"The World War, entering its thirty-fourth month, as these lines are written, has had three distinct phases, both on the military side and on the larger and more significant human side. The three military phases are supplied by the Marne campaign and its immediate consequences; the Russian campaign, with its Balkan episode and its Verdun ending; the Allied offensive in the west, which began at the Somme in July, 1916, and is still proceeding before Arras and along the old Aisne battlefield. I have striven to make this book an American comment upon a world war, and no one can be more conscious than am I of its limitations." [.] This is the first volume of the five volume series on the history of World War I. This volume describes the events surrounding the beginning of the first world war in France in an impressive and captivating way. With many details and photos of the war events, the reader is taken with at the time of the early 20th century. The author, Frank H. Simonds, was a living witness of the war. He lived from 1878 - 1936. This particular book is an unchanged reprint of the long out of print original edition from 1919.