Armchair Reader: World War II Extraordinary Facts and Stories

by Edward P. Moser, Robert Bullington, Armchair Reader

Even people who have studied World War II extensively will be captivated by the unique style and colorful slant of this collection of riverting articles. Take a front row seat and delve into the tales of astounding feats, unmatched heroism, unfathomable mistakes, and electrifying exploits of World War II. Uncover the facts behind Germany's big gun program, ending with a weapon that weighted 150 tons, was 50 yards long, and took over 100 men to load.

Genres: History, Military History, World War II, American History

515 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Edward Moser, is no talking head, but a historian and long-time author. A former speechwriter for the President of the United States, and an ex-Editor of Time-Life Books, he was also a writer for Jay Leno’s “The Tonight Show”. He is the author, co-author, or editor of 14 published books, on such subjects as history, politics, humor, and technology.

His latest is Femme Fatalité: A Lizzy Thorne Spy Novel--

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

His previous work is The Old Town Horror, Murder and Theft in America's Most Historic Locale--

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

His previous book, from Lyons Press, was The Lost Capitol, The Hidden and Tumultuous Saga of Congress and the Capitol Building--

https://www.amazon.com/Lost-History-C...

Another book of his, from McFarland, is The White House's Unruly Neighborhood: Crime, Scandal & Intrigue in the History of Lafayette Square:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...

A previous, on Presidents, politics, & history, is The Two-Term Jinx!--

(https://www.amazon.com/Two-Term-Jinx-...).

Turner Publishing Company published his work, A to Z of America--

http://www.amazon.com/Patriots-Americ..., a series of vignettes on famous events and personalities in U.S. history.

Ntm his satire Foundering Fathers--

http://www.amazon.com/Foundering-Fath...) spoofs today’s official Washington.

He also runs a popular tour of the White House and Lafayette Square areas of Washington, D.C.

https://www.meetup.com/washarea-disco...

https://www.facebook.com/LafayetteSqu....

Reviews

[Charlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book very much. It was a collection of articles/stories about WWII. The stories were relatively brief and interesting. Many history books bog you down with many details, these stories gave you the "meat" of the issues without getting you bogged down. I am familiar with many of the topics written about, but learned quite a bit. I will keep this book in my library.

[C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is a collection of about 40 or 50 short essays, written concisely that most of them wrap up within two to three pages. Topics of the essays vary greatly, almost giving me an element of surprise when I go from one essay to the next. As I finish the stories of the brave folks who risked their own lives to help hide Jewish refugees, I get a short essay on why Adolf Hitler feared the Freemasons; upon the end of the Freemasons piece, the editor presented me the facts on how much women workers contributed to the American war-time economy. Overall, the topics ranged from little-known trivia to popular tales, making the book a very fun read.

My full review is here:
http://ww2db.com/read.php?read_id=74

If you do not mind, I am going to wrap this up now; I am dying to find out how exactly Marvel superheroes Captain America and Wonder Woman participated in World War II.

[Jeremy Payne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Armchair Reader: World War II stands out as an unconventional yet intriguing history book. Instead of recounting a general overview of the important events in WWII, this book is an impressive collection of short stories about every aspect of WWII, such as the real River Kwai and Operation Mincemeat. Moser jumps from one fascinating story to another, making the book extremely hard to put down. Any reader vaguely interested in WWII could pick up this book and open to any page, and they would be hooked. Moser recounts the various stories in a way that is easy to understand yet detailed enough to convey what the real thing was like. This was a great book that can be read many times over
Rating: 9/10

[Micky Parise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book. Very interesting and full of facts and really informative. A hard to put down book. Easy reading and really holds your attention on the short stories. I thought I knew some things about World War II but this really lets you know what happened during this war. Recommend highly!

[Edward Moser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative, crisply written accounts of events like the firebombing of Dresden, Japan's offensives in China, Battle of the Bulge, friendly fire attacks, the USS Enterprise, the real River Kwai, Japanese-American internment camps, the critical role of animals in the war, and much more. Exciting history.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting book! My copy was a gift from my friend J.K. Kelley, who contributed several articles to this book.