Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #169219 in Books
• Published on: 1986-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 447 pages

Customer Reviews

A Splendid Little History of a Splendid Little War
I found this to be a well-written and very readable history of what was called at the time "a splendid little war". For Americans, the Spanish-American war of 1898 was both `splendid' in that it ended in an easy American victory and `little' because it lasted less than 4 months. In 400 pages, the author describes the events leading up to the war, the war itself, and some of its consequences. Much of this description is done with the use of anecdotes that provide insight into the personalities of the people involved and a sense of the atmosphere of the times. For me, this made the story interesting and put a human face on history.
Although I am not an expert on this period in history, it seems to me that the author has done his research very well. He covers the military and political aspects of the war from the perspectives of the American, Spanish, Cuban and other nations. He presents the human side by describing the feelings of ordinary people involved in the war. He also recounts the important role that the press played in these events. And he does all this in an even-handed manner.
This is not a dry, scholarly work of history. The author does a good job of conveying the mood of the times and making the story relevant to the average person. For those who are very knowledgeable about the Spanish-American war, it may not be comprehensive enough. But for those, like me, who are unfamiliar with this episode in American history, this book provides an excellent and unbiased overview of the events and I would highly recommend it.

Epic war?
se trata nada menos que de glorificar una traicionera guerra de conquista, en la que la union americana a fines del siglo XIX agradecio a la España inmortal la ayuda prestada durante su lucha de independencia, asi los modernos barcos de la u.s. navy, con sus estructiuras de acero y gigantescos cañones y ah! si ebrios marineros, aplastaron a la orgullosa pero decrepita marina española, la cual no obstante obedecio a sus mejores tradiciones; se trata de otro conflicto emprendido por nuestros vecinbos del norte, en contra de los cuales en la actualidad no tengo nada, con el solo animo de conquistar territorios a costa de un viejo y cansado amigo, lo mismo sucedio con México, asi en 1898 en la isla expañola de Guam, en las marianas, llego de visita un barcio yankee de guerra, a los dos dias partio, con los saludos de la popblacion y autoridades españolas locales, pero al dia siguiente regreso con las bocas de sus cañones destapadas y en son de guerra, lo cual no fue advertido por los isleños, lo mismo paso en Veracruz en abril de 1914, aclaro, como ya lo dije que en la actualidad no tengo nada en contra de nuestros primos del norte y que me encantan todos los Bush, padre, hijo, hermano y la mama de estos que es toda una Señora, JFK es un icono en mi vida y he sido Reaganiano, vaya hasta Nixon me caia bien!!!

A Great Book!
John Hay called it a "splendid little war". One would be hard pressed to find very many average Americans who could recall even the most basic facts of that war, much less any of the major events or issues. G. J. A. O'Toole, in his book The Spanish War: An American Epic 1898 brings the war, at least from the American point of view, to life in vivid detail.

In his acknowledgements O'Toole states that for decades the war was "no more than a colorful episode of the Ragtime Era" and a "matter of little historical consequence". He then declares that the intention of his work is to correct this notion. With The Spanish War, O'Toole clearly achieves his objective. For O'Toole the war was much more than John Hay's "splendid little war", it was a "national rite of passage, transforming a former colony into a world power". Drawing from a rich foundation of documents, letters, memoirs and other works, including primary sources from most of the major participants O'Toole provides a detailed and very readable narrative that succeeds in raising the reader's level of understanding of this truly momentous event.