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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
It is easy to understand why Cataclysm is used as the primary textbook for many classes on the First World War. In its one volume, it is absolutely jam packed with an immense amount of information covering all the angles that someone would want to look at the war from. There are viewpoints for each of the countries involved, what led up to the war, and how the war played out (year by year), and the resulting repercussions. It can certainly be used throughout an entire semester (I know from experience!).
I found the book to be an extremely dense read – after just a few pages I felt tired from reading it and had to put it down; because of that it took me a lot longer to read. There was a lot of facts and numbers, to include armament counts, death tolls, etc. Honestly, I think every statistic that could possibly be given was included in this work. That is excellent if you have a detail driven interest in the war, but for an everyday reader if was intense.
In terms of layout, it is fairly well done. Part 1 is the prelude to war, Part 2 looks at the various aspects of the war, Part 3 looks at the actual progression of the war to its conclusion, and Part 4 is the legacy of the war. Part 2 is the drier of the parts and is primarily where the extensive detail mine is. It is broken up into chapters such as “War Aims and Peace Negotiations”, “Technology, Logistics, and Tactics”, “Manpower and Morale” Part 3 is broken up by years and the general themes of who had the advantage. There are several maps located in the introduction of the book that I think would have been better placed within the appropriate chapters as quite frankly I forgot about referring back to them throughout the reading. When it comes to a discussion of war I find maps to be highly important and should be embraced with the discussion. I’m fine with the photographs being included in one section toward the middle of the book as they add more of a well-rounded overall experience, but are not absolutely necessary.
Overall, this is an excellent presentation on the First World War, but it is not light reading by any means.
This review was previously posted at The Maiden's Court blog.
I found the book to be an extremely dense read – after just a few pages I felt tired from reading it and had to put it down; because of that it took me a lot longer to read. There was a lot of facts and numbers, to include armament counts, death tolls, etc. Honestly, I think every statistic that could possibly be given was included in this work. That is excellent if you have a detail driven interest in the war, but for an everyday reader if was intense.
In terms of layout, it is fairly well done. Part 1 is the prelude to war, Part 2 looks at the various aspects of the war, Part 3 looks at the actual progression of the war to its conclusion, and Part 4 is the legacy of the war. Part 2 is the drier of the parts and is primarily where the extensive detail mine is. It is broken up into chapters such as “War Aims and Peace Negotiations”, “Technology, Logistics, and Tactics”, “Manpower and Morale” Part 3 is broken up by years and the general themes of who had the advantage. There are several maps located in the introduction of the book that I think would have been better placed within the appropriate chapters as quite frankly I forgot about referring back to them throughout the reading. When it comes to a discussion of war I find maps to be highly important and should be embraced with the discussion. I’m fine with the photographs being included in one section toward the middle of the book as they add more of a well-rounded overall experience, but are not absolutely necessary.
Overall, this is an excellent presentation on the First World War, but it is not light reading by any means.
This review was previously posted at The Maiden's Court blog.
The best history of World War I that I've read, and the one I always recommend to anyone who wants to really learn more about that conflict. It's dense with material but always presented in a crystal-clear style; Stevenson at times gets deep into economic numbers or diplomatic wranglings, but he always makes sure to bring the reader along with him. He gives a birds-eye view of the battles themselves. At first it seems that this method gives them short shrift: in, say, one paragraph, he goes over the maneuvers of various armies over the course of a weeks-long battle, and at the end he drops the staggering casualty number. But if the reader, hungry for more detail, goes to Wikipedia to get more information, they’ll find the infinite rabbit hole of campaign maps and corps movements into which a writer is always at risk of falling, and Stevenson always teeters on just the right side of this hole. He's established a scope: the overview of the war, and he gives fine recommendations for further reading that dives into the reality of the hell of the trenches.
Through this broad survey, he returns to his throughline, answering the toughest question about the war: How on earth did it happen? Why did the people of Europe lead themselves (and the world) to slaughter for no easily discernible reason? The answer is necessarily complicated, differing from country to country. In Britain and France, they viewed the war as a fight against German aggression, with good reason. The Germans themselves saw it in wider terms as a fight for survival and their way of life. For the eastern empires of Austria-Hungary and Russia, though they in many ways precipitated the war (along with Germany) with their actions in 1914, they didn’t have the broad support of their populations of the kind that existed in the western countries. The war brought their societies to and beyond the breaking point, irrevocably changing the borders of Europe and the course of world history.
My admiration for this volume comes with the caveat that I majored in history with a focus on this era. Stevenson gives you the necessary background with clarity, but those unfamiliar with this period of European history could find themselves a bit lost in the weeds, flipping to the index to figure out who this or that figure—only referred to by last name—is. Stevenson’s style is lucid, but hardly gripping. (Those approaching the war for the first time may be better served with, say, G. J. Meyer’s A World Undone, a much more readable book, albeit one that necessarily glosses over a lot of important events in favor of concision.)
With this being my second time through the book, I paid more attention to the notes and yet again came away deeply impressed. Stevenson knows this subject inside and out, his sources spanning at least four languages. His writing this book is a service to us all. A decade past its publication it remains the essential volume on the war.
Through this broad survey, he returns to his throughline, answering the toughest question about the war: How on earth did it happen? Why did the people of Europe lead themselves (and the world) to slaughter for no easily discernible reason? The answer is necessarily complicated, differing from country to country. In Britain and France, they viewed the war as a fight against German aggression, with good reason. The Germans themselves saw it in wider terms as a fight for survival and their way of life. For the eastern empires of Austria-Hungary and Russia, though they in many ways precipitated the war (along with Germany) with their actions in 1914, they didn’t have the broad support of their populations of the kind that existed in the western countries. The war brought their societies to and beyond the breaking point, irrevocably changing the borders of Europe and the course of world history.
My admiration for this volume comes with the caveat that I majored in history with a focus on this era. Stevenson gives you the necessary background with clarity, but those unfamiliar with this period of European history could find themselves a bit lost in the weeds, flipping to the index to figure out who this or that figure—only referred to by last name—is. Stevenson’s style is lucid, but hardly gripping. (Those approaching the war for the first time may be better served with, say, G. J. Meyer’s A World Undone, a much more readable book, albeit one that necessarily glosses over a lot of important events in favor of concision.)
With this being my second time through the book, I paid more attention to the notes and yet again came away deeply impressed. Stevenson knows this subject inside and out, his sources spanning at least four languages. His writing this book is a service to us all. A decade past its publication it remains the essential volume on the war.
Strong high level summary
Consistent writing throughout. Good summary of major trends and causal threads. This isn't a tactical or even operational history, but rather political and strategic. Other books provide a more narrative-driven history.
Consistent writing throughout. Good summary of major trends and causal threads. This isn't a tactical or even operational history, but rather political and strategic. Other books provide a more narrative-driven history.