Reviews (6)

Excellent for what it offers....though it's lacking....
I really love a book I just got, called the "Encyclopedia of Battles: From 1479 B.C. to Present"...that's a great book, not because it gives super large descriptions of battles, but because it HAS every battle and war in history. It also includes wars, and lists battles in order of these wars. I do not mind the lack of information, since I am merely using this book to look things up online in detail at wikipedia.com, so I'll be an expert on war and battles in history.
Military History: A Dispassionate View
War is both bloody and chaotic, yet if one wishes to understand it then one must not be so.In THE OXFORD COMPANION TO MILITARY HISTORY, editor Richard Holmes gathers the expertise of dozens of experts in military history to produce a massive text (more than 1,000 pages) on the entire spectrum of military history.When readers think of this topic they tend to think of battles and wars, and this text lists all the important ones and some that are known only to specialists.You want to know a one or two page summary of the battle of Stalingrad in 1942?Battles like this are discussed in detail and with clarity, often with surprisingly detailed illustrations and maps.Yet, this history includes far more than battles fought.Battles are not just set piece encounters of troop movements; they include the human element of both rank and file grunt and their respective commander.Further, battles are often won and lost solely on the basis of the technological superiority of one side over the other.Holmes' text includes all that and more.So for whom is this history intended?It it not for one who has no interest in matters of killing and strategy.It is for one who has a previous interest in a battle, a soldier, or a weapon.It is for one who has seen the film PEARL HARBOR and wishes to separate celluloid fantasy from historical fact.It is for the high school or college student who needs to know more than what is normally contained in a general history.And finally, it is for those who wish to have a handy one volume text of military arcana as the next step on a personal project or quest that involves using what Holmes' experts have to say.TOCMH is a superb gift to anyone who falls into any of the above categories.

Oxford Companion to Military History
This book is very thorough for the type of history it covers, but it has biases that detract it from receiving the highest rating.
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Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. History    3. History - Military / War    4. History: World    5. Military - General    6. Military History (General)    7. Military history    8. Reference    9. History / Military / General    10. History of specific subjects    11. History, Other | Military History    12. Reference works    13. Theory of warfare & military science    14. War & defence operations   

Reviews (21)

Great explanation how a world empire defended its citizens
I do not agree that this book is only for specialists. I am of the opinion that it is a book for history lovers. And, moreover, it is for any person who wishes to understand how a highly developed society managed to defend its way of living. It most valuable because it depicts the success of the Roman system in the first two centuries of our era. The Third Century depicts the problem of a World power which has began its decline.
Eye-opening analysis
This book is a very interesting analysis for everybody who wants to know more about the strategy of the Roman Empire. While also very accessible to non-experts, even experts or people who have read a lot about Rome will learn a lot and see things a new way.
Ancient history for current events
Although much of this book may be at a level of specificity of interest only to Roman history buffs, Luttwak's assessments of the Roman Empire's strategic strengths and weaknesses has much relevance to the modern United States, which occupies an historical position not unlike Rome's at the beginning of the Empire.For example, issues such as the efficient use of a relatively small professional army, or the maintenance of client states, are directly relevant to the modern world.Each section begins with a sufficiently adequate historical summary that readers not yet familiar with Roman history will not be lost. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Ancient - Rome    2. Army    3. History    4. History - Military / War    5. History: World    6. Military - General    7. Military Science    8. Military history, Ancient    9. Rome    10. Strategy    11. Ancient Rome    12. BCE to c 500 CE    13. European history: BCE to c 500 CE    14. Performing Arts / General   

Reviews (86)

Our desparate and inhuman quest for righteousness
Wow.Chris Hedges completely plowed me over with this book.I originally checked this book out from the library, but am now purchasing two copies - one for myself to reread immediately and mark up all the profound and illuminating passages and one to loan out to every independent-minded person I know.
Interesting but localized perspective
A good and well-written book full of modern anecdotal material and sensible observations but nothing particularly new. I'll make this simple.
Tolerable reading that comes to conclusions about war.
A long polemic about war - the horror of it, how we glorify it, how we think it gives us meaning.Note: the title of this book is misleading.Hedges does not argue that war gives us meaning, just that it seems to, and this meaning is shallow compared to love.A very personal account, probably best for those who already have some background on the balkan wars and political science in general.not extraordinary, but has some valuable content none-the-less. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. Ethics Of War And Conflict    3. General    4. History - General History    5. Military - General    6. Military History (General)    7. Military Science    8. Military history, Modern    9. Political Freedom & Security - International Secur    10. Political Science    11. Politics/International Relations    12. War    13. War (Philosophy)    14. Philosophy / Ethics & Moral Philosophy    15. Reading Group Guide   

Reviews (6)

Excellent resource
This is a very valuable resource that I wish I would have had prior to Naval Officer Candidate School. (Naval OCS training is conducted primarily by Marine Corps Drill Instructors.) I recommend it for all those anticipating Marine Corps/Naval training.

