If you read a lot of books published in the late 30s, especially those published for the Left Book Club, this is pretty familiar ground. The author spends as much time bashing the Baldwin-Chamberlain-Hoare-Eden regime as he does Mussolini. Most of the book is about the Ethiopian War and the (at that point still ongoing) Spanish Civil War. Needless to say, the book is quite harsh on Mussolini, and multiple shots (some deserved, some not) are taken at the Catholic Church. Some of the sneering tone in the book is a bit off-putting, especially the habit, repeated in the book a number of times, of using cardboard Tory M.P.s. Not particularly recommended, since there's little fresh here. ( )

In big letters on the back of the title page is the printed dedication TO MY WIFE. Do I really care 70 odd years on ? Did she demand the further revisions?