Freedom's Forge by Arthur L. Herman

This has been one of my favorite examinations of World War II, the business side of the war and how American industrial might played a decisive role in achieving victory.

The book once again brings home the point, as in WWI, just how diminished American military might was as Germany's threats appeared on the scene.  Although we got an earlier jump in WWII, starting years before physically entering the War, the enemies were far more deadly this time around.  The gap to be filled was even larger than with WWI.

The book focuses on two unsung industrialists, Bill Knudsen of General Motors and Henry Kaiser, the man behind the building of Hoover Dam and a great many other large scale developments.

Both men led hugely ambitions efforts, Kaiser in the private sector and Knudsen in the public, to overcome incredible odds.  Both forged repeated innovations in production processes that radically changed the way things were made, with profound impacts that follow to this day.

The story is a testament to the power of free markets and capitalism.  While German and Japanese authoritarian governments were thought to have produced the greatest military powerhouses in the history of the world, they paled in comparison to what America could do, once given time to rise to the global threat.

One of the best page-turners I've absorbed in some time.