- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Doubleday Canada (Oct 14 2008)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0385664036
- ISBN-13: 978-0385664035
- Product Dimensions: 23.2 x 15.6 x 3.4 cm
- Shipping Weight: 640 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #187,102 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
“This outstanding book will ensure that no one can ever again be in doubt about why there is still a controversy over the effectiveness and the morality of the mass destruction of German towns and cities.”
— Margaret MacMillan, author of Paris 1919
“Riveting…. A stellar sense of authenticity…. Hansen offers a point of view that few will have heard before and many may choose to disagree with.”
— Winnipeg Free Press
“[A] careful, principled probing of the historical record.”
— Vancouver Sun
— Margaret MacMillan, author of Paris 1919
“Riveting…. A stellar sense of authenticity…. Hansen offers a point of view that few will have heard before and many may choose to disagree with.”
— Winnipeg Free Press
“[A] careful, principled probing of the historical record.”
— Vancouver Sun
Product Description
National Bestseller
An enlightening and utterly convincing re-examination of the allied aerial bombing campaign and of civilian German suffering during World War II–an essential addition to our understanding of world history.
During the Second World War, Allied air forces dropped nearly two million tons of bombs on Germany, destroying some 60 cities, killing more than half a million German citizens, and leaving 80,000 pilots dead. Much of the bombing was carried out against the expressed demands of the Allied military leadership. Hundreds of thousands of people died needlessly.
Focusing on the crucial period from 1942 to 1945, and using a compelling narrative approach, Fire and Fury tells the story of the American and British bombing campaign through the eyes of those involved: military and civilian command in America, Britain, and Germany, aircrew in the sky, and civilians on the ground.
Acclaimed historian Randall Hansen shows that the Commander-in-Chief of Bomber Command, Arthur Harris, was wedded to an outdated strategy whose success had never been proven; how area bombing not only failed to win the war, it probably prolonged it; and that the US campaign, which was driven by a particularly American fusion of optimism and morality, played an important and largely unrecognized role in delivering Allied victory.
An enlightening and utterly convincing re-examination of the allied aerial bombing campaign and of civilian German suffering during World War II–an essential addition to our understanding of world history.
During the Second World War, Allied air forces dropped nearly two million tons of bombs on Germany, destroying some 60 cities, killing more than half a million German citizens, and leaving 80,000 pilots dead. Much of the bombing was carried out against the expressed demands of the Allied military leadership. Hundreds of thousands of people died needlessly.
Focusing on the crucial period from 1942 to 1945, and using a compelling narrative approach, Fire and Fury tells the story of the American and British bombing campaign through the eyes of those involved: military and civilian command in America, Britain, and Germany, aircrew in the sky, and civilians on the ground.
Acclaimed historian Randall Hansen shows that the Commander-in-Chief of Bomber Command, Arthur Harris, was wedded to an outdated strategy whose success had never been proven; how area bombing not only failed to win the war, it probably prolonged it; and that the US campaign, which was driven by a particularly American fusion of optimism and morality, played an important and largely unrecognized role in delivering Allied victory.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very interesting, readable and well researched,
By
This review is from: Fire and Fury: The Allied Bombing of Germany, 1942-1945 (Paperback)
Very readable, comprehensive book. Reads like a novel, but it's historically relevant and well researched. I bought this book for a research project and referred to parts of it for that academic work, but it was so well written and interesting I ended up reading the whole thing from cover to cover. Highly recommend for history buffs and anyone interested in WWII, leadership, the horrors of war and the context surrounding it.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
We'll Bomb them into the Stone Age,
By
This review is from: Fire and Fury: The Allied Bombing of Germany 1942--1945 (Hardcover)
It's one of the big philosophical questions of the twentieth century given the totality of destruction WWII had on humanity. In "Fire and Fury," scholar and professor Randall Hansen explores the ethical dimension of the use of area bombing by both the axis and the allies during the war.Throughout the body of the book, Hansen explores the rather ambiguous objectives of area bombing. While superficially stated, the purpose was to destroy the German industry, implicitly many Generals interpreted the purpose to destroy public morale. Hansen concludes that Generals such as Curtis LeMay of the US and Sir Arthur Harris of the RAF felt they had carte blanche to "bomb them into the stone age." Overall, I think the book is a decent exploration into one of the larger moral implications of bombing and its use in war, specifically in WWII. I would have to say that a basic background in the war is necessary, otherwise you won't understand the basic sequence of events. Despite a few minor flaws, I recommend "Fire and Fury" for anyone wanting to learn more about WWII.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent contribution to both the historiography of WWII and the ethics of aerial bombardment,
By Joseph Grant (Montreal, QC) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Fire and Fury: The Allied Bombing of Germany 1942--1945 (Hardcover)
Randall Hansen crafts an impeccible and engaging narrative of the Allied bombing campaigns against Nazi Germany from 1942 to 1945. I am an avid reader of WWII aviation literature and count Hansen's contribution to said literature among the most insightful and well-written accounts available.Hansen's book not only offers a wealth of research into the actions of Carl Spaatz, Arthur Harris, Albert Speer and other key figures, but it weaves historical facts into a series of compelling and beautifully articulated storylines. Finally, Hansen's questions about the ethics of aerial bombing campaigns remain salient even in contemporary conflics. An excellent book; one well-worthy the praise it's received in the media.
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