Winds of War and War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk

I enjoyed both books, but they're not just strictly about the war. Both books focus on a fictional naval officer, Pug Henry, and his family. They include the stories of Pug's three children and their war experiences and romances.

Winds of War starts before WWII (mid/late '30s) and ends after Pearl Harbor, but before Midway (IIRC). War and Remembrance picks up where the first book ended and goes through the end of WWII.

Through his various commands and assignments, Pug ends up meeting FDR, Stalin, Hitler, Churchill and most everyone else of significance at the time. But it's all done in way that is plausible and not too far fetched.

I say "Yay" to both of them.

Thanks guys. I went ahead and ordered them both off of Amazon after reading the free sample. It drew me in immediately. A big fan of GOOD, captivating storytelling that spans time.

quote:

---

Between the two books, he covers almost ten years. They provide a very broad military and political background to almost the entire war - ETO, Pacific, Eastern Front, Holocaust.

---

This.

I enjoyed the two-book series. Both sweeping historical novels from different points of view.

My favorite was Caine Mutiny. First rate characterization and story telling.

Do yourself a favor, and start that series yesterday!! And when you finish, go read The Caine Mutiny, and when you finish that, go read The Hope and The Glory (two separate books done much like Winds and Remembrance but detailing the birth of Israel as a nation and its survival into modern times). Wouk is a master of weaving fiction in and out of real events. Great stuff.

Great books, especially the second one. I have read them both and highly recommend them to you. My dad spent WWII on the Intrepid fighting in the Pacific. He was entertained by a number of novels set during WWII, "Catch-22" and "From Here to Eternity" for example. He told me that although these were fun reads, they were not realistic. They treated the war as though it were one big party. He was moved by "War and Remembrance". He said that if you really want to know what things were like, read that book.

quote:

---

Those that have read them both

---

Yay! With enthusiasm. Outstanding slices of historical fiction.

Herman Wouk - CBS Sunday Morning

quote:

---

A Happy belated Birthday to novelist Herman Wouk, who turned 102 on May 22, 2017. He's the Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Caine Mutiny, The Winds of War, and War and Remembrance, among others. His latest latest book is an autobiographical memoir entitled Sailor and Fiddler: Reflections of a 100-Year-Old Author, published in 2016. Though reclusive, the Pulitzer Prize-winner invited correspondent Tracy Smith to his Palm Springs home, and talked about a career conjuring fiction from real life.

---

I only read War and Remembrance and it was very good; as was Caine Mutiny.
Can you believe that Herman Wouk is still alive? Over 100!