Rating: 
Summary: Strong on chronology, weak on reasons
Review: (by E.M. Singer, author of "Mother Flies Hurricanes")This book lays out, in great detail and in chronological order, exactly what happened in those countries at war between 1939 and 1945. It's not so much a historical treatise as a diary of day-to-day happenings; the accounts skip all over the world--so it's like "Now while this was happening in England, this was going on in the Pacific, in Russia, in North Africa, in Germany, in the Nazi concentration camps, etc." Both the "Big Pictures" and the "Little Bits" are presented, from large-scale battles to the very personal stories: For instance, on the same day that the resistance fighters in the revolt of Warsaw were on the verge of collapse and desperately appealed to the Allies for aid, Anne Frank and her family, hiding out in Amsterdam, were betrayed to the Gestapo. For the most part, Martin Gilbert doesn't discuss cause and effect of the episodes and events he presents. To get the reasons and wherefores, you'd do better to pick some of the other books suggested in the "Best Books About WWII" section of the motherflieshurricanes.com website. I found Martin Gilberts' book a wonderful resource in threading the "history bits" through Mother Flies Hurricanes, as background to the story.
Rating: 
Summary: This is definitely an exhaustive history of World War II
Review: After playing the popular board game Axis and Allies, I went in search of a thorough explanation of the backdrop against which the game was set. After reading only the first few chapters, I knew that I had gotten my money's worth many times over. It is the story of the commanders well-known by name, the battles some of which are well-known, as well as the story of the victims. Indeed, this account reaffirmed that war is not just a game and should not be taken lightly.
Rating: 
Summary: a disappointment
Review: I started this book with high hopes. Martin Gilbert is a famous historian and has done much to educate the world about the holocaust. I also feel the idea of a strictly chronological blow-by-blow history of World War II is a promising premise. However, the book provides little more than a collection of facts arranged chronologically. There is absolutely no historical or political context--the invasion of Poland starts on page 1 and he never backtracks to fill it in. There is very little analysis, usually just a listing of what battles occurred each month and how many tanks, planes, and/or casualties on each side. Instead of forming an arresting narrative, it just becomes a mind-numbing list of events that are never tied together. The format could lend itself to a discussion of global strategy, being organized by time rather than region. However, this is never pursued. The only reason I would look at this book again is if I needed to reference it for facts or dates. A great deal of scholarship was clearly involved in assembling these and, as such, it might be a useful reference, but from such a book I would expect much more. Instead of reading this book, for a truly excellent history of WWII, read Weinberg's "A World at Arms".
Rating:
Summary: a disappointment
Review: I started this book with high hopes. Martin Gilbert is a famous historian and has done much to educate the world about the holocaust. I also feel the idea of a strictly chronological blow-by-blow history of World War II is a promising premise. However, the book provides little more than a collection of facts arranged chronologically. There is absolutely no historical or political context--the invasion of Poland starts on page 1 and he never backtracks to fill it in. There is very little analysis, usually just a listing of what battles occurred each month and how many tanks, planes, and/or casualties on each side. Instead of forming an arresting narrative, it just becomes a mind-numbing list of events that are never tied together. The format could lend itself to a discussion of global strategy, being organized by time rather than region. However, this is never pursued. The only reason I would look at this book again is if I needed to reference it for facts or dates. A great deal of scholarship was clearly involved in assembling these and, as such, it might be a useful reference, but from such a book I would expect much more. Instead of reading this book, for a truly excellent history of WWII, read Weinberg's "A World at Arms".
Rating: 
Summary: The Book of Numbers
Review: I started this book with hopes of seeing an over all picture of WWII from begining to end. What I got was hundreds of pages of 'this many dead from this campaign,' or 'these many dead from that concentration camp.' At first, I was digusted at the Nazi's murdering of Jews and POWs, but after a while, the numbers lost all meaning on me. What I wanted was a book that explained the war in better detail. Throwing tons of satistics at me is not in depth writing in my opinion. I didn't want: 'between September 1st and 13th, 13,000 Poles had died in combat.' I wanted a book that explained how the battles unfolded that resulted in those losses. The book does have its moments form time to time (which barely kept my interest in it as a whole), but more often than not, I found that I was forcing myself to read just so I could get that 'big picture' of the war this book never provides.
Rating:
Summary: The Book of Numbers
Review: I started this book with hopes of seeing an over all picture of WWII from begining to end. What I got was hundreds of pages of 'this many dead from this campaign,' or 'these many dead from that concentration camp.' At first, I was digusted at the Nazi's murdering of Jews and POWs, but after a while, the numbers lost all meaning on me. What I wanted was a book that explained the war in better detail. Throwing tons of satistics at me is not in depth writing in my opinion. I didn't want: 'between September 1st and 13th, 13,000 Poles had died in combat.' I wanted a book that explained how the battles unfolded that resulted in those losses. The book does have its moments form time to time (which barely kept my interest in it as a whole), but more often than not, I found that I was forcing myself to read just so I could get that 'big picture' of the war this book never provides.
Rating:
Summary: Good for people who have always wanted to know about WWII
Review: If you want to know the complete history of World War II, this is a great book. Although the book is long, it is easy to read because it is so interesting. Gilbert is a great author. I recommend this book for anyone who knows nothing about World War II, but has always wanted to
Rating:
Summary: Lack of big picture analysis makes book confusing
Review: In this book, Mr. Gilbert presents world war II as seen strictly through a magnifying glass. At first, the minute details of the battles and the German anti-semitic genocide are fascinating. But as the details built up, I began to wonder about the motives of the participants. Its interesting to know which soldiers protested the slaughter of the Jews, or who received an iron cross for which campaign. But in the end, I felt that I knew the wrinkles of every pea and potato thrown into this dish, without knowing if he was making stew or a roast. I wish that he had discussed the overarching strategies and motives of the combatants. I wish that he had discussed civilian's reactions to the war. I wish that he had discussed more of the social phenomenon of the war rather than just the movements and actions of the soldiers.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent one-volume history of man's greatest conflict.
Review: Martin Gilbert has really achieved something great in this book. He has captured the true horror of WW II, not only from the soldiers stand-point, but also from the view of the millions of civilians who lost their lives. He shows the world the true nature of Hitler's regime. His descriptions of major battles take up about a paragraph each. This is not good for the military historians, but it does show how battle fit into the larger story of genocide and a war against pure evil. All in all, a great read.
Rating:
Summary: Blood, Sweat and Tears
Review: Martin Gilbert is one of the foremost living authorities on the Second World War. This classic work represents the culmination and distillation of that expertise. Gilbert, a noted Churchillian, mixes a "just the facts" style with a profound sense of compassion for the war's victims, particularly those who died in the Holocaust. Gilbert, a British writer, is obviously stronger when dealing with the European theater, but unlike many Western writers he has a sure grasp of the Russian and Balkan campaigns - as well as the weird diplomatic manoeverings of such states as Hungary and Roumania. The accounts of the European front's last days are so good that Gilbert spun them into a separate tome, "The Day the War Ended." Interspersed with the Gotterdamerung of Hitler's bunker are bizarre details, such as the (neutral) Irish president's condolences to the German ambassador on the day after the Fuhrer's suicide, and the latecoming combatants who declared war in the last hours. For blazing-gun military history, try another author, but for the human and political history, Gilbert is matchless.
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