The Historical Atlas of World War II (Historical Atlas Series)
This is one of the better atlases of WWII. The book is large at 13 in. by 10 in. and the color maps are large and easy to read. The maps are laid out chronologically from before the war to after the war. There is a running dialog which follows the maps, explaining briefly the events of the war. There is a Table of Contents and a Map list which will greatly help you find the map you're after. There are good photos, some full page which will add to your experience. In addition to maps there are graphic illustrations that depict certain conditions or statistics before and during the war. There is a graphic on industrial production, mobilization numbers, casualties etc. Though the maps are good and have good eye appeal, I prefer greater terrain details. Having more cities, towns and villages would help greatly for example when you are reading other books and you're trying to follow on your atlas. There would be many times you couldn't because the details are missing. Because rivers are so important in battle and much discussion is made in books, the rivers in your atlas should be named also. There are only few named in this atlas. There are no woods or swamps depicted either but they played an important part in battle. The troop movements in this atlas are not as exacting as they should be. This atlas is good and should satisfy all but the most demanding. --By Dave SchranckWhen I'm reading books about WW2, I use this atlas as a crucial companion resource. I'm currently reading two books for the first time, "American Caesar", William Manchester's classic of Douglas MacArthur in the Pacific theatre and "When Titans Clashed", David Glantz's account of how the Red Army stopped Hitler. Without this atlas, I wouldn't be able to fully comprehend or appreciate the true breadth and scope of these crucial events in the Pacific and Eastern Front. This oversize atlas, 13x10 in., has huge color maps that chronologically spotlight major battles and campaigns, while charting detailed troop movements,etc. A brief narrative presents an overview and describes the significance of each campaign and battle. There are a few photos, maybe one every other page, but it's the maps and graphics that are outstanding. I never fully appreciated MacArthurs strategy in the Philippines until I studied these maps. How could he possibly defend a coastline the size of the United States? By referencing the maps and narrative in the atlas, I could better visualize the strategy and timeline behind events surrounding Operation Barbarossa, Stalingrad, Leningrad and truly appreciate the enormity of causalities suffered on the Eastern Front and how crucial the Eastern Front was to allied success. For military purists, this atlas lacks some rivers, towns and terrain, but for the average person wishing to better comprehend events during WW2, this is a wonderful atlas --By R. Perry -I have found this atlas to be a very useful reference in my readings. While there are a few 1/2 or 1/4 page size maps, the majority of them are full page and in a book of this size they show a good amount of detail of the opposing armies fronts, troop movements and so on. My readings on WWII cover all theaters, and not having more than a basic knowledge of world gepgraphy it was sometimes hard for me to visualize or understand some of these campaigns or battles - having no point of reference to the names of the towns, cities or locations involved. This atlas helps me understand in greater detail the vast scope of the battlegrounds and campaigns in the Pacific, CBI, China, et al - showing the offenses, counter-offensives and helping me grasp a bit of the startegies. I just finished reading David Glantz's excellent "When Titan Clashed" and this atlas proved itself as an invaluable reference tool. Glantz's book is very detailed and this atlas has very good coverage of the German thrust of Operation Barbarossa and the major battles around Leningrad, Kharkov, Kursk and Stalingrad. It was especially usefaul covering the 1943 Soviet Winter Offensive which stretched the width of Russia from the Baltic to the Black Seas. It had overview maps of the entire front plus maps detailing the individual fronts such as the Ukraine, the Caucasus' and northern Russia and around Leningrad and the Karelian Front. I have the hardcover edition and it was worth the few extra $$. It is a huge, heavy sturdy book and the pages are printed on heavy stock paper for durability. The maps are all full colored and the different army groups, armies, divisions and so on involved are labeled with clearly defined arrows showing their movements. It is laid out in chronological order. It begins with the European layout right after WWI and the first 20 or so pages are devoted to the politcal make-up and alliances, the Depression in Germany and the rise of facism and into the invasion of Poland. There are a couple of interesting chapters at the end detailing some statistics of the combatants, such as manpower and troops mobilized, casualties and industrial production. As good as this atlas is it does miss out in not including or naming some of the topograhic and geographic details that were critical to some of the battles and campaigns, particularly the cities and towns and the rivers that needed to be crossed, or sometimes were the goals and end points of some of the offenses. --By Kirk D. Skorzak--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.