The Last Empire: The Final Days of the Soviet Union

Serhii Plokhy (Get this book)
Plokhy investigates the collapse of the Soviet Union, revealing the often brutal political chess game within the Kremlin that ended in President George H. W. Bush's address of the end of the Cold War on Christmas, 1991. Drawing from unreleased presidential material, confidential foreign memos, and declassified documents, Plokhy largely discounts Reagan's get-tough policy as a cause. He credits Mikhail Gorbachev's embrace of Glasnost and electoral democracy in 1987 with loosening the grip of the party apparatus and rigidly controlled media, opening government matters to widespread public criticism despite fears of the Soviet military. This account is one of a rare breed: a well-balanced, unbiased book written on the fall of Soviet Union that emphasizes expert research and analysis.--Publisher's Weekly

Neptune: The Allied Invasion of Europe and the D-Day Landings

Craig L. Symonds (Get this book)
A fine D-Day study both technical and humanitarian. Symonds portrays the American generals as childishly overeager for a European invasion, while the Britons remained prudent and restrained; indeed, American inexperience emerged in the first trying months of the Tunisian campaign. As the plans for a cross-Channel combined operation were assembled, Symonds reviews the staggering requirements in shipping alone--e.g., the building of key landing craft, cargo ships and Higgins boats to transport the materiel and men. He also examines the troop preparation of 1 million Americans spread across bucolic southern England in his suspenseful buildup to D-Day--a graspable, moving spectacle of men and machinery. A work that manages to be both succinct and comprehensive in scope.--Kirkus

The 40s: The Story of a Decade

Finder, Henry (Editor), Harvey, Giles (With), Remnick, David  (Introduction by) (Get this book)
Make room on the bookshelf. The New Yorker's look at 1940s history, culture, literature and civilization is a book to be read, reread and savored. Divided into seven sections--The War, American Scenes, Postwar, Character Studies, The Critics, Poetry and Fiction--this book shows how founder Harold Ross (1892-1951) could single out the most important aspects of history and culture--and not just of New York, but of the country. Readers are certain to enjoy the beautiful writing, clever thinking and insightful thoughts across a vast range of topics. An absolute treat. Hopefully, the New Yorker will continue to publish such anthologies on other decades.--Kirkus

American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution

Walter R. Borneman (Get this book)
An extremely detailed, opinionated account of events in 1775 Massachusetts ending two months after the famous skirmishes in the June Battle of Bunker Hill. By that spring, American colonists had spent the previous 10 years fending off Britain's attempts to recover the ruinous costs of the French and Indian War, writes popular historian Borneman. The author accepts their time-honored protest against taxation without representation but admits that Americans paid less in taxes than Britons and had benefited greatly from the recent victory. Ironically, 150 years of Britain's benign neglect had resulted in 13 largely self-governing colonies that were disinclined to change. Although Kevin Phillips (1775) and Nathaniel Philbrick (Bunker Hill) have recently trod the same ground, Borneman adds a first-rate contribution.--Kirkus

John Quincy Adams: American Visionary

Fred Kaplan (Get this book)
In this elegant study, Kaplan portrays our sixth president as a deeply literary man, devout husband, orator, diplomat and teacher who had grand plans for the country's future, including the building of national infrastructure and the abolition of slavery. Indeed, John Quincy Adams was concerned about America's loss of innocence in its rapid expansion and growing distance from its foundational ideals. A prodigious, gifted writer, he worried about "the internal health of the nation," with the squabbling between the Republicans and Federalists during the contested presidential elections, the addition of slave states to the union and the War of 1812, which had revealed the country's evolution into "a parcel of petty tribes at perpetual war with one another." Like his father, Quincy Adams was Harvard-educated, a lawyer and inculcated to answering the call of his country, despite his own wishes. Kaplan ably navigates his subject's life, showing us "a president about whom most Americans know very little." A lofty work that may propel readers back to Quincy Adams' own ardent writings.--Kirkus

Reagan at Reykjavik: Forty-Eight Hours That Ended the Cold War

Ken Adelman (Get this book)
Adelman pulls back the curtain on the dramatic weekend in October 1986 when Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev met in Reykjavik, Iceland, to discuss matters at a sort of presummit meeting. In this firsthand account, Adelman draws on the extensive public record of the event to deliver a comprehensive look at the larger-than-life figures, divisive issues, monumental breakthroughs, and frustrating stalemates, which in his opinion led this to be "the weekend that ended the Cold War." Adelman's style is quick, accessible, and occasionally humorous, giving this tale an almost whimsical feel despite its world-changing subject. Whether or not his thesis is true, this is certainly a uniquely close-range look at a Cold War turning point.--Publisher's Weekly

The Burning Shore: How Hitler's U-Boats Brought World War II to America

Ed Offley (Get this book)
An authoritative work on the awful, early effectiveness of German U-boats in disrupting shipping traffic off the east coast of the United States. Having written previously on the Battle of the Atlantic, military reporter Offley focuses on a short, early period of World War II--in particular, one lethally effective U-boat that caused massive devastation along the rich hunting ground of the North Carolina coast. Offley brings up the other factors that came into play for the U.S. Navy, such as the breaking of the Enigma code, interservice rivalry, taking advice from the more seasoned British, and garnering the necessary higher-level support for a convoy escort system and more effective patrol bombers. A knowledgeable overview and exciting re-creation of the final U-701 attack and defeat.--Kirkus

Bending Adversity: Japan and the Art of Survival

David Pilling (Get this book)
A sweeping view of contemporary Japan portrays its complexities and potential for change. In his first book, Financial Times Asia editor Pilling draws on scores of interviews to investigate Japan's culture, politics, economics and social life as it tries to recover from a severe economic downturn that began in 1990. The author celebrates Japan's "social cohesion, a sense of tradition and politeness, a dedication to excellence and relative equality," but he acknowledges a counter view--that Japan is "an unredeemably xenophobic, misogynist society, hierarchical, shut off from new ideas, and unable to square up to its own history." The author's articulate and diverse interviewees--scholars and teenagers, housewives and politicians--vividly and passionately testify to Japan's cultural contradictions, ambitions and strategies for survival.--Kirkus

The Gods of Olympus: A History

Barbara Graziosi (Get this book)
In The Gods of Olympus, Barbara Graziosi directs her expertise to a more general audience, following the 12 gods and goddesses of the classical Greek pantheon from their first appearances in antiquity through our continuing modern awareness of them. Her writing is accessible and entertaining, her passion for her subject obvious; The Gods of Olympus will equally thrill longtime lovers of the classics, and appeal to readers seeking a friendly, engaging introduction.--Shelf Awareness