"NEW YORK TIMES "BESTSELLER
Paul Kennedy, award-winning author of "The Rise and Fall of the
Great Powers" and one of today's most renowned historians, now
provides a new and unique look at how World War II was won."
"Engineers of Victory"" is a fascinating nuts-and-bolts account of
the strategic factors that led to Allied victory. Kennedy reveals
how the leaders' grand strategy was carried out by the ordinary
soldiers, scientists, engineers, and businessmen responsible for
realizing their commanders' visions of success.
In January 1943, FDR and Churchill convened in Casablanca and
established the Allied objectives for the war: to defeat the Nazi
blitzkrieg; to control the Atlantic sea lanes and the air over
western and central Europe; to take the fight to the European
mainland; and to end Japan's imperialism. Astonishingly, a little
over a year later, these ambitious goals had nearly all been
accomplished. With riveting, tactical detail, " "Engineers of
Victory"" reveals how.
Kennedy recounts the inside stories of the invention of the cavity
magnetron, a miniature radar "as small as a soup plate," and the
Hedgehog, a multi-headed grenade launcher that allowed the Allies
to overcome the threat to their convoys crossing the Atlantic; the
critical decision by engineers to install a super-charged
Rolls-Royce engine in the P-51 Mustang, creating a fighter plane
more powerful than the Luftwaffe's; and the innovative use of
pontoon bridges (made from rafts strung together) to help Russian
troops cross rivers and elude the Nazi blitzkrieg. He takes readers
behind the scenes, unveiling exactly how thousands of individual
Allied planes and fighting ships were choreographed to collectively
pull off the invasion of Normandy, and illuminating how crew chiefs
perfected the high-flying and inaccessible B-29 Superfortress that
would drop the atomic bombs on Japan.
The story of World War II is often told as a grand narrative, as if
it were fought by supermen or decided by fate. Here Kennedy
uncovers the real heroes of the war, highlighting for the first
time the creative strategies, tactics, and organizational decisions
that made the lofty Allied objectives into a successful reality. In
an even more significant way, " "Engineers of Victory"" has another
claim to our attention, for it restores "the middle level of war"
to its rightful place in history.
Praise for "Engineers of Victory"
"Superbly written and carefully documented . . . indispensable
reading for anyone who seeks to understand how and why the Allies
won.""--The Christian Science Monitor"
" "
"An important contribution to our understanding of World War II .
. . Like an engineer who pries open a pocket watch to reveal its
inner mechanics, Paul] Kennedy tells how little-known men and women
at lower levels helped win the war."--Michael Beschloss, "The New
York Times Book Review"
"Histories of World War II tend to concentrate on the leaders and
generals at the top who make the big strategic decisions and on the
lowly grunts at the bottom. . . . "Engineers of Victory"] seeks to
fill this gap in the historiography of World War II and does so
triumphantly. . . . This book is a fine tribute."--"The Wall Street
Journal"
" "
" Kennedy] colorfully and convincingly illustrates the ingenuity
and persistence of a few men who made all the difference."--"The
Washington Post
"
"This superb book is Kennedy's best.""--Foreign Affairs"
"From the Hardcover edition."
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