A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II - Softcover

'Few historians could have taken on the daunting challenge of attempting a global history of the Second World War; but Gerhard Weinberg succeeds brilliantly. It is a masterly study which is unlikely to be surpassed.' Ian Kershaw, University of Sheffield

'Weinberg's book is a clearly-written account of events, with enormous ... reliable encyclopaedic summaries of anything about which you need to know.' Norman Stone, The Times

'... a remarkable achievement ... It certainly deserves to be placed alongside the war histories of John Keegan, Martin Gilbert and A. J. P. Taylor. As a sheer work of reference it outclasses even them.' Andrew Roberts, The Sunday Telegraph

'This is a tour de force; classical diplomatic history at its best. Weinberg's global view of the war pays dividends again and again ... '. David Reynolds, New York Times

'This is an extraordinary book ... an invaluable source for anyone needing in one place as many ideas as possible abut the Second World War ... Moral and humane feelings underpin his copious scholarship at every point, giving admirable depth and dimension to this monumental intellectual performance.' The Washington Post

'... fully lives up to its subsidiary title and to the claims made by its publishers. This is a first class strategic history of the war.' The British Army Review

'... a coherent - in fact, hypnotic - narrative offered up in a single, handsome volume ... surely the finest one-volume history we have of the most important event of the century.' American Heritage

'... a blockbuster of a survey, grounded, to a remarkable extent for so large a work, in primary sources and also in an evident mastery of the secondary literature. It is a joy to read: lively, vigorous, and...altogether a stylistic gem ... [it] offers refreshingly forthright judgments on every major aspect of World War II strategy and policy.' Naval War College Review

This major work is the first general history of World War II to be based both on the existing literature and on extensive work in British, American and German archives. It covers all the theatres of war, the weaponry used, and developments on the home front. Taking a global perspective, the work deals with all belligerents and relates events in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, and the Pacific to each other. The role of diplomacy and strategy, of intelligence and espionage, and the impact of war upon society are all dealt with, often on the basis of hitherto unknown material. New light is shed on the actions of great and small powers and on topics ranging from the beginning of the war to the dropping of the atomic bombs; the titanic battles on the Eastern Front are fitted into the war as a whole; the killing of six million Jews and millions of other civilians is placed into context; and the fighting at sea and in the air is included in a coherent view of the great conflict.