The Longest Year

June 1, 2015
A clearly delineated thesis that examines the decisive battles in turning back the Axis powers of World War II. Using comparative examples of the Union-won battles that shattered the Confederacy in 1864, Brooks (Education and Counseling/Villanova Univ.; Hell Is Upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific, 2005, etc.) finds in the long months of 1944 the important battles that would eventually defeat the Germans and the Japanese in turn, including the iconic Operation Overlord in Normandy and the equally important, less-well-known campaign of arduous Pacific island-hopping to dislodge the Japanese imperial army in the Marianas, Operation Forager. As a historian who delights in relaying his research and expertise, Brooks unravels the story with accessible detail for lay readers so that his work feels less like a history lesson than a suspenseful drama. The squabbles among the top military high command-a wonderful clash of brash male personalities, including that of the president himself-eventually gave way to some sound decisions. In discrete, tidy chapters Brooks takes one chronological portion of the "longest year" and breaks it down: the January attack on "the soft underbelly of Europe" via the Italian beaches at Anzio and Nettuno; the beginning destruction of the German aircraft industry and control of the skies in preparation for Operation Overlord over the "Big Week" of aerial dogfights in February; the "invasion" of the Yanks in Britain in preparation for Overlord and the massive launch in June; and the hugely costly campaigns on the Pacific islands of Saipan, Tinian, and Guam, which were met by the stunning surge of suicidal imperial warriors. While the taking of Paris and "redemption" at Leyte, Philippines, crowned the year, the Germans and Japanese proved they were still not down for the count. A seasoned historian delivers a fluently readable history.

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August 1, 2015
As 1943 drew to a close, the possibility of the Allies bringing WWII to an end loomed large. But which slogan would prove to be true: End the War in '44, Home Alive in '45, or The Golden Gate in '48 ? While 1944 was expected to deal a major blow to Germany, as Brooks details in this bird's-eye account, the war against Japan in the Pacific remained problematic. Brooks, who has written two other books on the war, blends the personalities of those devising the strategy and the plans they put together to produce a cohesive view of how military tactics evolve, battle by battle. With occasional nods to the experience on the home front, and a distinctly American viewpoint, The Longest Year will interest both WWII buffs, with its descriptive blow-by-blow approach, and newcomers to the topic, with its clear-cut context. Although Brooks can repeat minor points or overindulge in comparisons to previous wars, this account offers an accessible review of a decisive year for a world at war.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)