TROOPS of the 23rd U.S. Infantry Division in action against German forces in 1918 (Department of Defense)/

By Jim Tortolano/Orange County Tribune

Did you ever pick up one of those “For Dummies” books that promise simplified instructions to a complex subject but end up answering every question except any of yours?

It’s almost as if the “For Dummies” books were sometimes written “By Dummies.”

Well, here’s something to add to the pile. A series of books called  “Enthralling History”  has landed, and the volume “World War I: An Enthralling Guide From Beginning to End” has landed in my IPad’s Kindle.

If you search long enough, you can find a vague reference to the author as Billy Wellman, but the book reads as if it was written by an early AI version, or simply cribbed from a high school history book.

Simply put, this book is no more enthralling than your high school social studies teacher reading a chapter aloud just before lunch break. It’s dull, lacks important context and is pretty much unpopulated except for the occasional mention of a general here or a king there. 

Much attention is given to the forming of alliances that led to the war, but little to the social forces that resulted in the combustion that followed in 1914-18. The impact of the United States – decisive in winning the war for the Allies (Great Britain, France and Japan) – is passed over in a few sentences.

In fact, if you want to end up with less than you already knew about the war, this is the book for you.

And – if you really want to wipe your memory banks clear – there’s a whole slew of books in this “Enthralling” series you can waste your time on, if this book is any indication.