Doughboy War is essentially the story of the troops, rather than a genuine history of the A.E.F. in action, told in the form of literally hundreds of excerpts from letters, memoirs, and diaries, with occasional bridges provided by the editor to provide background and hard data. The pieces are at times quite good, and often insightful. Unfortunately, the editor has failed to provide critical notes, so that many erroneous statements are left uncorrected.

Although it does not surpass Laurence Stalling’s classic The Doughboys, Hallas’s work is worth reading for anyone interested in the U.S. in the First World War.