Churchill and the Dardanelles

Churchill and the DardanellesChurchill and the Dardanelles by Christopher M. Bell
ISBN: 9780191006999
Published by Oxford University Press on January 12, 2017
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, General, Military, Modern, 20th Century, Biography & Autobiography, Historical, World War I, World War II
Pages: 464

A reassessment of Churchill’s role in the conception, planning and execution of the Dardanelles fiasco, as well as an examination of the subsequent inquiry and the long-standing controversy over the operation. Bell previously wrote Churchill and Sea Power, and is an expert on the great man’s relationship with the Royal Navy. His account draws on a mass of archival material, and provides a more nuanced view of the people and politics that contributed to the decision-making process.

(Notes by Steve McLaughlin)

Fields of War: A Visitor’s Guide to Fifty Key Battlefields in France & Belgium

Fields of War: A Visitor’s Guide to Fifty Key Battlefields in France & BelgiumFields of War: A Visitor’s Guide to Fifty Key Battlefields in France & Belgium by Robert J. Mueller
ISBN: 9780982367704
Published by French Battlefields on January 1st 2009
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, Travel, Europe, France
Pages: 407

Len's Summary: A guide to 600 years of warfare in northwestern France and Flanders; from Crecy to Bastogne. Order from sales@frenchbattlefields.com or fax (224) 735-4378.

Helmuth von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War

Helmuth von Moltke and the Origins of the First World WarHelmuth von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War by Annika Mombauer
ISBN: 9780521791014
Published by Cambridge University Press on April 19th 2001
Genres: Biography & Autobiography, Historical, History, Europe, General, Military, World War I, World War II, Juvenile Nonfiction, Military & Wars
Pages: 325

Smoke and Mirrors: Q-ships Against the U-boats in the First World War

Smoke and Mirrors: Q-ships Against the U-boats in the First World WarSmoke and Mirrors: Q-Ships against the U-Boats in the First World War by Deborah Lake
ISBN: 0750946059
Published by Sutton Publishing on May 1st 2007
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, Naval, Transportation, Ships & Shipbuilding
Pages: 224

Len's Summary: The story of Britain’s controversial effort to sink German submarines by deploying heavily-armed merchant vessels with RN crews. The author has also written on the Zeebrugge Raid under the pseudonym of David Lomas.

Britain’s Greatest Aircraft

Britain’s Greatest AircraftBritain's Greatest Aircraft by Robert Jackson
ISBN: 1844156001
Published by Pen & Sword Books on March 1st 2008
Pages: 217

Len's Summary: Describes the design history, development and operational careers of 22 legendary military and civil aircraft starting with the WWI era.

Lest We Forget: Forgotten Voices from 1914-1945

Lest We Forget: Forgotten Voices from 1914-1945Lest We Forget: Forgotten Voices from 1914-1945 by Max Arthur, Lyn Smith, Joshua Levine
ISBN: 0091922941
Published by Ebury Press on November 1st 2007
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, Other
Pages: 352

Len's Summary: Part of the “Forgotten Voices” series; first-hand recollections of ordinary people illustrated from Imperial War Museum archives.

British civilian internees in Germany: The Ruhleben camp, 1914-1918

British civilian internees in Germany: The Ruhleben camp, 1914-1918British civilian internees in Germany: The Ruhleben camp, 1914-1918 by Matthew Stibbe
ISBN: 9780719070853
Published by Manchester University Press on September 30th 2008
Genres: Civilians in war, Prisoners of war, History, General, Europe, Germany, Great Britain, Military, World War I, World War II, Social Science, Sociology, Penology
Pages: 210

Len's Summary: Germany’s largest WWI internment camp for enemy aliens.

Maxime Weygand: A Biography of the French General in Two World Wars

Maxime Weygand: A Biography of the French General in Two World WarsMaxime Weygand: A Biography of the French General in Two World Wars by Barnett Singer
ISBN: 9780786435715
Published by McFarland on May 19th 2008
Genres: History, Military, World War II, World War I, Biography & Autobiography, General, France
Pages: 261

Len's Summary: Biography of General Foch’s chief of Staff in WWI who inherited command of a defeated French army in 1940. See also: Maxime Weygand and Civil-Military Relations in Modern France, Philip Charles et al, Harvard, 1997, 445 pages, ISBN 978 0674 4557 017, $33.50 from Barnes & Nobel; less from used booksellers.

