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Classic Stories of World War II
A collection of the greatest stories ever written about World War II.
World War II brought grief and destruction, but it also inspired some of the most impassioned literature in history. Classic Stories of World War II includes excerpts from novels such as James Jones’s From Here to Eternity and Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 , as well as real-life accounts of the Battle of Britain by Guy Gibson and the exploits of the French Resistance by Nancy Wake. More than a dozen riveting stories of the war from esteemed authors are featured, providing the reader with a rich variety of perspectives that will bring a new understanding of this global conflict.
World War II brought grief and destruction, but it also inspired some of the most impassioned literature in history. Classic Stories of World War II includes excerpts from novels such as James Jones’s From Here to Eternity and Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 , as well as real-life accounts of the Battle of Britain by Guy Gibson and the exploits of the French Resistance by Nancy Wake. More than a dozen riveting stories of the war from esteemed authors are featured, providing the reader with a rich variety of perspectives that will bring a new understanding of this global conflict.
256 pages, Paperback
Published May 8, 2018
7 people are currently reading
147 people want to read
About the author
John Steinbeck
1,041 books26.5k followersJohn Ernst Steinbeck was an American writer. He won the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social perception". He has been called "a giant of American letters."
During his writing career, he authored 33 books, with one book coauthored alongside Edward F. Ricketts, including 16 novels, six non-fiction books, and two collections of short stories. He is widely known for the comic novels Tortilla Flat (1935) and Cannery Row (1945), the multi-generation epic East of Eden (1952), and the novellas The Red Pony (1933) and Of Mice and Men (1937). The Pulitzer Prize–winning The Grapes of Wrath (1939) is considered Steinbeck's masterpiece and part of the American literary canon. By the 75th anniversary of its publishing date, it had sold 14 million copies.
Most of Steinbeck's work is set in central California, particularly in the Salinas Valley and the California Coast Ranges region. His works frequently explored the themes of fate and injustice, especially as applied to downtrodden or everyman protagonists.
During his writing career, he authored 33 books, with one book coauthored alongside Edward F. Ricketts, including 16 novels, six non-fiction books, and two collections of short stories. He is widely known for the comic novels Tortilla Flat (1935) and Cannery Row (1945), the multi-generation epic East of Eden (1952), and the novellas The Red Pony (1933) and Of Mice and Men (1937). The Pulitzer Prize–winning The Grapes of Wrath (1939) is considered Steinbeck's masterpiece and part of the American literary canon. By the 75th anniversary of its publishing date, it had sold 14 million copies.
Most of Steinbeck's work is set in central California, particularly in the Salinas Valley and the California Coast Ranges region. His works frequently explored the themes of fate and injustice, especially as applied to downtrodden or everyman protagonists.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 7, 2018
This was hit and miss for me. Some of the stories were fast-paced, intriguing, action-packed, and informative. Some of the others dragged. It took me a while to finish this book because of those in-between chapters that were just hard to get through. And those tended to be the longest ones!
For the most part, I liked the chapters they picked to add to this compilation. Most were like short stories w/in their novels and I was actually able to get to know a few of the characters in the one chapter I had from each novel they were picked from.
For the most part, I liked the chapters they picked to add to this compilation. Most were like short stories w/in their novels and I was actually able to get to know a few of the characters in the one chapter I had from each novel they were picked from.
December 12, 2018
Some very good reads.
Found it relatively easy to get through.
Some interesting stories and perspectives, not all these stories came from Allied protagonists which was both refreshing and jarring.
Especially like ones that talked more of the after effects of war on the mind and the people. As always, feel very reflective after reading such stories.
May look up some of the books these excerpts were taken from, good pickings.
Found it relatively easy to get through.
Some interesting stories and perspectives, not all these stories came from Allied protagonists which was both refreshing and jarring.
Especially like ones that talked more of the after effects of war on the mind and the people. As always, feel very reflective after reading such stories.
May look up some of the books these excerpts were taken from, good pickings.
January 1, 2020
It took a lot of time for me to finish this book. Some of the stories were really interesting and made me want to read the original books they were taken from. But there were also a few stories that were just too boring and which made me stop reading for a while. There was one I couldn't even finish. And some of them ended in the middle of the story, which I didn't quite like.
June 11, 2023
basically a collection of highlighted chapters of some of the famous novels on world war 2. i was thrilled to get a glimpse of catch-22 which is in my wish list
September 9, 2025
Similar to other some of the stories were great, others I struggled to stay on track with! Beautiful book though!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews