5 comments about American Patriot: The Life and Wars of Colonel Bud Day.

1. The things this man has done are amazing. Not everyone will like the part about doing everything he can to keep John Kerry out of the Oval Office but I sure as hell did. He is a true American Hero. Read and keep this book.



2. A must read for anyone who wishes to understand what sets the "military" man apart from his civilian counterpart. This book also goes a long way in describing the angst that still resides with our Vietnam Vets and the betrayal they felt from the US Government, the media, and the citizens.



3. Excellent! For those history buffs, it tells of his military and civilian accomplishments for all veterans.



4. This is a great book that is bound to be of interest to many pilots.
   
   It is the story of Misty 1, the leader of the Top Secret Squadron that flew some of the most dangerous missions of the Vietnam War, alone, solo, on the deck, with no wingman or back up. But it's more than that. Much more.
   
   Most of our tales of American heros are old, from the Revolutionary War or perhaps World War II. This book starts there, but there is so much more.
   
   It's a story that Americans should know about a deadbeat kid from the wrong side of the tracks who bettered himself and served his nation with honor. I got misty eyed in places.
   
   And the end of the book -- when Colonel Day and his wife successfully fought Washington politics and self-serving revisionist history is the stuff of legends. When our own government sought to betray its veterans, Bud Day's small law firm sued in the Supreme Court and prevailed. The story of what really happened behind the scenes in the 2004 election was even more amazing. God bless Colonel Bud Day, and God Bless America.
   
   Americans should read this book. It should be required reading for high school history classes. This story exemplifies the service, deeds and honor that made America great, not in the long-ago past, but today; not just in the past but also for the future. It's timely reading for the 2008 election. Bud Day was John McCain's roommate in the Hanoi Hilton prison camp, where they both suffered torture and inhumane treatment.
   
   This is a story of honor and the American Dream, and Robert Coram tells it well, and in honor of the father he never understood.



5. A must read! Puts life into perspective. Traffic, bills, taxes seem trivial compared to the hardship he endured.

5 comments about Washington's Crossing (Pivotal Moments in American History).

1. I would recommend this book to anyone who had interest in the New Jersey Campaign. It gives a good background view on the disaterous New York Campaign and the retreat across New Jersey. Sometimes the book seems to drag a little bit, but that is only becuase of the great detail in the book.



2. This is a masterful account of one of the most trying times in the nascent American revolution and Washington's miraculous campaigns at Trenton and Princeton (1776-77). It's a book I still appreciate four years after first reading it. The text is lucid and the volume (hardcover) lavishly illustrated.
   
   Washington, given a questionable legacy in the Colonial War - the peacetime death of Joseph Coulon de Villiers de Jumonville and over ten others (28 May 1754), the surrender of Fort Necessity (3 July 1754 to Jumonville's elder brother Louis Coulon de VIlliers), and his role in Braddock's defeat at Monongahela (9 Jul 1755), his elder brother Lawrence and Lieutenant Governor Dinwiddie's role in the Ohio Company - wasn't worthy of banking odds (this is not part of the text - read Fred Anderson's `Crucible of War' et al).
   
   Washington proved audacious and unrelenting in his winter campaigns against his mother country. Despite all odds (and not without cost) he defeated them at Trenton (26 Dec 1776 and 2 Jan 1777) and at Princeton (3 Jan 1777). That is the tale of this volume. Without those victories, the United States wouldn't exist.
   
   This work is as enjoyable as the author's `Paul Revere's Ride' (1994).
   
   Well worth reading and highly recommended.



3. This is a truly great piece of historical writing. Over the past several years, there have been three outstanding books about Washington and 1776: McCullough's "1776", Ellis' biography of Washington, and this book by Fischer. Fischer's is by far the best and deserved the Pulitizer Prize.
   
   Modern Americans have always been able to identify more with Lincoln than with Washington, the latter being more aristocratic and less modern in outlook (not to mention being a slaveowner) and seemingly austere and rigid. What Fischer is able to do is to capture the enormous problem Washington faced in trying to manage a completely unmanageable army and politics, plagued by geographical and cultural differences as well as by the lack of central political authority. Once one fully appreciates the daunting challenge faced by Washington -- as daunting as that which faced Lincoln in 1861 -- one can fully appreciate Washington's success in managing it.
   
   Fischer spares no punches in showing Washington's tactical failure in New York and his frustration with being unable to make a rag-tag army of mostly New Englanders function like a "real" European army. But he gives credit where credit is due in showing how Washington was able to create a different kind of army -- an American army functioning in a uniquely American kind of polity. Washington is not the rigid aristocrat we imagine. He is able to appreciate the democratic nature and impulses of his army, and he leads by consensus. He takes pains to build consensus among his subordinates and to involve and respect ordinary citizens in building better intelligence gathering.
   
