What Are You Currently Reading?

[CQB]

Soldier for a Summer: One Man's Journey from Dublin to the Frontline of the Libyan Uprising

My Share of the Task: A Memoir General Stanley Mcchrystal

And

The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East- Robert Fisk..

If you like Robert Fisk, (& yes I read the above), you may enjoy this:

http://www.karlremarks.com/2012/08/robert-fisk-reporting-from-syria-with.html

My current reading, apart from the above mentioned is 1001 Battles That Changed The Course Of History. A big book which starts with the Sumerian Wars of 2450 BC & finishes with the Invasion of Iraq. I read two events at a time as it's like a really rich cake & I'm going slowly with it.
If you enjoyed Fisk you may like Tom Hollands In the Shadow of the Sword. It charts 6th Century AD when two empires reigned, Persia & Rome. 100 years later the new kids on the block were the Arabs. Quite topical and I found it fascinating with the author demonstrating what Jews, Christians & Muslims know about their religions is open to debate.
For a bit of nerdism I found an old book on target shooting I found at the range, Shooting Sport Technique & Practice.
Lastly some history; Rendezvous With Destiny - Michael Fullilove. How FDR & five men took the US into WW2 & ultimately to the world. They were Sumner Welles, Bill Donovan, Harry Hopkins (my fave for personal reasons) Averill Harriman & Wendell Wilkie. Profiles of all & their achievements, pretty good.

 

[Il Duce]

This is a great thread, I've added a dozen books to my amazon wishlist for future purchase.

I just finished 'The Coldest Winter' by David Halberstam and highly recommend it. One of the best history books I've read and the best on the Korean War I've seen. Very insightful when it comes to assessments of senior leaders and how they make decisions. A number of things I've taken to incorporate into LPDs.

 

[Crusader74]

If you like Robert Fisk, (& yes I read the above), you may enjoy this:

http://www.karlremarks.com/2012/08/robert-fisk-reporting-from-syria-with.html

My current reading, apart from the above mentioned is 1001 Battles That Changed The Course Of History. A big book which starts with the Sumerian Wars of 2450 BC & finishes with the Invasion of Iraq. I read two events at a time as it's like a really rich cake & I'm going slowly with it.
If you enjoyed Fisk you may like Tom Hollands In the Shadow of the Sword. It charts 6th Century AD when two empires reigned, Persia & Rome. 100 years later the new kids on the block were the Arabs. Quite topical and I found it fascinating with the author demonstrating what Jews, Christians & Muslims know about their religions is open to debate.
For a bit of nerdism I found an old book on target shooting I found at the range, Shooting Sport Technique & Practice.
Lastly some history; Rendezvous With Destiny - Michael Fullilove. How FDR & five men took the US into WW2 & ultimately to the world. They were Sumner Welles, Bill Donovan, Harry Hopkins (my fave for personal reasons) Averill Harriman & Wendell Wilkie. Profiles of all & their achievements, pretty good.

Cheers Bro.. As I'm sure you're aware, Fisk also wrote another masterpiece , Pity the Nation which chronicles the history of the Lebanese conflict and I'm sure was on many an Irish Officers reading list before deployment to said Country. I've not read it yet nor do I have it in my possession however it is on my list.. I purchased the (the above mentioned) book because it was the last in the store, so I grabbed it and I hope to start reading it shortly.

 

[Deleted member 2517]

"Women" by Bukowski, "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72" by Thompson, and I'm finally trying to finish "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" by Morris.

 

[Blizzard]

I've read several of Kaplan's books and highly recommend his work.

Concur. I just pulled out a copy of Warrior Politics off the shelf and began to re-read it. It was written in 2002 but it's interesting to read it now with benefit of 12 years to reflect back on his thoughts, a number of which are fairly profound.

 

[AWP]

Concur. I just pulled out a copy of Warrior Politics off the shelf and began to re-read it. It was written in 2002 but it's interesting to read it now with benefit of 12 years to reflect back on his thoughts, a number of which are fairly profound.

GREAT Book.

