Reading Lists

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Hey, carebear, ever read any of David Drake's military SF or fantasy?

If you have not I suspect you have been missing out.
 
What are ya, new? :D

I've been reading Drake since the early Slammers. I think I like his book "Killer" best of all. That man can genre switch like nobody's business.

Robert Frezza's "Fire in a Faraway Place" series is great and I assume you know your Falkenberg....
 
:p

Tryin' ta teach your grandma ta suck eggs or somethin', sheesh!

As a matter of fact I am working my way through Go Tell The Spartans for the umpteenth time after rereading the earlier Falkenberg stories.

Ever read any H. Beam Piper?

:)
 
A hit, a palpable hit. :D

I might have read fuzzy sapiens but I may just be remembering seeing the cover.

The Kalvan stories are on that "get to" list. Seeing as I have a couple hundred in credit at the used book store, maybe now is the time, if only to catch up.

How bout John Boston's "Naked Came the Sasquatch"? Makes the top 10 of "funniest novels I ever read".
 
A.E. Van Vogt, "The Weapon Shops of Isher"

I think he wrote more than one about the Weapon Shops, but I've just read the one.
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This was recommended to me already and I ordered a copy. It's in the mail. Question tho, what's it about and why do so many people recommend it?
 
Thread omissions...

I'm shocked that noone's mentioned SunTzu's Art of War. There are several decent english translations, I think the last version I read was put out by that guy who wrote Shogun... :D

Slow walk in a sad rain, McAffee (I think) -- Vietnam, short, funny, scary, fiction -- based upon his and other members of his support group's experiences. :eek:

Jihad v.s. McWorld -- an interesting interpretation of modern economics and politics and globalization. :fire:

The Transformation of War -- gotta read it, really. :evil:

I've enjoyed several books by WEB Griffin (sp?) even though most of them are about jarheads :neener:
 
the heart of the weapons shop

The weapons shop is an expansion of a short story written in 1942 by A.E. vanVogt. It is an excellent story exciting and well written. The story tells how one man fights tyranny. The money quote is this

Fine Weapons
The Right To Buy Weapons Is The Right to Be Free


pete
 
Art of War

You know, I went to my local Barnes and Noble and found about 10 :what: translations of this book. I didn't buy because I didn't want to pick a bad one. Which would any of you recommend?

This also reminded me of another on the same vein. "Mao Tse-Tung on Guerilla Warfare" The one I have is translated by Brigadier General Samuel B. Griffth USMC (Ret) 1961 by Praeger Publishers. I believe Mao draws from Sun Tzu. He makes it abundantly clear (to me anyways) how difficult it can be for one nation to occupy another for any extended length of time.

If you're interested in this topic another is "The Guerilla Series" by (once again) Ion l. Idriess. Six manuals written by him on commission from the Australian Gov't as a "how to" guerrilla warfare instructional for the ordinary citizen in expectation of a Japanese invasion. ~1939-40 maybe. Very stirring in parts. It also makes it abundantly clear how difficult an occupation can be against an unwilling society. A complete original collection in good shape tips the scales at over $5000. Facsimiles were at one point available but are in the $200 range last I knew. www.ozbook.com has them for $285AU. I see they have the individual titles available but I'm not sure the boxed set is available. Click on "Idriess reprints" on the left and then scroll down.
 
Sun Tzu

I don't have any of them with me here, and my memory is fuzzy about authors...

some translations include "historical ancedotes" written into copies of texts years after Sun Tzu's death. Find one with those, they're priceless stories of leaders and battles. Usually they're used to show a point -- have a moral, if you will. Definately required reading, though. Get 2 translations at least, or buy one, read it and take it back :D

It is also pretty short. I don't think I've seen one more than 3/4" thick.
 
It is also pretty short. I don't think I've seen one more than 3/4" thick.
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My favorite kind! :D

Of course, I'm reading another title just about as thick but it's taking me forever. :rolleyes: It's dry, so very very dry... I'm going to get through it though!:p
 
I got "The Aquariums of Pyonyang" (sp?) from my library, and am about 3/4 of the way through it. Story of North Korean who is sent to concentration camp (when he's NINE!) along with his family. I think he went away in the late 70's.

