Books: Storm Of War

This is a fabulous book. And I’m not even done reading it yet! I found it on a random browse through B&N. My shelves are already sagging with too many WWII books, so I am usually circumspect when purchasing these days, but after one glance at the, Storm of War, by Andrew Robert’s, I knew it was a must have. Why? I’ve always liked the way Andrew’s writes, he seems to be able to get at the heart of “military things” better than anyone else writing today. And he is especially perceptive when it comes to WWII. The Economist, has called him one of Britain’s finest military historian. I think I agree, even though some of the Brits get pretty good when it comes to writing history. Storm of War is a comprehensive and vivid history. Andrew’s depth of research is immediately apparent from the insights he infers from the course of the war as well as the actions of its participants. Andrew has the benefit of time on his side and takes the thoughtful long view of history that only many years can provide. Which is a benefit as it makes his analysis of events superb. All the major theaters are covered even the oft-neglected Burma campaign__my favorite. Remember the, Bridge on the River Kwai? Oh yeah! The main thrust of Andrew’s thesis, the “New History of WWII,” as he calls it, is that the Allies did not so much win the war as Hitler lost it, mostly because Hitler’s decisions were based on intuition and blind ideology rather than sound military judgment. Too prove his point Andrew’s fills his book with all sorts of juicy details to the delight of WWII aficionados. For example, why did Hitler declare war on the US after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, he was under no treaty obligations? Why did he wait to late June to invade Russia? And why didn’t he eject the allies from North Africa before invading Russia? Surely his generals advised otherwise. But then you didn’t disagree with the Fuhrer. And why did Hitler have an obsession to rid Europe of the Jews? It served no military or strategic advantage, but instead drained Germany of valuable resources and manpower. Again blind ideology. Andrew’s is especially skillful in assessing these types of motives, both of Hitler and Churchill. This was also the subject of his previous book, Hitler and Churchill: Secrets of Leadership. But even if you are not particularly interested in the psychological factors surrounding the wars leadership, all the battle details and facts are here, presented clearly and comprehensively. And when you’re done reading this book you can use it as a boat anchor. Well not quite, but it is 768 pages.