 

[LogDog0402]

I'm reading A Universe from Nothing by Lawrence M. Krauss.
“Where did the universe come from? What was there before it? What will the future bring? And finally, why is there something rather than nothing?”

Next up is The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins.
A preeminent scientist -- and the world's most prominent atheist -- asserts the irrationality of belief in God and the grievous harm religion has inflicted on society, from the Crusades to 9/11.

 

[nobodythank you]

Does it have to be non-fiction? I read a bunch of sci-fi and military sci-fi.

 

[Th3 Maelstr0m]

I'm reading A Universe from Nothing by Lawrence M. Krauss.
“Where did the universe come from? What was there before it? What will the future bring? And finally, why is there something rather than nothing?”

Next up is The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins.
A preeminent scientist -- and the world's most prominent atheist -- asserts the irrationality of belief in God and the grievous harm religion has inflicted on society, from the Crusades to 9/11.

The God Delusion was, in my opinion, the weakest of the "new atheist" books. Some interesting tidbits, but overall I wasn't impressed. Dawkins other books, like The Blind Watchmaker, The Selfish Gene, and The Greatest Show on Earth are good reads though. How are you liking Kraus' book?

I'm finally trying to finish "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" by Morris.

Loved that book.

 

[digrar]

When you earn a Victoria Cross in Australia, is the VC attached to your name only in an official military fashion or always?

It's a legit post nominal that you can use when you like.

 

[Il Duce]

Does it have to be non-fiction? I read a bunch of sci-fi and military sci-fi.

I haven't read them recently but a few of my favorite sci-fi military series if you haven't checked them out are:

John Scalzi's 'Old Man's War' series
Scott Westerfeld's 'Risen Empire' and 'Killing of Worlds'
Walter Jon Williams' 'Dread Empire's Fall' series

If you liked Horatio Hornblower or anything in that historical fiction realm of maritime adventures David Drake recreated a similar series of stories in the 'RCN Series' that's pretty good. I think the first couple books are available for free on the Baen free library to check out rather than purchasing them.

 

[LogDog0402]

The God Delusion was, in my opinion, the weakest of the "new atheist" books. Some interesting tidbits, but overall I wasn't impressed. Dawkins other books, like The Blind Watchmaker, The Selfish Gene, and The Greatest Show on Earth are good reads though. How are you liking Kraus' book?

I love Krauss' book. He makes it easy to understand and also has some great tidbits in there. I'll eventually get around to some of the other books you mentioned, I have to fit Level Zero Heros in there somewhere.

 

[Board and Seize]

Currently in midst of:
Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman by James Gleick
Excellent Sheep: The Miseducation of the American Elite and the Way to a Meaningful Life by William Deresiewicz
Katabasis, the fourth entry in the Mongoliad Cycle by a variety of authors.

Genius is a biography of Dick Feynman, a key member of the Manhattan Project and all around trailblazing physicist/genius. Gleick writes in a way that brings some very esoteric material to the lay level, while remaining engaging throughout. Great read! (I would also recommend his book The Information, which covers the development of information theory.

Excellent Sheep was passed on to me by my father after hearing about a project of mine to change the culture in my university away from a one-way track to finance and consulting. Deresiewicz (a former long-time Yale professor) argues that the entire enterprise of education is inherently flawed - perhaps to the point of being self-defeating. A nice summary of the book in essay form (by the author) can be found here.

The Mongoliad Cycle is a great read so far. Set in 13th century these books follow a martial monastic order as they deal with the Mongol invasion in Europe. This is historical fiction at its ass-bleedingly-accurate-detail finest. The first three books are stronger than the fourth so far, but with so many authors writing each book (and different ones from books to book) they are surprisingly consistent and coherent.

-B&S

 

[CDG]

Does it have to be non-fiction? I read a bunch of sci-fi and military sci-fi.

Definitely does not have to be non-fiction. I remember @x SF med talking about the Dorsai series in a thread a long time ago and have perused military sci-fi since. He recommended SF wannabes read it. So I would certainly welcome suggestions for other types of reads.