View from the past.
I am a Marine Vet. I still have my original "knowledge" from boot from 15 years ago. For those not in the know this book is refered to by Drill Instructors as "The Knowledge". It is meant to be a guide book through boot. This version is not much different. My original has the breakdown of a .45 instead of a 9mm. Although when I was in the 9mm is what we used. For those in DEP do not bother. You recruiter will give you "free" material that you MUST memorize. Although you could just Google it. The instructions on how to setup fireing lines and fighting formations is ambiguous with out having a the terrain and personnel to see it. All amply provide for you in San Diego or Paris Island. I also DEP'd and the recruiter would run us through the basics. I am rambling now so here are my experienced suggestions:
It's O.K.
I'm in DEP so I'm looking to soak up all the information I can before boot.This book does have a great deal of information in it but most of the essential stuff like General Orders and Ranks and the motto and birthday were already in a book the recruiter gave me after joining.This book does have dress codes and grooming and disassembly of the M16 which I found very interesting.Some of the pictures though are poor quality and it's hard to make out what they are.The book is very small and top to bottom instead of left to right. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. History    2. Military    3. Military - United States   

Reviews (133)

Amateur Hour
I was pleasantly surprised by the beginning of the novel: this journey of Allesandro Guiliani and his new sidekick Nicolo across the Italian piedmont reminded me of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza. There were a few oddities in the style and descriptions, but nothing that really bothered me. Then I came across this sentence:
Long time favorite
I read this book over 20 years ago, and recently re-read it.
Simply the most fantastic book I've ever read.
To me, this book is the epitome of literature. On every level, it fascinates and moves the reader: the prose is gorgeous and prolific, weaving description and philosophy so that the entire book sounds like a poem and leaves impressions in the mind like works of art. When Helprin writes of Italy, you can see the blazes of orange and green, you can feel the heat of Rome and the cracking ice of the Alps, and you begin to feel the nostalgia and patriotism of the main character himself, Alessandro Giuliani. Somehow, he is a genius, a philosopher, an artist, a hero, and a romantic, but the reader never feels overwhelmed by his achievements and annoyed by his perfections, because he is such an intensely real, incredibly profound, and moving personality that one cannot help but love him. Indeed, as the book moves from pre-war gardens and parties, humorous anecdotes and dinners with empresses to the stale, festering misery that is war, the reader learns to cling to Alessandro as the only way to stay sane as the world itself appears to degenerate with each page. Alessandro is the most magnificent character I have ever met, because he faces the epitomization of every horror and tragedy in the world with a stoic determination to cling to the good--he embodies all the hope, goodness, and beauty in the world that is blotted out by war and yet survives to mould the next generation, and to ensure the survival of humanity. Yes, it is a book of war that will make you cringe, cry, and turn away in disgust, but I promise that, somehow, at the end of the book you will emerge with a strange optimism, feeling refreshed and renewed. It has the humor, lunacy, and cynicism of Catch-22 while retaining a higher purpose and somehow not appearing anti-war; It has the flow and dream-like, mythical quality of the Odyssey without exhausting or losing the reader; It has the agonizing yet beautiful qualities of war-poetry without the deadening hatred and cynicism; It has the beauty and optimism of a love story without appearing naive. It leaves one with the same sort of feelings as movies like Gladiator and Braveheart--a faith in great men, in God, and, above all, in the omnipotence of love as the saving grace of mankind. Helprin has given us war through the eyes of a philosopher of aesthetics--he has given us war woven with art, poetry, and beauty. To me, that is pure genius. This book is an inspiration, as Helprin writes through Alessandro, to never live "by halves. You must give everything you have. You must love unto exhaustion, work unto exhaustion, and walk unto exhaustion. People continually expose their souls to mortal danger in imagining that they are free of it, when, indeed, the only mortal danger for the spirit is to remain too long without it. The world is made of fire." ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bildungsromane    2. Fiction    3. Fiction - General    4. General    5. Helprin, Mark - Prose & Criticism    6. Italy    7. Older men    8. Fiction / General    9. Warfare & Defence    10. World history: First World War   

Reviews (86)

