{"product_id":"the-battle-of-the-atlantic-9780241972106","title":"The Battle of the Atlantic","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e''Majestic. Truly gripping'' Andrew Roberts\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Battle of the Atlantic was the single most important - and longest - campaign of the Second World War. If Britain lost this vital supply route it lost the war. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn Jonathan Dimbleby''s brilliant and dramatic new account we see how this epic struggle for maritime mastery played out, from the politicians and admirals to the men on and under the sea and their families waiting at home. Filled with haunting and hair-raising stories of chases, ambushes, sinkings, stalkings, disasters and rescues, \u003ci\u003eThe Battle of the Atlantic\u003c\/i\u003e is a monumental work of history as it was lived and fought.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e''Recounts the horror and humanity of life on those perilous oceans'' \u003ci\u003eIndependent\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e''Dimbleby moves with skill from scene to scene, eavesdropping on the great statesmen like Churchill, the merchant seamen who carried out their orders, the U-boat commanders who tried to sink them and the families of those who lost the\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis is\u003cb\u003e an exceptionally vivid account \u003c\/b\u003eof one of the critical campaigns of the Second World War by\u003cb\u003e a masterly writer\u003c\/b\u003e -- Max Hastings\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWinston Churchill famously described the Battle of the Atlantic as 'a war of groping and drowning, a war of ambuscade and stratagem, a war of science and seamanship' and \u003cb\u003eno book depicts all of those myriad aspects better than Jonathan Dimbleby's majestic overview.\u003c\/b\u003e His judgments can sometimes be harsh and are \u003cb\u003ebound to be controversial\u003c\/b\u003e, but they are backed up with wide reading, diligent scholarship and cogent argument. \u003cb\u003eThis is a truly gripping account\u003c\/b\u003e of a campaign that the author rightly puts epicentral to the Allied victory in the Second World War.\u003c\/p\u003e * Andrew Roberts, author of 'Masters and Commanders' *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA fascinating \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003estory written with bite and grip of one of the most crucial showdowns of  the twentieth century\u003c\/b\u003e - of a victory wrung out of the unforgiving Atlantic swell by sailors and airmen using the best technology and Intelligence that those on land could provide. How close-run it was and the price of losing would have been catastrophe, defeat and darkness.\u003cb\u003e Compelling\u003c\/b\u003e -- Lord Peter Hennessy, author of 'The Silent Deep'\u003cbr\u003eJonathan Dimbleby's second volume on the Second World War is \u003cb\u003eeven better than its predecessor\u003c\/b\u003e. \u003ci\u003eThe Battle of the Atlantic\u003c\/i\u003e is a gripping account of the Allies' hard-won victory at sea. Dimbleby has delivered\u003cb\u003e a masterful narrative that challenges many of the received views about this often overlooked conflict\u003c\/b\u003e that foretold the defeat of Nazism. -- Amanda Foreman\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eExcellent on the characters of individual commanders . . . But perhaps the book's greatest strength is its analysis of the strategic side of the battle.\u003c\/b\u003e Regularly switching from vivid coverage of individual encounters at sea, the narrative reveals the intense discussions that took place at the highest levels to decide naval policy, especially among Churchill, Roosevelt and their military advisers. It is [the] \u003cb\u003econtroversial assertion, backed by solid research and a readable style, that makes this book so compelling.\u003c\/b\u003e -- Leo McKinstry * Wall Street Journal *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eStarred review.\u003c\/b\u003e \"A gripping history overflowing with anecdotes and enough calamity, misery, explosions, and individual valor for a Hollywood disaster epic.\" * Kirkus *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA gripping read and a great contribution to the history of the Second World War.