The Schlieffen Plan: International Perspectives on the German Strategy for World War I, edited by Hans Ehlert, Gerhard Gross and Michael Epkenhans; English translation edited by retired Major General David T. Zabecki (University of Kentucky Press, 2014). This book is an exhaustive examination of the Schlieffen Plan, Germany’s blueprint for its opening war offensive. Its publication is both fitting and timely, as this year marks the 100th anniversary of the August 1914 start of World War I.
David T. Zabecki, who edited the English translation of the book, is chief historian for Weider History Group and a contributing author for Armchair General magazine. His numerous other works include Steel Wind, On the German Art of War: Truppenführung, and the superb two-volume Chief of Staff: The Principal Officers Behind History’s Great Commanders.
Alvin York: A New Biography of the Hero of the Argonne by Douglas V. Mastriano (University of Kentucky Press, 2014). Mastriano’s “must-read” biography of the U.S. Army’s greatest World War I hero is based on his extensive research in American and German archives and his meticulous examination of the Argonne Forest, where he discovered the site of Sergeant Alvin York’s famous October 18, 1918, combat exploits. (See Battlefield Detective, “Sergeant York Fought Here!” in the July 2007 issue of ACG.) In this masterfully written book, Mastriano separates fact from mythmaking to reveal York’s true wartime accomplishments and how his exemplary strength of character and profound dedication to his faith inspired his incredible courage against seemingly impossible odds.
Invasion Rabaul: The Epic Story of Lark Force, the Forgotten Garrison, January-July 1942 (Zenith Press, 2014); Fortress Rabaul: The Battle for the Southwest Pacific, January 1942-April 1943 (Zenith Press, 2013); and Target: Rabaul – The Allied Siege of Japan’s Most Infamous Stronghold, March 1943-August 1945 (Zenith Press, 2013) by Bruce Gamble. With the publication of this magnificent “Rabaul Trilogy,” former Navy flight officer Bruce Gamble has established himself in the foremost rank of Pacific War historians. In a compelling narrative that reads like an exciting novel, Gamble details “a history of World War II’s longest battle,” from the capture of Rabaul, New Britain, by the Japanese in January 1942, to its isolation, bombardment and final liberation by Allied forces in August 1945.
Originally published in the September 2014 issue of Armchair General.