   Added to this is Washington's larger-than-life charisma. He is physically imposing, a brilliant horseman, and a man of great physical courage. This earns him the respect necessary to lead the army -- and the ability to build consensus without looking weak.
   
   The completely desperate circumstances of the New Jersey campaign in 1776 are vividly portrayed and add to the drama of the story -- as well as add to Washington's luster in handling it so well. Tactically, Washington is brilliant in how he managed the campaign, and Fischer destroys the myth that all Washington did was to surprise a bunch of drunk Hessians sleeping off a Christmas binge.
   
   Fischer's concluding chapter summarizes his work and does so in a moving way that points Americans, in the present dark times, toward recapturing the better angels of our nature -- the American insistence on placing a high value on life, treating even enemies with humanity, and building national strength through consensus. This is historical writing at its best -- as a form of literature.



4. This was an absolute joy to read. The book is not only about the crossing, but gives a good background of the events, politics and emotions that surrounded the American Revolution. Then it gives eyewitness accounts, from diaries, about the actual events that happened. It also gives details on aspects of the army, culture, political background and important figures that fill in the gaps and make the whole story read like a motion picture or documentary. The book tells how all the parts fit together. Truly a great book.



5. This was a very well written book, it was easy to follow and it's maps were of great help in following the battles events. I'm a new reader to the revolutionary war and since I was able to follow this book, I would definately recommend this work to others who are new to this subject. From start to finish this book kept my interest every word of the way!

3 comments about Arabian Knight: Colonel Bill Eddy USMC and the Rise of American Power in the Middle East.

1. An apt conjugation of author and subject makes for a revealing work on the bases for the United States' position in the Middle East. Lippman is a former Middle East bureau chief of the Washington Post and author of four books on the interrelated topics of the Arab world, Islam, and American foreign policy as well as a regular commentator on today's swirling, often violent and threatening developments in the Middle East. His subject of U. S. Marine Corps Colonel Bill Eddy was born in Lebanon, spoke fluent Arabic, fought in World War I, and was a noted scholar of English literature. During World War II, he served as a spymaster in North Africa in preparation for the Allied landings; a role which gave him position and influence in the formation of the CIA. From his incomparable experience and position, he facilitated the historic meeting of F.D.R. with Saudi Arabia's King Abdul Aziz in 1945. This meeting was a cornerstone for the wide-ranging developing and the complex current situation of the U.S. in the region.
   
   Eddy's unique blend of roots in the Arab world, talents and interests, and commitment to the United States made him invaluable in the critical circumstances and often deceptive appearances of the Middle East in the World War II era and its aftermath. After World War II, American foreign policy people and politicians focused on the Soviet Union and the related spread of Communism as the greatest threat. As early as 1947, however, Eddy advised that it was not the spread of Communism which should be the greatest concern in American relations in the Middle East, but the "rise of Islamic militancy." These are Lippman's words for elements Eddy identified in countries across the Middle East; which elements have come to be termed "Islamic fundamentalism" especially as manifest by jihadists. Believing Israel would be defeated by an alliance of Arab states, Eddy cautioned U.S. policymakers against a hard and fast identification with the fledgling Jewish state. While his belief that Israel would be militarily defeated was wrong, his broader views about the damage to the U.S. position and interests throughout the Middle East and emerging Islamic militancy were prescient.
   
   The early years of Eddy's adventurous career in World War I and spying for the North Africa invasion are covered dramatically and concretely. Most of the text though (about half) covers his more involved and delicate work in laying the grounds for the meetings of U.S. and Saudi Arabia heads of state and subsequent developments in other parts of the Middle East and ensuing American politics and diplomacy. Thus Lippmann's biography is of particular interest to today's readers. Eddy's activities are like a window onto the origins of U.S. relationships and policies throughout the Middle East, especially centered on Saudi Arabia and oil. And as such, the activities shed much light on how the U.S. position has become undermined and how policies have gone awry or become counterproductive.



2. As a former Eurocentric American, this book is a terrific introduction to what often seems our love/hate relationship with the Middle East. With striking, straight-forward prose, Thomas Lippman makes history a personal and urgent proposition for every reader. Lippman breathes life into this history through the compelling human story of Colonel Bill Eddy. As a reader, I particularly admire the portrayal of Eddy's vigorous and astute role in defining relationships with Saudi Arabia, and later, his work during the Truman administration to create a viable and autonomous intelligence community. With ARABIAN KNIGHT, Thomas Lippman truly delivers to the reader a remarkable story of an American writ large in the world.