\u003c\/b\u003e The author realizes his immense ambition of bringing out the human aspects of the drama at every level, from the heads of state to the crews in the Atlantic, while also bringing important nuances to received views on the struggle against the U-boats, and, indeed, on Churchill's war leadership. \u003cb\u003eAn epic account\u003c\/b\u003e. * Peter Padfield, author of 'War Beneath the Sea: Submarine Conflict 1939-1945', and biographies of Dönitz, Himmler and Hess *\u003cbr\u003eIn this refreshing book Jonathan Dimbleby\u003cb\u003e skilfully weaves together front line accounts and high policy discussions\u003c\/b\u003e to provide a gripping and accessible new account of the \u003cb\u003emost important campaign of the Second World War\u003c\/b\u003e against Germany. * Professor Eric Grove, author of 'The Royal Navy since 1815' *\u003cbr\u003eThe epic Battle of the Atlantic can only really be understood when set against the strategic context of the time. This \u003cb\u003ehighly engaging history\u003c\/b\u003e does this by combining gripping accounts of the tactics and operational fortunes of the Germans and the Allies in this bitterest of battles with \u003cb\u003ean authoritative review of the strategic thinking\u003c\/b\u003e that helps explain their motives and their responses at the highest national level, and that shows why victory was so important for both sides. * Professor Geoff Till, author of 'The Development of British Naval Thinking' *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eDimbleby makes a convincing case that of all the campaigns of WWII, the struggle for dominance over the North Atlantic was the most important\u003c\/b\u003e . . . The history of the battle for the Atlantic is well documented, but Dimbleby's work, with its emphasis on the strategic importance of the battle, is an excellent addition to the story, and \u003cb\u003eexpert historians as well as general readers can enjoy this effort\u003c\/b\u003e * Publishers Weekly *\u003cbr\u003eDimbleby's\u003cb\u003e incisive, gripping narrative uniquely places the campaign in the context of the entire war \u003c\/b\u003eas it recounts the\u003cb\u003e horror and humanity\u003c\/b\u003e of life on those perilous oceans. -- Richard Blackmore * The Independent *\u003cbr\u003eThe strength of the book is its \u003cb\u003evivid evocation of dramatic events\u003c\/b\u003e -- Robert Tombs * The Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Battle of the Atlantic\u003c\/i\u003e is \u003cb\u003ea wonderfully readable mix of vivid personal stories\u003c\/b\u003e and the penetrating questions that you wish someone had put to Churchill -- Bronwen Maddox, Editor-in-Chief of Prospect Magazine\u003cbr\u003eDimbleby captures the savagery of the fighting and of the sea itself... he has\u003cb\u003e tackled the complexities in a very accessible way\u003c\/b\u003e; but more importantly he has \u003cb\u003ewoven a compelling narrative\u003c\/b\u003e of the people who fought, directed and ultimately decided our fate -- Admiral Lord West\u003cbr\u003eI liked Jonathan Dimbleby's \u003ci\u003eThe Battle of the Atlantic\u003c\/i\u003e and was gobsmacked to learn that the Germans read British radio messages much better than we read theirs. Air Ministry obstinacy (in failing to release aircraft from futile area bombing for anti-submarine patrols) nearly cost Britain the war -- Matt Ridley * Books of the Year 2015 *\u003cbr\u003eFascinating * Richard and Judy *\u003cbr\u003eI am chilled to the bone and beyond ... \u003cb\u003ethe most extraordinary story ... absolutely fascinating\u003c\/b\u003e -- Vanessa Feltz\u003cbr\u003eAn \u003cb\u003eaccessible and anecdotal\u003c\/b\u003e account of the battle and the men who waged it,\u003cb\u003e full of colour and surprising detail\u003c\/b\u003e -- Charlotte Heathcote * Daily Express *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFascinating, thought-provoking and entertaining.\u003c\/b\u003e Explodes a number of self-serving myths * Andrew Roberts (on 'Destiny in the Desert: The Road to El Alamein') *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFresh\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003eand\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003eprovocative\u003c\/b\u003e * Peter Snow (on 'Destiny in the Desert') *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA wonderfully incisive, superbly written history.\u003c\/b\u003e What Dimbleby has nailed so brilliantly is what so many war historians miss: the big picture * Saul David (on 'Destiny in the Desert') *","brand":"Penguin Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48733407019351,"sku":"9780241972106","price":11.69,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780241972106.jpg?v=1720000009","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-battle-of-the-atlantic-9780241972106","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}