The story of World War I is brought to life through the gripping personal narratives of those at the center of the storm. World War I was waged by young people from twenty-eight countries in an era without the advantages of military "embeds," satellite phones, and streaming media coverage. Intimate Voices from the First World War fills in the gaps in the history of the world's first global confrontation with excerpts from recently uncovered letters and diaries of those on the front lines and their friends at home. In their reflections on the vastness of the enterprise of war, these combatants, victims, and eyewitnesses re-create the scope of the conflict with immediacy and tenderness. Written with the frankness and intimacy of words not intended for public eyes -- full of private passions, prejudices, humor, and vivid insights -- these communiqués speak to us directly from within the war itself and from all sides of the conflict. These marvelous historical narratives not only immerse readers in an ongoing dialogue about the meaning of human conflict but also serve as reminders of the individual perspectives and beliefs that sometimes get overlooked during times of global strife.

An intimate narrative history of World War I told through the stories of twenty men and women from around the globe--a powerful, illuminating, heart-rending picture of what the war was really like. In this masterful book, renowned historian Peter Englund describes this epoch-defining event by weaving together accounts of the average man or woman who experienced it. Drawing on the diaries, journals, and letters of twenty individuals from Belgium, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Venezuela, and the United States, Englund’s collection of these varied perspectives describes not a course of events but "a world of feeling." Composed in short chapters that move between the home front and the front lines, The Beauty and Sorrow brings to life these twenty particular people and lets them speak for all who were shaped in some way by the War, but whose voices have remained unheard.

Peter Hart draws on decades of his work with British World War One veterans, offering an immersive and humane account of the Great War.

A second edition of this book is now available. In a compact but comprehensive and clear narrative, this book explores the First World War from a genuinely global perspective. Putting a human face on the war, William Kelleher Storey brings to life individual decisions and experiences as well as environmental and technological factors such as food, geography, manpower, and weapons. Without neglecting traditional themes, the author's deft interweaving of the role of environment and technology enriches our understanding of the social, political, and military history of the war, not only in Europe, but throughout the world.

The course of events of the Great War has been told many times, spurred by an endless desire to understand 'the war to end all wars'. However, this book moves beyond military narrative to offer a much fuller analysis of of the conflict's strategic, political, economic, social and cultural impact. Starting with the context and origins of the war, including assasination, misunderstanding and differing national war aims, it then covers the treacherous course of the conflict and its social consequences for both soldiers and civilians, for science and technology, for national politics and for pan-European revolution. The war left a long-term legacy for victors and vanquished alike. It created new frontiers, changed the balance of power and influenced the arts, national memory and political thought. The reach of this acount is global, showing how a conflict among European powers came to involve their colonial empires, and embraced Japan, China, the Ottoman Empire, Latin America and the United States.

"One day I was walking with my friend Lazar Djukic, and I remarked that Ferdinand was coming soon [and] that it would be nice to prepare a warm welcome for him. In our language that meant assassination... Lazo simply said, -It can be done if someone wants it.' Up to that point the conversation was a bit of a joke but now my mind was set. All I needed was a gun." --from the prison diary of Vaso Cubrilovic, a member of a group of Serbian assassins who succeeded in killing Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, sparking WWI How do you tell the history of a war in which over nine million combatants and five million civilians from 28 countries died by bullet, fire, hunger, and disease? How to describe the scale of an event that ignited two revolutions, toppled four monarchies, decimated a generation and culminated in political changes that cast shadows to this day? Departing radically from traditional histories, Intimate Voices from the First World War tells the story of WWI on a personal and human scale. Through the private letters and diaries of soldiers, children, teens, wives, lovers, doctors, survivors, and victims --accounts unearthed during research for a worldwide 10-part television series--a compelling narrative takes shape that follows the war from beginning to end. Each chapter illuminates a crucial episode of WWI from multiple viewpoints. A starving Polish woman and a disgruntled Austrian officer tell of a long and brutal siege. Two Colonial soldiers--one Canadian and one African--send candid dispatches home from the Western Front. Two children--one German, one French-- live through the horrors of occupation, both in adolescent angst. The voices of a German school girl, an American nurse, a black South African laborer, and soldiers from every nation rise to form a chorus of compassion, hatred, hope, and grief. The result is a searingly honest and intimate look at "the war to end all wars."

From the author of the international bestseller Zlata’s Diary comes a haunting testament to how war’s brutality affects the lives of young people Zlata Filipovic’s diary of her harrowing war experiences in the Balkans, published in 1993, made her a globally recognized spokesperson for children affected by military conflict. In Stolen Voices, she and co-editor Melanie Challenger have gathered fifteen diaries of young people coping with war, from World War I to the struggle in Iraq that continues today. Profoundly affecting testimonies of shattered youth and the gritty particulars of war in the tradition of Anne Frank, this extraordinary collection— the first of its kind—is sure to leave a lasting impression on young and old readers alike.