No Simple Victory
World War II in Europe, 1939-1945
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Narrated by:
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Simon Vance
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By:
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Norman Davies
About this listen
In detailing the clash of political philosophies that drove the war's savage engine, Davies also examines how factors as diverse as technology, economics, and morale played dynamic roles in shaping battles, along with the unsung yet vital help of Poland, Greece, and Ukraine (which suffered the highest number of casualties). And while the Allies resorted to bombing enemy civilians to sow terror, the most damning condemnation is saved for the Soviet Union, whose glossed-over war crimes against British soldiers and its own people prove that Communism and Nazism were two sides of the same brutal coin.
No Simple Victory is an unparalleled work that will fascinate not only history buffs but anyone who is interested in discovering the reality behind what Davies refers to as "the frozen perspective of the winners' history".
©2007 Norman Davies (P)2007 Tantor Media Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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For decades after 1945, it was generally believed that the German army, professional and morally decent, had largely stood apart from the SS, Gestapo, and other corps of the Nazi machine. Ben Shepherd draws on a wealth of primary sources and recent scholarship to convey a much darker, more complex picture. For the first time, the German army is examined throughout the Second World War, across all combat theaters and occupied regions, and from multiple perspectives: its battle performance, social composition, relationship with the Nazi state, and involvement in war crimes and occupation.
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Thorough and scholarly
- By Mary A. on 03-23-18
By: Ben H. Shepherd
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The Vanquished
- Why the First World War Failed to End
- By: Robert Gerwarth
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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In The Vanquished, a highly original and gripping work of history, Robert Gerwarth asks us to think again about the true legacy of the First World War. In large part it was not the fighting on the Western Front that proved so ruinous to Europe's future but the devastating aftermath, as countries on both sides of the original conflict were savaged by revolutions, pogroms, mass expulsions, and further major military clashes.
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little-known period following WWI is illuminated
- By John on 02-16-17
By: Robert Gerwarth
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History of Germany
- A Captivating Guide to German History, Starting from 1871 through the First World War, Weimar Republic, and World War II to the Present
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Jason Zenobia
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Germany is one of the richest and most influential countries in the world, which is amazing when you consider that the nation is only about the size of the US states of Oregon and Washington combined. It’s even more astounding when you consider that at the end of World War II, every major German city (and many minor ones) had been flattened by the Allied bombing campaign. Still more amazing is that the country has gone from international pariah and home of the Holocaust to one of the most well-regarded and humanitarian nations on Earth.
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Concise
- By J Stewart on 04-09-24
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Pandora’s Box
- A History of the First World War
- By: Jorn Leonhard, Patrick Camiller - translator
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 39 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In this monumental history of the First World War, Germany's leading historian of the 20th century's first great catastrophe explains the war's origins, course, and consequences. With an unrivaled combination of depth and global reach, Pandora's Box reveals how profoundly the war shaped the world to come. Jörn Leonhard treats the clash of arms with a sure feel for grand strategy, the everyday tactics of dynamic movement and slow attrition, the race for ever more destructive technologies, and the grim experiences of frontline soldiers.
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Excellent reading of a complex book
- By chris on 02-26-19
By: Jorn Leonhard, and others
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A Savage War of Peace
- Algeria 1954-1962
- By: Alistair Horne
- Narrated by: James Adams
- Length: 29 hrs and 56 mins
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The Algerian War lasted from 1954 to 1962. It caused the fall of six French governments, led to the collapse of the Fourth Republic, and came close to provoking a civil war on French soil. More than a million Muslim Algerians died in the conflict, and as many European settlers were driven into exile. From the perspective of half a century, it looks less like the last colonial war than the first postmodern one.
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Excellent history of France's Viet Nam
- By David on 04-10-16
By: Alistair Horne
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The Iraq War
- By: John Keegan
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
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John Keegan, whom the New York Review of Books calls "the best historian of our day", now brings his extraordinary expertise to bear on perhaps the most controversial war of our time. In exclusive interviews with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and General Tommy Franks, John Keegan has gathered information about the war that adds immeasurably to our grasp of its causes, complications, costs, and consequences.
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A Solid, Quick Overview
- By Charles on 12-08-04
By: John Keegan
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Deathride
- Hitler vs. Stalin: The Eastern Front, 1941-1945
- By: John Mosier
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 12 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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John Mosier presents a revisionist retelling of the war on the Eastern Front. The conventional wisdom is that Hitler was mad to think he could defeat the USSR, because of its vast size and population, and that the Battle of Stalingrad marked the turning point of the war. Neither statement is accurate, says Mosier; Hitler came very close to winning outright.