Good, but Lacking
Essentially, a rare element called Byzantium is required for a top secret device in progress that would significantly boost the United States' defense against missile attacks. However, small traces of this element exist, hardly enough for testing let alone the experiment itself. But in the Titanic's cargo hold lies an abundance of this rare element, and it is Dirk Pitt's task to recover this element by raising the Titanic.
Wonderful Adventure
My introduction to Clive Cussler was through the film, "Sahara."I really enjoyed that film and being a lover of the works of another adventure writer, Steve Alten, I decided to give Cussler's books a try.A friend of mine loaned me this book as well as two others written by Cussler.
A really good book
I had really low expectations for Raise the Titanic! by Clive Cussler. The story seemed a little too predictable. However it was not what I expected. The book was the fastest and most readable Clive Cussler book I've read.
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Subjects:  1. Action & Adventure    2. Fiction    3. Fiction - General    4. General    5. Military    6. Sea & Ocean    7. Titanic (Steamship)    8. Fiction / General   

Reviews (62)

Mr. Keegan's Opus
This is the first work that I and most others discovered Mr. Keegan's great mind for military history. It is an overview of the evolution of warfare from the middle ages to the present but more than that it seeks to answer the question of what motivates the common soldier to fight instead of following his instinct to run.Mr. Keegan's admiration and adoption of the common soldier's lot is moving and commendable in itself. He brings out the hero in the common man and for that all us common men can thank him.

Keegan at His Very Best
John Keegan is one of our best writers of military history and The Face of Battle is simply Keegan at his very best. He attempts to explain what humans actually do under the stress of battle and why. The book contains keen insights and some surprises. For example, while running away may intuitively seem highly sensible from the standpoint of self-preservation, it is in fact one of the most dangerous things a soldier can do. Or the US Army study that showed a shockingly high percentage of US army infantry never fired their rfiles when under fire - that study led directly to a sharp increase in the emphasis on the psychological molding of soldiers in US Army training camps.
A Modern great book of Military History. Buy it and read it!
`The Face of Battle' by renowned English military historian, John Keegan is one of those books I would always keep in stock if I were managing a bookstore. In its own field of `analytical' military history, it is probably one of the two or three most important works available to the average reader (that is, not including classified material and training material reserved for the world's professional military at West Point, Sandhurst and what have you).
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Subjects:  1. Battles    2. History    3. History - General History    4. History: World    5. Medieval    6. Military - General    7. Military history    8. Special Interest - Adventure    9. History / Military / Strategy    10. Land forces & warfare    11. Modern period, c 1500 onwards    12. War & defence operations    13. World history    14. c 1000 CE to c 1500   

Reviews (1)

The 'MUST Read' for law enforcement intelligence students
Jonathan R. White's Defending the Homeland: Domestic Intelligence, Law Enforcement, and Security is the book I assign as the keystone text for a Law Enforcement Intelligence course. It is a `must read' because it correctly portrays intelligence as both art and science, deeply rooted in action-making tangible things happen, getting real things done-by reducing warfare to its simplest level and thereby limiting the negative effects of susceptibilities such as fog, chance, and friction. This volume makes sense of how the traditionally polar fields of law enforcement and intelligence can develop a symbiotic relationship for synergistic effect.
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Subjects:  1. Civil defense    2. Criminology    3. National security    4. Political Freedom & Security - General    5. Politics / Current Events    6. Prevention    7. Social Science    8. Sociology    9. Terrorism    10. United States    11. Crime & criminology    12. Law / Criminal Procedure    13. USA    14. Warfare & Defence   

Features

• Abridged
• Unabridged

Subjects:  1. Audiobooks    2. History    3. Iraq War, 2003    4. Military    5. Military - Iraq War    6. Military - United States    7. Military History - 1990-    8. Military Policy    9. Unabridged Audio - History    10. History / Military / United States   

Reviews (5)

Save Your Money
This book is typical of many published by Paladin Press-all sizzle and no steak.It temps you w/a promising title and then broadstrokes the actual subject matter.Nothing in this book is inovative or informative, as stated in a previous review-it's all common sense.
It's an okay book
If you're planning on splitting for awhile, for at least a few months, it wouldn't be a bad idea to read this book first. It's mostly just common sense.

