War is Hell is a study of the philosophy of war and peace, ranging critically from ancient peace thinking to today. The author uses a Socratic method, focused on political philosophy rather than on cultural or psychological aspects of war and peace making. The book is not a treatise on ethics, but rather an analysis of some aspects of the nature of war and peace.

This book is a study of war – and by extension, peace – from the standpoint of political theory. For all those who think there is too much war, and to deal with that we need to search for new ways of thinking.