1. On Sep 15 2016 Tom Copeland (USCG) read Jawbreaker: The Attack on Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda: A Personal Account by the CIA's Key Field Commander by Gary Berntsen and commented:

    Good stuff. Kind of heavy with the redacted sections, but that's a point he's trying to make. I like the opening anecdote when he talks about his first day in USAF boot camp and how he realized "whoa, I've been wasting my life."

  2. On Sep 11 2016 Tom Copeland (USCG) read War at the Top of the World: The Struggle for Afghanistan, Kashmir and Tibet by Eric Margolis and commented:

    An interesting mix of boots-on-the-ground war journalism and geopolitical discussions. The bits about the Kashmir conflict were all new to me. This book was written in 2000; I think some of his predictions have not quite played out. For example he suggests that in the US the federal government will get weaker and the states will get stronger. I think the opposite has happened.

  3. On Sep 06 2016 Tom Copeland (USCG) read Charlie Wilson's War by George Crile and commented:

    A profane but lively story. The comparisons to Harry Flashman are a nice touch.

  4. On Aug 29 2016 colleen (USA) read How Wars End: Why We Always Fight the Last Battle by Gideon Rose
  5. On Aug 25 2016 colleen (USA) read Battle Leadership by Adolf Von Schell
  6. On Aug 25 2016 colleen (USA) read No True Glory: A Frontline Account of the Battle for Fallujah by Bing West
  7. On Aug 25 2016 colleen (USA) read Afghanistan: A Military History from Alexander the Great to the War against the Taliban by Stephen Tanner
  8. On Aug 25 2016 kcholbert (USAF) read Once a Warrior--Always a Warrior: Navigating the Transition from Combat to Home--Including Combat Stress, PTSD, and mTBI by Charles W. Hoge M.D.
  9. On Aug 24 2016 kcholbert (USAF) read No True Glory: A Frontline Account of the Battle for Fallujah by Bing West
  10. On Aug 24 2016 kcholbert (USAF) read The Soviet-Afghan War: How a Superpower Fought and Lost by The Russian General Staff
  11. On Aug 24 2016 kcholbert (USAF) read The Other Side of the Mountain: Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War by Ali Ahmad Jalali
  12. On Aug 24 2016 kcholbert (USAF) read Blood Stripes: The Grunt's View of the War in Iraq by David J. Danelo
  13. On Aug 22 2016 Tom Copeland (USCG) read A Fiery Peace in a Cold War: Bernard Schriever and the Ultimate Weapon by Neil Sheehan and commented:

    I had never heard of General Schriever and of the story of the development of the ICBM and IRBM systems. Lots of interesting anecdotes about how things came together. Since this is a biography, maybe it over-emphasizes the effects of individual personalities on history - but maybe not! The right person in the right place with the right motivations, and next thing you know, there's a balance of power.

  14. On Aug 15 2016 colleen (USA) read "Execute against Japan": The U.S. Decision to Conduct Unrestricted Submarine Warfare by Joel Ira Holwitt
  15. On Aug 07 2016 Tom Copeland (USCG) read American Icon: Alan Mulally and the Fight to Save Ford Motor Company by Bryce G. Hoffman and commented:

    Shows the difference that a great executive can make. Interesting to see how someone not from the auto industry overcame resistance. Also some good stuff on the bailout period.