-
Why the Allies Won
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 39 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $25.79
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's summary
In this fascinating consideration of the Allied war effort, historian Richard Overy answers one of the great questions of the 20th century: What led to the unmistakable Allied victory when in the early stages of World War II, the balance of power so strongly favored the Axis?
Searching for a compelling explanation, the author explores decisive military campaigns: struggles along the Eastern front, the battles for the seas, the war in the air above, and the massive amphibious assault on Europe. He also considers key elements underlying victory, such as the quality of both political and military leadership, the pursuit of industrial strength, and the all-important determination to win.
A professor of modern history in London, Richard Overy clearly demonstrates that not one of these factors alone could make the outcome inevitable - only their compounded effect could bring victory. This multifaceted look at the war that shaped the modern world becomes accessible with Nelson Runger's thoughtful performance - and you'll realize how hard-won the Allied victory truly was.
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Poland 1939
- The Outbreak of World War II
- By: Roger Moorhouse
- Narrated by: Roger Moorhouse
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For Americans, World War II began in December of 1941, with the bombing of Pearl Harbor; but for Poland, the war began on September 1, 1939, when Hitler's soldiers invaded, followed later that month by Stalin's Red Army. The conflict that followed saw the debut of many of the features that would come to define the later war-blitzkrieg, the targeting of civilians, ethnic cleansing, and indiscriminate aerial bombing-yet it is routinely overlooked by historians.
-
-
Always Overlooked
- By C. G. Telcontar on 05-27-21
By: Roger Moorhouse
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
Imperial Germany and War, 1871-1918
- Modern War Studies
- By: Daniel J. Hughes, Richard L. DiNardo
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 21 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Written by two of the world's leading authorities on the subject, Imperial Germany and War, 1871-1918 examines the most essential components of the imperial German military system, with an emphasis on such foundational areas as theory, doctrine, institutional structures, training, and the officer corps. In the period between 1871 and 1918, rapid technological development demanded considerable adaptation and change in military doctrine and planning.
-
-
Very well researched
- By Jeff Wise on 04-27-20
By: Daniel J. Hughes, and others
-
Russia's War
- A History of the Soviet Effort: 1941-1945
- By: Richard Overy PhD
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Russian war effort to defeat invading Axis powers, an effort that assembled the largest military force in recorded history and that cost the lives of more than twenty-five million Soviet soldiers and civilians, was the decisive factor for securing an Allied victory. Now with access to the wealth of film archives and interview material from Russia used to produce the ten-hour television documentary Russia's War, Richard Overy tackles the many persuasive questions surrounding this conflict.
-
-
A gripping tale of incredible, consuming tragedy
- By Rodney W. Schmisseur on 06-09-24
-
Hitler's American Gamble
- Pearl Harbor and Germany's March to Global War
- By: Brendan Simms, Charlie Laderman
- Narrated by: Damian Lynch
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By early December 1941, war had changed much of the world beyond recognition. Nazi Germany occupied most of the European continent, while in Asia, the Second Sino-Japanese War had turned China into a battleground. But these conflicts were not yet inextricably linked - and the United States remained at peace. Hitler’s American Gamble recounts the five days that upended everything: December 7 to 11.
-
-
A waste of time based on a flawed premise
- By Grant on 11-30-21
By: Brendan Simms, and others
-
A History of War in 100 Battles
- By: Richard Overy
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 16 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The object of this audiobook is to introduce listeners to a whole range of military history which has all the drama, dangers, horrors and excitement that we associate with Stalingrad or the Somme. Battles are acute moments of history whenever and wherever they have been fought. Through them we can understand how warfare and world history have evolved. Choosing just 100 battles from recorded human history is a challenge.
-
-
Fascinating perspective o war
- By Roscoe's Masked Avenger on 12-22-16
By: Richard Overy
-
Poland 1939
- The Outbreak of World War II
- By: Roger Moorhouse
- Narrated by: Roger Moorhouse
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For Americans, World War II began in December of 1941, with the bombing of Pearl Harbor; but for Poland, the war began on September 1, 1939, when Hitler's soldiers invaded, followed later that month by Stalin's Red Army. The conflict that followed saw the debut of many of the features that would come to define the later war-blitzkrieg, the targeting of civilians, ethnic cleansing, and indiscriminate aerial bombing-yet it is routinely overlooked by historians.
