Battlefields (2001)

Battlefields of the Second World War is what every Richard Holmes fan has been waiting for. In this fascinating and brilliantly articulated study of the Second World War, he clarifies the complexities of four of its campaigns: El Alamein, Monte Cassino, Operation Market Garden (of which Arnhem formed a crucial part) and the RAF's bomber offensive against Germany. The book originates in his firm conviction that the sacrifices made by British services personal are not properly understood. It uses eyewitness accounts to illuminate the horror, confusion and sheer enormity of war, and puts this in the context of the conflict's broader strategy. As the twentieth century, so deeply marked by war, slips away, this is the time to recognize the price so many of its men and women paid for freedom.