Through the Wheat: the U.S. Marine Corps in World War I

I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Through the Wheat: the U.S. Marine Corps in World War IThrough the Wheat: The U.S. Marines in World War I by Edwin H. Simmons, Joseph H. Alexander
ISBN: 1591148316
on 2011-09
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, United States

Len's Summary: The long-awaited history of the Marines in WWI by a former Marine Corps Historian. Completed following Simmons’ death by Joe Alexander. Recounts action by the Fourth Marine Brigade of the 2nd Division at Belleau Wood, Soissons, Blanc Mont, St. Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne.

Command and Control on the Western Front: The British Army’s Experience 1914-18

Command and Control on the Western Front: The British Army’s Experience 1914-18Command and Control on the Western Front: The British Army's Experience 1914-18 by Gary Sheffield, Dan Todman
ISBN: 1862274207
Published by The History Press on September 1st 2008
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I, World War II
Pages: 224

Battles in the Alps: A History of the Italian Front of the First World War

Battles in the Alps: A History of the Italian Front of the First World WarBattles in the Alps: A History of the Italian Front of the First World War by G. Irving Root
ISBN: 1607030373
Published by America Star Books on November 24th 2008
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II
Pages: 352

Len's Summary: By the author of Battles East.

The First Year of World War II, 1919: The Year They Began Making Plans to Come Back at Us

The First Year of World War II, 1919: The Year They Began Making Plans to Come Back at UsThe First Year of World War II, 1919 by Richard E. Osborne
ISBN: 0962832480
Published by Riebel-Roque Publishing Company on January 1st 2008
Genres: History, Military, World War II, Modern, 20th Century
Pages: 331

Len's Summary: Traces the key events of the tumultuous first post war year such as the emergence of Hitler and Mussolini, the Bolshevik victory in Russia, the treaty of Versailles and the political upheavals in Germany. Available from www.casematepublishing.com.

After the Trenches: The Transformation of the U.S. Army, 1918-1939

After the Trenches: The Transformation of the U.S. Army, 1918-1939After the Trenches: The Transformation of the U.S. Army, 1918-1939 by William O. Odom
ISBN: 9781603440813
Published by Texas A&M University Press on June 17th 2008
Genres: History, Military, Strategy, World War I, World War II, United States, Technology & Engineering, Military Science
Pages: 282

Len's Summary: A distinguished army veteran and military historian examines the evolution of army doctrine between the two world wars.

Pershing: A Biography

Pershing: A BiographyPershing: A Biography by Jim Lacey
ISBN: 9780230614451
Published by St. Martin's Press on June 9th 2009
Pages: 224

Len's Summary: One of several recent biographies of “Black Jack” Pershing.

Fighting for Hope: African American Troops of the 93rd Division in World War I and Postwar America

Fighting for Hope: African American Troops of the 93rd Division in World War I and Postwar AmericaFighting for Hope: African American Troops of the 93rd Infantry Division in World War II and Postwar America by Robert F. Jefferson
ISBN: 9780801888281
Published by Johns Hopkins University Press on October 24th 2008
Genres: History, Military, World War II, United States, 20th Century, Social Science, Ethnic Studies, African American Studies
Pages: 321

Len's Summary: The experience of the first complete all-Black division to go into combat. See also American Foreign Legion, Frank E. Roberts, Naval Institute, 2004.

Churchill, Hitler, and “The Unnecessary War”: How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World

Churchill, Hitler, and “The Unnecessary War”: How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the WorldChurchill, Hitler, and "The Unnecessary War": How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World by Patrick J. Buchanan
ISBN: 0307405168
Published by Three Rivers Press on July 28th 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Western, History, Great Britain, Military, World War II, World, Modern, 20th Century
Pages: 544

Len's Summary: A replowing of familiar and well-tilled fields by a former Nixon speech writer, presidential candidate and perennial right wing TV talk show bloviator. Buchanan is best at setting up straw men and then knocking them down.

