any one subject. Its more of "this happened and here is a little bit about it". You won't get a blow by blow account of battles or in depth analysis of the significance of this event or that. What it does is let you know that something happened and if you find yourself wanting more its a good starting point for further reading from other sources.
The articles are more or less written from a british perspective in terms of content and tone. They are factual and objective, they don't have slanderous language or anything, but they report most on the british experience, especially the "homefront" type aticles which talk about rationing and call ups. There is significant American content as well and to some extent German focused to give a broader picture. Also the dates are reported in the DD/MM/YYYY style.
I found this broader perspective to be interesting. Most American books on the war classify anything that happened before Pearl Harbor as the events leading to the war and don't go into detail. With this book and its chronological layout you get a real sense of how much had happened BEFORE Pearl Harbor. I was reading though, realized I was almost halfway through the book and America hadn't been bombed yet.
They also seem to have made sure to give plenty of coverage to the holocaust. Headlines of Jews being rounded up everywhere the Germans went are all over the book. Other books I've read don't cover this as much as it wasn't a significant "military" development.
Overall I think this is one of the best WWII books I've seen. If you are looking for a comprehensive guide to events this is a good choice. It is also an excellent book if you have kids interested in the subject. I figure its written around a 5th grade level. Kids will find the book accessible, its easy to pick up, enjoy for a while and put down without having to get to involved all at once. Highly recommend it for anyone interested in WWII.
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