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Speaking the un-speakable
- By Jonathan Gardner on 09-27-10
By: John Mosier
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Army of Evil
- A History of the SS
- By: Adrian Weale
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Performance
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In Nazi Germany, they were called the Schutzstaffel. The world would know them as the dreaded SS - the most loyal and ruthless enforcers of the Third Reich...It began as a small squad of political thugs. Yet by the end of 1935, the SS had taken control of all police and internal security duties in Germany - ranging from local village "gendarmes" all they way up to the secret political police and the Gestapo.
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Got lost in the details.
- By Alan on 11-28-12
By: Adrian Weale
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The Phoney Victory
- The World War II Illusion
- By: Peter Hitchens
- Narrated by: Peter Hitchens
- Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Was World War II really the 'Good War'? In the years since the declaration of peace in 1945, many myths have sprung up around the conflict in the victorious nations. In this audiobook, Peter Hitchens deconstructs the many fables which have become associated with the narrative of the 'Good War'. Whilst not criticising or doubting the need for war against Nazi Germany at some stage, Hitchens does query whether September 1939 was the right moment or the independence of Poland the right issue.
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Interesting but depressing story
- By casey urey on 03-16-19
By: Peter Hitchens
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Page Turning Scholarship
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Engrossing
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Arguably one of the most provocative, puzzling, and misunderstood organizations of medieval times, the legendary Knights Templar have always been shrouded in a veil of mystery, while inspiring popular culture from Indiana Jones to Dan Brown. In The Templars, author Michael Haag offers a definitive history of these loyal Christian soldiers of the Crusades - sworn to defend the Holy Land and Jerusalem, but ultimately damned and destroyed by the Pope and his church.
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Narrator ruined it
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What listeners say about No Simple Victory
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
- Ron
- 03-31-08
Not your high school history lesson
No Simple Victory takes the you beyond The Greatest Generation and Anglo-centric history of the second world war. It looks at the Eastern front and the soviet role. The Nazi Reich was evil but it was not the only evil in the world. This books takes an objective look at all sides and the decisions that were made. There is a particular emphasis on Stalin and the Soviet forces, especially how their conduct was often as bad if not worse than the Nazi's.
History is written by the winners but that isn't always the end of the story, the author looks deeper and tells some uncomfortable truths.
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11 people found this helpful
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- Paul
- 10-18-11
Stalin as the "star" of WW2
Norman Davies has a point and you won't be able to escape it in this book. Stalin was as bad as Hitler. Maybe genocide is worse than just plain old killing but the body counts are similar. Davies isn't denying anything about the holocaust but he wants us to know about the gulags too. And while he is telling you about how bad Stalin is he also wants us to know that the Allies could not have won the war without the USSR.
But why should you read yet another history of WWII? First, the breakup of the USSR led to the release of many documents from the Stalin era. Second, in the U.S. we get a very filtered, even biased view of the war. Third, Simon Vance's energy as the narrator never falters through the 20 hours of narration.
The author says D-Day wasn't among the top 10 battles of the war. The battle of Kursk was the most decisive. He talks about issues that are rarely mentioned: the effect of the war on civilian women, the Warsaw uprising, the impact on children, the terrible price a community paid if one side or the other decided that it would hold the line there.
Is this book for you? Do you know about the Katyn massacre? If not, google it and see if you aren't interested in learning more. Are you someone who reads history with a critical/skeptical eye? Norman Davies is your guy.
I normally deduct one star for a non-fiction book that is not read by the author himself, unless he/she has some really good excuse like being dead. But I found this book from an Audible listing of narrator choices so I can't deduct this time. At least Simon Vance has the same accent as Davies (I'm presuming).
The reason I can't give this a 5 star review is that it is a bit hard to follow as an audible book. This material is not presented in chronological order, more like a loop that goes back again and again for more detail or another viewpoint. Also, this is not just a history book, far from it. It is also a critique of how history is written and that is probably this book's strongest point.
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- Diana Prince
- 11-06-11
More of a Reference Book
I made it all the way through the book and learned a great deal I never knew or suspected about World War II so I'm glad I did. Despite the always-fantastic narration by Simon Vance, the book reads more like an encyclopedia or a reference book than a novel or even a historical book. If you are a true WWII buff I would think you would the hardcopy of this book so you can thumb through it and look up the topics that interest you. If you are more of a casual historian (as I am) it can be tough to make it through but it's definitely worthwhile. Note that the author minimizes the U.S.'s role in the war and role in bringing the war to victory. His position is well-substantiated but some Americans might find that viewpoint off-putting or even painful.
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Overall
- Jesse
- 10-24-10
Fascinating
Such an interesting book and an excellent job of narrating it by Simon Vance. In this book, Norman Davies has no problem looking at the facts and stories to show just how oppressive the Soviet party was. I would recommend this book to any reader (or listener as the case may be) who is interested in a new perspective of World War II history. Well worth the money!