Petain: Verdun to Vichy

Petain: Verdun to VichyPetain: Verdun to Vichy by Robert Bowman Bruce
ISBN: 1574885987
Published by Potomac Books on September 1st 2008
Genres: Biography & Autobiography, Military, History, Europe, France, World War I, World War II
Pages: 150

Len's Summary: A short biography by the winner of the WFA 2004 Norman B. Tomlinson, Jr. Book Prize.

Prisoners of the Kaiser: The last POWs of The Great War

Prisoners of the Kaiser: The last POWs of The Great WarPrisoners of the Kaiser: The last POWs of The Great War by Richard Van Emden
ISBN: 9781848840782
on August 2009
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, Veterans
Pages: 196

Len's Summary: Draws on the memories of the last surviving British POWs.

John Galsworthy and disabled soldiers of the Great War

John Galsworthy and disabled soldiers of the Great WarJohn Galsworthy and disabled soldiers of the Great War by Jeffrey S. Reznick
ISBN: 9780719077920
Published by Manchester University Press on March 15th 2010
Genres: History, Military, World War II, Biography & Autobiography, Literary, Social Science, People with Disabilities
Pages: 240

Len's Summary: The winner of the 1931 Nobel Prize and author of The Forsyte Saga writes about the care of soldiers disabled by war wounds both physical and psychological. Available in the US in 2010, or immediately from Amazon.co.uk.

Ford in the Service of America: Mass Production for the Military During the World Wars

Ford in the Service of America: Mass Production for the Military During the World WarsFord in the Service of America: Mass Production for the Military During the World Wars by Timothy J. O'Callaghan
ISBN: 9780786444854
Published by McFarland & Company on August 31st 2009
Genres: Business & Economics, Corporate & Business History, History, Military, World War I, World War II, United States, 20th Century, Transportation, Automotive, General
Pages: 198

Len's Summary: The history of Ford Motor Company’s products and achievements during two world wars.

Doughboy War: The American Expeditionary Force in World War I

Doughboy War: The American Expeditionary Force in World War IDoughboy War: The American Expeditionary Force in World War I by James H. Hallas
ISBN: 9780811734677
Published by Stackpole Books on January 19th 2009
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, United States, Essays
Pages: 347

Len's Summary: Essays on the AEF experience.

Selling the Great War: The Making of American Propaganda

Selling the Great War: The Making of American PropagandaSelling the Great War: The Making of American Propaganda by Alan Axelrod
ISBN: 9780230605039
Published by St. Martin's Press on March 3rd 2009
Genres: History, United States, 20th Century, Military, World War II, Social History
Pages: 256

Len's Summary: Motivated by fears than America’s multi-ethnic population would not support the war effort, President Wilson launched the federal government’s first concerted public information campaign headed by journalist George Creel.

Lost Eagles: One Man’s Mission to Find Missing Airmen in Two World Wars

Lost Eagles: One Man’s Mission to Find Missing Airmen in Two World WarsLost Eagles: One Man's Mission to Find Missing Airmen in Two World Wars by Blaine Pardoe
ISBN: 9780472117529
Published by University of Michigan Press on November 2nd 2010
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, Aviation
Pages: 256

Len's Summary: Fredrick Zinn’s efforts to recover missing airman from two world wars and finding 200 of them. Recommended by WW1Historical Association/WFA President Steve Suddaby.

A Michigan Polar Bear Confronts the Bolsheviks: A Memoir

A Michigan Polar Bear Confronts the Bolsheviks: A MemoirA Michigan Polar Bear Confronts the Bolsheviks: A Memoir ISBN: 9780802865205
Published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing on September 14th 2010
Genres: Biography & Autobiography, Military, History, World War I, World War II, United States, Other, Europe, Russia & the Former Soviet Union, Personal Memoirs
Pages: 187

Len's Summary: Memoir of a member of the 337th Field Hospital part of a 5,000-man American Army unit in Northern Russia from 1918 to 1919.

