Customer Reviews

The Good Fight: How World War II Was Won

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The book title is misleading as the content is mostly US-centric.
The book does not cover many important battles and events and Soviet contribution that had crucial importance for the victory.
Not recommended for serious readers.

The rationale behind this book is great, especially given the relative ignorance of younger generations towards the recent past. Breaking up the war into manageable two-page chunks (page of text plus page of photos or maps) is also a sensible way of presenting the chronology of the war. But for a book that claims to be a history of how World War Two was won, and not a history of the United States involvement in the war, this book is a bit of an outrage. Beginning with Pearl Harbor certainly signaled the author's American-centric focus; but to completely and utterly ignore the Soviet (who inflicted over 80% of the German troop casualties) and British/Commonwealth contribution to victory is not doing our children's knowledge of the past any favors. I hate to say it, but school libraries should be discouraged from buying this book in the same way that we discourage them from buying Stalinist propaganda history from the 1950s or Maoist history from the 1960s. Those books willingly falsified history for political ends, and to my mind Ambrose in this book is also falsifying history, perhaps also for political ends.

I was writing a research paper on world war two, and was required to have 6 sources, but only needed one. No Joke...GReat info packed book!

This thin (96 pages), but large, book is a colorful look at the United States' participation in World War II. Each section is given two pages; one containing a large (and often color!) picture or map, while the other is a combination of text, one or two pictures and a "Quick Facts" sidebar. While not in-depth, this attractive book will give the younger reader and a very good overview of the War. Plus, the excellent use of color will help the younger reader to connect with the book.

Overall, I thought that this was a very good World War II book for children, and I highly recommend it.

This is a fantastically done book. I was cautious about a "War" book for kids - worried that the historical tragedy and horrors of war would be either too graphic or transformed in macho-heroism. This book does neither.

This book is very well balanced history book. It lays out the historical facts, interspersed with quality and relevent anecdotes and personal events. It shows the young reader the sacrifice and courage of the young men and women in the services.

A first rate book by a first rate writer!

This book, geared towards young readers in middle school, is a useful, short book designed to give these readers some appreciation for World War II in both theaters of war. It semi-obviously promotes the American viewpoint, but still has enough interesting data and anecdotes to bring the human side of the conflict into focus. It has plenty of maps and illustrations/photos, and would be helpful in school sna libraries to provide younger citizens with an idea of what service is all about, and intirduce them to good history telling.

An excellent work! I pray that the format and content of brief WWII facts will begin to help our young people develop a spirit of patriotism, respect and appreciation for the precious price paid by young men, their families and their country for the tremendouos freedom we enjoy, abuse and take for granted today.

Chances are that most teenagers today have or had grandfathers who served in World War II and grandmothers who helped with the war effort at home. Yet those experiences seem like ancient history to many young people. This superb volume should help bring home the message of why the American war effort was so important, and the magnitude of the sacrifices that were made on their behalf. Hopefully, these materials will then encourage these young people to ask their grandparents about their World War II experiences, and help create more connections to and understanding of those worthy elders.

This book is a brief pictoral history of the war from the American perspective. The book's format is to take about 30 themes and develop them briefly. The tools used are brief essays, moving quotes from participants, photographs, and battle maps. Most subjects are handled in two pages (including photographs), but some go on to become four pages (such as the Holocaust). My only complaint about the book is that some photographs are reproduced in one color that makes the detail hard to see. Black would have been less appealing, but the photographs would have been easier to examine.

Those who know Professor Ambrose's work will recognize the quotes. Sergeant Mike Ranney of Easy Company in the 101st tells this story about speaking with his grandson.

"'Grandpa, were you a hero in the war?'

'No,' I answered, 'but I served in a company of heroes.'"

Quotes like that are worth the price of the book for conveying the World War II experience to this generation of Americans.

The book is good for pointing out problems and injustice. You see black Americans training with World War I guns. You see Japanese-Americans being interned in concentration camps. The concentration camp at Belsen is displayed. The devastation at Nagasaki as well as the radiation burn scars on a boy are portrayed.

Many of the famous World War II photographs are here, such as the flag-raising on Iwo Jima, V-J Day in Times Square (the sailor and the nurse), soldiers wading ashore on D-Day into the surf on Omaha Beach, and the Navy battleships aflame at Pearl Harbor.

Professor Ambrose certainly knows this history better than I do, but I wondered about his description of the Japanese emperor's involvement in the decision to launch the attack on Pearl Harbor. The version here seemed closer to the original story favored by General MacArthur that the emperor was manipulated by the military leaders than what I have been reading other historians say, which is that the emperor was right in the middle of wanting to go to war.

Some of my other favorite photographs in the book include Hitler at a Nuremberg party rally (showing the propaganda machine in all of its might), Guadalcanal after a tropical storm (with tents underwater), an Army corpsman tending a wounded soldier, St. Lo after the liberation, an American soldier rescuing a shell-shocked girl in Manila, and Stalin, Truman and Churchill at Potsdam.

Lesser known parts of the war are covered here, such as Rosie the Riveter (including a photograph of women learning to weld).

After you read this book, I suggest that you also take time to tell your teenagers how you feel about America's involvement in World War II. Many of the participants are naturally reluctant to say very much. Your own sense of this incredible struggle can help fill the gap in understanding as well.

If you feel comfortable, you may also want to talk about the cold war.

Be glad that D-Day was a success!

Stephen Ambrose is requesting help with his WWII Pacific book. He gives guidance for conducting an interview of a veteran and other ideas. I am contributing my father's GI Diary, with stories of why he received two Purple Hearts and the Bronze Star. How he met my mother in New Zealand,what the soldier's ate in New Guinea, and other stories. My father-in-law has written short stories about his PT Boat experiences. Hope you can contribute to this worthwhile endeavor!

I am really not that amazed that my nine-year-old nephew loved this book, after all Stephen Ambrose wrote it, the pictures are great and the topic is timely (what with that new WWII movie out). What I'm surprised with is how much I enjoyed reading it. Most of us know a smattering of WWII; Pearl Harbor, D-Day, Battle of the Bulge, but again and again I found myself saying "Wow, I didn't know that!" Ambrose has a knack for telling a great story through the eyes of individuals, and what story from the previous century could be greater? The more I think about this book, the more I am convinced it is a great way of introducing children to the courage and greatness of our G.I.s, as well as impressing upon them the destructiveness of war.