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Overall
- Daniel
- 10-12-10
The Crime Explained
Now here is what Americans need to understand about our glorious Victory of 1945. The details in this history of the 1940s war are necessary knowledge. Our entire National WW2 Myth needs to be refreshed with some deeper understanding. What do you think when you see FDR and Churchill and Stalin all hanging out together smiling and laughing? What if it was Hitler they were hanging out with in all of those pictures from those big Conferences? Would it make a difference if it was Stalin or Hitler? Why? Did the U.S. fight the right war? Should the U.S. have been involved with any of these people to begin with? Just why the hell did England declare war on Germany again? And then look who they let wind up with Poland when it was all over! Would I be wrong to advocate that the U.S. should have made peace with Germany and team up to bring all of its force to bear on the USSR? Why? Whats the difference? Do body counts matter? - because let me tell you WW2 was no simple victory - was it victory? What did 1945 do to this country? Was the U.S. really the ally of the world's bloodiest mass murderer?
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- Jeremy
- 07-14-13
Eyes wide open
No simple war is an impressive about the history of World War II which, uniquely, manages to simultaneously pay homage to the courage of the soldiers fighting on the wrong side of the moral line and document the many darker acts committed by these same soldiers.
Although the book is rich in detail and goes through all the parties involved in the conflict, there are two special places were the study deserves special praise and goes far beyond what other books in the area have done.
- The book takes special attention to describe the unknown German heroes of the war. These are the soldiers that won battles on two fronts, against sometimes impossible odds. Many of these soldiers had nothing to do with what was happening on the political front and were (soon enough) fighting, and dying, for Germany's survival. Few books document that well the German ordeal on the Eastern front, in particular, how this was all very different from a well-equipped and organized army.
- Second, the book is one of the few to be honest about a fact of the war, that it was mainly fought, and won, by the Russians with the allied mostly creeping in as a sideshow. But this was not easy and while the Russians numerous, it boggles the mind to imagine how they could transform from a second-class world power to one that could push back a major industrial power. According to the narrative, this was accomplished mainly by the Russian grit never to give up and fight until death.
No simple victory is marketed as a tale of the war atrocities committed by the victors but this is just a part of the story. More than this, the book tries to explain how we came to this by defining what "total war" really is. It is also a cautionary tale about a kind of war that might have occurred only once in the history of humanity.
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- irene
- 01-29-09
Facts and figures galore
This book is for anyone that wants to know the real facts and figures on WWII. Especially the figures.
What a masterpiece that is also extremely well read by the narrator.
Buy it. Unless you do not like (the real) details you will not be disappointed.........
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11 people found this helpful
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- R. Sippel
- 02-22-13
No words can describe the inhumanity
My dad was in WW 2 and would NEVER talk about it, after listening to this book I know why. It is hard for me to wrap my brain around what took place. The numbers quoted in this book are staggering! The torture incomprehensible!
I keep thinking about the protesters complaining about the U.S. using water boarding!!
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- Patrick🍀
- 03-31-16
Great performance but this history was not for me
I thought this book would be exactly what I wanted. A comprehensive modern history of World War II, performed by my favorite narrator. But the book was not for me. The author is strongly indignant that atrocities committed by all of the participants have been ignored or not fully reported. And also to a certain extent, the author wants to explain how he would have run certain aspects of the war if it had been up to him. I thought about citing examples, but mainly, all I am interested in is what happened (hopefully described in an interesting way). This book reads like a political blog, critical of both the actions and lack of action of the wartime participants and also the historians who have since recorded these actions.
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- Tom
- 11-09-17
What you don't learn in Saving Private Ryan
Here you learn than the US and Britain played a supporting role in the victory over Germany. That, at least, is the author’s view and he makes a good case for the proposition. Davies offers a critical view of how western historians have written about the war and consequently how the public views the war. We have downplayed if not ignored the Soviet role in defeating Germany. He asks you to name the six most ferocious battles of World War II. If any of the battles you picked were on the western front you’re wrong. The eastern front is where the most intense fighting took place and where an huge number of Russian soldiers died, far beyond what the men lost in the English and the American armed forces. Germany may well have prevailed had they not invaded Russia.
Davies also reviews the atrocities committed by the Allies. Germans, we learn, were the war criminals but our indiscriminate bombing of German cities and killing of civilians is passed off as collateral damage.
All in all, this is a terrific book, marvelously narrated by Simon Vance. It is full of numbers: soldiers, tanks, planes, divisions, deaths but listening to them being enumerated is sometimes overwhelming. One need not agree with Davies on all points, but it is hard to dismiss his thesis that the war was not a simple one that can be reduced to the D-Day invasion.
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