The First World War: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)

I was suprised when the book arrived because not only is it just 170 pages, but the book is the size of a paperback so it's really almost an extended essay in length. A few nice pictures add atmosphere and some maps although they don't show every place refrenced in the text, but do show places not refrenced so that could have been better.I have never read WWI history but known a lot from popular culure. I knew about certain broad themes like the domino effect of alliances but overall it seemed like a highly complex and boring war. Yet I also knew this war was vital to understanding such things as the origins of WWII, the origins of the middle east conflicts, nationalism. The origins of the modern age.Imagine knowing a subject so well you could write an encyclopedia that had to be condensed down to a long essay. Michael Howard does this with incredible skill, because of the limiting length every sentence is a pure nugget of insight he makes no waste of the space provided. The major points of military, social and political are covered allowing one to see the entire war from start to finish in very short order and without spending months trumping through the trenches of detail and anecdote one might find in more lengthy or specific books.I rate this book highly because it did exactly what I was hopeing for. A short easy to read high level overview of the war to provide a spring board to read more areas in detail in the future and to understand the war in relation to other larger historical forces.

The First World War: A Very Short Introduction by Michael Howard is just that—a short introduction to WWI that seeks primarily to inform readers of the economic, societal, political and militant activities during the turbulent four-year span of 1914-1918. Within this shortened text, Howard has compiled and morphed the timelines of these varying events according to country, and by doing so, has attempted to recreate the simultaneous unfolding of warfare. This book includes battle descriptions and locations as well as briefly references military tactics, political agendas, governmental decisions, civilian life, propaganda techniques, financial struggles, resource depletion and offers a variety of speculations regarding each. In addition, Howard, although not entirely objective in his portrayal, makes an apparent, yet subtle effort to identify reoccurring themes such as hope, discouragement, fear, and motivation. As a result, Howard often poses as a Daniel Boone figure that readers can use as a guide for understanding both the concrete and more abstract components of WWI.With an instructor-to-student type of writing persona, Howard manages to pack large amounts of content into relatively few pages. Since his intended readership is most likely high school and undergraduate level researchers, his historical overview is quite concise, which is typically a coveted strength in introductory books. However, he does deviate occasionally with a few wordy, reoccurring sayings and unnecessary descriptive phrases, which has a tendency to slog down certain passages. Additionally, just as all writing styles have their limitations, the bare-bones quality of this book a similar tendency to sometimes appear as “data dump” of information (which can also add to this text’s data-swampland quality). As a result, examples are stacked on top of examples, furthermore giving Howard’s history a sometimes-stilted presentation.This book is formatted in a timeline fashion; however, in order to supply his readers with additional context, Howard often inserts a “sub-timelines” so to speak, within his already chronological organization. These expanded contexts help readers understand the war both in its militant setting, but also within its civilian one. However, all context and information must be taken with a grain of salt. Howard’s portrayal of the war comes from a British historian perspective, and his book reflects this in both word choice and content.When all is taken to account, however, this book does a decent job of fulfilling its purpose. It focuses on both the events and the contexts surrounding them as well as keeps in mind the swirling dichotomies of other warfare factors. It’s concise. It’s informative, and although sometimes it does an odd teeter-totter dance between being formal and dense or being informal and speculative, it’s a readable book that a student would find helpful if they just want to know the crunch time basics of WWI.

The gifted British historian Michael Howard applies his magic to this concise treatment of the cataclysm that was the First World War. In less than 125 pages of text, he presents the reasons for the conflict, how it played out on the battlefield, and what the result may or may not have been. His presentation is bluntly fair and remarkably balanced. Well recommended as a very short and very readable introduction to the topic.

This "Short Introduction" is a little more than just an introduction to the First World War. I would call this very well written and analyzed text a "concise overview" of the First World War to include the cause, the course of the war which some thought would be brief and localized, and the outcome. I wouldn't recommend this book for someone well read in the area; however, it is a nice refresher even if you have read other historical texts about the First World War, especially since the author provides some analysis of events.Overall, an excellent primer and overview for those who want to set the stage for the First World War. I would start my reading of the First World War here ... a balance, thoughtful, but concise read.

This is one of the greatest books in this series. Written in a wonderfully readable style, it hits all the highlights of the war from causes to conclusions, and does much more than simply recount the major battles (though those are in here, too). It's hard to believe such a small book does such a good job of conveying the social, economic, and political factors of the war. Highly recommended!

Like all VSI, this is a very well written essay that cleverly summarizes a huge topic. The author focuses on the flow of military events. The first world war (usually known as 'the great war' to Anglo-Saxons) changed the way war was fought fundamentally and for ever. Howard leaves no doubt that the popular 'heros' of this war, like Lettow-Vorbeck, Lawrence of Arabia, Fock or Hindenburg/Ludendorff, did indeed matter little, or made things more bloody than would have been necessary, had they been less full of themselves. The price of shortness of this introduction is that socio-economic and political context and institutions are only cursory considered.

Um resumo muito útil.

Ik heb dit boekje gekocht n.a.v. de film "They shall not grow old".In de recensie daarvan stond al dat het handig was als je enige kennis van zaken had, omdat in de film zelf geen uitleg werd gegeven. Film opgenomen en deze korte introductie gekocht en gelezen voordat ik hem bekeek. Veel "Oh ja" momenten, maar ook heel veel dat ik simpelweg niet eerder wist. Eigenlijk verbijsterend hoeveel feitelijke kennis in zo'n klein boekje verwerkt is.Alleszins de moeite waard!

An adequate but succinct account of WW1. Written in a comprehensive way to provide all the necessary information about the background, occurrences and consequences of the great war, without any extra monotony. A few maps are provided to make the event more clearer.

This is such a great summary that fits all the complications that led to ww1 in a tiny book. It’s very concise and you will learn all that you need to know.

Ovviamente, qui si tratta di un libro per chi vuole avere un'infarinatura della storia della "Grande Guerra" - non è un libro per "storici puri", ma ha il pregio di coprire cose fondamentali come il perché della guerra e lo sviluppo successivo in modo piacevole e di facile lettura.