1939-1945, Inferno: The World at War

Cultural and political history: those were essentially the realms that gripped me when I read and studied history, or so I thought. Delving into military history is a detour from my usual historical interests. You could (though you wouldn't!) say I prefer "girlie" history, or at least not the grim tales of weapons & attacks & killings. But the enormous casualties of world war two mean that including depressing military explanations for the evolution of the war add a level of understanding not otherwise evident. Perhaps it also helps me believe in the new thesis of Steven Pinker -- that violence is really on the decline and maybe it reached its apotheosis in the 1930s-1940s. Do understand, however, that I'm only a little beyond page 200 of a 650-page book. I can read about these encounters only a little at a time.

Well written, easy to read, a good generalized description of entire war. Book poorly constructed by publisher and groups of pages kept falling out which required frequent regluing. Would have given it 5 stars if book hadn't fallen apart.

A monumental undertaking, but most readable. Of the 60 million who perished in the conflict - a number that could be low by 10 million - 20 million were military, and a quarter of that number died in Russian, German or Japanese POW camps, mostly Russians and Poles. By subtraction, this leaves 40 (or 50) million civilians who perished. While the book devotes sufficient coverage to the war's major battles, the generally untold story of what befell the civilian population, often revealed though letters written at the time, tells a horrific tale of the "collateral damage" done to this population. As a few forinstances he notes, Vietnamese farmers were forced by the Japanese to grow cotton and jute for the Japanese war economy instead of rice. This, plus forced labor schemes, accounted for the deaths of perhaps 5 million in Southeast Asia. The Chinese Kuomingtang, viewed as the "good guys" by the USA, extracted rice taxes when farmers were reduced to eating tree bark. Chang's army never engaged the Japanese in any meaingful fashion, rather it roamed the countryside like a plague of locusts stripping the food supply. These actions, plus the savage acts of the Japanese military against the Chinese population, led to perhaps 15 million Chinese deaths, a number approached in Russia as first the Russian army laid waste to their lands to deny the Germans substanance, and the Germans did the same in their retreat. US and British area bombing of France killed 30% more civilians than the Blitz, and so on.

Hastings puts well-known battles in context with those now barely recalled: Montgomery's stupidity in Operation Market Garden is now well known - one doesn't launch a motorized and tank assault up a single lane road surrounded by water. At this juncture of the war the allied advance had stalled because the temporary unloading faclities established after D-Day were insufficient to move the needed material - gaining the Port of Antwerp and its approaches was the key, an offensive left to the First Canadian Army that was essentially unsuported by the Allied high command. The coverage here of the battle for the Scheldt Estuary is excellent. While popular coverage of the war generally features events like El Alamein and the crafty Desert Fox Rommel, left from discussion is what the heck were the Germans doing in North Africa - or Greece for that matter? Why did MacArthur invade the Philippines, a totally unnecesary conflict that led to the complete destruction of Manilla? The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki may have led to the deaths of 100,000 Japanse, but the March 9, 1945 firebombing of Tokyo that burned 14 square miles accounted for more casualties. Immediately after Nagasaki the US launched an 800-strong B-29 firestorm raid on yet another city with zero plane losses, incinerating the population. In the ten days post Nagasaki Russia launched a massive invasion of Manchuria using 5,500 tanks, capturing it and North Korea. Japanese battle deaths 80,000, plus 300,000 more that died in Russian prison camps. I only cite theses numbers as Hastings goes beyond the flag waving propaganda of the war to tally its true impact on humanity. This is a deeply moral work on the cost of war.

A final aspect of this book that's most interesting is that neither Japan nor Germany stood a prayer of winning their respective conflicts. The reasons are numerous and worth reading about, but, at its most simplistic, neither country had the industrial base to succeed; by November 1, 1941, after the assault on Moscow had been held up for a few weeks by the rains and mud of the Russian autumn, Fritz Todt, head of Germany's war production, told Hitler the war was lost. A similar conclusion should have been accepted by the Japanese early in the war. Why this horror show went on for years more to its inevitable conclusion makes most interesting reading. Finally, from just a military effectiveness point of view, the Wehrmacht was an incredible fighting force that far outclassed anything the allies could throw againt it; the allies just had a lot more to throw, including 11 million Soviet troops that went to their deaths.

As a postscript to this since I can't figure out how to respond to comments made about my review, "Hey guys, don't shoot the messenger - try reading the book first." 1. MacArthur's invasion of the Philippines WAS totally unnecesasry, whether "other sources" have said this or not, but Max makes a rather convincing case. 2. I made no value judgment about the a-bomb attacks on Japan, and personally feel they were not only necessary but were the most humane way to end the war. That the US sent 800 B-29s the day after the second a-bomb attack to fire bomb yet another city to ashes does seem like a bit much. The Japanese military hard-liners who wanted to continue the war did not "rule" or "control" Japan; any decision to continue the war rested soley with the emperor who, by the constitution, had to also consider the inputs of the political and civilian classes. He did, and ended the war, one the militarists wanted to continue. (His radio talk announcing the surrender to the Japanese public, the first time they had heard him speak, was rather a masterpiece of understatement: "The war situation has not developed necessarily to Japan's advantage.") 4. As to the fighting capabilities of the Wehrmact, I can't think of any military historian who would disagree with the conclsion I mentioned. This is not to say individual German soldiers were more suicidally devoted to their cause than the Japanese or the Russians (who were helped along with NKVD machine guns pointed at their backs), but as a fighting force definitely had superior communications nets, command and control organization, an in-depth and capable staff and combat officer and NCO corps, and used combined arms for maximum effect. (The French had more and better tanks than the Germans when invaded; the Germans had FM radios that ensured their tanks were better utilized while French tankers had to open their hatches and wave flags; the BEF was hopelessly organized and couldn't conduct operations beyond batallion size, and so on and so forth.) As for my speling, well, hopeless.