-
-
Always Overlooked
- By C. G. Telcontar on 05-27-21
By: Roger Moorhouse
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
Imperial Germany and War, 1871-1918
- Modern War Studies
- By: Daniel J. Hughes, Richard L. DiNardo
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 21 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Written by two of the world's leading authorities on the subject, Imperial Germany and War, 1871-1918 examines the most essential components of the imperial German military system, with an emphasis on such foundational areas as theory, doctrine, institutional structures, training, and the officer corps. In the period between 1871 and 1918, rapid technological development demanded considerable adaptation and change in military doctrine and planning.
-
-
Very well researched
- By Jeff Wise on 04-27-20
By: Daniel J. Hughes, and others
-
Russia's War
- A History of the Soviet Effort: 1941-1945
- By: Richard Overy PhD
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Russian war effort to defeat invading Axis powers, an effort that assembled the largest military force in recorded history and that cost the lives of more than twenty-five million Soviet soldiers and civilians, was the decisive factor for securing an Allied victory. Now with access to the wealth of film archives and interview material from Russia used to produce the ten-hour television documentary Russia's War, Richard Overy tackles the many persuasive questions surrounding this conflict.
-
-
A gripping tale of incredible, consuming tragedy
- By Rodney W. Schmisseur on 06-09-24
-
Hitler's American Gamble
- Pearl Harbor and Germany's March to Global War
- By: Brendan Simms, Charlie Laderman
- Narrated by: Damian Lynch
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By early December 1941, war had changed much of the world beyond recognition. Nazi Germany occupied most of the European continent, while in Asia, the Second Sino-Japanese War had turned China into a battleground. But these conflicts were not yet inextricably linked - and the United States remained at peace. Hitler’s American Gamble recounts the five days that upended everything: December 7 to 11.
-
-
A waste of time based on a flawed premise
- By Grant on 11-30-21
By: Brendan Simms, and others
-
A History of War in 100 Battles
- By: Richard Overy
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 16 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The object of this audiobook is to introduce listeners to a whole range of military history which has all the drama, dangers, horrors and excitement that we associate with Stalingrad or the Somme. Battles are acute moments of history whenever and wherever they have been fought. Through them we can understand how warfare and world history have evolved. Choosing just 100 battles from recorded human history is a challenge.
-
-
Fascinating perspective o war
- By Roscoe's Masked Avenger on 12-22-16
By: Richard Overy
-
The War for the Seas
- A Maritime History of World War II
- By: Evan Mawdsley
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 28 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Command of the oceans was crucial to winning World War II. By the start of 1942 Nazi Germany had conquered mainland Europe, and Imperial Japan had overrun Southeast Asia and much of the Pacific. How could Britain and distant America prevail in what had become a "war of continents"? In this definitive account, Evan Mawdsley traces events at sea from the first U-boat operations in 1939 to the surrender of Japan. He argues that the Allied counterattack involved not just decisive sea battles, but a long struggle to control shipping arteries and move armies across the sea.
-
-
An Unengaging Survey that Disappoints
- By Scott Eckert on 08-06-20
By: Evan Mawdsley
-
Taking Paris
- The Epic Battle for the City of Lights
- By: Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Samuel Roukin
- Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
May 1940: The world is stunned as Hitler's forces invade France with a devastating blitzkrieg aimed at Paris. Within weeks, the French government has collapsed, and the City of Lights, revered for its carefree lifestyle, intellectual freedom, and love of liberty, has fallen under Nazi control — perhaps forever.
-
-
Incorrectly titled
- By Mike From Mesa on 01-11-22
By: Martin Dugard
-
Target Tokyo
- Jimmy Doolittle and the Raid That Avenged Pearl Harbor
- By: James M. Scott
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 20 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The dramatic account of one of America's most celebrated - and controversial - military campaigns: the Doolittle Raid. In December 1941, as American forces tallied the dead at Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Roosevelt gathered with his senior military counselors to plan an ambitious counterstrike against the heart of the Japanese Empire: Tokyo.
-
-
Vengence is Mine, Thus Sayeth Doolittle
- By Jonathan Love on 06-13-16
By: James M. Scott
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
Beyond
- The Astonishing Story of the First Human to Leave Our Planet and Journey into Space
- By: Stephen Walker
- Narrated by: David Rintoul
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Travelling at almost 18,000 miles per hour - 10 times faster than a rifle bullet - Yuri Gagarin circles the globe in just 106 minutes. From his windows, he sees the Earth as nobody has before, crossing a sunset and a sunrise, crossing oceans and continents, witnessing its beauty and its fragility. While his launch begins in total secrecy, within hours of his landing, he has become a world celebrity - the first human to leave the planet. Beyond tells the thrilling story behind that epic flight on its 60th anniversary.
