A. C. Grayling - Among the Dead Cities [2006] [A]

"Was the bombing offensive [against civilians in Germany and Japan] a crime against humanity," writes A. C. Grayling, "or was it justified by the necessities of war? These questions mark one of the great remaining controversies of the Second World War." Their resolution, which Grayling accomplishes with great respect and with a sense of urgency, is a vital contribution to the debate about how far governments can go in the name of national security.''

Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. The Allied bombing of Axis cities, which killed hundreds of thousands of civilians and made smoking ruins of Dresden, Tokyo and Hiroshima, remains one of the great controversies of WWII; this probing study does the issue full justice. Philosophy professor Grayling (The Meaning of Things) focuses on Britain's "area bombing" of entire German cities, a strategy adopted initially because bombers couldn't hit smaller sites and then, as attitudes hardened, continued as a deliberate attack on civilian morale. Grayling scrupulously considers the justifications for area bombing—that it would shorten the conflict by destroying Germany's economy and will to resist, that civilian workers were also combatants or that it was simply the rough justice of war—and finds them wanting. British bombing, he contends, did little damage to the German war effort at an unconscionable price in innocent lives, in contrast to American pinpoint bombing of industrial and military targets, which succeeded in paralyzing the German economy with few civilian casualties. (The Americans, he sadly notes, resorted to area bombing in their devastating air campaign against Japan.) Drawing on firsthand accounts by theorists, architects, victims and opponents of area bombing, Grayling situates a lucid analysis of the historical data within a rigorous philosophical framework. (Mar.)
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From School Library Journal
Adult/High School–Grayling's purpose is not to condone the atrocities carried out by the Axis or to condemn the Allies for carpet bombing cities in Germany and Japan, but to show that, even in a good war, the good guys can do bad things. He examines the decision making, the circumstances, and the contemporary debate over the practice that led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians and the destruction of so many cities. While the author discusses the practical military drawbacks of the tactic, he is most engaged with its moral implications. Black-and-white photos show the effects of the campaign. This is an engaging and readable work, intended to bring readers into contact with the shaded moralities of war.–Ted Westervelt, Library of Congress, Washington, DC
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.