The Second World Wars: How the First Global Conflict Was Fought and Won

Ancient history specialist Hanson (Hoplites), a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, makes his first foray into WWII history with an examination into why the Allies won and the Axis lost. The book is not a chronological history of the war; rather it consists of six parts that examine 20 diverse themes, including alliances, airpower, infantry, soldiers and armies, and supreme command. Hanson considers the six major belligerents (Italy, Germany, and Japan on the Axis side, and Great Britain, the U.S., and the Soviet Union on the Allied side), analyzes their characteristics (for example, why the Germans had the best infantry), and assesses the impact of those characteristics on the outcome of the war (e.g., the consequences of Italy and Germany’s failure to recognize the importance of aircraft carriers to global war). Little in Hanson’s work is new and he largely relies on authoritative secondary sources, but his organizational approach allows him to isolate and highlight observations that may surprise even some well-read WWII enthusiasts. Maps & illus. (Oct.)