The War of the World
by Niall Ferguson
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Book Summary Information
Author: Niall FergusonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Published)
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2007-10-30
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 880
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Book Reviews of The War of the World
Book Review: A bit disjointed, but an interesting premise, anyway
Summary: 4 Stars
I've never read anything else by Niall Ferguson. Some years ago, he produced the book "The Pity of War", which (so I heard) had as its premise the idea that World War I, or at least its bad conclusion, was the fault of Great Britain. *That* seemed rather silly (I still haven't read the book, so I reserve judgment), but I wound up with this other book, "The War of the World", and I wound up reading it. It's an interesting premise, and while the book doesn't quite live up to its promise, it's still worth reading, and very interesting.
The book begins with a description of the world at the turn of the last century, almost 11 decades ago. The author makes clear what other historians have noted: between the end of the wars of Napoleon in 1815 and the beginning of World War I, Europe was essentially peaceful. There were wars, but they were of short duration (generally a year or less) and limited in the number of countries involved, the scope of operations, and their outcomes. The suffering, by the standards of the next century, or several previous, was considerably less.
Somehow, the wars of the Twentieth Century were more destructive. The author essentially dismisses the idea that technology had much to do with this. In actual fact, the refinements made to firearms in the years just prior to World War I, and the fact that communications technology didn't develop as quickly, pretty much guaranteed that World War I would turn into a very bloody stalemate. The system of interlocking alliances that was supposed to prevent a war actually contributed to it occurring, and guaranteed that pretty much everyone participated, but it didn't cause the war to be as bloody as it was.
The book is replete with accounts of suffering and disruption in the wars that followed over the next half century. Experiences such as the Holocaust and displacement of various ethnic groups in Eastern Europe, are treated in great detail. The discussion centers on various ethnic groups and the conflicts among them. Much of the centerpiece of the book revolves around the Jews, the Holocaust, and the Nazis. The author uses diaries and accounts of various witnesses and participants during the era. The result is a fluid, readable account of the violence of World Wars I and II.
I enjoyed this book a great deal, though I'll confess that sometimes the author got away from me with the points he was trying to make. He is apparently pretty taken with what he calls "counter factuals". If he wrote fiction, rather than non-fiction, this would be called "alternative history". I've always been rather wary of alternative history, because the writer almost always has some sort of agenda--he likes one character from history more than others, thinks an idea would have worked well or poorly, or the like. As a result, the writer almost inevitably pushes his alternative history in a direction he approves of, or thinks appropriate. I have the same impression with regards to this counter factual idea, and frankly I think it would be better if historians stuck to history, rather than trying to construct it in a fashion they approve of.
That being said, this is an interesting book, and I enjoyed reading even the sections I didn't agree with. It's written in such a fashion as to be pretty thought-provoking and intelligent, and will require thinking and pondering after you've put it aside.
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