The Hitler Options: Alternate Decisions of World War II (Greenhill Military Paperbacks.)

Rating:
Summary: Several Plausible Cases For The Fuhrer's Victory
Review: Anyone who has studied World War Two no doubt knows just how close Hitler came to achieving his dream of world dominance. 'The Hitler Options' presents in detail how radically different the war could have turned out had Hitler or the Allies made alternate choices in the prosecution of the war. The questions that are posed are: What if the Moscow offensive succeeded? What if operation Sealion had taken place as planned? What if Churchill's fears about the U-boat menace were realized? This is truly a captivating look at what might have been.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but only as pure fiction.
Review: By the title of this review, I do not by any means imply that Hitler altered the future in a positive way. However, consider that in each case in this book, had he chosen a different path, the whole war not only may have been different, but may have ended differently. I have always advocated that one of the best ways to learn history is to first read the textbook then read an alternate history. This book fits that bill. If World War II is your particular field of study, or even wargaming World War II, you will find this book fascinating.

Rating:
Summary: One of the Better One's
Review: I have read a few other books that are along this same line of "What if" and I must say that this book has been the most enjoyable. The author / editor (in this case) has asked 10 military historians to work with him to take 10 parts of the war and work out what would have happened if some decisions by either the Axis or the Allies would have been different. The author gives us a good overview of the overall situation in he war at the time of the decision, and a very good case as to what would have happened if just one or two key decisions were different. This is a different handling of the subject then others have done, the normal for this type of book is to just take decisions that were made and completely change them for no regard for if that was even possible. Almost fitting the decision in so that the author can put together a nice fiction story.

What is so interesting is that this could have happened and in some cases almost did happen. The authors use the same players that were involved, the same weapons and resources. It is all put together in a very organized and believable way. The historical detail is well chosen and comprehensive, if you are a general reader this may be a bit much, but then again you probably would not pick this book up. The most interesting parts for me were the invasion of the UK, the changes to the Russian campaign and the change in the D-Day landing location. The author did a good job of completing out the scenarios to what very well may have happened. This is a well written and thought out book that is enjoyable and exciting to read.

Rating:
Summary: if only
Review: If only Hitler had been less orthodox in his military thinking, he might have made some of these decisions, instead of sticking to the bully boy political game of intimidation and blunt use of brutal force that were the hallmark of his bloody career.

In this book we some have well thought out scenerios for what might have been, and their immediate consequences both good and bad.

This book is a good pick for those who wish to look at how the decision making process works when it comes to war. Because history is not just what happened and how it happened, but all the options of what might have happened if different decisions had been made or other factors had come into play.

Rating:
Summary: if only
Review: If only Hitler had been less orthodox in his military thinking, he might have made some of these decisions, instead of sticking to the bully boy political game of intimidation and blunt use of brutal force that were the hallmark of his bloody career.

In this book we some have well thought out scenerios for what might have been, and their immediate consequences both good and bad.

This book is a good pick for those who wish to look at how the decision making process works when it comes to war. Because history is not just what happened and how it happened, but all the options of what might have happened if different decisions had been made or other factors had come into play.

Rating:
Summary: We are Manacled to a Corpse
Review: Pardon the cryptic title but I simply loved this phrase, proposed in one of the "alternate history" scenarios - supposedly the words an OKW General would use to persuade Adolf that German's alliance with Italy was more of a liability than an asset. This collection of speculative history essays verges from the mischevious to the eery. Could the "Southern Front" have rolled up the war one year earlier? What would the LAND Battle of Britain have looked like? There are maps. What if General Franco had joined the Axis? (Gibraltar would be lost, the pundits say, but then Britain would have wiped out the Spanish fleet and occupied the Balaeric Islands.) A fine, engaging work for anyone who enjoys pondering what might have been.

Rating:
Summary: Superior Speculative History
Review: The Hitler Options: Alternate Decisions of World War II, provides an entertaining and thought-provoking glimpse at some of the "might have beens" surrounding the more questionable decisions made by the German High Command during the Second World War. A variety of scenarios are examined, including the much-ballyhooed Operation Sealion, a Mediterranean strategy that could have been decisive, more tightly focussed options during Operation Barbarrosa, and several others.

