Read any good books lately?

Butcher is one of my favorite authors, and I love the Dresden Files and the Codex Alera by him.  I just started re-reading Weber's Safehold series since there is a new book in that series.  The series is a combination of science and historical fiction.  Humanity has encountered a genocidal alien that tracks us by our high tech emmissions, so the desperation mission to colonize a planet chooses to revert to muscle, wind and water powered technology.  Unfortunately, the majority of the command crew were megalamaniacs and programmed the colonists to believe they were the "Archangels" and the colonists were "Adams and Eves" born on Safehold. 800 years later, an android wakes up on Safehold with the mission to re-introduce humanity to technology for the eventual return of the aliens.  He takes the name Merlin.  The series raises some interesting questions about faith and morality and the battle scenes are truly awesome in their depth and detail.  The first book is called "Off Armageddon Reef", and all of the rest of the books have titles taken from classic hymns. 

Last week I finished reading "A Very Long Weekend- The Army National Guard in Korea". It was a combination of personal recollections and timeline history. Some funny, some tragic, some making you shake your head. Those guys did all that was asked if them, more than what was expected of them, and if the Korean War is the "Forgotten War", the Guard soldiers who fought there are even more forgotten for their deeds, being overshadowed in the histories by the Regulars who soaked up what little limelight there was in Korea. A good read for those interested of this area of history.

I just finished John Lundstrom's "First Team the Guadalcanal Campaign", after finishing his "First South Pacific Campaign." I recommend Lundstrom's books to all fans and students of the Pacific War, along with Tully & Parshall's "Shattered Sword" (inspired by the research and analysis that Lundstrom did).

I'm turning next to Barrett Tillman's "The Forgetten Fifteenth" about the 15th Air Force.

I want to get ahold of Lundstrom's books. Those are top of my "to get" list for books. I read Shattered Sword when it was first published. It was good, but not as good as the hype of the time implied.

stikpusher

Last week I finished reading "A Very Long Weekend- The Army National Guard in Korea". It was a combination of personal recollections and timeline history. Some funny, some tragic, some making you shake your head. Those guys did all that was asked if them, more than what was expected of them, and if the Korean War is the "Forgotten War", the Guard soldiers who fought there are even more forgotten for their deeds, being overshadowed in the histories by the Regulars who soaked up what little limelight there was in Korea. A good read for those interested of this area of history.

 

GMorrison

 

 

stikpusher

Last week I finished reading "A Very Long Weekend- The Army National Guard in Korea". It was a combination of personal recollections and timeline history. Some funny, some tragic, some making you shake your head. Those guys did all that was asked if them, more than what was expected of them, and if the Korean War is the "Forgotten War", the Guard soldiers who fought there are even more forgotten for their deeds, being overshadowed in the histories by the Regulars who soaked up what little limelight there was in Korea. A good read for those interested of this area of history.

 

 

 

 

I'd like to read that. My father was in the Michigan ANG from 1950-1954. He stayed stateside, but the units that did go to Korea were legendary.

 

 

Yeah, the Michigan Guard Redlegs were pretty darn good! Some things in 1950 had not changed in 1990 or 2001-2005...

http://www.amazon.com/Very-Long-Weekend-National-1950-1953/dp/1572490225

You can buy the book cheap. I'd send you the one that I read, but it is a loaner from another Guard vet in my AMPS chapter.

My dad was Illinois Army Guard, and he got called to Korea and served as a 81mm mortar crew chief near Jane Russell Hill.  I believe he was attached to the California guard unit, but am not sure.  I think I need to get the book mentioned Long Weekend. 

I'm kinda surprised you did not care for Shattered Sword.  The level of research and analysis was top notch, at least as far as I could tell.  I agree that Lunddtrum's books are great, and I have copies of both First Team books. 

John

Interesting that, John. My mom and dad moved to California in 1953 and he was re assigned to the California Guard, at Army Camp Roberts down near Paso Robles.

I came around in 1956.

I have the AFV Club M40 GMC gun kit in my stash. I really wanted to build it with him, but Alz has taken him away from me. Sudden and horrible in two years time.

GM, I need to build a B-26 and M4 HST for my dad before his time comes. They are of the same generation and service times.

Wolf, It's not that I did not care for Shattered Sword. I found it quite enlightening regarding IJN air ops and procedures at Midway. It was a good read. But their view that Midway was not the near run thing of other works on the battle is not quite as it appears

(SPOLIER ALERT!)

The hype around it when published portayed to have serious view changing information held within. That book's saying that Kaga and Soryu were scuttled the same as Akagi and Hiryu by IJN Destroyer torpedoes is not a great stretch. The readiness of the Kido Butai air strike when the Enterprise and Yorktown dive bombers made their strike is also not a great stretch. Even the position of Hiryu within the formation at the time of the morning carrier dive bomber strike in Shattered Sword as compared to Incredible Victory or Miracle at Midway is even not a great stretch when all things of that chaotic 10 minutes is reviewed in hindsight from 20, 30 or 60 years later- debatable, but understandable. 

I will throw one hypothetical based off of Midway out there. What if Lt Best and his two wingmen had dived on Kaga along with all the other Enterprise dive bombers? Those three planes and two bombs truly altered the course of the Pacific War. Akagi surviving the morning strike would have completely altered the course of the Battle of Midway. Not Kaga and Soryu being scuttled by their escorting destroyers, and not Hiryu's place in formation during the morning strike. A cordinated counterstrike of two carriers with increased fighter escort by the Japanese at Midway of torpedo bombers and dive bombers, flown by their best airmen, could have resulted in more than just the loss of Yorktown. The results of Santa Cruz could have been added as well.

Just a thought...