Wow. That we would negotiate with such a despicable, hateful, sadistic, power-hungry, and evil regime fills me with anger.

Everyone talks about "never again"---what a joke. Right now thousands of North Koreans are getting the same treatment the Jews got in Nazi Germany, if this book is anywhere near accurate--worked to death, starved, beaten, mis-treated in every way shape and form. .

And they continue to threaten their neighbors (S. Korea, Japan and us) with nukes and the missiles to deliver them.

It's also written (and translated?) quite beautifully, if such a subject can be written about that way.

Every American should read this book.
 
another title I want to read

Fudgie said:

I got "The Aquariums of Pyonyang" (sp?) from my library, and am about 3/4 of the way through it. Story of North Korean who is sent to concentration camp (when he's NINE!) along with his family. I think he went away in the late 70's.

Wow. That we would negotiate with such a despicable, hateful, sadistic, power-hungry, and evil regime fills me with anger.

Everyone talks about "never again"---what a joke. Right now thousands of North Koreans are getting the same treatment the Jews got in Nazi Germany, if this book is anywhere near accurate--worked to death, starved, beaten, mis-treated in every way shape and form. .
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Sounds like a book I would like to read. And your comments are how I have begun to feel about many things our government does in the world.

A title that someone mentioned to me recently, and highly recommended, was

Kiss the Boys Goodbye: How the United States Betrayed Its Own Pows in Vietnam
by Monika Jensen-Stevenson, William Stevenson

I did a little research on this, and a few folks seem to trash it, while others say it did happen, that our government sold out the POWs. I then found out that John Kerry had investigated this issue of Vietnam and our POWs/MIAs. His participation, of all people, leads me to some really bad thoughts about what probably did happen to our POWs and MIAs. It makes me sick, and really saddens me at the same time.

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2004/2/13/165004.shtml

Why Families Say Kerry Betrayed POWs and MIAs

from the article

In the end, Kerry and his committee determined in a 500-page final report that American POWs were left alive in Vietnam after the war but felt none were still alive. It made no attempt to identify those left behind, how they died, who killed them or where their remains might be located.

Many POW/MIA families simply didn’t believe him, and they were soon given more to ruminate on as to what could have driven Kerry to such unsatisfying and incomplete conclusions.

Multimillion-dollar Incentive to 'Reward Vietnam'

Shortly after Kerry declared to the world, “President Bush should reward Vietnam within a month for its increased cooperation in accounting for American MIAs,” Vietnam announced it had granted Colliers International, based in Boston, a contract worth millions.

Designating Colliers International as the exclusive real estate agent representing Vietnam, the communist regime positioned the company to rake in tens of millions of dollars in future contracts to upgrade Vietnam’s ports, railroads and other infrastructure.

C. Stewart Forbes, chief executive officer of Colliers International, is John Forbes Kerry’s cousin.
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I would be curious if anyone else has read this book here.
 
Greeting's All-

I highly recommend two must read's of Viet-Nam era military books:

The first, Stolen Valor by B.G. Burkett & Glenna Whitley tells how
the Viet-Nam Generation Was Robbed Of Its Heroes And Its History.

The second, Honor Bound by Stuart I. Rochester & Frederick Kiley
is about American Prisoners Of War In Southeast Asia 1961-1973.

Both volumes are right handy on my desk, as reference material.

POW's-MIA's SHALL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN
 
Ala Dan: yes, I read "Honor Bound" last summer. Good book.

You know, those commie bastards are really something. It's not enough that you're a prisoner of war, --that's bad enough, even if your relatively well treated. But no, they have to try to break you down---confess to "crimes", torture you to sign confessions---that NO ONE IN THEIR RIGHT MIND IS GOING TO BELIEVE! Did they really think people--anywhere--were going to sit up and say " Oh, those pilots they captured really ARE gangsters and pirates--they signed a confession that says so." Even the #$%&@#$ Nazis didn't try that with run of mill POW's. ( I know things were different with spys and resistance fighters.)