3. At the beginning of "Arabian Knight" a State Department official is quoted as saying that "Bill Eddy was probably the nearest thing the United States had to a Lawrence of Arabia." I have never had a high opinion of T.E. Lawrence, based on his numerous self-promotional actions; his openly racist statements made in his "classic," - "Seven Pillars of Wisdom;" to his essential dishonesty, as confirmed by historians such as David Fromkin. Based on the excellent biography of Eddy by Lippman, I would consider such a comparison an insult to the memory of Eddy, who was the antithesis of so many of Lawrence's character flaws. The one characteristic they shared was an outsider's perspective on Saudi Arabia during its formative period.
   
   Bill Eddy was born in Sidon, Lebanon, in 1896, the son of missionary parents. He became fluent in the street Arabic patois of his childhood playmates. This was one talent that served him well throughout his life. Upon his death in 1962, he was buried in a cemetery in Sidon, and along with his family members, are the only non-Arabs buried there. Eddy's life was eventful, with several key junctures with critical points in American history.
   
   For the first 100 pages Lippman establishes Eddy's bona fides as the quintessential American patriot and man of action. Immediately after graduating from Princeton in 1917, he joined the Marine Corps, and saw action in the battles at Belleau Wood and the St. Mihiel salient, in France, in the First World War. Towards the very end of the war he was struck down by the Spanish influenza, which killed more people than all the casualties in the "Great War." As a result, he almost died in an American military hospital; he ultimately recovered, but walked with a limp for the rest of his life. After the war he spent some time at the newly founded American University in Cairo, but eventually accepted the position of president of Hobart College in New York State for family reasons. He spent much of the inter-war period there, but tired of managing academic squabbles, and returned to Cairo, in government service, just prior to WW II. As an intelligence officer he was soon posted to Tangiers, in Morocco, which Lippman says had much of the intrigue and duplicity that were depicted in the movie "Casablanca." The author states that based on Eddy's intelligence assessments, delivered personally to the Allied High Command, Operation "Torch", the invasion of North Africa in 1942, was given the go-ahead.
   
   The core of the book is the next 100 pages. While WW II still raged, the political leadership in Washington was formulating the structure of the post-war world. One component of this would be to recognize the importance of the Kingdom, as oil wealth would help transform it from one of the world's poorest countries. Eddy was sent to Jeddah in 1944, as a "Special Assistant" to the American resident. His Arabic language ability was an important component in establishing a good working relationship and friendship with King Abdul Aziz. But so to was a basic attitude of treating "the natives" in a manner of equality and respect, unlike numerous of his compatriots. Eddy was the sole interpreter, trusted by both parties, when President Roosevelt met King Abdul Aziz on the USS Quincy, on the Great Bitter Lake, in the very waning days of the war. Eddy was one of the most effective advocates of the mutual benefits of a strong American-Saudi relationship. He was again tapped to be the American who would establish diplomatic relationships with the most reclusive area of the Arabian Peninsula - the Yemen. In 1946 he went to San'a to meet Imam Yahya. It took him three weeks to cover the 100 miles from the coast by horseback.
   
   In the bibliography Lippman fittingly lists Dean Acheson's "Present at the Creation," an appropriate theme for Eddy's life. Not only was he a driving force behind the creation of a strong American - Saudi bilateral relationship, he was also a central force in the creation of the CIA from the components of the OSS, the organization he worked for during WW II. The later part of the book covers the bureaucratic fighting in Washington, which Eddy participated in, that established the CIA. Since Eddy preferred, and felt he was more effective, not working as a self-promoter, but as a man of reticence, it was difficult for Lippman to determine the full extent of Eddy's role in the overthrow of the democratic government of Syria. This coup, along with the CIA's overthrow of the democratic government of Iran, in 1953, could have been explored further by Lippman, to underscore the continued mistrust of the American government by the peoples of the Middle East, and why inquisitive Americans are often accused of being in the CIA.
   
   Eddy was also an advocate of the Arab point of view concerning the creation of the State of Israel. Lippman does an admirable job in negotiating this sensitive, emotional subject with as neutral a point of view as possible. I felt he failed only once, when he said: "The Arabs, by clinging to their absolutist position and refusing to yield any land to the Zionists, forfeited the political high ground, to their lasting detriment." (p228) Clearly they had already yielded much land, and had accepted substantial immigration; they simply did not want to become a minority in their own country - an issue on a far lesser scale that concerns Americans today about immigration into their own country. By in large, having lost this struggle for influence, Eddy and his family retreated to his origins - Lebanon, where he worked for Aramco, and almost certainly the CIA, to the end of his days.
   
