Engineers of Victory: The Problem Solvers who Turned the Tide in the Second World War
- Downloads：6242
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-10-12 08:54:11
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Paul Kennedy
- ISBN：0141036095
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
'Engineers of Victory' is an account of how the tide of technology was turned against the Nazis by the Allies in the Second World War。
Reviews
Chase Metcalf
，
Insightful analysis of five major challenges confronting the Allies in WWII， how they addressed them， and how this contributed to the Allies ultimate victory。 The five major problems included: - How to get convoys safely across the Atlantic - How to win command of the air - How to stop a Blitzkrieg - How to seize and enemy held shore - How to defeat the “tyranny of distance”The author's analysis highlights how interconnected these challenges were and how the solutions to each cumulative contrib Insightful analysis of five major challenges confronting the Allies in WWII， how they addressed them， and how this contributed to the Allies ultimate victory。 The five major problems included: - How to get convoys safely across the Atlantic - How to win command of the air - How to stop a Blitzkrieg - How to seize and enemy held shore - How to defeat the “tyranny of distance”The author's analysis highlights how interconnected these challenges were and how the solutions to each cumulative contributed to Allied victory。 Ultimately the author argues there was no single “turning-point” of the war and the desire to identify any single reason or monocausal explanation for Allied victory is oversimplification。 In conclusion the author emphasizes the important role of geography in terms of informing strategy and shaping outcomes as well as the creation of war-making systems that contained necessary feedback loops， flexibility， and capacity to learn that enabled Allied victory。 The key takeaway from the book is “winning great wars always requires superior organization， and that in turn requires people who can run those organizations， not in a blinkered way but most competently and in a fashion that will allow outsiders to feed fresh ideas into the pursuit of victory。 None of this can be done by Chiefs alone， however great their genius， however massive their energy。 There has to be a support system， a culture of encouragement， efficient feedback loops， a capacity to learn from setbacks， an ability to get things done” Well worth a read for those interested in World War II or the complexity of great power conflict on a global scale。 。。。more
DeAnna Knippling
，
The engineers， inventions， and process improvements that helped the Allies win WWII。This was solidly written。 I think my only problem with it was that I wanted it to be about twice as long and get into more detail; it felt like a lot of the statements weren't necessarily well backed up in this book。 The author referred a lot to other works that he seemed to assume I read， or other bits of history that I was supposed to have known or at least not questioned， which was frustrating。 （For example th The engineers， inventions， and process improvements that helped the Allies win WWII。This was solidly written。 I think my only problem with it was that I wanted it to be about twice as long and get into more detail; it felt like a lot of the statements weren't necessarily well backed up in this book。 The author referred a lot to other works that he seemed to assume I read， or other bits of history that I was supposed to have known or at least not questioned， which was frustrating。 （For example the various types of British WWII planes and why certain types were assumed to be so important--he gave the explanation of why people were wrong about the relative importance of certain planes， but not why certain planes were assumed to be so important in the first place！）I was hoping for a book about how the victory in WWII was engineered from a strategic standpoint; this was a book about engineering problems during WWII。 So this was not the book I was expecting， but certainly a good read， with a lot of insight--just not as much context as I wanted。 I would not recommend this as a book for readers not steeped in the lore of WWII， but if you have basic reading done in the period it's probably a great book。 WWII just isn't my period， and I felt a bit adrift here。 。。。more
Jan Bos
，
Great big picture analysis
Don
，
Promising topic。 Arguments were all over the place。 Poorly written。 Seemed like every sentence was a paragraph in itself。
William Troy
，
