The Strategists, Phillips Payson OBrien
The Strategists, Phillips Payson OBrien
List: $27.50 | Sale: $19.25
Club: $13.75

The Strategists
Churchill, Stalin, Roosevelt, Mussolini, and Hitler--How War Made Them and How They Made War

Author: Phillips Payson O'Brien

Narrator: Justin Price

Unabridged: 18 hr 9 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 08/27/2024

Synopsis

Churchill. Hitler. Stalin. Mussolini. Roosevelt. Five of the most impactful leaders of WW2, each with their own individualistic and idiosyncratic approach to warfare. But if we want to understand their military strategy, we must first understand the strategist.

In The Strategists, Professor Phillips Payson O'Brien shows how the views these five leaders forged in WW1 are crucial to understanding how they fought WW2. For example, Churchill's experiences of facing the German Army in France in 1916 made him unwilling to send masses of British soldiers back there in the 1940s, while Hitler's mistakes on the Eastern Front were influenced by his reluctance to accept that conditions had changed since his own time fighting. The implications of the power of leaders remain with us to this day: to truly understand what is happening in Ukraine, for example, requires us to know what has influenced the leaders involved.

This is a history in which leaders—and their choices—matter. For better or worse.

About The Author

Phillips Payson O'Brien is a Professor of Strategic Studies at the University of St. Andrews in Fife, Scotland. Born and raised in Boston, he graduated from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, before working on Wall Street for two years. He earned a PhD in British and American politics and naval policy before being selected as Cambridge University's Mellon Research Fellow in American History, and a Drapers Research Fellow at Pembroke College. Formerly at the University of Glasgow, he moved to St. Andrews in 2016. O’Brien is the author of The Second Most Powerful Man in the World and How the War Was Won.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Urey on October 08, 2024

An interesting character study of the five leaders, but lacking depth and context. Certainly Hitler and Mussolini were flawed leaders – megalomaniacal, egotistical, and motivated by lifelong animosities and prejudices, and aspirational visions of personal grandeur. This did not make them strategists......more

Goodreads review by Chad on October 14, 2024

Phillips O’Brien’s “The Strategists: Churchill, Stalin, Roosevelt, Mussolini, and Hitler--How War Made Them and How They Made War” is a compelling exploration of the complex interplay between war and leadership. This book provides an in-depth analysis of how five of the most influential figures of t......more

Goodreads review by Alberto on January 15, 2025

This book highlights the big 5 leaders of world war 2 and how their previous service developed their leadership styles .......more

Goodreads review by Sweart on September 30, 2024

The way wars are fought, and even their outcomes, may come down to the personal quirks of a handful of people. That’s the thesis of this fascinating book, and the author makes a compelling case. Perhaps the Second World War was not typical in the way the leaders of the main European combatants were......more

Goodreads review by Melsene on February 17, 2025

This is a very long book that will give you a deep dive into the upbringing and history of these five WW2 strategists. I've read dozens and dozens of books on WW2 and this one offers a different view. Most of the leaders were plain stupid, made mistakes due to narcissistic personalities, particularl......more

Quotes

Praise for The Strategists

“Phillips Payson O’Brien is one of our finest historical thinkers. The Strategists shows him at the height of his powers: a book full of deep perception, convincingly challenging many entrenched views and examining these five leaders that so shaped the modern world in an entirely fresh, brilliantly insightful and utterly compelling way. Everyone with an interest in not just the Second World War, but the twentieth century and beyond, should read this without delay.” —James Holland, author of Normandy ’44

“The Strategists is an easy read…Thanks to the engaging nature of the subjects—and Mr. O’Brien’s care not to go too far down rabbit holes about weaponry, gulags, local politics and psychology—the narrative moves briskly. By linking decisions to identifiable personality traits, The Strategists provides insight into the minds of titans who vied for Europe’s destiny.” —Wall Street Journal

“An important look at the personal side of how World War II strategy was made.” —New York Journal of Books

"An exploration of grand strategy. Compelling." —Kirkus

“[A] captivating study. . . .  O’Brien’s fluid prose makes for enchanting reading; there’s never a dull moment . . . . For military history buffs, this is a must-read." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“The Strategists is a rewarding and robust historical and psychological approach to the grand strategists of World War II and the decisions they--and they alone--made for the world.” —Shelf Awareness

Add to Cart
Add to Wish List