All Mr Hastings' books combine his frank opinions of the people and events of the war and stories of those who participated, from everyday soldiers and civilians to the most influential. The result gives one the feel of what it must have been like to live through the war on all sides tempered by the prospective of an expert who isn't afraid to make politically incorrect judgements when necessary.

Inferno, by Max Hastings, published in 2011 is about the war to end all wars. I simply could not put the book down. Powerful stuff! You would think the story has to get much worse before it can possibly get any better. You realize that all your life you've been insulated from actual past events by the bold newspaper headlines you've seen, by the news reels of a dreary, distant era, and by the brave actions of Hollywood actors shown on the large silver screen in "Panorama" and "Technicolor". You become shocked and horrified as you read further. The book takes a no-nonsense approach to what really happened from every conceivable aspect and perspective. It is a subjective, but unvarnished account of WWII from the point of view of those who were there.
Do you ever get the distinct feeling that you are going to war in the immediate foreseeable future? By inference and deduction you could verify in your own mind the pro-offered historical data, facts, and figures, and probably roughly assess your own chances of survival and success. You find that men at war are not always guided by the same abstract principles as Clausewitz and Sun Tzu. They're guided more by necessity, gut-instinct, raw emotion, and a driving rainstorm of ambition. In any armed conflict, you want posterity to honor and respect the man, his rank and uniform, and the weapon he carries, but this is not always the case. Which is a humbling learning experience to be sure for some.
Braced with long overdue diligence and steel-reinforced determination, then, the author takes aim from the moral high ground. He analyzes the facts and figures of each significant battlefield scenario as it unfolds. He looks from all directions for the big picture as he focusses his powerful binoculars on every minute detail in his narrative. Reading through the muck, the muddy and murky material will challenge your every belief and everything you ever thought you knew or didn't know about the war. You begin to approach war with stone-cold stoicism, if not outright caution and fearful trepidation. Yet, you believe in your heart of hearts that Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin and the other Allied military leaders did what they thought they had to do in their day, right, wrong, or indifferent.
Certainly, as the author clearly points out on numerous occasions, the military operation could have been handled differently, if only the General modified his tactics, used all of his resources, or showed some initiative. But the truth be told, the outcome and strategy would most likely have been the same. Like the popular board-game "Risk" you played as children in the 1960's, you look at the map, place your armies on the battlefield, roll the dice, and you get an outcome. You remove, replace, and replenish your forces and continue to march.
One side-effect of reading the book is how ravenously hungry you become for hot food, a meat sandwich basket with fresh bread, curly fries, and a pickle; or, anything else readily available in the refrigerator. You seek to quench your thirst as well as to satisfy your increased appetite. A plastic jug of fruit flavored sports drink, mineral water, or lemonade would make a perfect combination for the "Rambo" combo. Unless you happen to have C-rations or MRE's in the cupboard.
I read the second half of Inferno like a soldier on a mission, waking up early in the morning with renewed energy; exceptionally motivated, having a sense of heightened morale, having already put on a steaming pot of coffee. Prepared for a furious firestorm, I dug in for the duration. By the time I had read 3/4 of the book, I began to feel an almost uncontrollable urgency to just relax and return to my normal, peacetime activities and ordinary routine. I knew then that war is a dirty, ugly business. So, I took a break to finish the book later.
R. Royce was dressed in a newly starched uniform complete with an "Orkin" cap. He carried the usual typical brass metal canister with sprayer-hose by the handle, when he paused momentarily, and walked into the empty hotel room, having entered with a borrowed pass-key. He checked the suite for electronic surveillance devices with a sophisticated gadget he extracted from one of the pouch-pockets of his shirt. There were none. He quickly and efficiently bugged the room and left the premises quietly by the staircase exit and side-door unnoticed.
"The loving couple should arrive from the airport in about two hours," said Cornelius Korn, when he returned to the apartment in an adjacent dwelling. He turned on the receiver and attached a flash-drive recorder and L.E.D. monitor.
"We're all set to go, then," said Royce. He'd changed clothes along the way. He now wore a casual loose-fitting button-down shirt and comfortable stretch-waist slacks. They sat and waited for the business couple to arrive.
At approximately 6 p.m., they saw them enter their hotel room and begin to settle in for the evening. "What time is your business meeting in the morning?" asked the man's wife.
"10 a.m. sharp," said the husband.
"I'll set the alarm clock," she said, accommodating his requirements.
"We'll know by tomorrow afternoon if our firm has won the bid." he said. "Then we can celebrate."
"Our bid?" she asked, batting her eyelashes.
"A cool twenty one million," he answered, confidently.
Back in Korn's apartment, then, he and Royce heard every word. "We had better relay the information to Meghan at once. We can relax now, but she has work to do." said Korn.
The very next morning Meghan dropped off their firm's bid at the CIA office building in Langley, Virginia for the upcoming free-lance project. Winning the contract would be worth millions.
"You don't think what we're doing is unethical or illegal, do you?" Meghan asked Korn.
"Most certainly not!" he replied, appalled by the very thought. "What kind of unscrupulous businessmen do you think we are?" he replied.
"Good work, Meghan!" said Royce, most pleased by the results, searching her face and getting an instant reaction. She smiled unabashedly and most candidly. "The fact of the matter is, our competition employs unregistered agents from a hostile foreign government. They couldn't possibly win the bid for such an important clandestine operation."