I was pleasantly surprised by this book。 When I started reading it I was unsure of its premise。 I thought it was going to be about individual engineers who the author thought designed victory in World War II。 Author Paul Kennedy fooled me。 He did include specific people who designed products that contributed significantly to victory but more importantly he placed those products in context and explained that victory was achieved through a myriad of functions and products。 As he states on page 212 I was pleasantly surprised by this book。 When I started reading it I was unsure of its premise。 I thought it was going to be about individual engineers who the author thought designed victory in World War II。 Author Paul Kennedy fooled me。 He did include specific people who designed products that contributed significantly to victory but more importantly he placed those products in context and explained that victory was achieved through a myriad of functions and products。 As he states on page 212， "。。。the historian who emphasizes any one of these aspects distorts the larger， holistic account" （Kennedy， p。 212）。 Strategic bombing enthusiasts stress that the bombing campaign against Germany won the war almost single-handedly （my emphasis）。 Whereas， it wasn't until the long range P-51 fighter escorted bombers over Germany and back did the bombing campaign really made significant headway against strategic targets。 The production of the P-51 alone was not significant until British test pilot Ronnie Harker flew it and recommended the Rolls-Royce Packard Merlin engine replace the original one。 Also， long range fuel tanks has to be created and added to give it the range。 The Allies had to create air superiority over the Luftwaffe before a cross-channel landing could be made in Normandy。 Landing craft had to be designed for the amphibious assaults the Allies would make and the Higgins boat designed by Andrew Higgins fit the bill。 Higgins had to get past Navy reluctance and the USMC helped do that。 The F6F Hellcat by Grumman Aerospace accounted for 75% of all aerial victories by the Navy in the Pacific but without the production of aircraft carriers that wouldn't have happened。 without the specifically designed and created Naval logistics fleet support vessels， the Navy would not have been able to overcome the incredible distances of the Central Pacific Campaign。 In other words， one has to view the victory holistically rather than concentrate on one aspect of victory。 Mr。 Kennedy modifies a Churchill quote to read， "。。。the Second World War was won by the， "intelligent application" of superior force" （Kennedy， p。 363）。 He also states that without bold and worthy leadership， a large enterprise is likely to fail。 He credits， Churchill， Roosevelt and Stalin and castigates the leadership of the Axis powers as limited in scope and ability。 In summary the author states， "None of this can be done by the chiefs alone， however great their massive energy。 There has to be a support system， a culture of encouragement， efficient feedback loops， a capacity to learn from setbacks， an ability to get things done。 And all this must be done in a fashion that is better than the enemy's。 That is how wars are won" *Kennedy， p。 372）。 Concentrating on one aspect of the victory limits the real success story。 Think holistically！ Read this book！ 。。。more
Paul Bowler
，
An examination of WWII that I’d not read before ie the importance of the planners， engineers and scientists in prosecuting the several successful campaigns that won the war。
Marcia Yates
，
This book is fabulous for anyone who wants to know "How did they do it？" I loved the way the author structured the information in terms of several significant problems to solve。 It not only talks about the technological breakthroughs， but also what it took to organize victory。 This book is fabulous for anyone who wants to know "How did they do it？" I loved the way the author structured the information in terms of several significant problems to solve。 It not only talks about the technological breakthroughs， but also what it took to organize victory。 。。。more
Casey
，
A good book， providing a series of vignettes on major technical and operational innovations made by the Allies to attain victory in WWII。 As with all of Paul Kennedy’s works， the joy of the book isn’t so much the content in and of itself， but his conversational method of delivery。 Reading it feels less like reading a book and more like attending a seminar lecture。 He seems to know the questions that would be asked and provides just enough “side-bars” to keep your attention。 The book cover five m A good book， providing a series of vignettes on major technical and operational innovations made by the Allies to attain victory in WWII。 As with all of Paul Kennedy’s works， the joy of the book isn’t so much the content in and of itself， but his conversational method of delivery。 Reading it feels less like reading a book and more like attending a seminar lecture。 He seems to know the questions that would be asked and provides just enough “side-bars” to keep your attention。 The book cover five major developments in WWII: defeating the U-Boats， gaining air dominance for European strategic bombing， defeating Germany’s armor advantage， honing Allied amphibious skills， and overcoming the Pacific’s vast distances。 The history behind these issues are presented， the problems the Allies faced are outlined， and the solutions arrived at are dismantled。 