The Battle of the Atlantic

Author Jonathan Dimbleby
Narrator Jonathan Dimbleby
Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Publish Date 5 November 2015
Run Time 20 hours and 44 minutes
Format Audio
Genre Battles and campaigns, European history, Modern warfare, Second World War.

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What to expect

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable, audiobook edition of The Battle of the Atlantic, written and read by Jonathan Dimbleby.

The Battle of the Atlantic was - though often overlooked - crucial to victory in the Second World War. If the German U-boats had prevailed, the maritime artery across the Atlantic would have been severed. Mass hunger would have consumed Britain, and the Allied armies would have been prevented from joining in the invasion of Europe. There would have been no D-Day.

Through fascinating contemporary diaries and letters, from the leaders and from the sailors on all sides, Jonathan Dimbleby creates a thrilling narrative that uniquely places the campaign in the context of the entire Second World War. Challenging conventional wisdom on the use of intelligence and on Churchill's bombing campaign, The Battle of the Atlantic tells the epic story of the decisions that led to victory, and the horror and humanity of life on those perilous seas.

Critics Review

Winston Churchill famously described the Battle of the Atlantic as ‘a war of groping and drowning, a war of ambuscade and stratagem, a war of science and seamanship’ and no book depicts all of those myriad aspects better than Jonathan Dimbleby’s majestic overview. His judgments can sometimes be harsh and are bound to be controversial, but they are backed up with wide reading, diligent scholarship and cogent argument. This is a truly gripping account of a campaign that the author rightly puts epicentral to the Allied victory in the Second World War.

Andrew Roberts, author of 'Masters and Commanders'

Fascinating, thought-provoking and entertaining. Explodes a number of self-serving myths

Andrew Roberts (on 'Destiny in the Desert: The Road to El Alamein')

Fresh and provocative

Peter Snow (on 'Destiny in the Desert')

A wonderfully incisive, superbly written history. What Dimbleby has nailed so brilliantly is what so many war historians miss: the big picture

Saul David (on 'Destiny in the Desert')

The epic Battle of the Atlantic can only really be understood when set against the strategic context of the time. This highly engaging history does this by combining gripping accounts of the tactics and operational fortunes of the Germans and the Allies in this bitterest of battles with an authoritative review of the strategic thinking that helps explain their motives and their responses at the highest national level, and that shows why victory was so important for both sides.

Professor Geoff Till, author of 'The Development of British Naval Thinking'

In this refreshing book Jonathan Dimbleby skilfully weaves together front line accounts and high policy discussions to provide a gripping and accessible new account of the most important campaign of the Second World War against Germany.

Professor Eric Grove, author of 'The Royal Navy since 1815'

A gripping read and a great contribution to the history of the Second World War. The author realizes his immense ambition of bringing out the human aspects of the drama at every level, from the heads of state to the crews in the Atlantic, while also bringing important nuances to received views on the struggle against the U-boats, and, indeed, on Churchill’s war leadership. An epic account.

Peter Padfield, author of 'War Beneath the Sea: Submarine Conflict 1939-1945', and biographies of Dönitz, Himmler and Hess

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