-
-
A remarkable story on many levels
- By Dipam on 03-22-22
By: Stephen Walker
-
Imperial Twilight
- The Opium War and the End of China's Last Golden Age
- By: Stephen R. Platt
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 17 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As one of the most potent turning points in the country's modern history, the Opium War has since come to stand for everything that today's China seeks to put behind it. In this dramatic, epic story, award-winning historian Stephen Platt sheds new light on the early attempts by Western traders and missionaries to "open" China even as China's imperial rulers were struggling to manage their country's decline and Confucian scholars grappled with how to use foreign trade to China's advantage.
-
-
Balanced readable narrative about the Opium Wars
- By Carl A. Gallozzi on 09-05-18
By: Stephen R. Platt
-
Operation Chastise
- The RAF's Most Brilliant Attack of World War II
- By: Max Hastings
- Narrated by: Max Hastings, Peter Noble
- Length: 11 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The attack on Nazi Germany’s dams on May 17, 1943, was one of the most remarkable feats in military history. The absurdly young men of the Royal Air Force’s 617 Squadron set forth in cold blood and darkness, without benefit of electronic aids, to fly lumbering heavy bombers straight and level towards a target at a height above the water less than the length of a bowling alley. Yet this story has never been told in full. Max Hastings takes us back to the May 1943 raid to reveal how the truth of that night is considerably different from the popularized account most people know.
-
-
Wish He Had Stuck to the Core Story
- By John on 06-22-20
By: Max Hastings
-
The First World War
- By: John Keegan
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 20 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The First World War created the modern world. A conflict of unprecedented ferocity, it abruptly ended the relative peace and prosperity of the Victorian era, unleashing such demons of the 20th century as mechanized warfare and mass death. It also helped to usher in the ideas that have shaped our times - modernism in the arts, new approaches to psychology and medicine, radical thoughts about economics and society - and in so doing shattered the faith in rationalism and liberalism that had prevailed in Europe since the Enlightenment.
-
-
Best Military History of First World War
- By Stephen F (SPFJR) on 06-13-19
By: John Keegan
-
The Napoleonic Wars
- By: Alexander Mikaberidze
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 35 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Napoleonic Wars saw fighting on an unprecedented scale in Europe and the Americas. It took the wealth of the British Empire, combined with the might of the continental armies, almost two decades to bring down one of the world's greatest military leaders and the empire that he had created. Napoleon's ultimate defeat was to determine the history of Europe for almost 100 years. From the frozen wastelands of Russia, through the brutal fighting in the Peninsula to the blood-soaked battlefield of Waterloo, this book tells the story of the dramatic rise and fall of the Napoleonic Empire.
-
-
No description of battles
- By John Gaston on 01-15-21
-
Tower of Skulls
- A History of the Asia-Pacific War, Vol. 1 (July 1937 - May 1942)
- By: Richard B. Frank
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 26 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This story casts penetrating light on how struggles in Europe and Asia merged into a tightly entwined global war. It features not just battles, but also the sweeping political, economic, and social effects of the war, and are graced with a rich tapestry of individual characters from top-tier political and military figures down to ordinary servicemen, as well as the accounts of civilians of all races and ages.
-
-
Outstanding
- By Patrick on 03-16-20
By: Richard B. Frank
-
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
- A History of Nazi Germany
- By: William L. Shirer
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 57 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Since its publication in 1960, William L. Shirer’s monumental study of Hitler’s German empire has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of the 20th century’s blackest hours. The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich offers an unparalleled and thrillingly told examination of how Adolf Hitler nearly succeeded in conquering the world. With millions of copies in print around the globe, it has attained the status of a vital and enduring classic.
-
-
Held my interest for 57 hours and 13 minutes
- By Jonnie on 11-08-10
-
The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes
- The Ancient World Economy and the Empires of Parthia, Central Asia and Han China
- By: Raoul McLaughlin
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 14 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Roman Empire and the Silk Routes investigates the trade routes between Rome and the powerful empires of inner Asia, including the Parthian regime which ruled ancient Persia (Iran). It explores Roman dealings with the Kushan Empire which seized power in Bactria (Afghanistan) and laid claim to the Indus Kingdoms. Further chapters examine the development of Palmyra as a leading caravan city on the edge of Roman Syria and consider trade ventures through the Tarim territories that led Roman merchants to Han China.