I'm reading 'A Time for Trumpets', by Charles B. McDonald (The Same author who wrote the excellent 'Company Commander') It's about the the Battle of the Bulge. It's a great book, albeit busy to follow all the units involved (I really need a map as I read along). I never appreciated just how chaotic and involved that battle was before.

"Trumpets" is a very excellent book.  I have read it twice since I bought it in 1989 at Ramstein AB, Germany.  I found out in 2008 that my now retired boss and now a consultant contributed to the book as a part of the team of German Order of Battle researchers mentioned in the back of the book.  He used to work at Aberdeen Proving Ground, and would do research on the Bulge straight from the boxes of documents and data from the dusty US Army archives in his spare time.

Just finished "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich."  Fantastic book!

Mopar Madness

Just finished "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich."  Fantastic book!

That's one that I reread every year.  It still holds up, nearly 70 years after Shirer wrote it.

I usually reread James Clavell's "Shogun", and Michael Crichton's "Jurassic Park" once a year, too.

Baron, did you ever read "Noble House"?

Intersting hypothetical.  History is filled with examples of someone doing just the right thing at the right time to change the course of a battle.  I found Shattered Sword explaining why the myths that the other books and the popular history were wrong, even through the lens of history.  I found the level of research they did and the fact they were willing to start from scratch and challenge the standard line really impressive. 

John

Shogun is another fantastic book.  Truly worth the investment of time it takes to read it!  I'll have to pick up Noble House during my next Half Price Books annual excursion.  I've seen it on the shelf but it looks like one of those long books I settle in to over the winter.  

Hi;

  I just finished reading the " Saucer " trilogy by Stephen Coonts. Interesting reading and relaxing with a lot of " What If's " .     Tanker - Builder

I just finished reading "Devotion" by Adam Makos. It is the story of two Corsair pilots in the Korean War, Tom Hudner and Jesse Brown. Brown was the Navy's first African-American carrier pilot.  Jesse was shot down in the battle of the Chosen Reservoir. Hudner crashed his airplane and hoped to rescue his fellow pilot with whom he had trained with and became his close friend. As the sub-title of the book says it is an "epic story of heroism, friendship and sacrifice." I could not put the book down once I started reading it. 

GMorrison

Baron, did you ever read "Noble House"?

Hi, GM, no, but I'm familiar with the story.  That particular plot doesn't really do it for me, though I think about reading it, just because it's Clavell.  I have yet to read "King Rat", too.

Got it, and I forgot to say, need to read Taipan before Noble House anyways.

Shogun is impossible to top though.

Last week, I finished The Wrong Stuff and enjoyed it.

I just finished Unflinching by Master Corporal (Ret'd.) Jody Mitic of the Canadian Armed Forces.  He was a sniper in the Royal Canadain Regiment.  Long story short, he lost both his legs below the knees when he stepped on a landmine in Afghanistan.  He overcame the loss of his legs and runs in road races, participated in the Amazing Race Canada with his brother Cory (they finished 2nd) and he's now a city councillor here in Ottawa.  I quit enjoyed it.

Almost done with "Band of Brothers" the boys of Easy Company....AWESOME Read

"Movie was better than the book."

LOL's both excellent.

My daughter just picked up "Dune".

I told her, whatever you do, DON'T see the movie. My friend Ramon and I actually got thrown out of that one for LMAO activity.

I just wrapped up the autobiography of "Wolfgang Falck, The Happy Falcon" over the Thanksgiving weekend.  Great book.  Started "Hitler's Last Days" on Sunday evening.  Pretty good so far.  "Hitler's Eagles: The Luftwaffe 1933-45" by Chris McNab is on deck.

I'm about to finish Fields of Fire by James Webb again; just as good a book second time around. I'm at a loss as of what to read next, however. I'm asking for Hubris: The Tragedy of War in the Twentieth Century by Alistair Horne.  I read a couple of his books last Spring for some classes. The downside of graduating is that I can read whatever I want now, yet I'm so used to reading on one specific topic for a research paper or for a class that I don't know where to go now. I'm like a kid in a candy shop with so many options I spend more time wondering what I want to read than actually reading.

Newbie, just perused this thread. Better late than never : " Once An Eagle ", Anton Myrer, "The Conquest of Mexico / The Conquest of Peru ", William H Prescott, currently "The Impossible State", Victor Cha.

Currently reading a fiction thriller called The Pope's Assassin. Once I'm done readinng that, I checked out The White Rose of Stalingrad: The Real-Life Adventure of Lidiya Vladimirovna Litvyak, the Highest Scoring Female Air Ace of All Time.

I had read a sample on my Nook a couple years ago and it sounded like a very interesting read. Can't wait to read it!

Started reading "Navajo Weapon" this morning.  Picked up an autographed copy while on our trip out west a couple of months ago.  Heard it was a great book and wanted to check it out.  It's about the Navajo code talkers in WWII.

Jim  

I finished reading "The White Rose of Stalingrad" and I have to tell you, it's well worth reading. Starts out a little slow talking about the history about the Great Purge, Stalin, Russia involvement into war, her early history, her dogfights against some of the top German aces during WW2, and so on. She is certainly a fighter and heroine in many Russians' eyes even after the war.

This makes me want to go buy the book and read it again because the stories and exploits of Lily is almost as mythical as Emelia Earhart's disappearance. 

Go and check it out at your local library and read it. You won't be disappointed.

Now I gotta get Yak-1 kits for White 02, White 23, and Yellow 44! LOL!

My next book to read is a toss-up between 2 books I got for Christmas:

Snow and Steel: The Battle of the Bulge 1944-1945

or....

Airborne: The Combat Story of Ed Shames of Easy Company.