God bless Warren H. Carroll for writing this book. There are plenty of WWI histories out there, but most of them don't even mention Fatima. Likewise, there are plenty of books on Fatima, but most of them only mention WWI in passing. THIS brings both areas of study together, seeing them as intrinsically linked.



On the WWI front, Carroll covers:

-) the futile bloodshed in France

-) Charles I, Emperor of Austria (WHY HAD I NEVER HEARD OF THIS GUY) and his efforts to bring about peace (I love him so m

God bless Warren H. Carroll for writing this book. There are plenty of WWI histories out there, but most of them don't even mention Fatima. Likewise, there are plenty of books on Fatima, but most of them only mention WWI in passing. THIS brings both areas of study together, seeing them as intrinsically linked.



On the WWI front, Carroll covers:

-) the futile bloodshed in France

-) Charles I, Emperor of Austria (WHY HAD I NEVER HEARD OF THIS GUY) and his efforts to bring about peace (I love him so much)

-) Pope Benedict XV and *his* efforts to bring about peace (I love him, too)

-) Woodrow Wilson, his efforts to stay out of the war/negotiate for peace, and why he eventually brought the U.S. in (and Carroll actually made me...respect/admire Wilson at least a little? he extends way more grace to him than I'm used to from historians, I usually just get the feeling Wilson was a kind of pathetic ninny)

-) allllll the political upheaval in Russia



And can we TALK ABOUT RASPUTIN FOR A MINUTE? My gosh. Creepiest story, no lie, that I have ever heard. And it's true. Like....this is deeply disturbing. The chapter that ended with Rasputin's assassination (too little, too late, to save Russia) just had me whimpering and shrieking so that my family wanted to know what was wrong with me.



The bit in the last chapter that covered Jacinta's and Emperor Charles' deaths had me in tears.



So yeah. Warren H. Carroll isn't just a passionate Catholic historian, he's also a first-rate story teller. Must read more by him. (Also must dig up a biography of Emperor Charles somewhere.)