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Favorite Military books

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viv

Midshipman 4/Trash
Just thought I'd make a post about some good military-related books that I have read, see if anyone wanted to make any comments, and see if anyone cares to suggest other good stuff to read

Good books that I have read:

Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War by Mark Bowden - Sure it's Army, but it's a good book. The movie did a great job of portraying this book. The book did a great job of explaining what happened over there in Somalia.

Wings of Fury: From Vietnam to the Gulf War-The Astonishing True Stories of America's Elite Fighter Pilots by Robert K. Wilcox - This is a great book about Air Force and Navy fighter pilot training. It does a good job comparing the two communities and the similarities and differences in how they train.

Air Warriors: The Inside Story of the Making of a Navy Pilot by Douglas C. Waller - This book is an outstanding look at the path it takes to become an aviator in the Navy. The author spent two years interviewing, meeting, hanging out, and flying with people throughout the training pipeline for various aircraft. The result is a very detailed look at all aspects of what it takes to become the best of the best. I like this one because it doesn't just talk about fighter pilots.

Carrier: A Guided Tour of an Aircraft Carrier by Tom Clancy - I just finished this great book which covers every aspect of aircraft carriers : the funding and politics behind them, the personnel, the training, the aircraft, the weapons, the supporting ships and their personnel, the history, and the future of aircraft carriers. It includes very descriptive details and diagrams of various aircraft, ordnance, and a carrier itself. A slight drawback is that sometimes the book reads like a textbook.

Faith of My Fathers by John McCain and Mark Salter - As most of you probably know, Senator McCain's father and grandfather were Naval Academy grads and great war leaders. This book is the senator's autobiography, covering how he followed the footsteps of his father to the Naval Academy, how he became a fighter pilot, and the story of him being a prisoner of war for about 5 years in Vietnam. It is a very inspiring story and I highly recommend it.


Well I can't believe I wrote that much. I just thought I'd share my feelings about these great books and pass on the recommendation to read all of them. After all, this forum is for aspiring Naval Aviators right?

GO NAVY BEAT ARMY
 

goldwingdreams

Registered User
I have a similar question but more specific to OCS and being a Naval Officer in general. What material should I be reading or absorbing? This is what I've got so far (it will keep me busy for awhile):

Fighter Combat: Tactics and Manuevering by Robert L. Shaw - On the shelf
Aerodynamics for Naval Aviators (NAVWEPS 00-80T-80) - Read the portions dealing with more basic aerodynamic concepts
Sailors To The End by Gregory A. Freeman - Fantastic book about the bravery of the sailors who fought the fire on the Forrestal in '67
Bogey and Bandits: The Making of a Fighter Pilot by Robert Gandt - Great book and a must read for anyone involved in USN/USMC aviation
On War by Karl Von Clausewitz - The general philosopy of war as it applies to nations
The Art of Warfare by Sun Tzu - Maxims and tao relating to the practice of war/battle
The United States Navy: A 200-year History by Cpt. Edward L. Beach - a good, brief summary of the evolution of the U.S. Navy from the Revolutionary War to Vietnam
The Mask of Command by John Keegan - on the shelf
The Price of Admiralty by John Keegan - just started today
A Bright Shining Lie by Neil Sheehan - Read it in High School. Detailed involvement of the U.S. in Indochina/Vietnam.
Miracle at Midway by Gordon R. Prange - on the shelf
At Dawn We Slept by Gordon R. Prange - A vivid and though-provking account of the attack on Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor by Gordon R. Prange - on the shelf
The Influence of Sea Power on History 1660-1783 by Alfred Thayer Mahan - on the shelf. Is this still a relevant text for the modern Navy?
Ghost Soldiers by Hampton Sides - great book detailing the rescue of 500 POWs from Bataan
Vietnam: A History by Stanley Karnow - on the shelf
Fleet Tactics and Coastal Combat by Cpt. Wayne P. Hughes - A great textbook detailing the modern evolution of tactics in littoral waters.
Sea Power by E. B. Potter and Chester W. Nimitz - A thorough book on the evolutio of sea power up to the 1950s
The Naval Officer's Guide - Seems to me this is pretty much the gouge for a lot of the basic stuff in OCS, right?
The Division Officer's Gudie
The Naval Aviation Guide - They should make this site the Official Naval Aviation Guide.

So that's all I have so far but I know there are a lot of gaps in here and any suggestions for texts that would help for OCS or anything that would be helpful in being a better officer.

Thanks.
cowboy_125.gif



___________________________________________________________________
"A good Navy is not a provocation to war. It is the surest guaranty of peace."

President Theodore Roosevelt
 

Rob_ERAU

Registered User
Really good books that I enjoyed reading is:
"The Luckiest Unlucky Man Alive" by Bill Goss, a really insprirational good story about a P-3 Orion pilot who later received cancer and recovered. He goes into great detail about his flying career in the Navy during the Cold War.

"Mission Compromised" by Oliver North, really an outstanding book. I strongly encourage this read. By far, my most favorite book I have ever read!!!

"Bogeys and Bandits" 'The making of a fighter pilot' by Robert Gandt. Anyone interested in Naval Aviation would really like this book, because it tells the story of "nuggets" that just started RAG (Replacement Air Group)training in F/18's. Fun read.


