Book description
The conventional narrative of the Second World War is well known: after
six years of brutal fighting on land, sea and in the air, the Allied
Powers prevailed and the Nazi regime was defeated. But as in so many
things, the truth is somewhat different. Bringing a fresh eye to bear on
a story we think we know, Norman Davies. Davies forces us to look again
at those six years and to discard the usual narrative of Allied good
versus Nazi evil, reminding us that the war in Europe was dominated by
two evil monsters - Hitler and Stalin - whose fight for supremacy
consumed the best people in Germany and in the USSR . The outcome of the
war was at best ambiguous, the victory of the West was only partial, its
moral reputation severely tarnished and, for the greater part of the
continent of Europe, 'liberation' was only the beginning of more than
fifty years of totalitarian oppression. 'Davies writes with real
knowledge and passion.' Michael Burleigh, Evening Standard 'Punchy and
compelling' Noel Malcolm, Sunday Telegraph
Norman Davies is the bestselling and critically acclaimed author of
Europe: A History; The Isles: A History and Rising '44 . He is also
the author of the definitive history of Poland, God's Playground, and
several books on European history. He lives in Oxford and Krakow,
Poland.
