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House to House: An Epic Memoir of War by David Bellavia
On the night of November 10, 2004, a U.S. Army infantry squad
under Staff Sergeant David Bellavia entered the heart of the city
of Fallujah and plunged into one of the most sustained and savage
urban battles in the history of American men at arms.
With Third Platoon, Alpha Company, part of the Army's Task Force
2/2, Bellavia and his men confronted an enemy who had had weeks to
prepare, booby-trapping houses, arranging ambushes, rigging entire
city blocks as explosives-laden kill zones, and even stocking up on
atropine, a steroid that pumps up fighters in the equivalent of a
long-lasting crack high. Entering one house, alone, Bellavia faced
the fight of his life against six insurgents, using every weapon at
his disposal, including a knife. It is the stuff of legend and the
chief reason he is one of the great heroes of the Iraq War.
Bringing to searing life the terrifying intimacy of hand-to-hand
infantry combat, House to House is far more than just another war
story. Populated by an indelibly drawn cast of characters, from a
fearless corporal who happens to be a Bush-hating liberal to an
inspirational sergeant-major who became the author's own lost
father figure, it develops the intensely close relationships that
form between soldiers under fire. Their friendships, tested in
brutal combat, would never be quite the same. Not all of them would
make it out of the city alive. What happened to them in their
bloody embrace with America's most implacable enemy is a harrowing,
unforgettable story of triumph, tragedy, and the resiliency of the
human spirit. A timeless portrait of the U.S. infantryman's
courage, House to House is a soldier's memoir that is destined to
rank with the finest personal accounts of men at war.
 Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation
Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10 by Marcus
Luttrell
On a clear night in late June 2005, four U.S. Navy SEALs left
their base in northern Afghanistan for the mountainous Pakistani
border. Their mission was to capture or kill a notorious al Qaeda
leader known to be ensconced in a Taliban stronghold surrounded by
a small but heavily armed force. Less then twenty-four hours later,
only one of those Navy SEALs remained alive. This is the story of
fire team leader Marcus Luttrell, the sole survivor of Operation
Redwing, and the desperate battle in the mountains that led,
ultimately, to the largest loss of life in Navy SEAL history. But
it is also, more than anything, the story of his teammates, who
fought ferociously beside him until he was the last one
left-blasted unconscious by a rocket grenade, blown over a cliff,
but still armed and still breathing. Over the next four days, badly
injured and presumed dead, Luttrell fought off six al Qaeda
assassins who were sent to finish him, then crawled for seven miles
through the mountains before he was taken in by a Pashtun tribe,
who risked everything to protect him from the encircling Taliban
killers. A six-foot-five-inch Texan, Leading Petty Officer Luttrell
takes us, blow-by-blow, through the brutal training of America's
warrior elite and the relentless rites of passage required by the
Navy SEALs. He transports us to a monstrous battle fought in the
desolate peaks of Afghanistan, where the beleaguered American team
plummeted headlong a thousand feet down a mountain as they fought
back through flying shale and rocks. In this rich, moving chronicle
of courage, honor, and patriotism, Marcus Luttrell delivers one of
the most powerful narratives ever written about modern warfare-and
a tribute to his teammates, who made the ultimate sacrifice for
their country.
 Adjust Fire:
Transforming to Win in Iraq by Michael Baumann
This is the first book on the Iraq War written by an Army
battalion commander who led troops in this war. Documenting the
transformation process of the U.S. Army, to fighting the
insurgency, dealing with the murky local politics, all the way to
providing the first viable military-political solution to win the
peace in Iraq; Adjust Fire has it all. Unencumbered because he was
not a general with a reputation to protect nor inexperienced in the
grander tactics of operations in Iraq like young soldiers and
junior officers who have written about the war in Iraq, author,
retired Lieutenant Colonel Michael Baumann, led at the echelon that
literally executed the strategic policy through tactical operations
on the streets of Baghdad. Since the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine
Corps raced north from Kuwait to Baghdad in 2003, the Iraq War has
taken many turns. For the U.S. Army a complete transformation has
occurred. Go inside the formative, evolving process and walk onto
the mean streets of Baghdad through author, Michael Baumann's eyes
and learn about this war from the inside. As a citizen and retired
soldier, Lieutenant Colonel Baumann writes an in-depth book that
seeks to influence our thinking about this war in a way the media
pundits, major political candidates, and armchair-generals simply
cannot. Part memoir and part expose, Baumann doesn't pull his
punches when criticizing existing political or military policies.
He provides readers a view of this war from inside the war councils
and provides an exquisite political-military context that
culminates with 'The Mahalla Plan' as the best viable plan to win
the peace in Iraq. Baumann's unique perspective gives him a voice
that needs to be heard across America.
"Adjust Fire is a tremendously valuable book. While all the
pundits were home playing strategist and the journalists were
judging warfare from the stratosphere, Lt. Col. Mike Baumann and
his soldiers were fighting in the streets of Baghdad. This is the
best book yet on the grit-and-gut-level challenges our troops have
faced in Iraq. Magnificently honest, Adjust Fire is a work of great
integrity." - RALPH PETERS, author of Wars of Blood and
Faith
"Lt. Col. Michael Baumann writes about hard work, sacrifice and
understanding of the global enemy we face at a time where the fog
of national pessimism and gloom block our path toward victory.