Each involved nation has its own view of this global conflict, and all are valid from their culture's eyes, and well worth study. Mr. Hastings has attempted a global perspective, removing much patriotic condemnation and glorification, and retaining the often overlooked desolate civilian experiences.
There are occasional lapses into the editorial mode, and frequent failures to allow for the uncertainty of information available to senior officers. Hind-sights need to be more clearly identified. Nonetheless, I've never read a better attempt at summarizing this vital period.

I have really enjoyed reading Inferno: WW2 by Hastings. I really like the insights given on the War and its impact by citizens and others who are not military leaders. I really enjoy learning more about things that you don't see in USA high school or college history classes, such as the fact that Japan had already suffered a major defeat by Russia way before the USA entered the war.

What a wonderful book. It is not a comprehensive overview of World War II in its entirety, but rather a narrative illustrating global consequence from the perspective of the general population and warfare participants. It truly illuminates in real world context the intimacy of war and the consequential suffering to all those involved. It is a portrait of leadership (good and bad) which eventually led to an altering of the political alignment and social structure of the world. This is a striking, humanistic depiction of war beautifully written. Thank you Mr. Hastings.

The length alone is daunting, but the contents is fascinating! I need by smart phone to look up words, places I am unfamiliar with, but this is a great telling of the real story behind the guns. It has given my a whole new perspective on WWII and corrected some things I had thought to be factual.

There is an impressive look at the personalities of people who experienced the war, from the levels of perpetrators to politicians, military various ranks. Also an important look at the civilians with discussion of the hardships they suffered.

The author keeps a consistent pace as he explores the war from beginning to end. At some times he seems to linger a bit too long on some events but explores lesser known, yet incredibly interesting, facets of the war.

what happened and how did people caught in the middle experience the second world war. From the invasion of Poland and the war between the Nazis and Soviets to the experiences of India this is a book that delivers on the promise of history.

So many things that you would never have thought about concerning the war were presented. This is an interesting presentation. The financial implications presented aren't presented anywhere else that I know.

Our Grandson, who's read just about everything concerning World War II, found this book interesting. I'm going to send him the two remaining books in Max Hasting's trilogy, now that I've found a winner.

A fascinating retrospective look at "the rest of the story." The author puts in perspective the whole war and definitive opinions on the failures and non-failures of the foot soldiers and their leaders..

A mad dash through the maddest experience in human history. Max Hastings has delivered a knock-out punch with his one-volume treatment of the global experience in the second world war. Just before he gets bogged down in too much of the European theater, the reader is removed to events in the Pacific, keeping the dates neatly congruent with events elsewhere in the throes of battle. This is an indispensable addition to any student who wants to know how the world developed the shapes and shades that color our international experiences today. There is not much in-depth coverage of signal events in the war, but then there are plenty of monographs available for more refined study. The title of the book describes the war most succinctly: it was an Inferno of hell for all who participated and those who were dragged into participation. War is Hell, and this book opens the door to hell to anyone who romanticizes the glory of war: It is brutish, nasty, unfair, and inhuman. Well done Max Hastings.

The book contains a rather comprehensive history of the WWII, yet allocation of space/text for topics is strange: for example, more pages cover aspects of women labor than the Eastern Front events in 1942.
Also, the author does not differentiate between nationalities of the USSR, using a one collective descriptor 'Russian', yet he correctly uses British, not English, when referring to the population of the UK.
The book is good to discovered some little known aspects such as Bengal Famine or read about the political situation in Western countries; it is shallow at best while covering the Eastern Front events.

Hastings submits his views with clarity; you will not get lost in endless repetition of familiar events but, rather, be challenged by his original yet spot on views of strategies,consequences and general thrust of the conflagration that enveloped the world.

This book provides a unique view of the war, giving insight into the vast destruction and suffering experienced by many countries large and small on both sides of the conflict. The author enriches the facts with personal letters and stories that make this much more than a history book or an analysis of military strategy. The best book about WWII that I have ever read!

Difficult to believe this occurred in my lifetime--- A must read for those looking for a balanced perspective-After reading this account it is difficult not to come away without profound sadness---Certainly no celebration in victory!My understanding from high school and college history courses was woefully inadequate