The “Engineers” of the title are not specific inventors or Generals， but rather the un-sung “middle managers” whose individual works combined to create the various system of systems which brought victory。 The work very much stresses that the period early-1943 to mid-1944 was a hotbed of military innovation for the Allies， across both spectrums of military technology and operational process。 Though I was not fully convinced of the innovative nature of this particular period （I think brute application of existing tools and actions may be as important as shepherding forward new developments）， Kennedy’s writing style and ability to coherently link far-ranging thoughts make a very strong case for an innovative ‘golden age。’I did feel that parts of the book felt forced。 My impression is that a few vignettes were readily constructed for the thesis （primarily the maritime ones） and that others had to be strenuously made to fit （the aviation and land based ones）。 But， even when forced， the vignettes are all enjoyable to read and very educational。 A bit of icing on the cake， Kennedy continues his practice of giving commentary style endnotes and footnotes。 Not only do you get the references for the presented material， you also get a quick rating and background on the sources。 That is， far and away， one of my favorite things to see in a book。 Highly recommended for those wanting to better understand the technical developments and procedural updates made by the Allies in the middle years of WWII。 。。。more
Nathan Albright
，
This book is not only a history of World War II of a sort， but it is also the sort of book that has a very clear agenda， most obvious at the end of the book。 As someone who has read dozens of books （at least） about the subject of creativity and innovation， it is little surprise that a book that celebrates the innovativeness and creativity of problem solvers in the Allies--especially in the US and UK--who tackled various problems that had to be solved to achieve victory should also serve as a pro This book is not only a history of World War II of a sort， but it is also the sort of book that has a very clear agenda， most obvious at the end of the book。 As someone who has read dozens of books （at least） about the subject of creativity and innovation， it is little surprise that a book that celebrates the innovativeness and creativity of problem solvers in the Allies--especially in the US and UK--who tackled various problems that had to be solved to achieve victory should also serve as a propaganda for an encouragement culture （the author's words） that fosters tinkering and rewards improvement and those who suggest changes and improvements in existing processes and technologies。 The extent to which the reader is on-board with the author's thinking about this subject will indicate the extent to which the author is going to be interested in the book as a whole， which shows a large degree of concern with the middle-managers and engineers and related people whose insight and whose improvements were crucial in getting buggy systems to work and in solving problems that needed to be solved for the Allied war effort in World War II to prevail。This book is almost 400 pages and consists of five very large chapters along with various supplementary material。 The book begins with maps and tables and an introduction that sets the stage for the author's view of five notable problems during World War II for the allies to be successful， as we know of course that they were。 After that the author discusses how to get convoys safely across the Atlantic， a major logistical challenge that required cooperation between different elements that also involved the defeat of improving German U-boats led by aggressive commanders who nonetheless found themselves the hunted rather than the hunter as a result of various improvements， including carrier escort （1）。 After that comes a discussion of the challenge of winning command of the air （2）， which included a discussion of radar for air defense in England as well as the problem of long-distance fueling and even the morality of strategic bombing。 After this comes a discussion on how to stop a blitzkrieg， which includes by necessity a discussion of how the blitzkrieg came to be in the first place， and what elements it held， which had to be stopped if it was to be stopped （3）。 After this the author discusses the age-old problem of amphibious warfare in how one seizes an enemy-held shore， a task at which the Allies became very proficient as a result of repeated practice in both the Western front as well as the Pacific War （4）。 Finally， the author discusses the problem of defeating the tyranny of distance in the Pacific War （5）， after which there is a conclusion about problem solving in history， or the history of innovation， acknowledgments， notes， a bibliography， credits， and an index。