A thrillingly panoramic and incredibly timely account of the rise of Islam; from the acclaimed author of Rubicon and Persian Fire. The evolution of the Arab empire is one of the supreme narratives of ancient history; a story dazzlingly rich in drama; character; and achievement. In this exciting and sweeping history—the third in his trilogy of books on the ancient world—Holland describes how the Arabs emerged to carve out a stupefyingly vast dominion in a matter of decades; overcoming seemingly insuperable odds to create an imperial civilization aspects of which endure to the present day. With profound bearing on the most consequential events of our time; Holland ties the exciting story of Islam’s ascent to the crises and controversies of the present.
#506156 in Books 2011-05-03 2011-05-03Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 7.99 x 1.23 x 5.12l; 1.24 #File Name: 0307388719608 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Deep Insights into Churchill and his EraBy Alan Dale DanielWinston’s War; Churchill; 1940 – 1945 by Max Hastings; is a masterful review of the times and the man. Mr. Hastings is an engaging writer easily mixing rather cold facts with pointed stories to keep the reader interested. This book moves along very quickly and will be thoroughly enjoyed by anyone interested in Winston Churchill or WWII. The footnotes and resources listed are voluminous and the maps; the few that are included; are excellent.Of course; we must admit there are many books on WWII and on Mr. Churchill; however; I think Mr. Hastings has added something to the previous story. The author obviously holds Mr. Churchill in notable esteem and contends he towered above other figures that held the stage of history with him. The war was his finest hour. What is new is Max Hastings clearly sees the flaws in the man and his country. Mr. Hastings has an incredible ability to boil down the essence of what was going on in the war and then accurately relate those events to the leaders. He unerringly describes how the leaders of the US; UK; and USSR mixed together and how that mix impacted the decisions of that age.Mr. Hastings recognizes the irony of going to war to keep the Nazi’s out of Poland and then watching them fall under a greater evil in Stalin’s communist. He records Churchill’s despairing struggle to prevent it.Winston’s War poignantly points out how Churchill; with his back against the wall; managed to weld the nation together long enough to pull it through the worst times in 1940 only to watch it gradually fall apart as the war progressed to a victorious conclusion. He was the man for the hour; but he was not the man for all hours. Winston Churchill was a 19th century man; and could not lead a 20th century nation into the future. Churchill saw it was a future of socialism; which he rejected; but could not come up with the means to fight. At least the future he secured for the UK was not one of rule by a foreign tyranny.The author is able to balance; better than other authors on Churchill I have read; the legitimate criticisms of the man with the reality of his accomplishments. Comparing the good to the bad in a fair and responsible way is not easy; not in the least; however; Mr. Max Hastings does it as well as any man could.Mr. Hasting’s insights on WWII are worth the price of the book all by themselves. He understands the power of the German Army and identifies them as the best army in the field during WWII. The author perceptively points out a few German divisions gave the allies fits in Africa and Italy and affirms that without the Soviet Union England and the US could not have defeated Hitler. Mr. Hastings peppers his writings with these blunt insights which helps us understand the decisions of the time better than most books which relate the arguments but not the unvarnished truth that was being confronted.An excellent and nearly flawless book.AD23 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A tour de forceBy DennisHere we find Churchill charging onto the stage of world history with an incredible energy for one his age; taming the British Politic to harness the nation to stand against Adolph Hitler. It is focused on Churchill's point of view and what he did about it but without the varnash that comes with so many of his biographies. He made glaring mistakes of sending more forces to France after Dunkirk; of sending two battleships into battle in the South China Sea without adequate carrier protection and within the range of Japanese bombers; he sent in four divisions to help Greece to hold against the Germans and lost Greece and Crete to boot for his effort; and playing a loosing war against Rommel until El Alamein.But the things he did right saved western civilization from a new dark age. It is a familiar story; yet different in it's complexity; coherence and sweeping narrative; of a man that carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. Max Hastings is quite simply a marvelous military historian at the peak of his powers.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Different perspectives on Churchill's war record.By Jeffrey N. LutzI've read several Churchill biographies (with the best; by far; being Manchester's 3-volume "Last Lion"). This relatively quick and interesting read; gives the American reader two surprising perspectives: (1) After a masterful period of 1939-41 where Britain would not have survived without him; Churchill bumbled his way through the rest of the war; a true meddler that got in the way of effective British strategy and operations; and (2) FDR really didn't like Churchill. He put up with him early in the war; but basically pushed him away after 1942 and never listened to him again. Hastings is British and uses the personal diaries and papers of numerous members of the British government and military establishment as his original sources. A very good addition to any WWII and/or Churchill collection.