Author was on The Daily Show
After seeing this guy on The Daily Show, who would want to read this book? ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Beauty & Grooming - General    2. Disappeared persons    3. Escape (Law)    4. Fashion & Grooming    5. Handbooks, manuals, etc    6. Political Freedom & Security - Civil Rights    7. Political Science    8. Politics/International Relations    9. Secrecy    10. Outdoor survival skills    11. Political Science / Civil Rights    12. Warfare & Defence   

Reviews (10)

sledgehammers: strengths & flaws of tiger battalions
great book, this is second one i got. first one i lost after barely reading it. love it. good stories about how individual units lived & fought

Fasinating reading
This book is a study of the German Tiger tanks. The writer starts with a brief summary of the early history of the tigers. Then goes on and discusses many battles that had the tigers. He then presents his conclusions that they were are great tank but the Germans never developed a proper military doctrinal guidance that could have used them. As such they were used mainly as tank killers. In this I think he makes a strong case.
Solid research
Written by a veteran of Iraq War(s), this book provides rich technical detail on Tiger tank tactics and strategies, combat successes and failures. Highly recommended reading, especially if you are interested in the technical flaws of Tiger tanks. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. History    2. History / Military / World War II    3. Military    4. Military - Weapons    5. Armored troops    6. Armored vehicles, Military    7. Army    8. Europe    9. European history: Second World War    10. Germany    11. Land forces & warfare    12. Military - World War II    13. Second World War, 1939-1945    14. Tank warfare    15. United States    16. World War, 1939-1945   

Subjects:  1. History    2. History - Military / War    3. Java Sea, Battle of the, Indonesia, 1942    4. Military    5. Military - Naval    6. Military - United States    7. Military - World War II    8. Naval History - World War II    9. Naval operations, American    10. World War II - East Asia    11. World War, 1939-1945    12. History / General   

Subjects:  1. History    2. History - Military / War    3. Military    4. Military - Aviation    5. Military - World War II    6. Aircraft: general interest    7. History / Military / World War II    8. History of specific subjects    9. Weapons & equipment   

Reviews (13)

A must read for all soldiers and families
I received this book for free from the mobilization station when I was leaving for my overseas duty and it is available to all soldiers all you have to do is ask.A must read for all soldiers returning from operations in the Middle East.You have so many things in your mind that you cannot explain or understand and this book helps put your feelings and thoughts into perspective.I highly recommend that all soldiers request and read this book and share with their families.Acclimating back into your life that you left is a hard thing to do and it can also be quite the challenge for those left at home that don't understand what we saw and did, so help them out and give them this book!All family support centers should be able to help you out and if you can't find it anywhere in the Army system, then buy it!It is worth the cost to help understand and to help your families welcome you home again.

An informative read
As the facilitator of a family support group whose focus is military families, I found this book to be a great resource.Having post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be a real possiblity for many of our troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.This easy to read book puts a lot of great information into the hands of families without putting any blame on anyone. It is informational in nature, but doesn't pretend to be medical or treatment oriented.A great place to learn about PTSD.

Conquering the Battle Within
As a wife of a Vietnam Vet, I can tell you first hand of the potential effects PTSD can have on a marriage. I found the best way to keep harmony in the home is through knowledge and understanding. After reading "NamVet" by Chuck Dean, I excitedly gave the book to my husband who was so impressed, he bought and passed them out to other Nam vets. Now, with our son's soon return from Iraq, I feel it is important for both he and his wife to be equally equipped.I can think of no better tool for the job than "Down Range."Concise, practical, and easy to read, it helps the warfighter realize that what he/she is fighting internally is the same thing battle weary soldiers have experienced throughout time. More importantly, it helps the individual understand why he/she is feeling the way they do and how to overcome those damaging thoughts. For the spouse: to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Instead of reacting to unexpected behavior, she will be prepared to respond, heading off turmoil in the relationship.
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Subjects:  1. History    2. Mental Health    3. Military    4. Military - Veterans    5. Military Combat Units    6. Neuropsychology    7. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders    8. Psychology   

Reviews (94)

brilliant
After four years of unprecedented slaughter, victors and supplicants gathered in Paris in 1919 to determine a peace that would truly `end all wars.' Wilson's wildly popular Fourteen Points promised fair and open redress of grievances, and a world born anew under a League of Nations. Delegates from nearly every point on the globe were drawn to present their case in a process that took six months.
To understand the present you must understand the past.
Macmillan paints a clear picture of how all the hopes that were envisaged for the Paris Peace Conference --self determination, open door diplomacy, and a new world order based on genuine cooperation of nations-- never came to pass. Instead what happened was more of the same old closed-door deals, redrawing of of borders, and reshuffling of people without their consent--all of which were responsible for the war in the first place.
Excellent
This is an excellent book.The writer expresses herself exstrodinarily well and she has great command of the material.The fact that she is the great grandaughter of Lloyd Georgehelps to make her observations based on believable "reality" not hypothetical fantasy. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. (1919-1920)    2. Ancient - General    3. History    4. History - Military / War    5. Military    6. Military - World War I    7. Paris Peace Conference    8. Peace    9. Treaties And Alliances    10. World - General    11. World War I    12. World War, 1914-1918    13. History / Military / World War I    14. Reading Group Guide   

