Non-Fiction

Title: Shadow Commander: The Epic Story of Donald D. Blackburn
Author: Mike Guardia
Genre: Non-Fiction Biography
Reviewer: Bob Doerr

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store)1612000657: ISBN / E

The fires on Bataan burned with a primitive fury on the evening of April 9, 1942 - illuminating the white flags of surrender against the nighttime sky. Woefully outnumbered, outgunned, and ill-equipped, the battered remnants of the American-Philippine army surrendered to the forces of the Rising Sun. Yet amongst the chaos and devastation of the American defeat, Army Captain Donald D. Blackburn refused to lay down his arms.

With future SF legend Russell Volckmann, Blackburn escaped from Bataan and fled to the mountainous jungles of North Luzon, where they raised a private army of over 22,000 men against the Japanese. Once there, Blackburn organized a guerrilla regiment from among the native tribes in the Cagayan Valley. "Blackburn's Headhunters," as they came to be known, devastated the Japanese 14th Army within the eastern provinces of North Luzon and destroyed the Japanese naval base at Aparri.

After the war, Blackburn remained on active duty and played a key role in initiating Special Forces operations in Southeast Asia. In 1959, as commander of the 77th Special Forces Group, he spearheaded Operation White Star in Laos. Seven years later, Blackburn took command of the highly classified Studies and Observations Group (SOG), charged with performing secret missions now that main-force Communist incursions were on the rise.

In the wake of the CIA's disastrous Leaping Lena program, Blackburn revitalized the Special Operations campaign in South Vietnam. Sending cross-border reconnaissance teams into Laos, he discovered the clandestine networks and supply nodes of the infamous Ho Chi Minh Trail. Taking this information directly to General Westmoreland, Blackburn received authorization to conduct full-scale operations against the NVA and Viet Cong operating along the Trail. In combats large and small, the Communists realized they had met a master of insurgent tactics - and he was on the US side.

Following his return to the United States, Blackburn was appointed "Special Assistant for Counterinsurgency and Special Activities," where he was the architect of the infamous Son Tay Prison Raid. Officially termed Operation Ivory Coast (and later, Operation Kingpin), the Son Tay raid was the largest POW rescue mission - and indeed, the largest Special Forces operation - of the Vietnam War.

During a period when United States troops in Southeast Asia faced guerrilla armies on every side, it has seldom been recognized today that America had a superb covert commander of its own, his guerrilla skills honed in resistance against Japan. This book follows Donald D. Blackburn from his youthful days in combat against an Empire, through his days as a senior commander, imparting his lessons to the newly-realized ranks of America's own Special Forces.

Title: You Can't Outsource Weight Loss But You Can Lose Weight and Stay Thin Forever\
Author: Ed Boullianne
Genre: Non-Fiction, How To
Reviewer: Joyce Faulkner

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 0984389806

You Can't Outsource* Weight Loss...But You Can Lose Weight and Be Thin Forever! (* With a pill or meal delivered to your door.) Retired Navy Captain and former combat jet aviator, Ed Boullianne was devastated by the tragedy of his 46-year old sister's death. He was determined to discover why so many Americans like his sister suffer from obesity and poor health. Her early death became the catalyst for his successful weight loss journey and for sharing what he's learned with others struggling to achieve permanent weight loss. You Can't Outsource Weight Loss provides a no-nonsense way to lose weight and keep it off. This straight-forward guide doesn't recommend gimmicky diets or require super-human willpower. Ed has successfully maintained his ideal weight for over seven years, even while eating pizza and drinking wine. He distills confusing, contradictory information and dispels the abounding misinformation about weight loss. He provides a practical, do-able guide for your own weight loss journey with research-based facts, personal examples, useful charts, "green, yellow, and red light" foods, easily implemented practices and hilarious cartoons. Ed initially thought weight loss would be easy, approaching it with the resolute determination of a "can-do" pilot. But like so many of us in the United States, he found it challenging. He tried various methods to quickly lose weight without really understanding the fundamentals of how the human body works. Instinctively, he knew he had to know more and learned how to approach weight loss in a holistic sense. You Can't Outsource Weight Loss... shares what he learned about weight loss and healthy living as he realized that weight loss is one of the few areas of your life that can't be outsourced. You Can't Outsource Weight Loss explains why many of us unwittingly sabotage our weight loss due to the myriad of misinformation promoted by food advertising and the "weight loss world." Ed demonstrates how to achieve permanent weight loss and true wellness in modern day America by focusing on five key areas for success. He helps you customize your own weight loss plan, starting with self-awareness and how to first implement the easy steps. With this guide, you too can navigate your way through a successful weight loss journey and keep it off forever!