What are we reading?

Started by Martok, March 05, 2012, 01:13:59 PM

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ArizonaTank

#5640
Just finished The Earth is Weeping, by Peter Cozzens. A very good overview of the Indian Wars in the American West.

The book does a very good job in being balanced, calling out the good and bad actors on all sides. While the scope of the book is broad, it does go into quite a bit of detail regarding major actions. It uses a great deal of first-hand accounts and was very fresh and informative. I recommend for anyone interested in the period.

The book often uses a "just the facts" approach to controversial topics, letting the reader decide on the "right" and "wrong."

There are plenty of tales of heroism, men of good character, fights against long odds, and miracle victories. But there are also tales of incompetence, assassination, corruption, evil-intent and savagery on all sides.   

https://www.amazon.com/Earth-Weeping-Story-Indian-American/dp/1786491516/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1655389980&sr=1-1
Johannes "Honus" Wagner
"The Flying Dutchman"
Shortstop: Pittsburgh Pirates 1900-1917
Rated as the 2nd most valuable player of all time by Bill James.

nelmsm

Really liked Cozzen's Civil War books though I haven't read the Shenandoah one yet.

Tripoli

The Chinese Invasion Threat (to Taiwan).  A good overview of the challenges faced by the PRC in a Taiwan invasion scenario.  However, I think the author does not have any military experience, so some of his analysis is less nuanced than I think is called for.  With that said, it is worth the read, for those interested in the topic.

https://www.amazon.com/Chinese-Invasion-Threat-American-Strategy/dp/1788691768/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1GXN81ZNHLQH7&keywords=the+chinese+invasion+threat&qid=1655431907&s=books&sprefix=THe+Chinese+Inva%2Cstripbooks%2C132&sr=1-1
"Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?" -Abraham Lincoln

Gusington

About to start The Bronze Lie: Shattering the Myth of Spartan Warrior Supremacy by Myke Cole.


слава Україна!

We can't live under the threat of a c*nt because he's threatening nuclear Armageddon.

-JudgeDredd

Jarhead0331

#5644
Just finished Apache, by Ed Macy.

Interesting book about British Apache pilots in Afghanistan in the 2007-2008 time frame.

The book culminates in the author's experience as one of the Apache pilots (he was actually CPG on the flight) providing close air support in Operation Glacier Two, which after turning into a total failure, was converted into a rescue mission to save Royal Marines Commando Mathew Ford, who was injured and accidentally left behind enemy lines. Macy, his pilot and one other Apache got 4 Royal Marines volunteers to fly into the battlezone on the pylon wings of their Apaches in order to get Ford and fly him out. It was an extremely risky (and courageous) effort that had never been attempted in combat. All of the Apache crews were awarded the MC for their bravery. Macy actually received the medal for his action on the ground! It is the one and only time in the history of British aviation where a medal was awarded for combat actions on land.



I bought this when DCS Apache came out, so it was a good companion to my own simming.
Grogheads Uber Alles
Semper Grog
"No beast is more alpha than JH." Gusington, 10/23/18


Sir Slash

Halfway through, "Killing The Killers: The Secret War against the Terrorists" by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard. Great so far. Lots of stuff I've not seen elsewhere.
"Take a look at that". Sgt. Wilkerson-- CMBN. His last words after spotting a German tank on the other side of a hedgerow.

Old TImer

#5646
Quote from: ArizonaTank on June 16, 2022, 09:41:08 AM
Just finished The Earth is Weeping, by Peter Cozzens. A very good overview of the Indian Wars in the American West.

https://www.amazon.com/Earth-Weeping-Story-Indian-American/dp/1786491516/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1655389980&sr=1-1

Thanks for this recommendation.  A very good book.

I just found this thread.  It's going to cost me a small fortune.

nelmsm

Quote from: gregb41352 on July 06, 2022, 03:38:35 PM
Quote from: ArizonaTank on June 16, 2022, 09:41:08 AM
Just finished The Earth is Weeping, by Peter Cozzens. A very good overview of the Indian Wars in the American West.

https://www.amazon.com/Earth-Weeping-Story-Indian-American/dp/1786491516/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1655389980&sr=1-1

Thanks for this recommendation.  A very good book.

I just found this thread.  It's going to cost me a small fortune.

Just got a surprise $5 credit to that book today from Amazon and picked it up.  Added to the ever growing list of unread titles on my Kindle

ArizonaTank

#5648
About 3/4 of the way through "Hell's Angels, The True Story of the 303rd Bomb Group in World War II", by Jay A. Stout.

I was not expecting much from this one, but have been very pleasantly surprised.

The book is mostly personal recollections, but backed by references from US and German official records (for example, if a side gunner in a falling plane talks about not seeing the ball turret gunner jump, the book goes to German records for information on where and how the body was recovered and buried).

