The Story of World War II: Revised, expanded, and updated from the original text by Henry Steele Commager [Hardcover]

Donald L. Miller (Author), Henry Steele Commager (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2001

"The Story of World War II" is a completely rewritten, expanded, and updated version-more than 75 percent new-of the classic narrative of the war that captures all the immediacy of the original work and contains hundreds of new firsthand accounts.

In late 1945, Henry Steele Commager finished a history of World War II that he had begun writing even while the fighting raged. Commager had worked as a propagandist and historian for the U.S. Department of War, and in his book he collected eyewitness descriptions of the fighting by outstanding correspondents, including Ernie Pyle, John Steinbeck, and Martha Gellhorn.

But Commager's history could only be preliminary because many documents and official records had not yet been made available. Today we know much more about World War II, and it is possible to place the war in its proper historical context. Yet, despite the large number of books published about various aspects of World War II, surprisingly few general histories of that war have been attempted in recent years. Inspired by the power of Commager's long-out-of-print volume, historian Donald L. Miller has written a thorough, up-to-date, and riveting account of World War II, from the German blitzkrieg into Poland to the Japanese surrender aboard the U.S.S. "Missouri." He provides new coverage of, among other topics, the war in the Pacific, the air war, the liberation of the death camps, and the contributions of African Americans and other minorities. All of the major events of the war are covered, but soldiers, sailors, and airmen and their stories of the fighting predominate. Consequently, this book has a dynamism and authority that no other general history of the fightingcan convey.

Miller shares Commager's conviction that World War II was a war of good against evil, but, as he says, it "was more than a heroic crusade; it was a tragic and complex human experience." Mixed in with valor was cruelty; mixed with heroism was cowardice; and everywhere there was death and suffering. For example, America's armed forces practiced a policy of racial prejudice that defied the ideals of freedom that the U.S. claimed to be fighting for. Now, as the last soldiers of the generation that fought World War II fade into history, we can remember this war and its enormous impact on the world by reading their words, understanding what they faced and how they felt, and appreciating again the great tragedy that transformed their lives and shaped our own.

"The Story of World War II" contains more than 130 photographs and 22 maps.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In 1945, the noted historian Henry Steele Commager, then employed by the U.S. Office of War Information, published The Story of World War II, a comprehensive survey of a struggle still terribly fresh. Donald Miller, himself an accomplished historian, amplifies Commager's work with this substantially revised edition.

Drawing on oral histories and on the vast body of literature that followed the original edition, Miller writes vividly of the key events that shaped the progress of the war, from Dunkirk to the surrender of the Japanese government aboard the U.S.S. Missouri. Along the way, he examines the war as it played out on many fronts, incorporating the memories of women defense workers, German and Japanese combat veterans, and the ordinary Allied soldiers whom correspondent Ernie Pyle called "doggies." The text is thoroughly illustrated with period photographs, maps, and sidebars, adding both to its immediacy and its usefulness as a reference work.

Concentrating on the war through American eyes, Miller and Commager's book is far from definitive. Even so, it makes an important addition to the growing library of work devoted to the era, and readers with an interest in World War II will learn much from its pages. --Gregory McNamee

From Publishers Weekly

Historian Donald L. Miller offers The Story of World War II, an expanded and updated rewrite of Henry Steele Commager's 1945 The Story of the Second World War. Commager was a historian who taught at NYU, Columbia and Amherst; he died in 1998. Miller (Lewis Mumford: A Life) is a professor at Lafayette College and the host of PBS's A Biography of America. With new material from oral accounts, letters and memoirs to which Commager didn't have access and with the inclusion of nearly 200 b & w photographs, Miller alters the footprint but respects the integrity of his predecessor's work. Old-school, just-the-facts-Ma'am historiography is the name of this game, but the extensive, moving testimonies by veterans of their brushes with death and terror humanize and vivify the described events. Maps.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 576 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; Revised & enlarged edition (November 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743211987
• ISBN-13: 978-0743211987
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.6 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #995,097 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Donald L. Miller is the John Henry MacCracken Professor of History at Lafayette College. He hosted the series A Biography of America on PBS and has appeared in numerous other PBS programs in the American Experience series, as well as in programs on the History Channel. He is the author of eight previous books, among them the prize-winning City of the Century: The Epic of Chicago and the Making of America, The Story of World War II, and D-Days in the Pacific.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for a general overview of America's role in WWII, February 11, 2002

By 

Michael Callaghan (Jersey City, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Story of World War II: Revised, expanded, and updated from the original text by Henry Steele Commager (Hardcover)

I really enjoyed this book. For a long time I wanted to read a general history of the entire second world war, and the nice thing about this particular one is its use of some more contemporary perspectives. The book is split almost evenly between Miller and Commager's informative text and first person accounts by the soldiers and reporters who were actually in these battles. As such it paints a vivid portrait of the asolute hell that the world was so relentlessly plunged headfirst into in the first half of the 20th Century. There is emotion as well as research here, and a nice tribute paid to the black and Asian soldiers who fought on behalf of their country - a country which had, paradoxically, treated them with such disdain. This really is not a comprehensive history, per se, but at about 650 pages for the entire war, it never could be. It is an engaging, enlightening, and disturbing book, though, which is all one could ask from a general history. Lots of pictures and about 25 maps round it out - there could stand to be some more maps, but I used the Cassell Atlas of the Second World War to supplement this with. Another good point is that this is really a high quality book. It is oversized and a bit heavy, and the paper is a thick stock with very easy typeface. The book also lies flat, which might be an important consideration. This was obviously the pet project of someone at Simon & Shuster, because in packaging and presentation this book is a cut above most new history books. A fine volume, and a welcome addition to anyone's library, be it a supplement to other history texts or not. I know that I will refer back to it when I continue my ongoing studies on the Pacific War, and that says quite about about its importance right there.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars America at War, October 12, 2002

By 

David Stapleton (California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Story of World War II: Revised, expanded, and updated from the original text by Henry Steele Commager (Hardcover)

This 'revised and updated' version of the original written by Henry Commager is a prime example of why it is important to understand the origins and biases of the author behind the work. To quote Miller from his preface, "Commager was, understandably, too emotionally involved in the war to write an unsparing acount of it.", and of himself he writes "...I am an American interested in the character and conduct of my countrymen."

This is not meant to detract from the quality of the work. The book is well written, with a consistent style. It is hard to tell where Commager leaves off and Miller picks up. The narrative is heavily supported by relevant passages and quotes from the soldiers and journalists involved in the action. It provides a feel for the actual events (at least as far as print can do that).

In order to fully understand historical events it is necessary to understand the various viewpoints. This book, written by Americans, primarily for Americans, presents a valuable view of one facet of the jewel that is history.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a must read for every American!, July 28, 2003

By 

Jeff Vining (Loganville, GA United States) - See all my reviews

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

I read this book cover to cover in a week. This book is the perfect balance of historical information intertwined with personal stories from the soldiers who were there. It takes you from the first German shot to the atomic bomb in story like fashion. I learned more from this book than I did in all of my college history classes. You will be amazed at the accuracy and details Miller puts into this book. I am also ashamed at myself that I did not completely know the unbelievable sacrifices made by our troops during this conflict. Especially the untold battles in Italy and the Pacific. Also, I have new respect for the role minority soldiers played in combat. True heroes. Buy this book!