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Cold War: For Forty-five Years the World Held its Breath
£12.90£14.20 (-9%)
Cold War is the story of the half-century since the end of the Second World War – the story of our lives. Its framework is the confrontation, military and ideological, between two great powers that dominated the world during these years. It is a story of crises and conflict on a global scale: from the Berlin Blockade and the Cuban Missile Crisis, to the tanks in the streets of Warsaw, Budapest and Prague, to spies, student riots and encounters in space.
In Cold War, Jeremy Isaacs and Taylor Downing record epic history through the detail of individual human experience: the recollections not only of statesmen whose decisions led to these momentous events, but also of the ordinary men and women whose lives were bound up in these years of conflict. Cold War is the first comprehensive history for the general reader to benefit from the recent opening of Soviet, East European and Chinese archives as well as formerly classified American documents. In a driving narrative that it both gripping and informative, the true story of the Cold War can at last be told.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Abacus (7 Aug. 2008) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 560 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 0349120803 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0349120805 |
| Dimensions | 12.7 x 3.56 x 20.32 cm |
by Seb B
I initially purchased this book as reading material to help me in my AS History course which is about US intervention in Asia (Korea/Vietnam), I have read both chapters regarding these areas and I have continued into the other chapters of the book as well due to my general interest on the Cold War topic.
Pros:
– Very well written, isn’t too slanted towards one side as I have seen with various American documentaries and books regarding Vietnam and Korea.
– Flows nicely and covers the entirety of the Cold War.
– Easy to pick up and read, I read the Korea and Vietnam chapters first but I had no trouble jumping backwards afterwards and reading up on the 1945-1955 era.
Cons:
– Rather shallow in some points, in the sense that it doesn’t delve very deep into the points and events mentioned, sometimes even skipping it out or just referencing it in a single sentence. The Korea chapter wasn’t too bad for this but I felt the Vietnam chapter should’ve been a lot longer. It did a good job of the early events leading up to the war but it missed out the Nixon administration altogether and missed a huge gap out regarding the events leading up to the end of the war. I know I perhaps should have bought a book spefically about Vietnam but I have plenty of those already. All in all, just be prepared to do some research of your own in you wish to know more.
Still a great book though, would highly recommended 4/5
by markr
This book provides a splendid one volume introduction to modern history post World War II, with particular reference to the United States and the former Soviet Union. The book is very readable and enjoyable. The events are arranged chronologically and explained clearly by the authors in this book which was written as an accompaniment to a 24 part TV series.
This would be perfect for general readers who know something of the cold war and who would like an enjoyable and well described overview of its causes and events.
However, it does not provided detailed analysis and there is little in the way of judgement, even with hindsight, of the actions of the world leaders and systems which led to the armed stand off in Europe, the proxy wars in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and the nuclear arms race which could have annihilated us all but, mercifully, didn’t. The events are described and the narrative moves on quickly – but perhaps lacks a little depth at times.
Nonetheless this is a good read, with an excellent bibliography to stimulate further reading
by walter bradshaw
good
by Leah Rayment
Good book for my course work, arrived very quickly.
by Michael
Highly recommended indeed! This is such a well written book, expertly dealing with overlapping events. A really enjoyable read on a fascinating subject.
by obiwan_9000
Documenting over 40 years of history as complex as the Cold War was never going to be easy but credit goes to Jeremy Isaac in trying to replicate the magic he made with World At War. The book is essentially an accompaniment to the 24 part TV program of the same name that was aired on CNN. You can catch these programs as they can be found on YouTube. I throughly recommend you read a chapter than watch the accompanying TV episode. The reason to do this is because the TV episodes will cover areas in more detail than the book. The book only quotes small passages of people who were at center stage of events folding while the TV program will give these people more time to explain what they saw or did.
If you want to know detailed knowledge on the Cuban Missile Crises, Berlin Wall, Korean War, Vietnam and other Cold War events than this is not the book but if you want an overview of what, why and how things happened during those 40 years than this is an excellent introduction….or you could watch it all on YouTube.
The conclusion is excellent and overall it is fair judge of history.
by Glen, Belfast
This book is fascinating. I have studied much about history & world politics over last 40+ years, but this book outlined much I was unaware of, and was also a valuable revision. An unnerving insight into some world leaders, and their complete inhumane disregard for the lives of millions.
Read this book.
by Naomi
The book arrived in fairly good time, in immaculate condition. For an A2 History student this book is exceptionally helpful. It provides deep analysis of events that student books tend to neglect, information is easy to digest and it is well written. Definitely a recommended purchase for either recreational or educational purposes.