Starting at Versaille following the dreadful end of World War I and ending on the deck of the Missouri battleship for the formal Japanese surrender, this account (in over 900 pages of extremely small type) covers all the major details with surprising comprehensiveness while at the same time not sacrificing that important readability component. If one were to combine this book with the DVD issue of the classic WWII saga "The World at War", you'd get a beguiling experience of the events that continue to shape our world today.
Leckie's experience at extolling just the right amount of battle detail while balancing the "human" side of the struggle is really masterful...each period of the War is told in easily read chapters and paragraphs and although at times episodic, makes this work one that can easily be started and stopped at short intervals.
The post WWI German and Italian economies are the main impetus for the development of Fascism and Leckie develops this plot with wonderful biographies of Mussolini and Hitler...the rise of the Third Reich follows and Leckie explains this with deft political discussion as well as with many first-hand accounts from Generals down to the every-day Berliner. The English and French make little attempt at interdiction and Hitler is off on his dillusional nationalism...the invasion of Poland is just the start of the "empire building" that lasts for almost six more years.
The Japanese rise and ultimate invasion of Pearl Harbor are integrated as well and the reader really gets a true feeling of the coming of war. Leckie's previously published works on the Southwest Pacific theatre are obviously used here and thus makes for enticing reading at the battles for Guadalcanal and the Phillipines...also, his depiction of MacArthur goes against the "standard" history and is a refreshing point in this story.
The Allied invasion of Europe and the "island hopping" in the Pacific are discussed in full military detail (again, just the right amount) as are the many first hand soldier accounts of those battles that add depth and immediacy. The highlights of this work (in my opinion) are the fall of the Third Reich and the subsequent Hitler suicide; the American homefront and what it meant to a struggling American economy; the Normandy invasions and subsequent breakout and, finally, a completely comprehensive and disturbing summary of the Holocaust. Leckie adroitly mixes details with his amazing story-telling ability that leaves the reader with a pleasingly full knowledgable experience. This truly is THE text to start any study of WWII. The only criticism I'd add is the lack of maps...the afore mentioned Pacific theatre discussion would have been exceedingly better had Leckie included maps...
For an initial undertaking of serious study of this conflict, I'd challenge anyone to find a better starting point than "Deliverd from Evil"...I give this a very high recommendation.
