# The Book at War: How Reading Shaped Conflict and Conflict Shaped Reading - Hardcover

by **Andrew Pettegree** (Author)

**A "magisterial" (_Sunday Times_) history of how books were used in war across the twentieth century--both as weapons and as agents for peace**

We tend not to talk about books and war in the same breath--one ranks among humanity's greatest inventions, the other among its most terrible. But as esteemed literary historian Andrew Pettegree demonstrates, the two are deeply intertwined. _The Book at War_ explores the various roles that books have played in conflicts throughout the globe. Winston Churchill used a travel guide to plan the invasion of Norway, lonely families turned to libraries while their loved ones were fighting in the trenches, and during the Cold War both sides used books to spread their visions of how the world should be run. As solace or instruction manual, as critique or propaganda, books have shaped modern military history--for both good and ill.

With precise historical analysis and sparkling prose, _The Book at War_ accounts for the power--and the ambivalence--of words at war.

### Author Biography

**Andrew Pettegree** is a professor of modern history at the University of St. Andrews. A leading expert on the history of book and media transformations, Pettegree is the award-winning author of several books on news and information culture, including _The Library: A Fragile History_ (with Arthur der Weduwen). He lives in Scotland.

**Number of Pages:** 480

**Dimensions:** 1.38 x 9.46 x 6.37 IN

**Illustrated:** Yes

**Publication Date:** December 05, 2023

## Details

- **Price:** 35.0 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 35.00 USD | In stock |

## Images

- The Book at War: How Reading Shaped Conflict and Conflict Shaped Reading - Hardcover

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> Updated: 2026-07-23