A brilliant combination of highly readable and scholarly PRECISELY. Hastings Makes the complications of the autumn of 1914 on the ground clear and understandable. He Gives due weight to the events in Serbia and Austro-Hungarian and Russian involvement - more usually eclipsed by writers concentrating on the Western front. His strength Purpose Most Valuable Is His lucid commentary on the weak and Weaknesses of the generals: he is quite dismissive of Sir John French goal Haig Gives better time - Wisely Reminding us que la biased interpretations of the war recieved by generations of late 20th and 21st century need not deposit if revision. It is an account qui will not be bettered.
