Q&A · 3:33:34-3:34:59

Reading military history without accepting every interpretation

A qualified response to Allies at War leads to a comparison with a biography whose portrayal of General Thomas strikes another reader as excessively favorable.

Question

Have you read Tim Bouverie's Allies at War, and what do you think of it?

Short answer

Interesting and informative, with disagreement over parts of its interpretation.

Notes

Alex Clarke gives a qualified response to Tim Bouverie's Allies at War: he found interesting information and an interesting interpretation while disagreeing with parts of it. He stresses that a historian's assessment can depend on perspective. A separate participant draws a comparison with a biography of General Thomas from the American Civil War. That reader objects to a portrayal in which Thomas is always right and neglected while the other leading figures receive hostile treatment.