World War II, was a global military conflict that, in terms of lives lost and material destruction, was the most devastating war in human history. It began in 1939 as a European conflict between Germany and an Anglo-French coalition but eventually widened to include most of the nations of the world. It ended in 1945, leaving a new world order dominated by the United States and the USSR. More than any previous war, World War II involved the commitment of nations' entire human and economic resources, the blurring of the distinction between combatants and noncombatants, and the expansion of the battlefield to include all of the enemy's territory. The Complete Idiot's Guide (R) to World War II, Second Edition, will feature updated and expanded coverage of the fateful D-Day invasion, a critical timeline of major WW II events, and a WW II timeline highlighting the crucial and most important events of the war. It will include details about major battles on land, in the air, and on the sea-starting with Hitler's rise to power and his goal of European conquest; to Japan's bombing of Pearl Harbor; to the decisive battles such as D-Day and the Battle of Midway, which turned the tides of the war toward the Allies.