Robby Volack
 

theblakeness

Charlie dont surf!
pilot
1)Black Hawk Down-Mark Bowden
2)In the company of Heroes-Mike Durrant(super 6-4 pilot involved in Somalia)
3)Bravo Two Zero-Andy McNabb
4)Inside Delta Force-Eric Haney <----this is the most accurate book i have read on the unit
5)Flights of Passage-author escapes me
6)No one left behind..the LtCmdr Scott Speicher Story-Amy Waters Yarsinske

on the way...Bogeys and Bandits, as well as AirWarriors.
 

Jolly Roger

Yes. I am a Pirate.
Thanks for the tips! I know what to pick up next time I go to Barnes and Noble. I must say that anything by Gordon Prange is a good book! I might suggest also anything by Samuel Elliot Morrison, one of the preeminate historians on the United States Navy.

My favorites are:

The Jolly Rogers by Tom Blackburn

McCampbell's Heros by Edwin P. Holt

The Wild Blue by Stephen Ambrose

A Man Called Intrepid by William Stephenson

On a Field of Red: The Commmunist International and the Coming of the Second World War II by Anthony Cave Brown and Charles McDonald

The Sword and the Shield by Christopher Andrews

On Seas of Glory by John Lehman

Afternoon of the Rising Sun: The Battle of Leyte Gulf by Kenneth I. Friedman

Founding Brothers by Joseph Ellis

The Big E by Cmdr. Edward P. Stafford, USN

A History of Warefare by John Keegan

Patton: A Genious for Warefare by Carlo D'Este

Russia at War: 1941-1945 by Alexander Werth

Steel My Soldier's Hearts by Col. David Hackworth

Winston Churchill's memiors on WWII

and a few others I can't remember off the top of my head.

I need to get more current on Korea and Vietnam, but that is for when I have more time!

Jolly Roger
pirate_125.gif


Fight to fly, fly to fight, fight to win.

"[I would] Rather fail with honor than succeed by fraud."
-Sophocles
 

airgreg

low bypass axial-flow turbofan with AB driver
pilot
"Bonnie Sue" by Marion Sturkey http://www.usmcpress.com/bonniesue.htm
"In Love and War" by Jim and Sybil Stockdale
"A Rumor of War" by Philip Caputo
"Flags of Our Fathers" by James Bradley, et al.
"Marine Sniper" by Charles Henderson
"We Were Soldiers Once... And Young" by LTGEN Harold Moore & Joseph Galloway (better than the movie)
 

jaerose

Registered User
Another good one is "Call Sign Revlon." It's about Kara Hultgreen, one of the first female aviators to transition from an A-6 to an F-14, but she was killed in a landing accident. It's a good book. It talks about her a little bit in "Bogeys and Bandits," she's the friend of 'Magpie' who is killed.

JR

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."
--Edmund Burke
 

jboomer2

Registered User
As a wife, I have to say I really enjoyed the series':

Brotherhood of War by Web Griffin
The Corps by Web Griffin

For all the ladies out there that want a little bit of everything while enjoying a book about the military, these are very good.

Loving and adoring wife of an Marine SNA!
 

smittyrunr

Well-Known Member
pilot
Contributor
Band of Brothers (the book itself-) Stephen Ambrose

Flight of the Intruder- Stephen Coonts

Vipers in the Storm- Keith Rosenkranz (Air Force types, but still a good read
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)

Punk's War- Carroll

Plus many others already mentioned.

And my 2 cents: Unless it's been updated more recently than my copy, The Naval Aviation Guide is pretty outdated in some places. As far as Call Sign Revlon, it's mostly unbiased, but keep in mind it was written by the pilot in question's Mom.

Happy Reading!
 

Goofytallguy

Registered User
Two SEAL books I liked were:

THE WARRIOR ELITE by Dick Couch, which I think is to BUD/S what Bogeys and Bandits is to F/A-18 training and,

NEVER FIGHT FAIR! by Orr Kelly, which is a compilation of stories told be Seals and UDT teams, the bulk of which take place in Vietnam. These stories are nothing like the G rated stuff you see on the Discovery or History channels, it definitely raised my already high level of respect for what those guys have done.
 

Fly Navy

...Great Job!
pilot
Super Moderator
Contributor
Fiction: Red Storm Rising by Tom Clancy. Anyone who wants to know what a war with the Soviet Union would have been like, read this book.

Fly Navy
ENS USNR
 

jdfairman

PHROGS 4EVER
For all the Devil Dogs out there:

Battle Leadership
by Captain Adolf Von Schnell

Warfighting
MCDP-1

Uncommon Men: The Sergeants Major of the Marine Corps
by John C Chapin

Chesty
by LtCol John T Hoffman

These are a few of my favorite reads. I think they are good reading and have alot to offer us as professional warriors.

When you've got 'em by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow.
 

Fly Navy

...Great Job!
pilot
Super Moderator
Contributor
Hey jdfairman, how is IFS? Are you doing it in P-cola? I'm moving down there next week and I have to do IFS there.

Fly Navy
ENS USNR
 

reapergm

Member
For all the Jarheads...
Jarhead, Making the Corp, Keeping Faith, The Marine Book, and Idiots Guide to Special Ops. Read these... pretty good.

Praying to get in 184
 

jdfairman

PHROGS 4EVER
Naww Fly Navy... I just finished TBS about a month ago and am doing the IFS course right here in Quantico.

When you've got 'em by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow.
 
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