Eyewitnesses to the Great War: American Writers, Reporters, Volunteers and Soldiers in France, 1914-1918

Eyewitnesses to the Great War: American Writers, Reporters, Volunteers and Soldiers in France, 1914-1918Eyewitnesses to the Great War: American Writers, Reporters, Volunteers and Soldiers in France, 1914-1918 by Ed Klekowski, Libby Klekowski
ISBN: 0786463481
Published by McFarland & Company on July 30th 2012
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World War II, United States, 20th Century, Personal Memoirs
Pages: 253

Len's Summary: Novelist Edith Wharton, Mrs. W K. Vanderbilt and other American expatriate socialites, adventurers as well as diplomats, soldiers, journalists, and relief workers among others write of their experiences on both sides of the lines. A different slant on the war by two new members of WWHA.

At Home and under Fire: Air Raids and Culture in Britain from the Great War to the Blitz

At Home and under Fire: Air Raids and Culture in Britain from the Great War to the BlitzAt Home and under Fire: Air Raids and Culture in Britain from the Great War to the Blitz by Susan R. Grayzel
ISBN: 9781107679412
Published by Cambridge University Press on February 27th 2014
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Modern, 20th Century, Military, World War I, World War II
Pages: 356

Len's Summary: Beginning with Zeppelin and Gotha raids in 1915 -1918, the author traces the civilian response to bombing in two wars and government attempts to cope with the threat to civilian morale.

Riders of the Apocalypse: German Cavalry and Modern Warfare, 1870-1945

Riders of the Apocalypse: German Cavalry and Modern Warfare, 1870-1945Riders of the Apocalypse: German Cavalry and Modern Warfare, 1870-1945 by D. R. Dorondo
ISBN: 9781612510866
Published by Naval Institute Press on May 15th 2012
Genres: History, Military, General, World War II, Other, Technology & Engineering, Military Science
Pages: 312

Len's Summary: A history of the German cavalry from the Franco-Prussian War to the end of World War Two.

Empires, Soldiers, and Citizens: A World War I Sourcebook

Empires, Soldiers, and Citizens: A World War I SourcebookEmpires, Soldiers, and Citizens: A World War I Sourcebook by Marilyn Shevin Coetzee, Frans Coetzee
ISBN: 9780470655825
Published by Wiley-Blackwell on September 17th 2012
Genres: History, Military, World War II, General
Pages: 408

Len's Summary: Offers eyewitness perspectives on the war on the front lines and at home.

The World War I Memoirs of Robert P. Patterson: A Captain in the Great War

The World War I Memoirs of Robert P. Patterson: A Captain in the Great WarThe World War I Memoirs of Robert P. Patterson: A Captain in the Great War by Robert Porter Patterson, Gary J. Clifford
ISBN: 9781572338821
Published by Univ. of Tennessee Press on February 7th 2012
Genres: History, General, Military, World War II, World War I, Personal Memoirs
Pages: 136

Len's Summary: Under Secretary of War during WWII and later Secretary of War; Patterson won the DSC as a WWI infantry officer.

Big Gun Monitors: Design, Construction and Operations 1914-1945

Big Gun Monitors: Design, Construction and Operations 1914-1945Big Gun Monitors: Design, Construction and Operations 1914-1945 by Ian Buxton
ISBN: 9781848321243
Published by Pen & Sword Books on January 1st 2012
Genres: History, Military, World War II, World War I, Naval
Pages: 256

Len's Summary: Designed and built specifically to provide heavy, shore bombardment particularly along the Flanders coast, these ships were also employed in WWII. A revision and update of a 1978 work. // The Royal Navy designed the first of these unusual vessels in late 1914 to bombard German coastal emplacements in Flanders. The earliest models mounted Bethlehem Steel 14-inch inch guns and turrets.

Churchill and Sea Power

Churchill and Sea PowerChurchill and Sea Power by Christopher M. Bell
ISBN: 9780199693573
Published by OUP Oxford on October 25th 2012
Genres: Biography & Autobiography, Historical, Military, History, Europe, Great Britain, General, World War I, World War II, Naval, Modern, 20th Century
Pages: 429

Len's Summary: Analysis of Churchill’s controversial role in as political head of the Royal Navy in two world wars.

The Vickers-Maxim Machine Gun

The Vickers-Maxim Machine GunThe Vickers-Maxim Machine Gun by Martin Pegler
ISBN: 9781780963822
Published by Osprey Publishing on May 20th 2013
Genres: History, Military, Weapons, World War I, World War II
Pages: 80

Len's Summary: One of a number of brief studies in the Osprey Weapons Series looks at the standard British heavy machine gun of WWI & II.

