World War II

World War II: The Essential Reference Guide provides a comprehensive overview of the major events, campaigns, battles, personalities, and issues of World War II, supplemented by a selection of primary documents. Comprising essays written by leading international scholars that introduce non-specialist readers to all the major theaters of the war, this volume covers the entire spanboth geographically and chronologicallyof this far-reaching conflict. A selection of official and personal documents convey the emotionally charged tenor of the period and the tremendous psychological impact of the war on those involved in it, both directly and indirectly. Examples range from a will written by a young Japanese university student who became a kamikaze pilot, to German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's description of the Battle of El Alamein, to memoirs penned by ordinary soldiers.