Superficial reading about World War II will inform one about some of the major battles; by digging a little deeper, one will be informed of all of the major battles. But one will not be informed about the whole of WW II unless one pursues books like this. The cover signals the type of book this is: it features a picture of a lone soldier, his collar turned up, holding his rifle on his right shoulder, motionless as he stares out at an empty expanse of water. This book tells us about the remote locations and events that describe the pervasiveness of this huge calamity humankind brought on itself. There are isolated heroics but mostly this is a description of utter boredom. Yet the lonesome soldier on the cover is every bit as much at war as were the invaders at Normandy. If one thinks they know the essentials of WW II, one owes to oneself to pursue a book like this and getting a broader view. ( )