*Engineers of Victory*

The author is Paul Kennedy and the subtitle is The Problem Solvers who Turned the Tide in the Second World War.  This is an excellent look at the managerial and logistics side of the war.  My main regret — not really a criticism — is that the central role of economists was not given more attention.  Haven’t you wondered how it was possible that say the American role in the War was started and finished in less than five years’ time?  These days it can take that long to design, approve, and build a freeway interchange.

Here is a good review of the book.  Here is a useful NYT review.