Must Read Books For Navy MIDNs/OCs

[NavAir42]

Ah, the good Ensign Pulver "Captain, it is I, Ensign Pulver, and I just threw your stinkin' palm tree overboard! Now what's all this crud about no movie tonight?"

The Caine Mutiny was pretty good also.

Of the books on the original list, Six Frigates was the only enjoyable one. If you're interested in Clausewitz, Wikipedia was invented for a reason.

 

[Steve Wilkins]

Who the hell ever reads the Blue Jacket Manual from cover to cover?

 

[CWJones411]

Arundel, The Northwest Passage, Rabble in Arms are some good ones.

Starship Troopers is great too.

 

[usmarinemike]

It's been said already. You don't need most of the books on your list. I'm a Marine so I won't bother you what books about the profession of arms I found valuable(most are admittedly non-naval), but definitely get in on books about battle leadership, particularly at the company grade level, and no I don't mean Service Etiquette or Guide to Naval Writing (as much of a battle as those two subjects may become).

One non-battle book that I would suggest (that a few may roll their eyes at) is The Armed Forces Officer. If you can get through it and really absorb it, it'll get your gyros aligned to where they need to be before you step off upon your commissioning.

 

[AllAmerican75]

Who the hell ever reads the Blue Jacket Manual from cover to cover?

Well, I mainly put some of those references on there since I found them useful in ROTC classes and figured they would probably be handy in the fleet. I don't think it's possible to enjoy actually reading them as you would a novel.

 

[Pags]

Well, I mainly put some of those references on there since I found them useful in ROTC classes and figured they would probably be handy in the fleet. I don't think it's possible to enjoy actually reading them as you would a novel.

Most squadrons will have them on hand as a reference. There's no real need to have your own personal copy.

 

[d3west86]

This one is awesome! Definitely a must read for brown shoes, black shoes, etc. etc...

 

[vicariousrider]

One I'd suggest for good reading to pass time is The Good Shepherd by C.S. Forester.

 

[scoolbubba]

Right now I'm reading An Army at Dawn by Rick Atkinson. Mostly about the colossal fuck ups, leadership failings, logistical nightmares, and lack of cohesive plan between the Brits and US in North Africa. It seems like every other page is another 4-500 men getting spanked by Rommel. Solid book.

Also, highly recommend Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors. Read it in about 2 days, gave it to my father in law (SWOrrier Reservista 06-type) and he threw it on his units mando reading list. I'm probably even more hated in SWO land now.

 

[Godspeed]

I'm a Marine so I won't bother you what books about the profession of arms I found valuable.

Is what he REALLY means is: I'm a Marine, so I don't read books, unless of course they are picture books, pop up books, or Maxim.

 

[usmarinemike]

Is what he REALLY means is: I'm a Marine, so I don't read books, unless of course they are picture books, pop up books, or Maxim.

You got me. The Butter Battle Book by Seuss, Ph.D., is one of my favorite reads about warfare.

 

[SWO Bubba]

This one is awesome! Definitely a must read for brown shoes, black shoes, etc. etc...

Probably THE best shoe book I've ever read!! I couldn't put it down. Many aspects of shipboard life are still the same today.

 

[SWO Bubba]

Ok, a little off the military-centric side, but a great and fascinating book about non-verbal communications - "Signals" by Allan Pease. Very eye-opening and a great leadership book for MIDN/OCs. The Definitive Book of Body Language is a recent follow-on by the same author.

 

[pal215]

One book I read on my last cruise was "Shattered Sword: The untold story of the battle of Midway." It is written by two guys who explore all the factors of the midway battle. They go in depth on the Japanese carrier operations and how things like deck spotting, damage control, and doctrine led to the failurse of the Japanese during the battle. Its a long one at 500 pages but it was a real good read.

 

[DFSpence]