World War One cover art

World War One

A Short History

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World War One

By: Norman Stone
Narrated by: Simon Prebble
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About this listen

 In 1914, a new kind of war came about, bringing with it a new kind of world. World War One began on horseback, with generals employing bayonet charges to gain ground, and ended with attacks resembling the Nazi blitzkriegs. The scale of devastation was unlike anything the world had seen before: 14 million combatants died, a further 20 million were wounded, and four empires were destroyed. Even the victors' empires were fatally damaged.

An overwhelming disaster from which the world is still recovering, World War One can seem baffling in its complexity. But now Norman Stone, one of world's greatest military historians, has composed a dazzlingly lucid and succinct history of the conflict. Stone has distilled a lifetime of teaching, arguing, and thinking into this brisk and opinionated account of the fundamental tragedy of the 20th century.

©2009 Norman Stone (P)2009 Audible, Inc. Military World War Imperialism Hungary Interwar Period

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Critic reviews

"Stone is able to pack an enormity of information into the smallest space, and with a remarkable eye for detail....The wonder is that Stone is able to create a narrative of this sweep and brevity while also providing such evocative descriptions." ( The American Spectator)
"Stone's book is a special pleasure - a concise, pithy mix of fact and judgment." ( Dallas Morning News)
All stars
Most relevant  
This book is a quick and informative introduction to the First World War. A good listen

A good book

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I’ve always found the first world world confusing. This pacy overview clarified much of my confusion and also presented useful information about the Eastern Front which is often overlooked by U.K. accounts of the conflict. I listened to it over the course of two days - it was riveting, never dull or overly technical. Well worth a listen.

Superb overview

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Norman Stone's history of the events leading up to the First World War and the course of the war itself is a masterpiece, selecting the core facts but at the same time taking in the whole sweep of the war. The only theatre not covered is Africa, but then that was a sideshow. His judgement of British generals is perhaps harsh; the British Army was essentially a colonial army and had it not been for the work of Haldane and Gen Haig in the years leading up to the war it would have been even less prepared for a campaign in Europe. Although Foch was made supreme Cmdr, it was the British Army which finally broke the back of the Germans on the Western front.

A masterpiece of concise writing

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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

No, impossible to listen to being read at that speed.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Totally ruined it.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, definitely not, couldn't finish it because the narration was so exhausting.

Terrible narration - far too fast

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