-
-
An arduous trek through Eurasia
- By Eternl Rayne on 12-27-19
By: Raoul McLaughlin
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
Why War?
- By: Richard Overy
- Narrated by: Dennis Kleinman
- Length: 10 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why has war been such a consistent presence throughout the human past? A leading historian explains, drawing on rich examples and keen insight. Richard Overy is not the first scholar to take up the title question. In 1931, at the request of the League of Nations, Albert Einstein asked Sigmund Freud to collaborate on a short work examining whether there was "a way of delivering mankind from the menace of war." Published the next year as a pamphlet entitled Why War?, it conveyed Freud's conclusion that the "death drive" made any deliverance impossible.
-
-
Encyclopedic style, lots of analysis
- By Tyler on 10-20-24
By: Richard Overy
-
Retreat from Moscow
- A New History of Germany’s Winter Campaign, 1941-1942
- By: David Stahel
- Narrated by: Matthew Waterson
- Length: 15 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Germany's winter campaign of 1941-1942 has commonly been seen as its "first defeat". In Retreat from Moscow, David Stahel argues that, in fact, it was its first strategic success in the east. Though the Red Army managed to push the Wehrmacht back from Moscow, the Germans lost far fewer men (one to six), frustrated their enemy's strategic plan, and emerged in the spring unbroken and poised to recapture the initiative.
-
-
Nothing new on the Eastern front basically!
- By philippe jacob on 03-28-20
By: David Stahel
-
Russia's War
- A History of the Soviet Effort: 1941-1945
- By: Richard Overy PhD
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Russian war effort to defeat invading Axis powers, an effort that assembled the largest military force in recorded history and that cost the lives of more than twenty-five million Soviet soldiers and civilians, was the decisive factor for securing an Allied victory. Now with access to the wealth of film archives and interview material from Russia used to produce the ten-hour television documentary Russia's War, Richard Overy tackles the many persuasive questions surrounding this conflict.
-
-
A gripping tale of incredible, consuming tragedy
- By Rodney W. Schmisseur on 06-09-24
-
1939: Countdown to War
- By: Richard Overy
- Narrated by: Simon Prebble
- Length: 3 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On August 24, 1939, the world held its collective breath as Hitler and Stalin signed the now infamous nonaggression pact, signaling an imminent invasion of Poland and daring Western Europe to respond. In this dramatic account of the final days before the outbreak of World War II, award-winning historian Richard Overy vividly chronicles the unraveling of peace, hour by grim hour, as politicians and ordinary citizens brace themselves for a war that could spell the end of European civilization.
-
-
The vexed question of inevitability
- By Adeliese Baumann on 12-15-13
By: Richard Overy
-
Tower of Skulls
- A History of the Asia-Pacific War, Vol. 1 (July 1937 - May 1942)
- By: Richard B. Frank
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 26 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This story casts penetrating light on how struggles in Europe and Asia merged into a tightly entwined global war. It features not just battles, but also the sweeping political, economic, and social effects of the war, and are graced with a rich tapestry of individual characters from top-tier political and military figures down to ordinary servicemen, as well as the accounts of civilians of all races and ages.
-
-
Outstanding
- By Patrick on 03-16-20
By: Richard B. Frank
-
The Secret History of World War II
- Spies, Code Breakers, & Covert Operations
- By: Neil Kagan, Stephen G. Hyslop
- Narrated by: Andrew Reilly
- Length: 11 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the authors who created Eyewitness to World War II and numerous other best-selling reference books, this is the shocking story behind the covert activity that shaped the outcome of one of the world's greatest conflicts - and the destiny of millions of people. National Geographic's landmark book illuminates World War II as never before. Seven narrative chapters reveal the truth behind the lies and deception that shaped the "secret war".
-
-
War in the Shadows
- By Tim McGreer on 06-09-20
By: Neil Kagan, and others
-
Why War?
- By: Richard Overy
- Narrated by: Dennis Kleinman
- Length: 10 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why has war been such a consistent presence throughout the human past? A leading historian explains, drawing on rich examples and keen insight. Richard Overy is not the first scholar to take up the title question. In 1931, at the request of the League of Nations, Albert Einstein asked Sigmund Freud to collaborate on a short work examining whether there was "a way of delivering mankind from the menace of war." Published the next year as a pamphlet entitled Why War?, it conveyed Freud's conclusion that the "death drive" made any deliverance impossible.
