The Biographical Dictionary of World War II [Paperback]

Mark Boatner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 23, 1999

Written by West Point graduate, World War II veteran, and former West Point history professor, this is one of the most important reference books of the Second World War.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Boatner (The Encyclopedia of the American Revolution, 1994. rev. ed.), a retired colonel, West Point graduate, and veteran of World War II and the Korean conflict, here offers biographical sketches of 1000 significant World War II personalities selected primarily on the basis of statistical frequency in standard works. Although this is primarily a biographical work, some of the dictionary's glossary entries (cross-referenced to the biographies and vice versa) are veritable miniarticles of useful supplementary information. While the majority of the biographies are of major figures, e.g., Eisenhower, Stalin, and Roosevelt, an impressive number of lesser-known personalities appear, e.g., Philippine patriot Carlos Romulo and Rene Pleven, who did important liaison work with the American and British governments. Nonmilitary figures from filmmaker Leni Riefenstal to writer Erich Maria Remarque to industrialist Henry Kaiser are included, as are civilian victims of the Nazi machine Anne Frank and Dietrich Bonhoeffer (but neither Sophie nor Hans Scholl, German university students who, with several colleagues, were executed for treason in 1943). The balance of Anglo-American, German, Russian, Japanese, and French names seems appropriate, and other nationalities are well represented. Overall, this is a well-researched and eminently readable work, written in vigorous and refreshingly colorful language, that will update Christopher Tunney's Biographical Dictionary of World War II (1972) and complement The Oxford Companion to World War II (Oxford Univ., 1995). For larger public, university, and four-year college libraries.?Harry E. Whitmore, formerly with Univ. of Maine at Augusta, Portland
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Boatner is a West Point graduate, World War II veteran, and former professor of military history at West Point. He is also the author of five widely used reference books dealing with military history. For this book, he compiled a list of several thousand names connected to World War II by counting name citations in indexes. Culling out the most frequently cited names and choosing additional names after consultation with historical experts from several countries, Boatner selected more than 1,000 key personalities for inclusion in this book, including military personnel, civilian leaders, diplomats, scientists, spies, entertainers, and writers.

The alphabetically arranged entries range from 250 to 1,000 words in length. A typical entry provides the person's nationality, rank or position, and birth and death years, followed by a biography of the person's entire life noting education or training, positions held, accomplishments, failures, and publications. Within an entry, bold type designates a cross-reference to another entry, and small capital letters refer to the accompanying glossary. Short-form citations to the bibliography are in parentheses. The 70-page glossary describes events, issues, and terms too cumbersome to be included within entries (e.g., ATC [US] Air Traffic Command). The 18-page bibliography often has brief comments by the author. Foreign titles have English-language translations. There are no illustrations.

Despite the plethora of reference books on World War II, there are only a few comparable biographical works. A Biographical Dictionary of World War II by Tunney (St. Martin's, 1972) has approximately 540 entries; biographies only cover the war period. Who's Who in World War II by Mason (Little, Brown, 1978) has about 290 entries. Again, most information is limited to the war period. The book is well illustrated with more than 200 photographs and several pages of maps. Who Was Who in World War II by Keegan (Crescent Books, 1984) contains 527 entries; most information is limited to the war period. The book is illustrated with 250 photographs. This work was also published in paperback as Who's Who in World War II (Oxford, 1984) without illustrations. The Biographical Dictionary of World War II Generals and Flag Officers [RBB My 1 96] provides brief information on 2,400 American officers. In comparison, Boatner has 1,000 entries with citations to source material and a lengthy glossary, is more detailed, and reflects current scholarship. Academic, public, and high-school libraries should consider this excellent reference for their collections. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 736 pages
• Publisher: Presidio Press (February 23, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0891416242
• ISBN-13: 978-0891416241
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,702,780 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Reference Work, April 28, 2000

By 

Scott Anderson "Sharpsburg" (Shepherdstown, WV) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Biographical Dictionary of World War II (Paperback)

Students, teachers, and researchers will find this an invaluable tool in their study of World War II. This is the most complete and up-to-date work, including over 1,000 personalities from the war.

Mr. Boatner put together a well laid out reference manual, with an exceelent glossery for help in identifying terms. This book needs to be a required tool for every researcher or student of World War II.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The definitive biographical reference book of World War II., September 19, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: The Biographical Dictionary of World War II (Hardcover)

In looking through this wonderful book, the reader will first realize that the biographies are very well written by the author, Mark Boatner, but next will be amazed at the comprehensive nature of the entries. Virtually all the important personages of that war are covered and are cross-referenced to insure that all vital information is provided. Other similar books do not compare because they do not contain enough information on each entry, do not have all the personages contained in this book, and usually are as "dry as dust" to read. Pertinent bibliographical data accompanies each entry and at the end of the book is a complete and exhaustive bibliography of works and sources used, as well as an extensive glossary. This book is a must for all reference librarians as well as anyone interested in World War II