   The book has a stellar graphic design, essential maps, numerous photos from Eddy's life and a solid bibliography. Lippman has done a wonderful service in writing an excellent biography on the life of one American who was deeply involved in numerous important events in American history - from the Western Front of WW I, to Operation Torch in WW II, to the establishment of the American - Saudi relationship as well as the creation of the CIA. It is an essential read for anyone exploring those "present at the creation" of the current world.

5 comments about Rupert Red Two: A Fighter Pilot's Life From Thunderbolts to Thunderchiefs.

1. I am a retired fighter pilot with over 5000 hours of fighter time including 1200 in the Thud. I find Col Broughton's books to be required reading for those wanting to be a fighter pilot or for those that think they are. While his books are outstanding narratives of fighter pilot action they are more than that. They talk about leadership, loyalty, professionalism and a personal code of standards. I was a Fighter Wing Commander and I hope I exhibited some of those traits that Col Broughton expoused. Well done - Col Broughton!



2. Really enjoyed this - maybe because I'm an old fighter pilot from the Vietnam/NATO era also. This remembrance doesn't have the riveting narrative of the first two tales from Thud Ridge, but the anger is no longer so strong all these years later.
   
   I still chafe with the repulsive attitude of senior USAF leaders that sacrificed Broughton and his Wing Commander for politics. Only the traitorous Congress that deserted the RVN when Nixon's attention was diverted by Watergate was worse. Shame, shame. Never forget, never forgive this disgrace to American history.



3. Col. Broughton has done a superb job sharing the rest of his aviation career with aviation enthusiasts. This book details the MANY assignments he was fortunate (and unfortunate enough, in some cases) to have throughout his incredible career as a warrior/fighter pilot and HERO.
   
   Those who have read the classics "Thud Ridge" and "Going Downtown" know well of his efforts for this country in the Thud. This latest treasure will leave you shaking your head with amazement and, yes, envy, at the roads he has traveled.
   
   Of particular interest are the no-frills details of many of the difficulties higher echelons created. Common sense had no relevance to many of these "superiors" as they sought to get the necessary boxes checked with little regard for common sense or even, their men.
   
   As ex-AF, I can say the book is a truly endearing no-nonsense, genuine description of life in the AF -and against- the powers-that-be, both in and out of the military.
   
   Many thanks for sharing these stories of an incredible career.



4. This is the third book by Colonel Broughton that I have read (the first being "Thud Ridge" and the second, "Going Downtown"), and as always, I found it extraordinarily well written. His previous books provided us with the real soundtrack of flying combat missions over "The North". With "Rupert Red Two", Col. Broughton gives depth and colors to a true Air Force warrior pilot. I couldn't put that book down and, in fact, ordered several copies for friends and family members alike. All in all, I found the book thoroughly enjoyable and learned a lot about the 50's and 60's U.S. Air Force. Honor, Duty, Country - those aren't just words for men like Broughton, they are the very meaning of their lives. And they all paid a price for it, sometimes, at the hands of their own chain of command... A must read!



5. I met "Thud Ridge" in the Grand Forks AFB library while in high school, just before Dad retired at nearly 22 years and that many thousand hours, most of them spent telling tanker pilots where to go. It was a long wait for "Going Downtown", and this latest was also worth the wait. Col. Broughton tells it like it was, and unfortunately often is, and after all, that's bureaucracy. One great anecdote concerns...heck, they're all good reading.
   From a shop steward in another bureaucracy, fighting to improve efficiency despite the "overhead", as we in the field called them in the USFS...

5 comments about American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880 - 1964.

1. This superb biography examines the many sides to General Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964); superb commander in war and peace, vain malcontent, and megalomaniac. The author begins by examining his famous father`s service in the Civil War. Then we learn of MacArthur's upbringing and days at West Point (graduating first in his class in 1900), and his reckless bravery during World War I. As the author shows, MacArthur was a progressive-minded superintendent at West Point from 1919-1922, and chief of staff during the 1930's (where his aide was Major Eisenhower). Then we learn of his skilful island-hopping as commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific during World War II. My late uncle served in the Philippines and cursed MacArthur's name 50 years later, but Mac was talented and sparing of his soldier's lives. Ironically, his greatest success may have been as military governor of occupied Japan, where he helped implement democratic reforms. Then came his blundering command in Korea (1950-51) where he misread Chinese intentions and went over President Truman`s head - for which Truman rightly fired him. Mac had previously doubled-crossed President Hoover over the Bonus Army and made juvenile threats to President Roosevelt over retaking the Philippines. In his last years, he advised against action in Vietnam. As the author shows, a complex figure, talented but flawed.
   
