The War in the Trenches

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8-After a quick overview, Armistice discusses the negotiations in the peace process, the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, and the antiwar efforts of the League of Nations. Grant also explains how the punitive conditions in the peace treaty and the failure of world leaders and the League to enforce the peace led directly to World War II. Trenches reviews the causes and opening days of the war, followed by chapters that detail the main events and battles, and describes the miserable, dangerous conditions in the trenches. In both titles, the narratives are supplemented by sidebars that offer information about civilian and military leaders and excerpts from primary-source materials. Although these books are objective and clearly written, their brevity limits background and analysis about the reasons for the war, the horrors of combat, and the troubled aftermath of the conflict. That weakness, however, is partially offset by the quantity and quality of the illustrative material. Almost every page has a high-quality, effective map, photo, or reproduction of period art. Good supplemental purchases for libraries that need multiple titles for report writers.-Mary Mueller, Rolla Junior High School, MO Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.