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The First World War

A New History

Hew Strachan author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Simon & Schuster Ltd

Published:13th Feb '14

Should be back in stock very soon

The First World War cover

A brilliant and penetrating new history of the First World War by one of the world's foremost experts on the conflict. Reissued with a new introduction from the author.

Hew Strachan is one of the world's foremost experts on the Great War of 1914-18. His on-going three-volume history of the conflict, the first of which was published in 2001, is likely to become the standard academic reference work: Max Hastings called it 'one of the most impressive books of modern history in a generation', while Richard Holmes hailed it as a 'towering achievement'.

Now, Hew Strachan brings his immense knowledge to a one-volume work aimed squarely at the general reader. The inspiration behind the major Channel 4 series of the same name, to which Hew was chief consultant, THE FIRST WORLD WAR is a significant addition to the literature on this subject, taking as it does a uniquely global view of what is often misconceived as a prolonged skirmish on the Western Front. Exploring such theatres as the Balkans, Africa and the Ottoman Empire, Strachan assesses Britain's participation in the light of what became a struggle for the defence of liberalism, and show how the war shaped the 'short' twentieth century that followed it.

Accessible, compelling and utterly convincing, this is modern history writing at its finest.

‘This is a book to buy if you aren’t lucky enough to be given it’ -- Christopher Hudson * Daily Mail Books of the Year *
‘I have seldom chanced upon a short book which so brilliantly brings to life and explains an immensely complex historical phenomenon’  -- Paul Johnson * Spectator *
‘Every chapter contains revelations . . . The level of erudition and insight brought to bear have made the familiar strange and stimulating. The way in which Strachan brings together the detail of events and the big picture to build a compelling narrative is masterly. It really is a massive achievement’  -- Stephen Bungay

ISBN: 9781471134265

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

400 pages

Reissue