Generation Kill (and other books)

:FI:COM · Post by **:FI:COM** » Fri Sep 09, 2005 7:03 pm

Hello, Gents! I thought I'd try to make a littlle "book nook" for those of us geeks interested in throwing some military titles around; related, perhaps, to WW2 aircraft or not. Irregardless of your personal political perspective of the U.S. invasion(s) of Iraq, I found "Generation Kill" by Evan Wright (Berkley Caliber, Feb. 2005) an interesting read in regards to a more personal soldier's account of the ground battle. Anyone have any other recommendations?

Skipper · Post by **Skipper** » Fri Sep 09, 2005 7:16 pm

I'm reading First Light by Geoffrey Wellum.It is an account of him as a young spitfire pilot during the Battle of Britain and other key theatres.Its very graphic and an excellent read!I got my copy on Amazon for £3 brand new!

I've also bought "Enemy Coast Ahead" buy Guy Gibson who ofcourse led 617 Squadron on the Dam Busters raid.I haven't started it yet but when I do .....i'll head back and update.

Skipper

Sapper-FIN · Post by **Sapper-FIN** » Fri Sep 09, 2005 7:23 pm

S!

Generation kill is an exellent book!

I started a new hobby of buying paperpacks written in engish, since they are a lot cheaper than translated books, here in Finland..

Try also these:

"In the company of heroes" by Michael J Durant. (He was the pilot of one of those blackhawks, shot down in mogadishu)

"Operation certain death" by Damien Lewis. This book is about those 11 Royal Irish guard soldiers and one Sierra Leonean corporal, taken hostage by the "west side boys"-gang in Sierra leone. Then the SAS,SBS,and British paras went in and saved them (and kicked some butt, while doing it). It also covers the numerous civil wars in western Africa, speacially Sierra leone. A fine book indeed... It has 650 pages, but i read it in two days...

"Black knights" by Oliver Poole. He was a reported embedded with the US 3rd infantry division, in Iraq. Very exiting book.

"We were soldiers once... and young" By Lt Gen Harold G Moore and Joseph L Galloway. It gives you way better perspective of La Drang battle, than the movie with the same title does...

"Thunder run" by David Zucchino. Oh man, it´s the best book i´ve read in ages! he was a reporter been embedded with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team (Spartan Brigade), which was the first US unit to penetrate Baghdad´s defences...

And off course there is the "Blackhawk down" by Mark Bowden... I read it couple of years before the movie came out, and i´m glad that i did, because the movie was more interesting, that way... to know a little more about the characters, than the movie shows...

:FI:Fenian · Post by **:FI:Fenian** » Fri Sep 09, 2005 10:16 pm

of mine wrote 'We Pierce' and 'American By Blood'

The first title is about the first Gulf War... the second is about the Little Bighorn aftermath....

I read the _Bighorn one... very Cormac McCarthy... haven't managed to read the Gulf War one yet.....

:FI:Snoop Baron · Post by **:FI:Snoop Baron** » Sat Sep 10, 2005 12:28 am

Here is one book I can recommend:

The Psychology of War: Comprehending its Mystique and its Madness by Lawren LeShan (Good book if you want to understand the psyche that leads us to wars, really goes into the heart of the issue)

Thanks for sharing guys

s!
Snoop

:FI:WillieOFS · Post by **:FI:WillieOFS** » Sat Sep 10, 2005 3:12 am

Fate is the Hunter by Ernest Gann..

A fuggin CLASSIC of early and WWII aviation. Series of short stories of E's life as WWII transport pilot with amazingn insight in man himself.

I also recommend EVERY book Ernest Gann ever wrote. Most are aviation oriented. The one that aren't are still good reads.

Wind, Sand, and Stars, by Antoine-Marie-Roger de Saint-Exupery or St. EX as he was known in WWII before he flew off into oblivion in a recce P-38 never to be seen again.

Sapper-FIN · Post by **Sapper-FIN** » Sat Sep 10, 2005 6:24 am

Almost forgot...

"marine sniper - 99 confirmed kills" by Carlos Hatchcock

"Big show" by Pierre Closterman

:FI:WillieOFS · Post by **:FI:WillieOFS** » Sat Sep 10, 2005 3:44 pm

I really enjoyed reading what Carlos did to the "Apache woman".

:FI:IceFrog · Post by **:FI:IceFrog** » Sat Sep 10, 2005 5:49 pm

:FI:WillieOFS wrote:"Apache woman".

read the book a long time ago..... don't remember Apache women.... or was that the name they gave for the VC gal who was torturing the GI's...

:FI:COM · Post by **:FI:COM** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 5:49 pm

List of reviews from everyone! I was hoping for a Bull-Run to Na Drang- FI- socio-collision. Cormac McCarthy is probably my most beloved of authors (besides Fenian) And I think all the contributors here will readily agree how horrendously, if given the chance, Hollywood will mangle a beautiful book, speaking of M. Boden. Thanks for the titles- should be good 'till XMas. ~S~

:FI:Fenian · Post by **:FI:Fenian** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 6:55 pm

And you're my favourite artist

:FI:WillieOFS · Post by **:FI:WillieOFS** » Mon Sep 12, 2005 12:57 am

That would be the one. The one he "dumped" as he so eloquently called a good shot, by shooting her through the hips as she was squatted to pee.

:FI:COM · Post by **:FI:COM** » Sat Sep 17, 2005 6:49 pm

Willie...and to Sapper- I just picked up my copy of "Black Nights" by Oliver Poole; not to be confused with the Tuskeegee bio with the same title. ~S~

Sapper-FIN · Post by **Sapper-FIN** » Sat Sep 17, 2005 8:13 pm

Good choice Seth!

I just finished reading "warrior soul" by Chuck Pfrarrer... He´s an ex-seal... There wasn´t that much action in it, but if you wanna know about seal-training, you might find it interesting....

Next i´m gonna start reading Stephen Ambrose´s gigantic (650 pages or so) "D-Day". It´s mostly based upon the stories of the guys who atually were there, so it´s not just a "boring" history book...

Oh, and Willie; Yeah, that apache woman had it coming...

:FI:Fenian · Post by **:FI:Fenian** » Sun Sep 18, 2005 9:30 am

last year call The Bedford Boys - about the guys who stormed the beaches on D-Day... very interesting book - went into the whole business of a town's young men being enlisted in the Nat. Guard and then being shipped over to Blighty and being cut to ribbons. A whole generation of young guys from the same town killed on the same day... tragic...

Generation Kill (and other books)

Generation Kill (and other books)

A friend of a friend...

INTERESTING...

Aw shucks....

Sounds pretty brutal,

I read a book