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Title: Zimmermann Telegram by Barbara Tuchman ISBN: 0-345-32425-0 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 01 March, 1985 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.58 (19 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A golden nugget of history
Comment: I've first learned of the Zimmermann Telegram from "The Code Book" by Simon Singh (highly recommended itself), and looked for more information on the story; Barbara Tuchman's "The Zimmerman Telegram" filled in the details job splendidly. The buildup is suspenseful, the characters are colorfully drawn, and the settings are well detailed. Tuchman skillfully puts the reader in the minds of those involved, allowing you to understand their mindset and identify with their emotions. This is indeed much closer to a mystery novel than to a regular history book, and it is a better read for it.
There are a few small things I felt that marred full enjoyment. These are minor issues indeed, but worth noting. The first is that while most of the book reads as a Novel, as I've mentioned above, in a few occasions it feels as though you can feel Tuchman's voice herself giving her personal opinion (as an historian) on characters in the story. This is not a problem in and of itself, but it doesn't fit with the general mood of the book, so it seems out of place. Another point is that a few important issues were not sufficiently detailed (at least in my view): For instance, the agreement between the US and Germany about the surfacing of submarines is only hinted at, but it itself is never mentioned, which seems important, because the book skips between the conditions that existed before and after the agreement, and this can cause confusion at times. Or, as another example, one of the biggest questions (again, to me) that is hardly touched is why Zimmerman confirmed he sent the telegram after it was made public - surely this was the action that made war impossible to avoid.
All in all, however, these small issues do not diminish the book in any great manner, and it still remains a superb account of one of the most pivotal, yet little known events of the 20th century. Highly recommended!
Rating: 5
Summary: Better than a Bond story!
Comment: This book is history at its very best. Tuchman has brought to life an amazing story of espionage and deceit that reads like an Ian Fleming novel. Her fluid writing style keeps you turning the pages. Although the outcome is known, the reader still finds themselves asking what will happen.
The book covers Germany's pre-war intrigues in Mexico, and then once the war starts, follows the agents sent to America to keep us out of the war. She discusses how German spies plotted to take over munitions factories and stop the flow of war goods to the Allies...and how they nearly succeeded. The story also discusses how Wilson was tormented by the decision to bring America into the war, and how he really did wish peace for the world. Yet, when confronted with the Zimmerman Telegram, which offered Mexico the reacquisition of Texas, Arizona and New Mexico, Wilson was left with no choice but war.
It is incredible at how a blunder by one German official was able to bring the world's most powerful nation into the fold against them. Yet that stays with the theme of WW I, and the Zimmerman Telegram may have been the biggest blunder of the war. Thanks to Barbara Tuchman, we know how it all came to pass.
Rating: 2
Summary: Re: D.G.
Comment: "Pacifist Woodrow Wilson?" Please refer to Walter Karp's exhaustively researched, "The Politics of War" regarding Wilson's machinations toward war. Pacifist... Ha!
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Title: The Guns of August by Barbara W. Tuchman ISBN: 034538623X Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 01 April, 1994 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: The Proud Tower: A Portrait of the World Before the War 1890-1914 by Barbara W. Tuchman ISBN: 0345405013 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 01 September, 1996 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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Title: Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-45 by Barbara W. Tuchman ISBN: 0802138527 Publisher: Grove Press Pub. Date: 07 October, 2001 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
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Title: Bible and Sword : England and Palestine from the Bronze Age to Balfour by BARBARA W. TUCHMAN ISBN: 0345314271 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 12 February, 1984 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam by Barbara W. Tuchman ISBN: 0345308239 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 01 February, 1992 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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