In discussing these matters， the author is not only interested in shining a light on aspects of military history that tend to be obscured by tendency of people either to focus on those in command or the experience of the common soldier and not the people in the middle involved in logistics， intelligence， and related areas， but also interested in demonstrating that the things which are successful in military efforts are simultaneously useful for business and other institutions。 This idea is easy enough to dispute， but all the same it provides the motivation for the author to write and will likely provide a motivation for many people to read this book。 This is a book that is both for fans of World War II history but also those who have an interest in cross-fertilization of the insights that can be learned from history in fields like engineering and management， where a great many of the readers of this book are likely to have at least more than a passing degree of interest。 And it is the relevance of the book that puts this a cut above the rest when it comes to talking about technology， even if the author has a very limited and not always very accessible style when it comes to writing about problem solving。 。。。more
Nick Frazier
，
I really enjoyed this book。 If you have any interest in history， military innovation， or organization problem-solving culture， I'd check it out。Paul Kennedy argues that the massive resources of Allied powers during World War weren't enough to win the war。 Instead， it was mid-level leaders and managers that took the problems posed and devised creative solutions。The author uses five operational concepts or problems as case studies for the Allied effort:1） How to get convoys safely across the Atlan I really enjoyed this book。 If you have any interest in history， military innovation， or organization problem-solving culture， I'd check it out。Paul Kennedy argues that the massive resources of Allied powers during World War weren't enough to win the war。 Instead， it was mid-level leaders and managers that took the problems posed and devised creative solutions。The author uses five operational concepts or problems as case studies for the Allied effort:1） How to get convoys safely across the Atlantic （how to kill german u-boats with air， convoys， comms， and sonar）2） How to win command of the air - the European air war required bombers and escorts to include the history of the P51 Mustang3） How to stop a blitzkrieg - the story of primarily Soviet efforts to blunt German Wehrmacht and the development history of the T-344） How to seize an enemy-held shore - amphibious operations5） How to defeat the tyranny-of-distance - Pacific War force projection with a history of the Seabees。Ultimately， a strong body of problem solvers at bottom， middle， and top levels were able to communicate up and down and across silos to solve these problems。 。。。more
Patrick Nielson
，
Insight to VictoryA brilliant dissection of five challenges that confronted the Allies and the solutions that led to their victory over the Axis。 Kennedy provides a clear 30，000 foot view of the strategy and then provides details of the individuals and teams that solved the challenges。 Each challenge is tied to the whole World War conflict， demonstrating how the solutions for each fit into winning the war。 Insights are also provided about other histories and analyses of the Allies triumph， with Insight to VictoryA brilliant dissection of five challenges that confronted the Allies and the solutions that led to their victory over the Axis。 Kennedy provides a clear 30，000 foot view of the strategy and then provides details of the individuals and teams that solved the challenges。 Each challenge is tied to the whole World War conflict， demonstrating how the solutions for each fit into winning the war。 Insights are also provided about other histories and analyses of the Allies triumph， with comments to guide further reading。 A brilliant lesson from a brilliant Professor who writes as well as he thinks。 。。。more
Johns
，
I believe this book may have been mistitled。 I fully understand that editors not authors many times dream up a book's title。 Perhaps this book may better have been entitled， "Purveyors of Victory。"When I picked up the book I was preparing to read a more technical， engineering-oriented work。 But such is not the case here。 Yes， there are some engineering marvels discussed but only in the most cursory manner。 In equal parts the author discusses the importance of logistics， strategic planning and th I believe this book may have been mistitled。 I fully understand that editors not authors many times dream up a book's title。 Perhaps this book may better have been entitled， "Purveyors of Victory。"When I picked up the book I was preparing to read a more technical， engineering-oriented work。 But such is not the case here。 Yes， there are some engineering marvels discussed but only in the most cursory manner。 In equal parts the author discusses the importance of logistics， strategic planning and the happy appearance of sheer luck。 （Catching enemy carriers at Midway comes to mind。） Plus， some fine examples of brilliant leadership are portrayed。 Two examples of the latter are American admiral， Ben Morrell and British admiral， Sir Bertram Ramsey。The writer completed extensive research and laid down some important thoughts in a very refined writing style although I found early chapters somewhat tedious and meandering。 But he finally gets his sea legs when he writes the closing two chapters which have to do with amphibious landings on opposed shores。 （Having served as a Marine Corps officer， these chapters resonate strongly。）All in all， you'll get additional history in this serious work that is very interesting but don't expect to learn all the engineering aspects about individual devices or combat systems employed by the Allies in WWII。 。。。more