-
-
Encyclopedic style, lots of analysis
- By Tyler on 10-20-24
By: Richard Overy
-
Retreat from Moscow
- A New History of Germany’s Winter Campaign, 1941-1942
- By: David Stahel
- Narrated by: Matthew Waterson
- Length: 15 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Germany's winter campaign of 1941-1942 has commonly been seen as its "first defeat". In Retreat from Moscow, David Stahel argues that, in fact, it was its first strategic success in the east. Though the Red Army managed to push the Wehrmacht back from Moscow, the Germans lost far fewer men (one to six), frustrated their enemy's strategic plan, and emerged in the spring unbroken and poised to recapture the initiative.
-
-
Nothing new on the Eastern front basically!
- By philippe jacob on 03-28-20
By: David Stahel
-
Russia's War
- A History of the Soviet Effort: 1941-1945
- By: Richard Overy PhD
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Russian war effort to defeat invading Axis powers, an effort that assembled the largest military force in recorded history and that cost the lives of more than twenty-five million Soviet soldiers and civilians, was the decisive factor for securing an Allied victory. Now with access to the wealth of film archives and interview material from Russia used to produce the ten-hour television documentary Russia's War, Richard Overy tackles the many persuasive questions surrounding this conflict.
-
-
A gripping tale of incredible, consuming tragedy
- By Rodney W. Schmisseur on 06-09-24
-
1939: Countdown to War
- By: Richard Overy
- Narrated by: Simon Prebble
- Length: 3 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On August 24, 1939, the world held its collective breath as Hitler and Stalin signed the now infamous nonaggression pact, signaling an imminent invasion of Poland and daring Western Europe to respond. In this dramatic account of the final days before the outbreak of World War II, award-winning historian Richard Overy vividly chronicles the unraveling of peace, hour by grim hour, as politicians and ordinary citizens brace themselves for a war that could spell the end of European civilization.
-
-
The vexed question of inevitability
- By Adeliese Baumann on 12-15-13
By: Richard Overy
-
Tower of Skulls
- A History of the Asia-Pacific War, Vol. 1 (July 1937 - May 1942)
- By: Richard B. Frank
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 26 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This story casts penetrating light on how struggles in Europe and Asia merged into a tightly entwined global war. It features not just battles, but also the sweeping political, economic, and social effects of the war, and are graced with a rich tapestry of individual characters from top-tier political and military figures down to ordinary servicemen, as well as the accounts of civilians of all races and ages.
-
-
Outstanding
- By Patrick on 03-16-20
By: Richard B. Frank
-
The Secret History of World War II
- Spies, Code Breakers, & Covert Operations
- By: Neil Kagan, Stephen G. Hyslop
- Narrated by: Andrew Reilly
- Length: 11 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the authors who created Eyewitness to World War II and numerous other best-selling reference books, this is the shocking story behind the covert activity that shaped the outcome of one of the world's greatest conflicts - and the destiny of millions of people. National Geographic's landmark book illuminates World War II as never before. Seven narrative chapters reveal the truth behind the lies and deception that shaped the "secret war".
-
-
War in the Shadows
- By Tim McGreer on 06-09-20
By: Neil Kagan, and others
-
Resistance
- The Underground War Against Hitler, 1939-1945
- By: Halik Kochanski
- Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
- Length: 46 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's almost shocking to think that now, more than seventy years after the Nazi surrender in 1945, there is not a single volume that has attempted to unify the resistance movements that convulsed Europe during the brutal years of occupation. In her extraordinary work, Resistance, Halik Kochanski does just that, creating a prodigiously researched account that becomes the first to bring these disparate histories into a single narrative.
-
-
Uneven in quality of depiction of various areas
- By K. T. Jukic on 05-17-23
By: Halik Kochanski
-
Case White
- The Invasion of Poland 1939
- By: Robert Forczyk
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 15 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The German invasion of Poland on 1 September, 1939, designated as Fall Weiss (Case White), was the event that sparked the outbreak of World War II in Europe. The campaign has widely been described as a textbook example of Blitzkrieg, but it was actually a fairly conventional campaign as the Wehrmacht was still learning how to use its new Panzers and dive-bombers. The Polish military is often misrepresented as hopelessly obsolete and outclassed by the Wehrmacht, yet in fact it was well-equipped with modern weapons and armor.