Reviews (42)

Sharpe's Triumph:Richard Sharpe and the Battel of Assaye, September 1803
LOVED, LOVED, LOVED IT!Cornwell is extremely descriptive in his writing and his ability to convey characters as real people.Richard Sharpe, a rake, but an honorable rake!I'm already on the next book in the series and loving it, as well.

A Great Series
This is another entry on the Sharpe series. It is fun, entertaining and very readable. Cornwell's research is as excellent as usual. He takes some licenses for the shake of the story and continuity, but this is OK. Some people are outraged by the portrait of some of the real historical characters, but historical characters are rarely depicted accurately in historical fiction, so I think this can be forgiven. Besides, usually a more serious account of these characters is given at the end of the book on the Historical Note.
A Sharpe prequel
After his Richard Sharpe series set in the Napoleonic Wars was an established success, Bernard Cornwall went back to write several prequels, including a trllogy set in 1803 India, of which this is the middle volume.This is the first Sharpe book I've read, although I have seen several of the BBC adaptations.
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Subjects:  1. Assaye (India), Battle of, 1803    2. Fiction    3. Fiction - Historical    4. Historical - General    5. Maratha War, 1803    6. Military - General    7. War & Military    8. Fiction / Historical   

Reviews (60)

Great Book
This is a great book, full of facts.It is very interesting to see the planes as they develop.I enjoyed all the different views supplied by the Airforce, the Engineers, the Pilots and the Government officials.The book cantains some foul language.Very interesting and totally enjoyable.Good technical information.Covers: Stealth, U2 and the Blackbird very well.

The best aircraft designer memoirs I've read to the date
Believe me if a Russian aviation nut goes to bed in 4 A.M. when he could not stop reading this, it really worth buying. Filled with good humor and Kelly Johnson's 'Goddam!'s, it also has an insider look at US aerospace industry decision making, sometimes wery paradoxal. I suspected that titanium for SR-71 was bought in Soviet Union and knew from our industry insiders that we captured D-21 Tagnoard a long time ago, but here I've seen proof from the first hands. I was nearly crying reading about Kelly Johnson death - I didn't know details before - and Lockheed's farewell to him publishing all-black newspaper page with crying Skunk Works skunk...Frankly, Johnson's memoirs were not so intriguinig for me, but now I'll re-read them with the other feelings. Highly recommend.

read it before it is banned by the accountants
One day soon, people will begin to claim that putting a man on the moon, safely operating an aircraft like the SR-71 for many years, or, flying daily New York to London supersonic never really happened - centimental people from the 60's just like to think their generation did those things. Without books like this the conspiracy theory would be attractive. Accountants are trained to know the cost of everything. Engineers, on the other hand, are trained to see the value in people and their ideas irrespective of their status. In the 1950s and 60s accountants just did the accounts. But it was a golden age for engineers.
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Subjects:  1. Aeronautics    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Business    4. History    5. Lockheed Advanced Development Company    6. Military    7. Military - Strategy    8. Research    9. United States    10. Aerospace & air transport industries    11. Biography: general    12. Career in aeronautics    13. History / Military / Strategy    14. Rich, Ben R   

Subjects:  1. Europe - Germany    2. History    3. History - General History    4. History: World    5. Military - World War II    6. European history: Second World War    7. Germany    8. History / Germany    9. History, World | European | Germany    10. Second World War, 1939-1945    11. Warfare & Defence   

Reviews (19)

A battle to read, not worth it in the end.
I was going to write a long and detailed review of this book outlining its many minor and few major flaws. However I notice with these types of books, with controversial subjects, tend to get reviews of two types: If you agree with the subject matter, it was well written. If you don't, it is poorly written.
you ought to try walking in their shoes, first
The thing the author does is pass judgment without looking at how the "bad guys" did what they did.An action officer or technical executive has very little time to make decisions.Because the subject matter of the necessary decisions comes from all points of the intellectual compass, the folks under discussion literally cannot be as informed as they would like to be on every thing they must act on.And they must act.Quickly.Excuses for inaction are never acceptable in this business.