Tannenberg: Clash of Empires 1914

[Gyrene]

This book sat on my shelf for many years and I finally read it. It's definitely not for the amateur. The first few chapters where he discusses the political relationship between Russia and Germany is particularly heavy reading. I didn't know many of the political terms and had to look them up. The military aspects were easier for me to get through since I knew much of what he was talking about. However, even this part of the book is for the more advanced reader since he makes many references to Marlborough, Wellington, the American Civil War, World War II, and the like. The Russians didn't come across to me to be as inept as they are typically portrayed. I think this is one of those books that you read once and keep simply as a reference. I don't think I could slog through it again.