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The Guns of August: The Outbreak of World War I; Barbara W. Tuchman's Great War Series

by Barbara W. Tuchman

The opening month of the First World War

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Paperback New English

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Awards & Recognition

  • Award recognition

    Pulitzer Prize winner

    Identified in the supplied metadata as a Pulitzer Prize-winning book.

  • Critical praise

    Praised by Newsweek as “a brilliant piece of military history”

    Newsweek calls it a brilliant piece of military history and quotes Winston Churchill's description of the first ...

AlbakiReads Editorial

The opening month of the First World War

Barbara W. Tuchman’s account concentrates on the thirty days of summer 1914 when the First World War began. It traces the events leading toward the outbreak, starting with the funeral of Edward VII, and follows the decisions and preparations of the opposing sides. The close time frame gives the book a defined scope: an examination of how the conflict took shape at its outset, with attention to the people involved and the wider consequences attributed to those first weeks. At 608 pages, this paperback offers a substantial historical narrative focused on the war’s opening rather than a survey of the entire conflict.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers seeking a detailed history of the First World War’s opening month.
  • Readers interested in the political and military developments leading to the war.
  • Readers looking for a focused account of the people and decisions surrounding the 1914 outbreak.

Themes

The outbreak of the First World WarPolitical and military decision-makingThe consequences of the war’s opening weeks

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

PULITZER PRIZE WINNER - "A brilliant piece of military history which proves up to the hilt the force of Winston Churchill's statement that the first month of World War I was 'a drama never surpassed.'"--Newsweek

Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best nonfiction books of all time

In this landmark account, renowned historian Barbara W. Tuchman re-creates the first month of World War I: thirty days in the summer of 1914 that determined the course of the conflict, the century, and ultimately our present world. Beginning with the funeral of Edward VII, Tuchman traces each step that led to the inevitable clash. And inevitable it was, with all sides plotting their war for a generation. Dizzyingly comprehensive and spectacularly portrayed with her famous talent for evoking the characters of the war's key players, Tuchman's magnum opus is a classic for the ages.

The Proud Tower, the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Guns of August, and The Zimmermann Telegram comprise Barbara W. Tuchman's classic histories of the First World War era
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