Mark Schulz
，
Not my sort of book， as it turned out。 Very dry account of contributions of various people to WWII。 Didn’t finish this book。 For the record， I am not a war buff。
Charles Inglin
，
The author gives an overview of major aspects of World War II and discusses the technical problems that had to be solved to achieve victory， and the people， many relatively unknown， who made it possible。 Often， personal relationships were instrumental in getting things done。 For example， the creation of the Naval Construction Battalions， which were critical to building the infrastructure needed for the advance across the Pacific was directed by Ben Moreel， the only non-combat naval officer to ac The author gives an overview of major aspects of World War II and discusses the technical problems that had to be solved to achieve victory， and the people， many relatively unknown， who made it possible。 Often， personal relationships were instrumental in getting things done。 For example， the creation of the Naval Construction Battalions， which were critical to building the infrastructure needed for the advance across the Pacific was directed by Ben Moreel， the only non-combat naval officer to achieve admiral rank during the war。 Moreel was a talented engineer who joined the Navy during WWI and became acquainted with Franklin Roosevelt。 In 1937 FDR appointed Moreel， a civilian again， chief of the Bureau of Docks and Yards and also chief engineer of the Navy in 1937。 Moreel pushed the construction of repair facilities at Pearl Harbor that turned out to be vital for repairing damaged ships after the surprise attack and during the war。 Moreel also conceived of the naval construction battalions and with FDR's backing and returning to active duty created and led the organization。 Another example was the P-51 Mustang。 Originally designed to meet a British requirement。 the P-51 had lackluster high altitude performance and would have been relegated to a ground attack role except for Rolls Royce test pilot Ronnie Harker being asked to evaluate it。 Harker decided it needed a better engine。 Rolls Royce engineer Witold Challier calculated the probably performance with the Rolls Royce Merlin engine。 Rolls Royce general manager E。W。 Hives took the idea to Air Marshall Sir Wilfrid Freeman， RAF head of supply， who ordered five aircraft converted and tested。 The tests were successful but adoption ran into a roadblock from competing demands for resources and a "not invented here" attitude in the USAAF。 It took the efforts of the US ambassador， the assistant air attache， FDR adviser Harry Hopkins and a number of other well connected individuals， as well as the disastrous Schweinfurt raids， to get the USAAF to accept the P-51， which would turn out to be critical to the bombing campaign because of it's long range combined with excellent performance。 A good read for students of World War II interested in the story behind the combat。 。。。more
Andy White
，
I think the low scores for this book are due to expectations。 What this book will not provide is in depth technical details of specific problems facing the Allies in WW2。 What this book will provide is a look at all the reason for success in specific theatres of WW2。 Namely， battle of the Atlantic， European air war， Germany's blitzkrieg tactics， amphibious landing and attacking long range targets。 What is good about this book is that it covers Europe， Africa， Eastern front and the Pacific， all t I think the low scores for this book are due to expectations。 What this book will not provide is in depth technical details of specific problems facing the Allies in WW2。 What this book will provide is a look at all the reason for success in specific theatres of WW2。 Namely， battle of the Atlantic， European air war， Germany's blitzkrieg tactics， amphibious landing and attacking long range targets。 What is good about this book is that it covers Europe， Africa， Eastern front and the Pacific， all the areas the Allies were involved in， a lot of books usually just focus on Europe。 I found it well written， insightful and informative。 。。。more
Ken Cambie
，
