THE WHITE WAR Life and Death on the Italian Front, 1915-1919

Author Mark Thompson examines the causes, context and combat of Italy's war against Austria-Hungary and Germany in WWI. Without maps or biographies, newcomers to the subject may feel overwhelmed from the beginning by the avalanche of names. Thompson also uses many political terms of the period that few without prior knowledge will understand. Narrator Gerard Doyle delivers each sentence as an isolated thought—he seems unable to make them flow into a comfortable narrative. Faced with a work of obfuscating organization and prodigious gravitas, he adds not even a touch of personality to make his performance entertaining. On the positive side, Doyle has a welcome talent with the abundant European languages, especially Italian. His slow pace comes with a careful pronunciation of the vast vocabulary. J.A.H. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2010]