Baumann was up to his eyeballs fighting a counter insurgency before
anyone at the DOD would admit there was an insurgency to fight, yet
his take is anything but negative. Baumann is a commander any
father would want their son to serve under. There is no substitute
for Baumann's leadership style: from the front, honest and always
with heart." - DAVID BELLAVIA, author of House to House: An
Epic Memoir of War, and Medal of Honor nominee
We Got Him! A Memoir of the Hunt and Capture of Saddam Hussein
by Steve Russell
In June 2003, two Iraqi businessmen approached an American
outpost claiming to know important information. What they revealed
invigorated American soldiers to pursue the one of the world's most
notorious dictators. Their journey is a grand saga of human
experience, testing every element of character and fortitude in a
six month manhunt that ended at a hole on the bank of the Tigris
River. This account exposes the blow by blow plays of the actual
raids that netted Saddam with never before revealed
information.
"An extraordinary personal glimpse of the war. A monumental
credit to himself, his troops, and the United States of America."
--the late Robin Moore, author of The Green Berets and The French
Connection.
"A moving, gripping account of one of the most remarkable
achievements of soldiering in a generation." --General Tommy
Franks, author of American Soldier
"Steve delivers the most accurate account I have read to
date."
--General Raymond T. Odierno, 4th Infantry DIvision (2002-2004),
III Corps and Multi-National Corps - Iraq (2006-2008),
Multi-National Force - Iraq (2008-2010)
"When I was embedded with Russell's battalion...I watched them
tighten the noose on Saddam, but I never knew how they did it -
until I read this book." --Brian Bennett, LA Times DC Corresp. and
former Baghdad bureau chief of TIME magazine
"A ground eye view... and a model for the way [regular and SOF
Forces] have worked together since. --Kim Dozier, AP, former CBS
News Corresp. and author of Breathing the Fire
Hard Corps by Marco Martinez
Hard corps is a term of praise for a really dedicated marine.
It's highly merited by Martinez, who pulls no punches, including in
his language about his gangbanging teen years before, vaguely
wanting an alternative and at the prodding of some mentors, he
enlisted in the marines.
Nor is there any bowdlerizing in his description of boot camp as
intended to simulate the stresses of infantry combat (the marines'
overriding purpose, after all) without deliberately killing
anybody. Thereafter comes a grunt's-eye view of marine garrison
service and, at last, deployment to Iraq. Martinez's battalion was
one of the first into Baghdad and shortly after was engaged in a
knock-down, drag-out fire fight in the suburbs, which Martinez most
vividly relates and for which he received the Navy Cross for
courage and leadership. Now a civilian again, Martinez will always
be proud to have worn the title of United States Marine, and any
reader interested in such a man's self-portrait will devour this
book.
 Interrogation of
Morals by CPT Jason Meszaros
"Interrogation of Morals" is an autobiographical piece by Jason
Meszaros about his experience serving in the military during a tour
of duty in Afghanistan in 2004. His military service in Afghanistan
altered his perception of freedom, patriotism, and bravery.
Meszaros states:
"I want this book to be an example of the hardships, the
experiences, the courage, the integrity and the honor that our
military stands for. The military is and always has been a part of
this country and will forever be here to protect Freedom and
Liberty in America."
Meszaros was in Afghanistan for only eight months, but those eight
months would change him forever. He notes that "...one of the
hardest parts of being a citizen soldier is having to transition
back to being a civilian." He will never forget being on the team
that took down Roze Khan, a Taliban leader who had become a
legendary outlaw known as the Taliban Billy the Kid.
"The real story of military intelligence as it is actually
practiced in the War on Terror. The author, a reserve intelligence
officer, served eight months in Afghanistan, and spent a lot of
time outside the wire, getting shot at while collecting
information, and terrorists. Here's what a lot of reporters miss,
because you really have to live this work in order to describe it
accurately."
-James F. Dunnigan - Author of "The Perfect Soldier: Special
Operations, Commandos, and the Future of US Warfare"
Heroes among Us: Firsthand Accounts of Combat from America's Most
Decorated Warriors in Iraq and Afghanistan by Major Chuck
Larson
True stories of courage from the frontlines.
Over one million Americans have served in Iraq and Afghanistan in
the past four years, but fewer than 500 from this group have earned
a Silver Star, Navy Cross, Air Force Cross, Distinguished Service
Cross, or the Medal of Honor. These Americans all demonstrated an
extraordinary courage under fire, in the worst of circumstances.
They come from all branches of the military. They also come from
all over the country and all walks of life, representing the entire
spectrum of races and creeds.
But what unites them are their deeds of consummate bravery, beyond
the call of duty. Heroes Among Us tells these extraordinary true
stories of valor, honor and sacrifice.
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