What makes this book particularly appealing is the approach taken by the author. Kenneth Macksey is a master at providing sufficient detail to satisfy the historically inclined, while maintaining a literary style that is easy for the casual reader to digest. Granted, in certain situations his attention to detail may approach the overwhelming, but he pulls up just in time to keep the story flowing, blurring the line between historical conjecture and plain fun reading.

Much to the author's credit, he takes his various scenarios through to a plausible conclusion, avoiding the tendency of other writers in this genre to leave the reader dangling with only a spate of unanswered questions. At the same time, Mr Macksey takes pains to point out that each of these endings is only one of a near-infinite number of possible results, albeit the most likely one.

Those intrigued by the many vagueries of history in general and the Second World War in particular will never cease to wonder what might have been if only slightly different paths had been taken at critical junctions of the conflict. The Hitler Options provides a number of plausible, entertaining and very satisfying final destinations for those never-trodden paths.

Rating:
Summary: Superior Speculative History
Review: The Hitler Options: Alternate Decisions of World War II, provides an entertaining and thought-provoking glimpse at some of the "might have beens" surrounding the more questionable decisions made by the German High Command during the Second World War. A variety of scenarios are examined, including the much-ballyhooed Operation Sealion, a Mediterranean strategy that could have been decisive, more tightly focussed options during Operation Barbarrosa, and several others.

What makes this book particularly appealing is the approach taken by the author. Kenneth Macksey is a master at providing sufficient detail to satisfy the historically inclined, while maintaining a literary style that is easy for the casual reader to digest. Granted, in certain situations his attention to detail may approach the overwhelming, but he pulls up just in time to keep the story flowing, blurring the line between historical conjecture and plain fun reading.

Much to the author's credit, he takes his various scenarios through to a plausible conclusion, avoiding the tendency of other writers in this genre to leave the reader dangling with only a spate of unanswered questions. At the same time, Mr Macksey takes pains to point out that each of these endings is only one of a near-infinite number of possible results, albeit the most likely one.

Those intrigued by the many vagueries of history in general and the Second World War in particular will never cease to wonder what might have been if only slightly different paths had been taken at critical junctions of the conflict. The Hitler Options provides a number of plausible, entertaining and very satisfying final destinations for those never-trodden paths.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing - for nitty-gritty military historians only
Review: This one sticks to practical factors to produce realistic "what ifs." A good read for someone who is interested in learning how key decisions can have great consequences.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but only as pure fiction.
Review: While this book is of a moderate value for entertainment purposes, I didn't see anything here that was 'revolutionary' in thought. Some 'what if' situations are so fanciful that they border on science fiction.

One chapter discusses what if the Germans had concentrated on taking Moscow instead of advancing along the entire front. Well, what if? Even if Moscow had fallen, the war on the eastern front still would have progressed pretty much like it did. Russia would never had given up simply because Moscow was in German hands. If anything, it would have caused them to fight harder.

An allied invasion into Germany through the Mediterranean instead of in Normandy? Fantasy. First, we attempted this on a small scale (anybody hear of Anzio?) Had the fighting in Italy gone at all well, they would have been marching on Vienna in no time. But the terrain and logistical situation was so poor for successful operations along that approach. Second, hundreds of thousands of men and support equipment would have had to be shipped into North African ports. There weren't sufficient port facilities available in all of Africa to handle the amount of men and material which would have had to flow into the Mediterranean. Attacking through southern France and/or through Greece would have been futile not only because of the severe strain on supplies this would cause (the Allies had enough problems advancing supplies just from Normandy to Paris) but also because advancing troops would have had to fight through very mountainous terrain on their way to Germany. Not even in 1945 with overwhelming superiority in men and material were the Russians able to advance even ten miles against opposition in this terrain.

And the scenario where the Germans succeed in building a nuclear device is so laughable that the author might have well put in a chapter where Martians intervened on behalf of the Germans and used their death rays to reverse the Allies' advances.

And yet another situation suggested massive carpet bombing of all German cities could have won the war by forcing surrender. This is just laughable. The allies had declared any surrender would be unconditional and this was unacceptable to the Germans, thus forcing them into no other option but to fight to the last.

Had the author even included a few reasonable scenarios (such as the allies accepting Germany's conditional surrender in which case they just might have surrendered) this book might have had some value. As it exists, it is only good for a few laughs.