This was one of the books recommended by John Kerry at the 2019 Barclays Asia Forum。 I am hard pressed to remember how this book was relevant to what he was talking about。 As noted by others the title is misleading as its primary theme is the inter-connectedness of， first， various individual innovations coming together to produce a break through， and then of the impact of different campaigns and theatres of war （providing greater insight than studying specific elements in isolation of what was h This was one of the books recommended by John Kerry at the 2019 Barclays Asia Forum。 I am hard pressed to remember how this book was relevant to what he was talking about。 As noted by others the title is misleading as its primary theme is the inter-connectedness of， first， various individual innovations coming together to produce a break through， and then of the impact of different campaigns and theatres of war （providing greater insight than studying specific elements in isolation of what was happening elsewhere at the same time）。 Relatively little time is spent on the Engineers or even describing （rather than simply naming） their inventions。 Far from exposing the teams of Engineers and problem-solvers that it is argued attached the ligaments to the bones of the grand strategies， the specific folk mentioned are those already clearly identified with their area of development。 The book is also tiring it’s repetitiveness。 。。。more
Jeremy
，
Outstanding。 A memorial to the ‘tinkerers’ and the spirit of encouragement that bricked the path to victory as declared at Casablanca。 Grand Strategy is one thing - execution is another。 This book describes what was required by operational planners and problem solving engineers to create the tools necessary to win。 Highly recommended - especially the last chapter as it describes why encouragement is needed for innovation to take hold。
Dan Dundon
，
The cover of this book is intriguing。 It purports to document how engineers made a difference in World War II。 Too often， books about World War II have concentrated on the heroes who fought the battles on the ground， in the air and on the seas。 They do indeed deserve much of the credit。 However， relatively little notice is usually given to the inventors and designers who improved the weapons of war to counter the advantages of the enemy， especially German engineers。Many of the chapters were fasc The cover of this book is intriguing。 It purports to document how engineers made a difference in World War II。 Too often， books about World War II have concentrated on the heroes who fought the battles on the ground， in the air and on the seas。 They do indeed deserve much of the credit。 However， relatively little notice is usually given to the inventors and designers who improved the weapons of war to counter the advantages of the enemy， especially German engineers。Many of the chapters were fascinating because they examined how certain improvements made a significant difference in the war。 For example， the reader learns how improvements in sonar made it easier to find and destroy German U-Boats。 The development of a long-range fighter made it possible to provide valuable air cover to bombers attempting to bomb targets deep within Germany。 Even the success of the invasion of Normandy was aided by the invention of portable harbors which allowed reinforcements and vehicles to be quickly landed on shore after the initial invasion。All of these things were informative。 Unfortunately I didn't get a good feel for the people behind these improvements。 I would have liked to learn more about their careers and how they managed to make improvements which were so critical to the war effort。Nevertheless， I learned a great deal about developments in the weapons that were so critical to the success of the Allied forces。 。。。more
Arnold T。 Blostein
，
Excellent！！！I could not put this down。 This is extremely thorough and extremely well written。 It is broken down so that it is easy to follow and easy to understand。 The best！！！
ARek
，
Ogólnie książka jest ciekawa。 Jednakże tytuł nie koresponduje za bardzo z zawartością。 Jest tu dużo opisów operacji wojskowych w czasie wojny， a gdyby wybrać same opisy rozwiązań inżynieryjnych zostało by kilkadziesiąt stron。 Widać， że autorem jest historyk， a nie inżynier， dlatego nacisk postawiony jest na szersze tło historyczne。Gdyby zmienić tytuł książki książka mogłaby dostać maksymalnie 4 gwiazdki。 Powodem jest w kilku miejscach opisywanie tego samego， tak jak by autor zapomniał， że już o Ogólnie książka jest ciekawa。 Jednakże tytuł nie koresponduje za bardzo z zawartością。 Jest tu dużo opisów operacji wojskowych w czasie wojny， a gdyby wybrać same opisy rozwiązań inżynieryjnych zostało by kilkadziesiąt stron。 Widać， że autorem jest historyk， a nie inżynier， dlatego nacisk postawiony jest na szersze tło historyczne。Gdyby zmienić tytuł książki książka mogłaby dostać maksymalnie 4 gwiazdki。 Powodem jest w kilku miejscach opisywanie tego samego， tak jak by autor zapomniał， że już o tym pisał （całkiem możliwe przy tak długiej książce）。Ogólnie ciekawa， ale spodziewałem się czegoś innego。 。。。more
Scottlmoritz
，
Good overview but， as an engineer， I'd have liked more technical details of how problems were addressed。 Good overview but， as an engineer， I'd have liked more technical details of how problems were addressed。 。。。more
