War of the Worlds

An important book, a cobra that wants to transform its reader into a mongoose, a literary departure, a political act. It’s actually a novel, the main characters of which are tank divisions, electronic sensors, political leaders caught up in the flow of events, and, protagonist and antagonist, NATO and the Warsaw Pact.

Set in the summer of 1985, and written by a committee of British military experts headed by the formidable General Sir John Hackett, former Commander-in-Chief of the British Army of the Rhine and Deputy Chief of the General Staff, it’s one of those books you can’t put down. (It’s a best-seller in England.) At the mention of a novel by a committee, the heart sinks, but these people manage to bring it off. Being educated Englishmen, they can write. Standing at the top of their profession, they speak with authority and authenticity.

An important book, a cobra that wants to transform its reader into a mongoose, a literary departure, a political act. It’s actually a novel, the main characters of which are tank divisions, electronic sensors, political leaders caught up in the flow of events, and, protagonist and antagonist, NATO and the Warsaw Pact.

Set in the summer of 1985, and written by a committee of British military experts headed by the formidable General Sir John Hackett, former Commander-in-Chief of the British Army of the Rhine and Deputy Chief of the General Staff, it’s one of those books you can’t put down. (It’s a best-seller in England.) At the mention of a novel by a committee, the heart sinks, but these people manage to bring it off. Being educated Englishmen, they can write. Standing at the top of their profession, they speak with authority and authenticity.