Review of All Hell Let Loose

As someone with rather limited knowledge of the Second World War, I found Max Hastings' All Hell Let Loose to be a great entry point for a wannabe historian. Hastings skillfully weaves together the various threads of battle to create a cohesive and relatively easy-to-comprehend narrative of the war. Additionally, rather than focusing solely on the mindsets and decisions of important leaders, Hastings integrates everyday soldiers' and civilians' interviews and journal entries into his book, creating a vivid image of what these people experienced. The end result is a gripping narrative of the largest war humanity has ever seen. 

There are two main attributes that I think make this book a worthwhile read. One is Hastings' ability to contextualize the events efficiently; the other is his strong prose. For the first point, I think he effectively walks the tightrope of giving lots of historical and strategic context for major events of the war without losing the readers' interest. Additionally, he discusses events that are frequently glossed over in other works, such as the Japanese attacks on European colonies in Asia prior to the U.S. involvement in the Pacific, the actions of British colonial fighting forces, or the Bengal famine and Indian independence movement during the war. He also does a great job of exploring leaders' motivations and everyday soldiers' motivations and responses to leaders' actions. 

On the subject of his prose, I think Hasting effectively uses the modernist mantra of "Show, don't tell" to keep readers immersed in the text. For example, he may give little details on what opposing sides ate prior to a battle or what refugees packed with them while fleeing. One particularly ghastly example of his sharp prose and attention to detail is his narrative of the siege of Leningrad and the ensuing starvation of the civilian population. 

The only parts of the book that I found to be a bit of a slog, were the chapters describing naval battles and expeditions. This is due to these events being monotonous and impersonal compared to the drama of land battles more-so than a deficiency of writing ability from Hastings. 

Overall, I'm glad to have read the book, and I feel better informed. It's difficult to say that I enjoyed it, given its horrendous subject matter, but I find it an excellent book. I will now be on the lookout for other books from Hastings.