Big Week: The Biggest Air Battle of World War II

Holland (The Allies Strike Back) relates the story of Operation Argument, a weeklong series of strategic bombing raids by Allied forces during World War II designed to hinder the German aircraft industry and destroy the Luftwaffe's fighters. Not limited, however, to that specific endeavor, the author also provides background information and the subsequent state of the air war in Europe, discussing pilot and crew training among American, British, and German forces, along with details of the various aircraft involved. Stories feature individual pilots and crew members, many of whom reemerge throughout the text. Among the airmen is Jimmy Stewart, the famous Hollywood actor, who piloted a B-24 Liberator and was subsequently promoted during and after the war. This objective work, comprised of narratives often based on personal interviews with the author, provides views from both sides, including firsthand accounts of actions by fighter pilots and bomber crews.