Engineers of Victory

The Problem Solvers Who Turned the Tide in the Second World War

By: Paul Kennedy

Narrated by: Stephen Hoye

Length: 16 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

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 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 Super fortress 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.

©2013 Paul Kennedy (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Blessed are the problem solvers

This is a wonderful review of the importance of organization, defined processes and a culture of encouragement in tackling big problems... well researched and organized for consumption, I enjoyed this book and highly recommend... cheers

Great overview of WWII.

A great read for the details between the creation of the technologies and middle management that lead to the successful
battles of WWII.

How WW2 was really won, and lost

A fascinating insight into the backroom boys, and sometimes girls, who turned the tide of the war and brought victory by intelligent and relentless application of overwhelming force, and the leaders who empowered and unleashed it. Fortunately the opposing sides were found lacking in several crucial qualities or the outcome may have been very different.

Less of a Gadget book, more a top level strategy

The title implies it focuses on individual inventions but the actual narrative is focused on the problems planners of the war faced and what innovations were created to overcome those problems as well as small asides to the gadget when there was an interesting story or something important to the overall theme of middle management working in tandem with overall command

Logistics, Not Strategy, Tactics, or Technology

A good overview of five major actions in the Second World War--but from the view of the logistical "problem solvers", not the big name generals. I expected, though, that Kennedy would be writing more on the technical problems, and the stories of how they were solved. Instead, Kennedy mentions the technical and strategic innovations and the problems they solved, without saying much about how those solutions were developed, or the technical details of how they worked. I will say that I feel better equipped to learn more about the War.

Dry

Dry, but some interesting points.
Would probably disagree about some of the blanket statements "strategic bombing worked".
Really like hearing about Ramsay and the "funnies".
Not as much tech content as I would've liked.

Another aspect of the Great Battles of WW2

What made the experience of listening to Engineers of Victory the most enjoyable?

A very clearly organized presentation of what went on behind the scenes to enable success to be achieved by the Allies. This narrative includes the many blunders that occurred along the way and most of all how luck played a major part in the final outcome.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Engineers of Victory?

The very detailed descriptions of the events leading up to the creation of the various weapons and the technology that gave the Allied Powers the tools needed to achieve the result.

What about Stephen Hoye’s performance did you like?

This was good. A clear and at times dramatic presentation of the story. Not at all boring while dealing with a number of unusual factors that are not highlighted by other historians

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

No particular part. Rather the entire story demonstrated how victory was achieved notwithstanding the many and different viewpoints about what should be done and where the resources should be concentrated. The jealousy between different services and the claims and counter claims were all brought into context with the overall strategy. The leaders at the time were far from perfect but their combined wisdom achieved the results where it counted most. A fantastic description of how the different views, hopes and desires of various Nations forming the Allied Coalition could actually agree on common goals and, as a result, get to the final victory.

Any additional comments?

Well worth a listen for anyone interested in the history of WW 2 who would like to explore behind the headlines about the detail of how it was all made possible. A great story and well worth a listen.

Excellent Work by an Excellent Author

I don’t understand the negative reviews. I’ve followed Paul Kennedy since first reading The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers 35 years ago. This book is not up to the level of that masterpiece, and is quite good. Having worked in logistics, civil engineering, project management, and for the DoD, I believe his narrative and analysis are beneficial and insightful. If you want to understand the global strategic challenges the US has faced, and faces today, read this and any other work by Paul Kennedy.

A Better Way of Getting Things Done

I am surprised at some of the reviews of this book. The definition of engineering can be "a calculated manipulation or direction" To me, the title does not suggest anything but what the author accomplishes in this book: a description and analysis of the major issues the allies had to overcome to achieve victory. It is not, as one reviewer mentioned, just another rehash of WW II.

I find that most wars and their component battles have been overly described (though I would except Rick Atkinson's from this). I can't even count the number of books describing the Battle of the Bulge and the Bastogne segment of it. I found this text to be a refreshing alternative to the typical descriptions. I suppose that you could just read it as another WW II book, but his description and analysis of the primary problems that the Allies had to find solutions to departs from the typical formula. As he says, the Germans didn't fail to try hard enough to win, but the Allies simply found "a better way of getting things done."

I also find that his frank and honest assessment of the uninspired, sometimes downright backward, thinking of the British and Americans almost brought about failure rather than victory.

I think that this book is an excellent read, and something different for anyone interested in the history of World War II.

Fails to deliver on promise

What disappointed you about Engineers of Victory?

About 10% of the book covers the announced theme - the contribution of mid level scientific, industrial, and military folks to allied victory. Another 20% could be a useful overview of the few selected campaigns.

What was most disappointing about Paul Kennedy’s story?

Unfortunately these useful nuggets are buried in a blizzard of factoids pulled from across the geographic and temporal spectrum both World Wars. The rest of the book is just fluff - the kind of B.S. or drivel used to fill up a third rate term paper.

Would you be willing to try another one of Stephen Hoye’s performances?

Stephen Hoye is one of my go-to narrators. Every word is pronounced and understandable; a bountiful joy of enunciation. As constructive criticism, his readings tend to be overly dramatic. The device is best used sparingly, reserved for passages deserving emphasis.

Any additional comments?

Paul Kennedy doubtless knows a lot of history. He is the kind of guy - high priced Yale Professor with big vocabulary - the Air Force might hire to lecture at the Air Command and Staff College for field grade officers. The book reads like he had brought two hours of material with him but had contracted to teach sixteen hours.