The Mobilization of the United States in World War II: How the Government, Military, and Industry Prepared for War [Library Binding]

V. R. Cardozier (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1995 | ISBN-10: 0786400765 | ISBN-13: 978-0786400768

As Hitler prepared for and then carried out his assault on Western Europe in the late 1930s through 1941, the U.S. military was severely undermanned; the army was ranked only 19th worldwide in size. For the most part the American public followed an isolationist line, feeling that Hitler's aggression was a European problem that did not affect the United States. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 abruptly ended America's isolation, and the country rapidly prepared for a world war on two fronts. Industries converted seemingly overnight to the production of war material, while government agencies sprang up to oversee the mobilization effort. For the first time, women entered the work force on a large scale; other joined the military services, primarily as nurses or in support roles. The military quickly regained its strength, rising to 8 million members by 1945. Patriotism on the home front was fueled by enthusiastic news reports of American victories. This is the story of the successes and failures of the United States in mobilizing for and at the same time fighting a world war.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"analyzes the successes and failures of this miraculous transformation" -- Naval History

Product Details

• Library Binding: 277 pages
• Publisher: McFarland & Company (May 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786400765
• ISBN-13: 978-0786400768
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,718,378 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A FIVE STAR BOOK THAT WILL PUT YOU TO SLEEP, October 13, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Mobilization of the United States in World War II: How the Government, Military, and Industry Prepared for War (Library Binding)

If you are looking for a comprehensive history of what was happening in the U.S. during World War II, this is the book for you.

If you want all the numbers and listings and all the boring details, like I did, this is good reading and brings back a lot of memories about our "wartime" experiences in the U.S.

The author is pretty thorough with a tendency to put the reader to sleep by giving you more facts than you actually wanted. So, if you are NOT really THAT interested in the subject, it could be a 2-star reading for you.

The author talks about rationing, the various services and how they were formed, what to do with German and Japanese aliens, rationing of moonshine, discussion about nisei, issei, etc., lots of nice information, (some really interesting stuff) but I was a little disappointed by the "dryness" of the writing and the fact that the author did not mention some of the more obvious subjects I personally would like covered, such as Axis war prisoners interned in the U.S., U-boat activity off the U.S. east coast...

A comprehensive book, but dry, sort of like a very good college paper. A confusing little book: it lacks that extra zest you expected, but you still read every word.

5.0 out of 5 stars How the Country Mobilized for World War II, January 31, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Mobilization of the United States in World War II: How the Government, Military, and Industry Prepared for War (Library Binding)

This book is an excellent summary of how the people of the United States prepared for and mobilized for World War II. The author had done exhaustive research and has included detailed facts and figures in all parts of the book. For those who are researching particular aspects of the war, this is a very good starting point. In my case, I was interested in learning about the mobilization of industry for war production and found the book to be most helpful.

For those who have a general interest in this subject, you will find the book to be well written and interesting.