Described as a history of Europe from 1914 to 1949, this is actually a political and economic history of the two world wars in Europe; other aspects of European history are not discussed independently. Military details of the wars are not present. The various human actors are mentioned only as necessary, so Hitler's (of whom the author is a famous biographer) adult political activities are mentioned, but his various colleagues are mostly ignored. There is excellent and enlightening description of Lord Halifax, Neville Chamberlain and Hitler regarding meetings about the Sudetenland, but Churchill, for example, is not discussed in any detail. Consequently, the work is anecdote poor. The first eight chapters of the book are sequential. The book reads like it was well-outlined and is an excellent reference with interesting statistics. I liked the discussion of the economics of the 1920s by country; some myths are dispelled. The book was recommended to me by the author Lewis Weinstein after his initial exposure to Kershaw's analysis of the Spanish civil war. I have to admit that I find the Spanish civil war so confusing that I'm not sure I was enlightened much. The later chapters include interesting discussions of the relationship between the major Christian religions and the Nazis, country by country, the relationship between various famous intellectuals and the Nazis (including, for example, Arthur Koestler, Ezra Pound and Martin Heidegger), interesting statistics about the approximate number of deaths among all of the displaced people after the war, country by country, and interesting statistics about how each country dealt with collaborators and Nazi functionaries after the war. There are many other useful things here. I look forward to the second volume and I will let pass the author's absurd comment that Proust's epic novel was extraordinary "not least for its length". ( )

Mi s-a părut simultan prea superficială și pe repede înainte (să tratezi peste 30 de ani, în toate țările europene, în toate domeniile, de la economie la religie, politică, armată și istorie, în 600 pag, e clar nerealist), dar și prea încărcată (prea multă informație per pag) și, sincer, plictisitoare ca un manual.
Pe deasupra, Kershaw nu înțelege prea bine Estul și URSS-ul și manifestă, din perspectiva mea, o înțelegere prea mare față de caracterul criminal și imperialist al acestui stat.
Cât despre România, aproape toate referințele sunt greșite istoric sau chiar anti-românești... ( )

The book caught my attention for the sheer audacity of the subject matter: Europe covering the period that encompassed two world wars, the early Cold War and a rather eventful inter-war period. I am familiar with single-volume histories of each war, but to do justice to both - and everything in-between seemed an impossible task. It would not simply because of the writing and the need to condense key facts, but the immense volume of material that exists covering the period.

The outcome is impressive. [a:Ian Kershaw|30702|Ian Kershaw|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1612305000p2/30702.jpg] paints the narrative chapter by chapter advancing a few years at a time, sketching our the political developments, the views of the elite, of the ordinary people, economic and cultural developments. Inevitably the major powers get the most attention: Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Russia (or the Soviet Union), Italy and (while it lasted) Austria Hungary. But he also did a circuit of the other countries, picking out common themes and contrasts. The coverage was truly impressive.

Of course, something has to give. This was very broad-brush. There are no detailed accounts like you might find in his biographies of Hitler (e.g. [b:Hitler|22534749|Hitler|Ian Kershaw|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1410145141l/22534749._SY75_.jpg|3785163] ). Any detail of the military campaigns was largely eliminated as battles affecting hundreds of thousands of troops were covered in a half-sentence (such as the battles for Norway and France) or vanish entirely (such as the defence of Greece or the Allied operations after Normandy). This must be the only history of the period that does not mention Eisenhower, Montgomery or Rommel! Kershaw has chosen to put more emphasis on the privations of the civilian population: bombing, totalitarian control, famine, displacement and of course, deliberate mass murder - the genocide.

Controversies and mysteries are quickly dispensed with. There is no debate about the causes of the First World War - an answer is provided and he moves. This also proves a contrast to [b:Fateful Choices: Ten Decisions That Changed the World, 1940-1941|143614|Fateful Choices Ten Decisions That Changed the World, 1940-1941|Ian Kershaw|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1266481778l/143614._SY75_.jpg|2420378] where he deals with a series of key decisions in detail.

Gaps such as these are unavoidable given the scope of the task. The result, however, is a coherent narrative that does feel like a genuine European perspective that gives fair coverage across the board. ( )

A best of breed single-volume political history of Europe from WWI to the dawn of the Cold War. Ian Kershaw's judgments are, to this reader, sound, and his temperament judicious. He incorporates the best recent scholarship, makes judicious use of telling anecdotes, and employs an engaging style-- what a treat to spend time with a text this well crafted by a truly authoritative scholar.

A useful chapter covers developments among intellectuals and the changing role of established denominations but this is essentially a political history. Best to know that going in. You won't be disappointed. ( )

Es imposible comprender la segunda guerra mundial sin entender la primera y este es uno de los primeros libros que trata del contexto general de ambos conflicots y los une en un solo relato coherente que permite comprender mejor como la civilización europea llegó a tocar fondo entre 1939 y 1945. Como todo, no hay respuestas simples y Kershaw hace un gran trabajo desenredando la historia de este período. ( )