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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Useful introduction to the Second World War, 19 Dec 2005
In depicting the most wide-ranging conflict in human history, one of the greatest challenges for any historian of the Second World War is the one of making the conflict accessible – a challenge that is even greater when that person is seeking to offer a 'concise' account. In this respect, Ronald Story's effort is a modest success. In this book he offers fifty maps detailing various aspects of the conflict, from Europe immediately prior to the First World War to Asia after the second one. Each is accompanied on the opposite page with text that provides a short summary and analysis of the subject of the map; when combined they offer a short, accessible overview of the conflict from its early 20th century origins to its mid-century consequences.While a good starting point for readers seeking an introduction to the conflict, the atlas also has something for more knowledgeable students of the war as well. The maps themselves are clear, colorful, and easy to read, providing a nice supplement for anyone frustrated with the paucity or illegibility of maps in other books on the war. For the most part, the maps focus on the strategic and political aspects of the war. Only six battles (El Alamein, Kursk, the Battle of the Bulge, Berlin, Midway, and Leyte Gulf) receive dedicated maps, and even these are short on details that can be found elsewhere. Europe receives the majority of the attention; though the Eastern Front is fairly well covered, the bulk of the maps dealing with the war in Asia focus largely on the Allies' 'island-hopping' campaigns. Nevertheless, for those readers seeking a handy overview of the 'geography of the conflict' (as the subtitle advertises), this a good book to get.
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