This 3rd edition presents a concise overview of how the war was fought as well as a consideration of the ways in which Americans regarded allies and enemies, embraced heroes, and viewed the war's purpose. Making the important distinction between popular notions and military and political realities, Gary Hess helps today's readers to better understand the complexity of the conflict. Updated to incorporate the latest scholarship, this latest edition also includes new material to underscore more fully the moral dimensions of the war, including the American decision to use the atomic bomb, the…mehr
This 3rd edition presents a concise overview of how the war was fought as well as a consideration of the ways in which Americans regarded allies and enemies, embraced heroes, and viewed the war's purpose. Making the important distinction between popular notions and military and political realities, Gary Hess helps today's readers to better understand the complexity of the conflict. Updated to incorporate the latest scholarship, this latest edition also includes new material to underscore more fully the moral dimensions of the war, including the American decision to use the atomic bomb, the ruthless campaigns of both the Germans and Russians in Eastern Europe, American reaction to the Holocaust as well as the government's post-war tolerance and protection of Nazis deemed valuable to Cold War research and intelligence. Enhanced coverage of specific topics including the Bataan Death March, the Battle of the Bulge, and the Allied uncovering of concentration camps rounds out the narrative.
Gary R. Hess is an Emeritus Distinguished Research Professor of History at Bowling Green State University. His research and teaching interests focused on U.S. foreign relations from World War II to the present. He is the author of several books, including most recently: Presidential Decisions for War (rev. ed., 2009); and Vietnam: Explaining America's Lost War (2008). He has been a four-time Fulbright Scholar/Lecturer in India. He is a past president of both the Society for Historians of American Foreign Realtions and the Ohio Academy of History. Both organizations recognized his scholarly and service contributions through their Norman and Laura Graebner Award and Distinguished Historian Award, respectively.
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Preface to the Third Edition ix
Chapter One. To Pearl Harbor: The United States and WorldCrisis 1
The Arsenal of Democracy: The War in Europe 3
"Not Enough Ships": The Effort to Restrain Japan 8
Chapter Two. Allied Defeats and the Axis Ascendancy,1941-1942 20
The Nazi Empire at Its Peak 20
Japan's Imperial Conquests 24
Defeat and Surrender in the Philippines 25
Popular Perceptions and Expectations 34
Chapter Three. The War in Europe: The Turn of the Tide38
The Debate over Strategy 38
The North African Invasion 41
The Eastern Front: The Russian Victory at Stalingrad 45
The Battle of the Atlantic 49
The Air War: The Bombing of Germany 51
The Cross-Channel Invasion: D-Day 53
Chapter Four. The Pacific Theater: The War against Japan,1942-1945 59
"Our War": Characteristics and Popular Perceptions61
Midway: The End of Japan's Naval Invincibility 65
Guadalcanal: The First Offensive 69
The Island Campaign, 1943-1944 72
Iwo Jima and Okinawa 79
Japan 1945: The Refusal to Surrender 84
Chapter Five. The Diplomatic Front: Roosevelt and theAmerican Vision of the Postwar World 87
The United Nations 90
Soviet-American Cooperation 92
China's International Status 98
The End of Colonialism 102
Chapter Six. The Dilemmas of Victory 109
Victory in Europe and the Extent of Nazi Tyranny 110
"The Greatest Thing in History": The Atomic Bomb andJapan's Surrender 114
Hiroshima and Magasaki: The Lingering Questions 117
A People Victorious: America at the End of the War 125
