Customer Reviews

The Great War: Perspectives on the First World War

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This is a really great book. I was going to write a long review, but when I read the editorial reviews above, I found they described the contents of the book almost exactly as I had intended to do, so I will not repeat those descriptions here. I will note that the book does require a working knowledge of World War I; it is not for the beginner. And it is not, nor intended to be, a complete history of the war. But, for example, the two chapters on the Somme give the best short overview of the entire battle I have read in 35 years of studying WWI. In every essay in the book I gained some new insights. I will also point out that the book does not have to be read in order; I jumped back and forth often in my reading. I'd give this book six stars if I could.

I found this book both compelling and readable. Each of the essays were written by talented and skilled writers and the topics range from Jutland, a Turkish viewpoint of Gallipoli, origins of the flamethrower, the Paris Gun and it's myths, the origin of the term 'No Man's Land', the brutal battles at Ypre, the Somme, noted pilots and their daring adventures, some great insight into 'Black Jack' Pershing and his dealings with the Allied generals and his lady friends.
These were edited from previously published MHQ magazine issues and should find a place on the book shelf of any WWI buff. Enjoy.

This is, without a doubt, a phenomenal collection of World War 1 articles by a diverse corps of authors, a number of whom write of subjects "not just unfamiliar" but "totally fresh" to most who think they know or understand the Great War. This is a book about people, times, emerging destructive technology and the almost absolute madness of a war and the "civilized" powers that fought using 19th Century tactics and 20th Century killing tools.

An easy read and a page turner at times. Over 20 or so articles - well researched and written that hold the heart and shake the very concepts of good and evil.

First found this book, literally by chance how I came upon it, not sure) in the QM2 library while crossing in 2007 to visit a great uncle's grave in the WW I St. Mihiel American Cemetary in eastern France. It was an incredibible and engrossing read during that 6 day voyage and I found it necessary to own a copy - actually two. I gave the other (ordered via Amazon)as a gift to my nephew.

Read this book, react and remember - this was the "war to end all wars".

Robert Cowley does an excellent job at covering specific events in WWI. If you are interested in details and military operations this is your kind of stuff. I enjoyed supplementing my knowledge from other books with this one.

WWI ushered in "that greatest of growth industries, violent death." It made WWII inevitable which made the Cold War inevitable. "It is no accident that many of those responsible for the Holocaust were veterans of the trenches."

General Moltke, Chief of the German General Staff, said in 1911, "Everyone is preparing for the great war which they all expect." P. 13 "The Germans had to destroy the French power of resistance before the full force of Russian strength could be developed. The Russians had to attack sufficiently early, and in sufficient strength, to take the weight off the French. The Austrians had to attack the Russians in order to take the weight off the Germans."

War was preferable to losing by peace. "Germany stood to lose her capacity to hold her own against a dual alliance in which French capital was building up a Russian army (and railroad) mobility far beyond the capability of any German force to contain."

P.16 "I have touched on the Social Darwinism of the period: the view, widespread among intellectuals and publicists as well as among soldiers, that struggle was a natural process of development in both the social and natural orders of the world, and was a necessary procedure for ensuring survival of the fittest, among nations as among species."

P.40 "At Ypres in 1914, Germany botched its last chance to win the upper hand on the Western Front-and its last chance to win the Great War."

1915 was a year of deadlock except that the Russians had defeated the Austrians and Vienna was considering quitting the war. Germany had to transfer troops east to stop the Russians just when the French were about to be over run. In January, 1916 the Germans first used poison gas on the Russians. But later that year, Russian Aleksei Brusilov demonstrated he was the best tactician of the Allies when he inflicted 765,000 casualties on the Central Powers. His strategy is discussed in length.