 

[RustyShackleford]

American Buffalo: In Search of a Lost Icon by Steven Rinella

 

[Grunt]

Life and Times of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass.

So far, it is an outstanding book. I have read several books concerning Douglass and found all of them to be good.

 

[nobodythank you]

I haven't read them recently but a few of my favorite sci-fi military series if you haven't checked them out are:

John Scalzi's 'Old Man's War' series
Scott Westerfeld's 'Risen Empire' and 'Killing of Worlds'
Walter Jon Williams' 'Dread Empire's Fall' series

If you liked Horatio Hornblower or anything in that historical fiction realm of maritime adventures David Drake recreated a similar series of stories in the 'RCN Series' that's pretty good. I think the first couple books are available for free on the Baen free library to check out rather than purchasing them.

Sweet! Scalzi books were pretty good and I have read many of Drake's books. He did a great job with the Honor Harrington series and some of the independent stories he has written.

Some of my favorites include:
the Sten series by Chris Bunch and Alan Cole (including the Star Risk series by Chris Bunch)
Armor by John Steakly
Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein
The Lost Fleet series by Jack Cambell
the Kris Longknife books by Mike Shepard
Reality Dysfunction series by Peter Hamilton
Red Dragon by Peter Hamilton
the HALO series by various authors
the Troy Rising series and the Aldenata series by John Ringo
and various David Weber books that are done with other writers like Steve White (Insurrection, In Death Ground, The Shiva Option)

and a few others I can't remember offhand. The above are primarily ground or space military sci-fi books. lol Hopefully others get as much joy out of these stories as I have. Discuss....

 

[Il Duce]

I really liked:
Armor (much preferred the war part to the post-war remembrances but I still think the idea of 'the engine' is one of the best executed character pieces in sci-fi action, would have liked to learn more about the world the protagonist originally came from)
Starship Troopers - still think the opening chapter is one of the best you'll find anywhere in military sci-fi
Lost Fleet - thought Campell is not as good at the relationships piece of the books but the space combat and campaign is incredible

Haven't read any of the others but they are definitely going on the list to read in the future.

 

[AWP]

Recent:
Ian Morris - War! What is it Good For? Statistically analysis war across the glode and the role of Leviathans/ "globocops" in lowering the rate of violent death. Educational without being dry.
Richard Overy - The Bombers and the Bombed. Looks at the strategic bombing campaigns in Europe and also examines civilian efforts. More than just war porn. Very good book.
Winston Groom - 1942. Yes, the author of Forrest Gump. Good book, superficial at times, meant for the casual reader of history. I'd skip it unless you want a primer for the year that really won WWII.
Willy Peter Reese - A Stranger to Myself. Taken from the diaries of a German soldier who died in 1944. It loks at his experiences on the Eastern Front. Good book, but too much philosophy and inward reflection. Areas where I'm dying for details? none. Pages waxing poetic about the beauty of the world? Too many. If you can wade through all of that you can glean some details about the life of an infantryman in Russia.

Current:
Jonathon Parshall and Anthony Tully - Shattered Sword: The Japanese Story of the Battle of Midway. So far it is a very good book. Parshall co-founded combinedfleet.com, THE internet resource on the IJN. http://www.combinedfleet.com/kaigun.htm
The Book: http://www.combinedfleet.com/MidwayBook.htm

The book makes extensive use of Japanense accounts and interviews from surviving members of the IJN. I'm only 10% or so into it, but it appears to be well researched and written. The authors have already demonstrated the great divides within the Japanese military and within the IJN itself and how Midway was partially the result of being too successful in the opening days of the war. Japan didn't have a solid plan following Malaya and the Dutch East Indies which suddenly caused a lot of internal turmoil. Yamamoto isn't presented as the genius we see in the West and how Japan's rigid society promoted men based on senority vice merit, sometimes with disasterous results. One interesting myth they've dispelled: the attack on the Aleutians wasn't a diversionary attack, but its own operation planned to coincide with Midway; something driven by internal politics.

 

[LogDog0402]

If you like the Game of Thrones TV series then I recommend the books the show is based on by George R. R. Martin.