Avoiding Armageddon: From the Great War to the Fall of France, 1918-40

Avoiding Armageddon: From the Great War to the Fall of France, 1918-40Avoiding Armageddon: From the Great War to the Fall of France, 1918-40 by Jeremy Black
ISBN: 9781441157133
Published by A&C Black on July 5th 2012
Genres: History, Military, World War II
Pages: 304

Len's Summary: The First World War spawned any number of new limited wars, civil wars and insurrections all of which are summarized here with analysis of evolving weapons and tactics, as well as great power politics. He author finds the 1920s and 30s presented geo-political-strategic conundrums very similar to those we grapple with today.

Browning .30 Caliber Machine Guns

Browning .30 Caliber Machine GunsBrowning .30 Caliber Machine Guns by Gordon L. Rottman
ISBN: 9781780969213
Published by Osprey Publishing on February 20th 2014
Genres: Technology & Engineering, Military Science, History, Military, United States, World War II, General, Weapons, Antiques & Collectibles
Pages: 80

Len's Summary: The water-cooled Browning .30 caliber came into service in 1917 and remained in service for 50 years.

A Companion to the Meuse-Argonne Campaign

A Companion to the Meuse-Argonne CampaignA Companion to the Meuse-Argonne Campaign by Edward G. Lengel
ISBN: 9781444350944
Published by John Wiley & Sons on May 5th 2014
Genres: History, General, History, Europe, Western, Military, World War I, World War II
Pages: 552

Len's Summary: Professor Lengel won the 2007 Tomlinson Book Prize for his monograph To Conquer Hell on the Meuse-Argonne, America’s bloodiest battle. As the title suggests, this book features analytical essays on French and German involvement by premier scholars from France, Australia, Germany, the US and the UK. Way too expensive. Get it from your local library.

The Lewis Gun

The Lewis GunThe Lewis Gun by Neil Grant
ISBN: 9781782007913
Published by Osprey Publishing on March 20th 2014
Genres: Technology & Engineering, Military Science, History, Military, World War I, World War II, General, Weapons, Antiques & Collectibles
Pages: 80

Len's Summary: Invented by an American and adopted by the British, the Lewis was the best light machine gun of WWI.

Austro-Hungarian Albatros Aces of World War I

Austro-Hungarian Albatros Aces of World War IAustro-Hungarian Albatros Aces of World War 1 by Paolo Varriale
ISBN: 9781849087476
Published by Osprey Publishing on December 20th 2012
Genres: History, Military, Aviation, World War II, Europe, General
Pages: 96

Len's Summary: Nearly all you need to know about the air aces of Austria.

German Atrocities, 1914: A History of Denial

German Atrocities, 1914: A History of DenialGerman Atrocities, 1914 by John N. Horne, Alan Kramer
ISBN: 9780300107913
Published by Yale University Press on 2001
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 608

Len's Summary: Winner of the Fraenkel Prize for Contemporary History, this is a carefully researched, but densely drafted volume establishing that stories of German atrocities in Belgium and France were not just Entente propaganda. Winner of the 2002 Tomlinson Prize.

Planning Armageddon: British Economic Warfare and the First World War

Planning Armageddon: British Economic Warfare and the First World WarPlanning Armageddon: British Economic Warfare and the First World War by Nicholas A. Lambert
ISBN: 9780674063068
Published by Harvard University Press on January 1st 2012
Genres: History, Military, World War II, Strategy, Business & Economics, Economic History
Pages: 662

Len's Summary: Before the war, the Admiralty conceived an economic warfare campaign deploying Britain’s virtual monopolies in banking, communications and merchant shipping as additional weapons against Germany. These weapons proved decisive. This book received the World War One Historical Association's annual Norman B. Tomlinson, Jr., prize for the best work of history in English on World War One (1914-1918) for 2013. Professor Lambert is a Visiting Affiliate Professor at the University of Maryland. His book, 'Sir John Fisher’s Naval Revolution' (1999) won the Tomlinson 2000 prize.