   William Manchester (1922-2004) was a superbly readable historian, who used a nice mix of quotes, memos, messages, and family life to describe MacArthur. The result is a well-crafted, balanced account of a man the author probably disliked but admired. Readers should also consider the author`s other superb books, THE GLORY AND THE DREAM, ARMS OF KRUPP, etc.



2. I could not put the book down... Douglas MacArthur's life from beginning to end was so interesting... His life had meaning... Say anything you wish about his personality but his accomplishments during his life will never be out done... Well written book.. and well worth reading...



3. General Douglas MacArthur is one of the few military figures in American history who, even today, evokes heated partisan responses. The title of the headline for this piece clearly tells where this writer is on the partisan divide. The nickname "Dugout Doug" goes back to the days when after the Japanese invasion of the Philippines General MacArthur got himself out of harm's way, with a due fanfare, while his subordinates and the troops for the most part got left behind to face the brunt of the Japanese forces. It was not pretty. This story and many others are detailed in the late journalist William Manchester's biography of the general.
   
   The history of the United States has produced a few military figures who were flamboyant. It has also produced a fair number with some military skills. It is, however, unusual to have the two come together as they did in the self-advertised grandeur of MacArthur. Europe has had some familiarity with the `man on horse back'. One thinks of France, in particular. In America that notion, at least publicly, has not been presented by military leaders while in uniform. MacArthur was an exception. Manchester is not incorrect to see that if there were such a candidate for the role of Caesar (or its modern variant, Bonaparte) in the United States MacArthur by skill, élan and appetite fit the bill. That thread runs through the whole story line here.
   
   No one can question that MacArthur had exceptional military skill in both World Wars, especially his role in the Pacific in World War II. One, however, should note, and note carefully his role in dispersing the Bonus Army in Washington, D.C. in the early 1930's. That might provide a taste of what the American Caesar had in store if he ever took power. Furthermore, one should note that MacArthur was well out of his element when he faced essentially `unconventional' armies in Korea. Call it `limited warfare' if you will but he totally underestimated his North Korean and Chinese opposites in the age of new `warfare'. Later American generals faced, and are today facing, similar conditions. And making the same wrong estimation. That MacArthur's reputation has mainly survived his Korea debacle owes more to hubris, including his own, than reality. In any case, read this book to get a flavor of the old American Army and its most well known general.



4. william manchester & his work are a national treasure. i picked this up after being blown away by manchester's 3-volume churchhill series.
   
   few historians can produce a work like this that's both painstakingly researched & scholarly and so well-written and absorbing. be it churchhill or maccarthur, manchester always takes the long view in terms of how his subject fits in the pantheon of great leaders.
   
   this volume about america's greatest general of the last century provides both a great history of the time period (wwi-korea) as well as a colorful & in-depth look at one of the great personalities of american history. as with churchhill, macarthur is complex, courageous, brilliant and flawed.



5. This is perhaps the best biography of an American ever written. Manchester juxtaposes the good MacArthur (the military genius and patriotic family man) with the bad MacArthur (the megalomaniacal general whose lapse led to his entire air force being destoryed on the ground at Leyte; not even his wife called him "Douglas"). MacArthur is still one of the most polarizing figures in American history; I have spoken to WW2 and Korean veterans who either love him or hate him. This book is a study of greatness. No matter your opinion of MacArthur, one cannot deny the fact that he graduated from West Point with one of the highest averages ever, or how his post-war control of Japan shaped that nation's history. An excellent look into the life of an American Hero/Villain.

4 comments about Sniper One: On Scope and Under Siege with a Sniper Team in Iraq.

1. This book is a great read. It is very well written. The writing is so clear and crisp the pages almost turn themselves. The book is also jam packed with action. This is one of those books where you feel like you get to know the people. I wanted the book to keep going after I read the last page. I was glad the author included an epilogue which followed up on he and his commrades. I hope Dan Mills continues to write. He is a born writer.



2. I haven't blown through a book more quickly in years. It's non-stop action from start to finish and gives a fascinating look into life on the front lines in Iraq. Definitely gives a new appreciation for what those soldiers have to endure for our freedom. Highly recommended!



3. It never ceases to amaze me the respect that Americans have for we British.
   Dan Mills account of his platoon actions in Iraq,2004, is a perfect example of why this is so.
   If you re into this subject.....just buy the book.