They're like idiot children who have access to dangerous things.

Sorry for the rant---but these commie bastards really are the enemy of all that is good. And people continue to fall for their bull-----.
 
Add Elmore Leonard's "The Hot Kid" to the list of good summer reads for anyone who likes old revolvers and Depression era bad men, maybe even a new Colt .38 in the .45 frame. :D
 
Enjoyable but Engaging Stuff

Just about anything written by TOM CLANCY.

If it were up to me to make decisions about Hollywood movies, ALL of his books would be on the big screen.

Have a great vacation. Take some time just to hug your kids and tell your wife how much you appreciate her. And take longer showers. Walk barefoot on the wet sand by the shore. Watch the sunrise and listen to the birds. Do some stuff that has absolutely no mental value other than just pure entertainment and fun.
 
Greeting's Fudgie Ghost My Friend-

Yes, if anyone is in doubt just let them visit their nearest VA hospital,
and see those that did come home. Unfortunately, there is lot's of 'em
that suffer severe injuries that they will have too live with for the rest
of their lives. And now, our government wants to normalize relations
with those that we fought; sorry my friend, but I don't condone this
approach as my local cemetery is full of Americans who lost their lives
in 'Nam.

"MAY GOD BLESS AMERICA"
 
And now, our government wants to normalize relations with [Vietnam]. sorry my friend, but I don't condone this approach as my local cemetery is full of Americans who lost their lives in 'Nam.
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Our cemeteries also hold fallen soldiers from our wars with Britain, Germany, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Russia, China, Canada, Japan, etc. Applying your formula, we'd still have normal relations with France, tho.

Anyway, there are hundreds of books I'd recommend, but I decided to whittle it down to just a dozen.

A Pretext for War : 9/11, Iraq, and the Abuse of America's Intelligence Agencies by James Bamford (Anchor: 2005). Also, check out his two excellent books on the NSA, The Puzzle Palace and Body of Secrets.

Imperial Hubris: Why the West is Losing the War on Terror by Michael Scheuer (Potomac Books: 2004). Scheuer was head of the CIA's Bin Laden unit in the 1990s.

Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 by Steve Coll. (Penguin Press HC: 2004) Coll is managing editor for the Washington Post and covered Afghanistan from 1989 to 1992. He provides a highly detailed, well written account of the history of the CIA and United States in Afghanistan from the Soviet invasion to 9/11 based largely on interviews with US government officials.

Chain of Command : The Road from 9/11 to Abu Ghraib by Seymour M. Hersh (HarperCollins: 2004). Hersh has been a legendary investigative journalist since 1969 when he broke the My Lai story in Vietnam.

Send In The Waco Killers: Essays on the Freedom Movement, 1993-1998 by Vin Suprynowicz (Mountain media: 1999). See also his The Ballad of Carl Drega.

The State vs. The People: The Rise of the American Police State by Claire Wolfe and Aaron Zelman (Mazel Freedom Press: 2001). Are we there yet? Have we crossed the line? One thing is clear: our bipartisan rulers keep us distracted and divided as they move our society ever closer towards a police state, even as they disagree among themselves on the exact contours of it.

Why Our Drug Laws Have Failed and What We Can Do About It: A Judicial Indictment of the War on Drugs by Judge James P. Gray. (Temple University Press: 2001). Thanks to the growing drug exception to the Bill of Rights, the government can seize all of your property without convicting you, trying you, or even formally accusing you of a crime. Before becoming a judge, Gray was a conservative Republican prosecutor.

In Search of Enemies: A CIA Story by John Stockwell (Replica Books: 1997). After serving in the Marine Corps Recon, Stockwell joined the CIA and went on to serve in three wars. His final stint was as task force commander of the CIA's war in Angola in 1975. He sat on a sucommittee of the national Security Council, he interacted with Colby, Kissinger, Bush Sr., etc. Growing disgusted with lies and corruption that he saw, he decided to write this full account. He is the highest-ranking CIA officer ever to blow the whistle on the Agency. By the way, he did not submit this book to the CIA for pre-publication censorship.