There is a great deal of nuts and bolts stuff in this book, adding much detail that helps the reader better get into the experience of the bomber war. I am guessing this is because the author is a retired US Marine Corps fighter pilot himself (he has also written a whole slew of books about WWII US airpower).

Some examples: The book has an extensive discussion of the technology and use of the H2X "Mickey" ground scanning radar. This allowed bomber formations to find large targets in low visibility and cloudy weather. There is also a surprisingly complex discussion of the game of cat and mouse played with German AA batteries. The Germans even resorted to having planes follow the US formations, to radio altitude, speed and heading info to the AA directors; in one case, a captured B-17 may even have been used to do this. Or how later in the war, special brightly painted B-17s were used to help with forming missions up while still over England. There is a ton of this kind of detail...

Really enjoying this one...

https://www.amazon.com/Hells-Angels-Story-303rd-Group/dp/0425274098/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1657158223&sr=8-7   
Johannes "Honus" Wagner
"The Flying Dutchman"
Shortstop: Pittsburgh Pirates 1900-1917
Rated as the 2nd most valuable player of all time by Bill James.

ArizonaTank

#5649
Quote from: nelmsm on July 06, 2022, 04:19:01 PM
Quote from: gregb41352 on July 06, 2022, 03:38:35 PM
Quote from: ArizonaTank on June 16, 2022, 09:41:08 AM
Just finished The Earth is Weeping, by Peter Cozzens. A very good overview of the Indian Wars in the American West.

https://www.amazon.com/Earth-Weeping-Story-Indian-American/dp/1786491516/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1655389980&sr=1-1

Thanks for this recommendation.  A very good book.

I just found this thread.  It's going to cost me a small fortune.

Just got a surprise $5 credit to that book today from Amazon and picked it up.  Added to the ever growing list of unread titles on my Kindle

Glad you guys liked it.  I will probably re-read shortly, just to help it all sink in again. A few weeks back I went to Montana, where some of the fighting took place. The book really helped me better understand the place's history.
Johannes "Honus" Wagner
"The Flying Dutchman"
Shortstop: Pittsburgh Pirates 1900-1917
Rated as the 2nd most valuable player of all time by Bill James.

WallysWorld

#5650
Finished a bunch of books in the past eight months in the following order:

Shelby Foote's Civil War trilogy was well worth the long read (2500 pages). Highly detailed about the war and I can see how he was so popular on the PBS series.

The Peloponnesian War by Donald Kagan. Good size and easy reading book about the Greek wars. Made me want to play as the Delian League in Rome II: Total War.

The Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong and translated by Martin Palmer. The Penguin Classic abridged version of the book: about 670 pages. A lot of characters to keep track of so I kept referring to the list of them at the beginning of the book. Very interesting to read and again now I want to play Total War: Three Kingdoms. Glad I finally read this classic.

"I used to be with it, but then they changed what *it* was. Now what I'm with isn't *it* and what *it* is seems weird and scary to me." - Abraham Simpson

Gusington

^I enjoyed Kagan's book. It was one of the first books I read on ancient Greek history.


слава Україна!

We can't live under the threat of a c*nt because he's threatening nuclear Armageddon.

-JudgeDredd

Dammit Carl!

Quote from: WallysWorld on July 10, 2022, 04:03:04 PM
Shelby Foote's Civil War trilogy was well worth the long read (2500 pages). Highly detailed about the war and I can see how he was so popular on the PBS series.

Nah.  It was his syrupy sweet southern drawl. 

(Okay, the man was pretty dang knowledgeable, but that drawl!)

Gusington

Now reading The Scythians - Nomad Warriors of the Steppe by Barry Cunliffe. Excellent writing with great maps and artwork, beautiful book.


слава Україна!

We can't live under the threat of a c*nt because he's threatening nuclear Armageddon.

-JudgeDredd

ArizonaTank

Just finishing "Brothers in Arms: One Legendary Tank Regiment's Bloody War from D-Day to VE-Day", by James Holland.

This is the story of a British tank regiment from D-Day to the end of the war. The "Sherwood Rangers" rode Shermans with a sprinkling of Fireflies and Stuarts.

The book seems to use "Band of Brothers" as a template, and that is not a bad thing. It uses primarily first-person accounts from the men in the regiment to tell the story. A nice touch is that the book also often describes German forces and explains their plans and operations.

For me, the book has a fresh perspective, and made me realize that tankers did not have it easy. Easy to recommend this one.

https://www.amazon.com/Brothers-Arms-Legendary-Regiments-Bloody/dp/0802159087/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1657979629&sr=1-1
Johannes "Honus" Wagner
"The Flying Dutchman"
Shortstop: Pittsburgh Pirates 1900-1917
Rated as the 2nd most valuable player of all time by Bill James.