4. Most of the Iraq war stories have been dominated by American soldiers or Marines and it's refreshing to read Allied war stories for a change.

5 comments about Chickenhawk.

1. I have read this book 3 times. After the first I had it stolen so bought it again. I am fascinated by the history of Vietnam and it's struggles it has much to teach us for the present. I'm not a helicopter pilot, never will be although I too like Mason wanted to fly. Some will have differing recollections of events particularly this one, but that's okay. I was able to lose myself in the story that is expertly told. Having been in close quarter combat I understood where he was coming from. I continue to study and have read some good accounts but this will always remain one of my favourites.



2. Don't read this book if you're looking for an over the top Rambo/Braddock conquer S.E. Asia single-handedly comic strip. If you want to learn a little bit about what it was like to fly a Huey in a strange land during an incomprehensible time, read this book. Read it then give it to someone else to read.



3. I finished reading Chickenhawk last night just a few minutes after midnight, July 4, 2008. I feel like I oughta apologize to its author, Bob Mason, for taking 25 years to "discover" his excellent account of one man's horrific wartime experiences in Vietnam over 40 years ago. Sam Hynes, author of the equally excellent WWII pilot's memoir, Flights of Passage, once told me that one of the most important ingredients in a memoir is that the narrator be likeable. Chickenhawk has that most vital element, for Bob Mason is as likeable a guy as you'll find in the literature of war, and his prose is absolutely real and riveting as he tells of his whirling descent into the madness that was Vietnam. His final chapter summarizes the kind of confusing nightmare his life became upon his return home, as he struggled to understand and survive this thing now commonly known as PTSD. I like this guy. In fact I like him well enough that I will try to find a copy of his out-of-print sequel to Chickenhawk. It may take a while, but I'll be back to comment on that one too. In the meantime, I urge anyone who enjoys good writing of any kind to read this book. It's the real deal. - Tim Bazzett, author of SoldierBoy: At Play in the ASA (RatholeBooks.com)



4. Read it in six days. Kept my interest. Hope Mason's life is going better these days.



5. As the cover says, "The best book to come out of Vietnam". This is a hard hitting book which is very well described. Approx. 50 pages in, you are already riding in the chopper with 'Bob' Mason. A sorry tale but a very true one.

5 comments about Five Years to Freedom: The True Story of a Vietnam POW.

1. I read this book years ago and was amazed and horrified by its content. Amazed because of the indomitable spirit of a man like Col. Rowe. Horrified because of the torture he endured at the hands of the enemy. Years later, as I became more interested in politics, I couldn't remember the author and thought it was a story of John McCain...both stories are so similar. Of course, with a little research, I learned the error of my ways and know they are two different people. However, now that Sen. McCain is running for President, because of the harrowing account of this book, I will vote for McCain because that kind of proven character encourages me to be a better American and, as said in Saving Private Ryan, I wish to "earn this."Five Years to Freedom: The True Story of a Vietnam POW



2. James Rowe's story is one that makes you appreciate how good we have things in our day to day lives. I love POW tales because I am always hoping the person(s) can find a way to escape to freedom. This story was fine but I would say a little darker & more depressing than most POW tales I have read.



3. Interesting but written more as a novel and not as an actual recount of his 5 year imprisonment in the hands of the North Vietnamese. The minute detail of his every recollection during his 5 years of captivity makes it difficult to believe that he himself wrote his memoirs. Nevertheless I salute him for his bravery, his will to survive and service to his country.



4. This book should be on everyone's "must read" list. It should also be on the must read list for evey high school student. This book is very well written and easy to follow. It is also very hard to put down once you start reading it. Being a Vietnam War Veteran myself, I would highly recomend this book to anyone.



5. Incredible story of this man and other POW's in Vietnam. This is one of, if not the best, books I've ever read. One of the many points I took away was how the will to live sustained Nick Rowe and so many others. Maybe more so, it gave me an appreciation for the freedoms we take so much for granted. I finihed the book days ago, and can't get it out of my mind. Great book, Great leasons, Great man.

2 comments about The Ice Diaries: The True Story of One of Mankind's Greatest Adventures.