-
-
Surprise
- By Kindle Customer on 11-24-19
By: Robert Forczyk
-
The War for the Seas
- A Maritime History of World War II
- By: Evan Mawdsley
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 28 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Command of the oceans was crucial to winning World War II. By the start of 1942 Nazi Germany had conquered mainland Europe, and Imperial Japan had overrun Southeast Asia and much of the Pacific. How could Britain and distant America prevail in what had become a "war of continents"? In this definitive account, Evan Mawdsley traces events at sea from the first U-boat operations in 1939 to the surrender of Japan. He argues that the Allied counterattack involved not just decisive sea battles, but a long struggle to control shipping arteries and move armies across the sea.
-
-
An Unengaging Survey that Disappoints
- By Scott Eckert on 08-06-20
By: Evan Mawdsley
-
Russia at War, 1941–1945
- A History
- By: Alexander Werth, Nicolas Werth - foreword
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 38 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1941, Russian-born British journalist Alexander Werth observed the unfolding of the Soviet-German conflict with his own eyes. What followed was the widely acclaimed book, Russia at War, first printed in 1964. At once a history of facts, a collection of interviews, and a document of the human condition, Russia at War is a stunning, modern classic that chronicles the savagery and struggles on Russian soil during the most incredible military conflict in modern history.
-
-
Simply Astonishing
- By Nicholas Robinson on 02-28-22
By: Alexander Werth, and others
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
Sand and Steel
- The D-Day Invasion and the Liberation of France
- By: Peter Caddick-Adams
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 37 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sand and Steel gives us D-Day, arguably the greatest and most consequential military operation of modern times, beginning with the years of painstaking and costly preparation, through to the pitched battles fought along France's northern coast, from Omaha Beach to the Falaise and the push east to Strasbourg.
-
-
Details, details, details
- By Mike From Mesa on 11-11-21
-
Inferno
- The World at War, 1939-1945
- By: Max Hastings
- Narrated by: Ralph Cosham
- Length: 31 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From one of our finest military historians, a monumental work that shows us at once the truly global reach of World War II and its deeply personal consequences.
-
-
Superb
- By David on 04-05-21
By: Max Hastings
-
The Fall of Berlin 1945
- By: Antony Beevor
- Narrated by: Sean Barrett
- Length: 17 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Red Army had much to avenge when it finally reached the frontiers of the Third Reich in January 1945. Frenzied by their terrible experiences with Wehrmacht and SS brutality, they wreaked havoc - tanks crushing refugee columns, mass rape, pillage, and unimaginable destruction. Hundreds of thousands of women and children froze to death or were massacred; more than seven million fled westward from the fury of the Red Army. It was the most terrifying example of fire and sword ever known.
-
-
Engrossing
- By Salui on 09-06-16
By: Antony Beevor
-
The Cold War
- A New History
- By: John Lewis Gaddis
- Narrated by: Jay Gregory, Alan Sklar
- Length: 9 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Drawing on new and often startling information from newly opened Soviet, Eastern European, and Chinese archives, this thrilling account explores the strategic dynamics that drove the Cold War, provides illuminating portraits of its major personalities, and offers much fresh insight into its most crucial events. Riveting, revelatory, and wise, it tells a story whose lessons it is vitally necessary to understand as America once more faces an implacable ideological enemy.
-
-
WOW
- By Cordell eddings on 10-13-07
-
Hitler's Great Gamble
- A New Look at German Strategy, Operation Barbarossa, and the Axis Defeat in World War II
- By: James Ellman
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On June 22, 1941, Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa, one of the turning points of World War II. Within six months, the invasion bogged down on the outskirts of Moscow, and the Eastern Front proved to be the decisive theater in the defeat of the Third Reich. Ever since, most historians have agreed that this was Hitler's gravest mistake. In Hitler's Great Gamble, James Ellman argues that while Barbarossa was a gamble and perverted by genocidal Nazi ideology, it was not doomed from the start.
-
-
Full of good information and a pretty well established thesis
- By S. H. Moore on 11-28-20
By: James Ellman
-
Victory at Sea
- Naval Power and the Transformation of the Global Order in World War II
- By: Paul Kennedy, Ian Marshall - illustrator
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 20 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this engaging narrative, historian Paul Kennedy grapples with the rise and fall of the Great Powers during World War II. Tracking the movements of the six major navies of the Second World War—the allied navies of Britain, France, and the United States and the Axis navies of Germany, Italy, and Japan—Kennedy tells a story of naval battles, maritime campaigns, convoys, amphibious landings, and strikes from the sea.