The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier on Atrocity and Accountability (A National Security Archive Book) by Peter Kornbluh (New Press: 2003). In 1970 Nixon and Kissinger activated the machinery of the US government to subvert the constitutionally-elected government of Chile, replacing it with a dictatorship.

All the Shah's Men : An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror by Stephen Kinzer (John Wiley & Sons: 2004). In 1953 the US government subverted the constitutionally-elected government of Iran, replacing it with a dictatorship.

Culture of Terrorism by Noam Chomsky (South End Press: 1988). Al Qaeda, Abu Nidal, and Hamas are mere retail terrorists whose violence pales in contrast to wholesale terrorists. Retail terrorists are denounced and hunted down while wholesale terrorists are invited to the White House and lavished with tax dollars, arms, training and other support.

Hegemony or Survival: America's Quest for Global Dominance (The American Empire Project) by Noam Chomsky (Metropolitan Books: 2003).
 
Has anyone read the Jack Reacher books, by Lee Childs? It's about an ex military policeman, and his adventures outside of the military. latest one out is One Shot. Great series.
 
Ugh. My list for the moment consists mainly of the book "Elementary Differential Equations," by two professors I had never heard of before, residing on either sides of the dirt.

When I get the time to read other texts (or care to, is more apt) I'm re-reading Unintended Consequences in light of recent, aggrivating news regarding the .gov, and other people.

There is an older book, Generations, that I need to finish at some point - it's interesting, but rather dry.

Some others on the to read list - and that new turtledove book in the TL: 191 series is coming out soon - bloody ATF and their ban bankrupting me must get more kits while I can make myself pretend I can afford them...grrr.... :cuss:
 
I’m told that both Unintended consequences and Enemies Foreign and Domestic are fantastic, but haven’t found the time to read either of them.
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Find the time. You won't regret it.

Currently reading "Shooter", the autobiography of Jack Coughlin, a USMC sniper in Iraq. Also, when I can get it away from my wife, HP #6, a "light" entertaining read for sitting by the pool with a gin and tonic or three.

Always like to go back and reread anything by Stephen Hunter. He's one of the very few fiction writers who actually researches the firearms topics he includes in his books.

Another favorite: "Riding with Reagan" by Secret Service Agent John R. Barletta, one of President Reagan's horseback riding companions.

******************

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." Groucho Marx?
 
I've just finished the five-book Belisarius series by Eric Flint and David Drake. Possibly the best alternate-history SF/fantasy series I've ever read, and highly recommended. A lot of military strategy and tactics for those interested in such things. See here for more information.
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I came to this thread late and don't have the time just now to read every reply, so if this is a dupe, my apologies. But I figured it worth mentioning that the first two books of this series are available at no charge, in full, and completely legally at the Baen Free Library. If you read those, odds are pretty good you'll buy them, and the following three. I certainly did.

(If you go to the "series" link on the left-hand sidebar, you can scroll down to the Eric Flin & David Drake entry, which lists the Belisarius novels)

ETA: scanning through other responses, I caught this:

John Ringo for military Sci-Fi.
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So I can't help plugging the Baen Free Library again, as it contains several of Ringo's books and collaborations, as well. And again, if you read them there, odds are good you'll go out and buy them, along with everything else he's written. I certainly did. ;)
 
Sun Tzu's The Art of War is not the only book of that title ever written.

Machiavelli's book of that title discusses war in the 1500s, and is a pretty good read for anyone trying to get a handle on war in that period.

He has a few things to say about war in general, too.

I can't remember the author, but The Devil's Finger was a good read. Reminded me of some of Barry Sadler's books.
 
Fehrenbach's "This Kind of War" is THE book on the Korean War.

He goes beyond the subject to speak of the needs of the defacto American Imperium. Fantastic read.

And NH, I just finished "Paratime" and "Lord Kalvan". So I'm all caught up. :neener:
 
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