1. Having been blessed to be a crewman in US Nautilus on all three of her Arctic cruises, one in 1957 and two in 1958, with the last successfully gaining the North Pole, I'm familiar with all the details. However, it was such a pleasure to read our late skipper's recent and highly updated accounting of those wonderful days. Anderson's first book,'Nautilus 90 North', written just after the Polar trip of 1958 was also a great read, but of necessity, omitted much of the background information and intrigue that led up to all these trips, especially the 1957 trip. Capt. Anderson was one of the most remarkable and humble men I've ever had the privilege to know, and as was his nature, always put the interest of the crew and ship before himself. This is reflected in his writings and as I read 'Ice Diaries', I could hear his soft Tennasee accent speaking right off the pages. Anyone who has an interest in history, the sea, the Navy, or especially submarines, will enjoy this book. It is a complete accounting of our adventures across two years of under ice excursions and I highly recomend it. It should be on every school library shelf in the country. John C. Yuill



2. You might not think that an account of a real world event such as the first visit to the North Pole (and transit of the Arctic Ocean) with its outcome well known could be suspenseful and gripping. If so, you have not read "The Ice Diaries: The Untold Story of the USS Nautilus and the Cold War's Most Daring Mission" by William R. Anderson (the commander of Nautilus during that historic voyage) and Don Keith. Although the story has been told before, this time many previously classified aspects are explored in detail and perhaps for the first time the real nature of risks and daring are evident. Anderson and Keith describe the first two attempts to reach the Pole, both defeated by inexperience, faulty equipment, and sheer lack of knowledge of underwater Arctic conditions. But Anderson and the crew of Nautilus persevered and performed brilliantly to achieve not only reaching the Pole, but to cross all the way from the Pacific to the Atlantic in doing so. "The Ice Diaries" is a page-turner of the best sort. And it is pleasing to report that Anderson took great pains to make clear the contributions of everyone involved, although he remained modest about his own role. Fifty years afterwards, it may be difficult to realize what an extraordinary achievement it was, and the impact it had, both upon public opinion and on Cold War strategic thinking. The voyage of Nautilus from the Pacific to the Atlantic via the North Pole can justly stand alongside the Apollo moon missions as one of the greatest adventures of the Twentieth century made possible by evolving technology.

5 comments about Storm of Steel (Penguin Classics).

1. For most people who only know World War I from their high school days when they did a book review on "All Quiet On The Western Front" this book is required reading. Against the spate of anti-war books by those who saw limited service and little combat, Ernst Juenger's book is truly authentic. He fought for his nation to win, and it was not until the Ludendorf offensive that he participated in during the Spring of 1918 was stopped (in his opinion, due to German artillery blocking the infantry's advance), that the author came to feel that Germany might lose the war. After all, at that time Romania, Serbia and Russia had been defeated, Italy was in disarray, the French relatively inactive, and the Americans had not yet arrived in strength. And it must be remembered that Germany always possessed inferior numbers compared to the allies on the Western front.
   
   The author has been condemned and marginalized in the US for his unabashed nationalism by the American leftist academic and political elite to the point that he is almost unknown in the English-speaking world. Juenger did his duty willingly and with enthusiam for four long years in combat on the Western front during World War I, and his refusal to condemn war has made him anathema to the Western literary world. Even though Juenger was not a Nazi and resisted Hitler's siren songs, his love for his country was enough to have his work censored through silence.
   
   The reader should carefully read the review by the Washington Post writer given above. Tellingly he states his personal viewpoint, "Like many people, I have absolutely no love for the martial spirit, detest all forms of nationalism, and feel queasy at the sight of blood." Hopefully the ER personnel attending to him following an accident will be able to function while seeing blood, but I guess "God Bless America" is out, and the Post reviewer will avoid service in the American Army with whatever excuse. This is the contemporary attitude of the liberal elite and media, formed over the last sixty years of leftist propaganda in our schools, universities, and on television. Juenger would be appalled.
   
   This translation by Hofmann is better than the ones I have read previously, but German speakers are advised to read his works in their original German. Hofmann effectively translates the German idioms that have stumped other translators and the Introduction should be read carefully to understand why a faithful translation is important. This volume is based on Juenger's revised edition (Juenger revised his book at least eight times), most probably the latest one from 1961.
   
   This book was written from Juenger's diary originally in 1920, is not fiction, and is the only extensive work from World War I from a long-serving combat soldier in the war. That alone makes it important, but that it is well-written and describes four major battles from the viewpoint of the soldier in the trenches makes it uniquely invaluable. That it remains almost unknown in the US is a tragedy and due exclusively to the powers that abhor the military and nationalism at any level -- even that for the United States.
   
   The details I leave to the many other reviewers who have more than adequately covered the tragedy and frightfulness of war. Juenger retains a sense of humor throughout, and even suggests that war is the most pronounced experience that a man can undergo. For the doubters, please read Glenn Gray's "The Warriors." In many respects, World War I was probably the most terrifying war in history for the individual infantryman. He lived a terrible existence in mud and squalor, subject to death at any moment from the ever-present artillery fire, and his survival depended more on chance than on his own skills. To some degree that changed in World War II and in subsequent wars where individual skills played an increasingly larger part in determining a soldier's survival.
   
   In short, BUY & READ this book. Don't accept passively what you are told to believe by the media, your teachers and professors. Juenger is well worth the read and you may actually learn something about lives of soldiers in World War I. Juenger is certainly an Alpha-male type, but his true story is as important as those written by anti-war fiction writers and those with political agendas.



2. STORM OF STEEL offers WWI from a German soldier's point of view, but Erich Maria Remarque it ain't. All told, author Ernst Junger was shot multiple times, yet would live not only to write this book (and many others) but to celebrate his 103rd birthday (attended by an unusually patient Grim Reaper-in-Waiting).
   
   On the penultimate page of this book, he writes: "Leaving out trifles such as ricochets and grazes, I was hit at least fourteen times, these being five bullets, two shell splinters, one shrapnel ball, four hand-grenade splinters and two bullet splinters, which, with entry and exit wounds, left me an even twenty scars." Like George Washington (who also was shot at, over, under, and through), someone seemed to be watching over Junger.
   
   Fans of war literature will relish this book. Junger takes the reader through the trenches of Flanders, the Somme, Cambrai, Langemarck, and many other WWI locales. His narrative is straightforward and blunt, including many details on soldiers' deaths (German AND British) with a full compliment of gory details. He seldom editorializes or pontificates, and even acts as if gas attacks are normal (well, they were -- then). The narrative has that "rubbernecker" effect going for it. The appalling body counts almost carry you forward, despite your disbelief at the complete waste of humanity. Meanwhile, Junger riffs on tests of manhood and the rush (along with the fear) that is war.
   
   Junger writes: "In war you learn your lessons, and they stay learned, but the tuition fees are high." Understatement. With examples of both mercy and bloody resolve, Junger's behavior will continue to astonish readers as they read his detailed account. Unencumbered by any attempts at high art or literary flair, STORM OF STEEL will put you there, giving you a real taste of how fleeting life was for these young men. The War had no winner and only one loser -- humanity itself -- only Junger chooses not to state as much. Instead, he trusts in his readers. Recommended for fans of history, WWI, and war literature. If you've read other works in the WWI canon, this is a worthy addition.



3. a straight-forward soldier's book written by a man who went through the whole war in the front lines - and survived! pleasingly free of the political whining and hand-wringing the saturates so many of the accounts written by 'our side' about this bloody and pointless conflict. the narrative touches on all aspects of the military experience of a member of the p.b.i. (poor bloody infantry) and can serve for those on any side or army in this meat grinder of a war. i've been reading a couple of books a week on military history for about 50 years and rate this book in the top three personal accounts - a truly excellent work.



4. This is an amazing book to read. Junger was a stormtrooper--the German soldiers who lead the first wave into the trenches--for something like four years. It seems extraordinary that anyone could have survived such a holocaust, let alone four years of it. There is very little in the way of emotional expression in this book, or personal or political observation. Junger devoted his writing to the material details of the battle. This book takes you right into it with unforgettable detail--the acrid smoke, the seemingly ceaseless rain of artillery. More of Jungers men seem to be felled by German artillery than the opposition. Junger describes a scene in which a battery is destroyed and a single horse survives, fleeing across the desolate landscape, "a white ghostly figure." From the very first minutes on the line, artillery remained a constant danger for these men. The book describes harrowing scenes of shootouts with snipers and machine gunners, shooting men at pointblank range with pistols. One scene describes a group of British cornered in a trench. Junger's men throw grenades into the trench. After each blast, helmets, rags of body parts, and blood flies up in the air. His unit moves forward to the edge of the smoking trench to finish the British off, only to be mowed down by British rifle fire as they prepare to fire. This is combat at its most intense! An ungorgettable read that takes you into the eye of the storm of steel. Definitely, good reading. You won't be able to put it down.



5. At first I thought this book was going to turn out to be one of those books that were written at a different time that just couldnt have a style to keep readers this day and age interested. I was wrong. Junger has a style all his own and you will feel has if you are the one standing in his boots through all the epic battles and hardships. You can almost see the mortor shells landing around him with all the carnage that goes with them. You will feel happy when he triumphs, and sad when men are there one minute and gone forever the next. This book will only get better the further you get into and the ending I will admit put a tear to my eye, this man deserved everything he earned and more. His final battle is one you will not be able to put down. I found my self reading paragraphs two and even three times over again convincing my self that my eyes were not playing tricks on me. This book is a must have for anyone who is even mildly interested in combat novels.