Cassell, 2002, $14.95, ISBN 0-304-35984-X, 240 pages, paperback edition

Another in the Cassell History of Warfare series gets a paperback edition.

Like the others, The First World War offers an excellent overview of the war, complete with al the analysis you'd expect of trench-line slug fests.

Certainly the western front is well covered. The familiar Schlieffen plan gets rebuffed at the Marne, and almost four years go by in trench warfare. However, the analysis of why trench warfare set in and why existing tactics failed (Somme, Verdun, etc) display exceptional clarity. The development of German Stosstruppen tactics countered by Allied "bite and hold" tactics showed the stalemate in France could be broken.

The East Front of Russia and Romania receive a thorough examination and point up Germany's greatest successes, even after Austria-Hungary's defeats.

The South Front of Italy gets less attention, though it also offers a good seesaw battle at times.

Lesser known fronts, like that in the Middle East (Lawrence of Arabia), Balkans (Turkey and Greece), and Far East (Pacific) also receive some attention--just enough to provide the flavor of combat and strategy.

Again, this reads well, offers a concise overview, and punctuates the text with photos and maps. This too gets thumbs up.