-
-
No the defendant work on all navies fighting in World War II.
- By Kent Steen on 09-24-22
By: Paul Kennedy, and others
-
Heart of Europe
- A History of the Holy Roman Empire
- By: Peter H. Wilson
- Narrated by: Napoleon Ryan
- Length: 34 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Holy Roman Empire lasted 1,000 years, far longer than ancient Rome. Yet this formidable dominion never inspired the awe of its predecessor. Voltaire quipped that it was neither holy, Roman, nor an empire. Yet as Peter H. Wilson shows, the Holy Roman Empire tells a millennial story of Europe better than the histories of individual nation-states.
-
-
Mixed feelings on this one.
- By Stuart Seymour on 09-19-17
By: Peter H. Wilson
What listeners say about Why the Allies Won
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ted
- 10-18-22
Thorough, efficient and precise, if somewhat dry
Overy does here exactly what the title promises. When I say that the book is somewhat dry, I mean that it reads — and, in Runger’s careful, slightly pedantic narration, sounds — a bit like an academic lecture, the sort of thing one hears, say, in a Great Courses audiobook. I kept finding my mind wandering during Overy’s precise and thorough analysis, perhaps because it just isn’t as colorful, moving, and eloquent as Max Hastings’ four-hour survey of the war (“World War II: All You Need to Know”) and lacks that shorter book’s illustrative anecdotes.
When Hastings writes of Stalin, it's with an obvious loathing for the man's cruelty and tyranny, even when noting Stalin's military victories. He never allows you to forget what the Russian people sacrificed -- were forced at gunpoint to sacrifice -- and how Stalin was as much a monster as Hitler was. When Overy writes of him, it's practically emotionless; in fact, his tone is often genuinely admiring, because he focuses only on the military outcome, not on the government's crimes against its own citizens. I respect this book for the clarity of its analysis and for the information it conveys, but it lacks the moral dimension -- and the sheer human interest -- one finds in Hastings' book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 04-09-19
STRENGTHENED MY WWII HISTORICAL KNOWLEDGE
Enjoyable read Good learning!
The detail and approach of this book was unique
Turns out the US did not win WWII as easily as I thought
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- From Boston
- 03-04-24
An Excellent Comprehensive Chronicle
I found this book to be well-written and extremely informative as it presented details of the war effort not usually covered in histories of the conflict. The chapters on the Soviet efforts to persevere in the factories and on the battlefields were well-done. The candid consideration of the difficulties of the Anglo-American alliance, the lengthy debate about the invasion of France, and the missteps in the Allied invasion at Anzio were excellent. The author provides well-prepared and well-researched work on many individual aspects of both theaters of the war, covering culture, economics, logistics and the various battlefields of the land, air and sea. Mr. Runger's narration was superb.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 09-12-22
Wonderful
This is a wonderful reading with just the right content spoken in a sonorous tone to drift off to sleep. Highly recommended if you are both a fan of Richard Overy and delicious sleep.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mark McLaughlin
- 07-16-21
A good read
The book was long but nonetheless a good read. Overy opening remarks about allied economic myths and truths was fascinating
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Frank Hamilton
- 04-17-20
Why the Allies Won
This book solidified many of the factors attributed to by other historians. It’s true value is in dispelling certain myths and misconceptions about attaining victory and its analysis of contrasting leadership and management of the war.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Pianoplayer
- 01-31-24
The thoroughness of detail and an honest assessment
I appreciated the honest, through and introspective coverage of the events and circumstances treated throughout the book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Margaret
- 05-14-24
A book to read and reread
The more you learn about the history of WWII and its characters and issues and places, the richer this book gets. It's really good.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
- 8541 USMC
- 03-19-19
Proof of Concept "we could have lost the war !"
History the way it could have been . The idea that the allies might have lost is not as farfetched as you that think. The author delves into the scenarios and conditions that made up the Second World War in Europe and the Pacific. Victory was not a forgone conclusion and the leadership on both sides made decisions that could have changed the outcome. A good study of the war.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Raphael PS
- 04-11-19
Absolutely phenomenal
One of the most comprehensive books on the outcome of World War I, broken up neatly into descriptions and analyses of various events of the war. Easy to listen to. Highly recommended to all interested in the war.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful