The American Heritage History of World War I

By: S. L. A. Marshall

Narrated by: Bernard Mayes

Length: 19 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Drawing on a lifetime of military experience, Brigadier General S. L. A. Marshall, "one of our most distinguished military writers" (New York Times), delivers this unflinching history of the war that was supposed to end all wars. From the perspective of more than half a century, Marshall examines the blunders and complacency that turned what everyone thought would be a brief campaign and an easy victory into a relentless four-year slaughter that left 10 million dead and 20 million wounded.

As the war raged on, more efficient methods of war-making were devised: the flamethrower and poison gas were added to the world’s arsenals, tanks replaced cavalry, air combat and submarine warfare came into their own. And at the end, the exhausted combatants signed the Treaty of Versailles, which laid the groundwork for the dictatorships that would plunge the next generation into another world war.

S. L. A. Marshall (1900-1977) was an accomplished journalist, a war correspondent, and a historian. One of the preeminent American military writers of our time, he wrote more than 30 books.

©1964 American Heritage, a division of Forbes, Inc. (P)1991 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Far and away the best, most concise, and clearest one-volume history of the war to end all wars." ( Denver Post)

"Not only does this book offer readers a valuable overview of this momentous period in time, but it is also a riveting book to read." ( Large Print Reviews)

Good basic information

What did you like best about The American Heritage History of World War I? What did you like least?

Some minutia slowed the progress

Who was your favorite character and why?

Best part was the drama created by the steamrolling Germans from the first few years of the war,with questionable ristance from the allies.

Do you think The American Heritage History of World War I needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No. A condensed version(this one was 15 discs) would really be a much easier read.

WW1 from American point of view

For the past year and a half I have been reading every thing I can find about WW1, biographies, non-fiction, text books and fiction. I have even read the poetry written and the songs written for WW1. This book is from the American point of view. It covers the items leading up to the war, the war both land and sea and the negotiation of the armistice. Marshall mention Sargent York but no information of his actions. He covered the battle at Belleau Woods in over view but did not mention of medal of honor winners. The battles fought by the U.S. were covered but the book slowed down a bit when he covered items such as the number of cans of spam that were eaten. It is helpful to read books covering different view points of the same information. Bernard Mayes did a good job narrating the book. Enjoyed his deep baritone voice.