Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany, and the Winning of the Great War at Sea by ROBERT K. MASSIE ISBN: 0-679-45671-6 Publisher: Random House Pub. Date: 28 October, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.7 (30 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Thoroughly Magnificent
Comment: Robert K. Massie has produced another masterpiece of narrative history, comprehensive without being dry and fascinating in every detail. In Castles of Steel he takes up the story he started with his 1991 bestseller Dreadnought: the struggle between Britain and Germany for sea mastery during the Great War.
The book begins with the final days of peace in July 1914, when Europe realized that the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand was about to trigger a major war. Massie describes the calculations of the British and German leadership as they moved toward conflict. One of Massie's greatest skills as a writer is his ability to create short but thorough biographical sketches, seen here most vividly in his treatments of Jellicoe and Beatty, the men who were to lead the British Grand Fleet. Massie also has an eye for odd humorous moments, as in his amusing description of the trick a German ship played on an unsuspecting French colony soon after war was declared.
After the war actually begins Massie focusses on the manuevers of the British and German fleets as they prepare for action. Another narrative track traces the steps of the politicians like Winston Churchill and Prince Louis of Battenberg who are setting war policy. Massie's main focus is on the British, and he thoroughly analyzes successes like the Battle of Dogger Bank and disasters like the Gallipoli landings. The climax of the book is the Battle of Jutland in 1916, which was the only major clash between the two navies. Massie also documents the submarine war and details how it eventually brought the United States into the conflict. The last few pages of the book describes the scuttling of the surrendered German fleet at Scapa Flow, symbolic of the enormous waste caused by the whole conflict.
Castles of Steel is a fitting companion to Dreadnought and will certainly be considered one of the most comprehensive, yet accessible, histories of the Great War.
Rating: 4
Summary: Very good, although not Massie's best.
Comment: Robert K. Massie presents us in this book with his account of the confrontation between the British and German Fleets in the Great War. As could be expected from the author, the style of the book makes it a pleasure to read. Nevertheless, it must be considered less succesful than his previous masterpiece Dreadnought by two reasons: first, the technical and tactical details of naval war do not lend themselves easily to the human portraiture and anecdote on which Mr. Massie excels; and second, the story has been told so many times that most of the details are already known to any moderately knowledgeable person in military or naval history. This said, there are still many little known facts, for instance about the strenuous efforts of German Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg to refrain his admirals and avoid confrontation with the United States, that are very instructive in refuting the simplistic vision of a monolithic, militaristic Germany. It is also very funny in a certain sense the tale of the Jutland battle: although gunfire was exchanged between the British and German fleets, the true battle was fought, for many years afterwards, between the two British admirals John Jellicoe and David Beatty. From Massie's account, as indeed from most recent analyses (notably Andrew Gordon's exceptional The Rules of the Game), Jellicoe emerges as a far more likable figure than the bombastic and self-serving Beatty. In summary, although this book does not reach the heights of Dreadnought, no person interested in history can go wrong in reading it.
Rating: 5
Summary: I discovered a lot
Comment: My knowlege of the war at sea 1914-1918 was limited to Jutland so I read this book to instruct me in the overview. I learned a lot of fascinating information, all of it presented in a readable and rewarding way. This is a sound study and deserves a wide readership. It is an excellent book.
 |
Title: Dreadnought by Robert K. Massie ISBN: 0345375564 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 15 September, 1992 List Price(USD): $18.95 |
 |
Title: Intelligence in War: Knowledge of the Enemy from Napoleon to Al-Qaeda by JOHN KEEGAN ISBN: 0375400532 Publisher: Knopf Pub. Date: 21 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $30.00 |
 |
Title: The Franco-Prussian War : The German Conquest of France in 1870-1871 by Geoffrey Wawro ISBN: 0521584361 Publisher: Cambridge University Press Pub. Date: 25 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
 |
Title: The Peloponnesian War by Donald Kagan ISBN: 0670032115 Publisher: Viking Press Pub. Date: 08 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
 |
Title: Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Champion of Freedom by Conrad Black ISBN: 1586481843 Publisher: PublicAffairs Pub. Date: November, 2003 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