Darin
，
I enjoyed this very much。 So much， in fact， that I read the whole thing in just a couple of days。 It usually takes me a week or more to read anything substantial because I normally have less than an hour to read a day， especially for recreation。It was informative and had surprising tales of bravery that made it seem like a piece of fiction。I would recommend it to people who are interested in history， technology or World War II。
Steve Chilton
，
Disappointing， and didn't deliver on the title。 There weren't really any interesting revelations on engineering ingenuity。 Even his definition of engineer left me wanting， often meaning managers or strategists。 Nevertheless， some aspects of the war that I wasn't aware of were covered and increased my knowledge somewhat。 Disappointing， and didn't deliver on the title。 There weren't really any interesting revelations on engineering ingenuity。 Even his definition of engineer left me wanting， often meaning managers or strategists。 Nevertheless， some aspects of the war that I wasn't aware of were covered and increased my knowledge somewhat。 。。。more
Bernhard
，
As an engineering student I picked this up hoping to see some writing about technical things and how they worked， I was disappointed。 While this book contains a lot of interesting fact and thoughts about ww2， it doesn't go into much detail about how the engineers actually worked and how they achieved what they did。 Most of the time the book is just taking about grand strategy。 Still a good book， even if I found the title misleading。 As an engineering student I picked this up hoping to see some writing about technical things and how they worked， I was disappointed。 While this book contains a lot of interesting fact and thoughts about ww2， it doesn't go into much detail about how the engineers actually worked and how they achieved what they did。 Most of the time the book is just taking about grand strategy。 Still a good book， even if I found the title misleading。 。。。more
Matt
，
The Axis powers tried to fight in too many fronts at once and did not pay enough attention to the key places。Being able to execute was key- ex。 logistics of supplying troops across Pacific Ocean or placing new engine in aircraft based on someone’s idea。
Matthew Thomas
，
This is a wonderfully enlightening book for any WW II buff， taking a novel （to me） perspective of exploring five different areas why the Allies won。 e。g。 （Ch。 1） "How to get Convoys Safely Across the Atlantic，" to （Ch。 5） "How to Defeat the Tyranny of Distance。" Wonderful descriptions of "Hobart's Funnies，" the crazy things invented by British general Hobart from a Sherman tank。 One （of many） reasons why the Brits had so few casualties at the beaches on D-Day， and we so many。 An awesome book。 This is a wonderfully enlightening book for any WW II buff， taking a novel （to me） perspective of exploring five different areas why the Allies won。 e。g。 （Ch。 1） "How to get Convoys Safely Across the Atlantic，" to （Ch。 5） "How to Defeat the Tyranny of Distance。" Wonderful descriptions of "Hobart's Funnies，" the crazy things invented by British general Hobart from a Sherman tank。 One （of many） reasons why the Brits had so few casualties at the beaches on D-Day， and we so many。 An awesome book。 。。。more
Mathieu Gaudreault
，
This book could have had as a title How the Allies won。 The book is by subjects and not chronological。 Its covers the air war over Europe， the land war against Nazi Germany， the battle against the U Boats， landing against a ennemy shore（in Europe and North Africa） and finally overcoming the distance about the war of the Pacific。 In all those chapters we see the technologies that made the diffrence。 in the air the Mustang with its Rolls Royce motor， under the sea the sonar and convoy systems and This book could have had as a title How the Allies won。 The book is by subjects and not chronological。 Its covers the air war over Europe， the land war against Nazi Germany， the battle against the U Boats， landing against a ennemy shore（in Europe and North Africa） and finally overcoming the distance about the war of the Pacific。 In all those chapters we see the technologies that made the diffrence。 in the air the Mustang with its Rolls Royce motor， under the sea the sonar and convoy systems and long-range aircraft like the Liberator。 in the Pacific the author talks about the Essex class carrier and the Sea Bees engineers。 An unofficial companion book to Richard Overy why the Allies Won 。。。more
Peter Timson
，
Remembering RV Jones's "Most Secret War" drew me to this book。 Not as good in my opinion but covers different ground for the most part。 Interesting。 Remembering RV Jones's "Most Secret War" drew me to this book。 Not as good in my opinion but covers different ground for the most part。 Interesting。 。。。more
Jason Wills
，
Good read—I would have liked more details in the technical innovations， especially related to the amphibious operations。
Harpoon
，