By skyforbes 
Ludo Stuart-Douglas The Writers Collective London October 2025
A Worthy Successor Born from Reader Demand
Earlier this year,when Quentin Drummond Anderson’s first volume of “The Few Against the Many” arrived in readers’ hands, it struck a chord that resonated far beyond typical military history enthusiasts. As Anderson acknowledges in his foreword, the response was “both humbling and profoundly moving” — letters poured in from veterans, students, and readers worldwide who discovered in these accounts something they desperately needed: proof that ordinary people can achieve extraordinary things when everything hangs in the balance.
The demand for Volume Two was, by Anderson’s own admission, “overwhelming.” This second instalment is explicitly a response to readers asking for more — more stories of courage, more examples of the few standing against the many, more evidence that determination and tactical brilliance can overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.
What Made Volume One Resonate
Online reviews of the first volume reveal why readers clamoured for more. On Goodreads and Amazon, readers praised Anderson’s ability to bring historical battles to life while avoiding the trap of glorifying warfare. One reviewer wrote: “Anderson manages the difficult balance of celebrating courage while acknowledging the tragedy of war itself.” Another noted: “These aren’t just military histories — they’re studies in human psychology under extreme pressure.”
The first volume introduced readers to battles like Thermopylae, the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, and the Siege of Malta, establishing Anderson’s trademark approach: meticulous research combined with accessible prose that makes you feel the mud, smell the gunpowder, and understand the impossible choices faced by defenders. The Warsaw Ghetto chapter, in particular, resonated deeply with readers who found in the Jewish fighters’ desperate resistance a profound statement about human dignity in the face of genocide.
Volume Two: Expanding the Canvas
This second volume maintains that quality while broadening the geographical and temporal scope. From medieval France (Agincourt) to modern Ukraine (Kyiv 2022), from Polish plains (Mokra) to Māori forests (New Zealand Wars), Anderson demonstrates that courage and tactical innovation are universal human qualities, not confined to any particular nation, era, or culture.
The twelve chapters span nearly 600 years, yet Anderson’s recurring metaphor — borrowed from a soldier friend — provides thematic unity: “Courage is like a cup. Different people have different sized cups… but every cup, no matter how large, eventually runs empty if you keep drinking from it.” The book explores what happens when those cups run low, and how collective courage can sustain individuals beyond their personal limits.
Standout Chapters
Several chapters deserve particular mention:
“The Battle of Mokra” corrects a persistent historical myth about Polish cavalry charging German tanks, revealing instead a sophisticated combined-arms defence that held the Wehrmacht for seven crucial hours. Anderson’s deconstruction of propaganda narratives is particularly valuable here.
“The Unconquered People” tells the three-century saga of Mapuche resistance in Chile — a story virtually unknown outside South America but representing one of history’s most successful indigenous resistance movements. Anderson’s respect for Mapuche military innovation and political sophistication challenges colonial narratives.
“The Capital That Would Not Fall” brings us to February 2022 and Ukraine’s defence of Kyiv — recent enough that many readers remember watching it unfold on television. Anderson’s analysis of how Ukrainian forces overcame 12:1 odds provides crucial context for understanding contemporary warfare, where information operations and international solidarity proved as decisive as anti-tank missiles.
Anderson’s Balanced Perspective
What elevates this volume beyond standard military history is Anderson’s consistent moral framework. His foreword is emphatic: “This is emphatically not a celebration of war or violence. War is humanity’s greatest failure.” Each chapter acknowledges the human cost while examining why these particular fights were deemed necessary by those who fought them.
He’s particularly effective at avoiding jingoism. The Voortrekker victory at Blood River is presented with full recognition of its complex legacy in South African history. The Israeli Six-Day War chapter acknowledges both tactical brilliance and the political complications that victory created. Anderson consistently asks: What did these victories cost? What problems did they create? Were there alternatives?
Why This Volume Matters Now
Anderson writes that “the modern world, with all its technological marvels and interconnected complexity, has not eliminated the need for such courage.” The timing of this volume feels particularly significant. In an era of rising authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, and renewed great power competition, these stories of successful resistance against overwhelming odds carry contemporary relevance.
The Tunisia chapter (Ben Guerdane) demonstrates that professional, democratically-controlled security forces can defeat terrorist organizations. The Ukraine chapter shows that small nations can successfully resist larger aggressors when properly equipped and internationally supported. These aren’t just historical curiosities — they’re case studies with immediate policy implications.
A Book That Earned Its Existence
The fact that Volume Two exists because readers demanded it is telling. Anderson didn’t write this as a cash-grab sequel but because his first volume clearly met a genuine need — for inspiration, yes, but also for rigorous analysis of how the weak sometimes defeat the strong, how courage functions under extreme pressure, and how ordinary people become extraordinary when circumstances demand it.
The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in Volume One clearly set the template: Anderson’s ability to honour desperate resistance while acknowledging tragic outcomes. Volume Two continues this approach, showing that tactical defeat can sometimes achieve strategic or moral victory — a theme that connects the Ghetto fighters to Vukovar’s defenders to many others in both volumes.
For readers of Volume One, this is essential reading that expands and deepens Anderson’s central arguments. For newcomers, it’s accessible enough to stand alone, though you’ll probably want to seek out the first volume afterward.
Final Verdict
“The Few Against the Many: Volume Two” succeeds as both scholarship and storytelling. Anderson has crafted a work that satisfies academic rigour while remaining emotionally engaging — no small feat in military history. His research is meticulous (the appendices alone run to dozens of pages), his prose is clear and occasionally moving, and his moral framework is consistent without being preachy.
This is a book that respects its readers’ intelligence while acknowledging their need for hope. In our current moment of global uncertainty, that combination feels particularly valuable.
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Recommended for: Military history enthusiasts, students of leadership and courage, anyone seeking evidence that determination and tactical brilliance can overcome overwhelming odds, and readers who appreciated Volume One and wanted more of Anderson’s balanced, thoughtful approach to desperate victories.The book is now available for pre-order on Amazon.