Military

Title: They Were Ready -- The 164th Infantry in the Pacific War, 1942-1945
Author: Terry Shoptaugh
Genre: Military, Army
Reviewer: Bob Ruerhdanz

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): B004OB4M7I

A narrative history of the 164th Infantry Regiment's experiences in the Pacific War, from its activation and training to its service at Guadalcanal, Bougainville and the Philippines. The 164th (North Dakota National Guard) reinforced the 1st Marine Division on Guadalcanal in October 1942 and subsequently served in some 600 days in combat in the Pacific. The book is based on unit records, correspondence and diaries, and interviews with over fifty of the veterans.

Title: Of War and Weddings
Author: Jerry Yellin
Genre: Military, Air Force
Reviewer: Mary Sullivan

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 1421890755

A memoir. World War 2 service as a fighter pilot over Japan, raised during the depression, The wedding of his youngest son to a Japanese woman in Japan, the daughter of an Imperial Japanese air force veteran. The reconciliation between the two fathers.

Title: If You Fly...Don't Crash!
Author: Charles Bailey
Genre: Military, Air Force
Reviewer: Eliot Parker

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 1441541624

The author piloted Air Force heavy jets for over two decades, in peacetime and wartime. If You Fly...Don't Crash! (Confessions of a White-knuckle Pilot) highlights some of the good, the bad, and the simply silly aspects of aviation experienced during his thousands of hours airborne.

Title: EMBEDDED: A Marine Corps Adviser Inside the Iraqi Army
Author: Wesley Gray
Genre: Military, Marine Corps
Reviewer: Joyce Faulkner

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 1591143403

In 2006, 1st Lt. Wesley Gray was deployed as a U.S. Marine Corps military adviser to an Iraqi Army battalion in the Haditha Triad. For 210 days, he lived and fought beside Iraqi soldiers in the most dangerous and austere province of western Iraq. Al-Anbar was filled with an insurgent population traumatized by a recent massacre of twenty-four men, women, and children shot at close range by U.S. Marines in retaliation for the death of one of their comrades in a roadside bombing. Despite the high tensions created by the shootings, Gray was able to form a bond with the Iraqis because he had an edge that very few U.S. service members possess -the ability to communicate in Iraqi Arabic. His language skills and his understanding of the culture led the Iraqi soldiers to call him a brother and fondly name him Jamal. By the end of his tour he was a legend within the Iraqi Army. Gray draws on the brutally honest and detailed record he kept during his tour, including extensive interviews with Iraqi soldiers and citizens. He offers a comprehensive portrait of the struggles of the Iraqi people to make their country a nation once again and includes a compelling report on the status and prospects of the U.S. government's strategy for success in Iraq.

Title: U.S. Air Force Prototype Jet Fighters Photo Scrapbook
Author: Dennis Jenkins and Tony Landis
Genre: Military, Air Force
Reviewer: Hodge Wood

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 1580071376

The U.S. Air Force began developing jet fighters as World War II came to a close. The Cold War that soon developed saw a significant increase in fighter production programs as America tried to counter the perceived Soviet threat. World War II's best piston-powered fighters could barely top speeds in excess of 450 mph. But the post-war jets developed by the U.S. Air Force were soon breaking the sound barrier, flying to Mach 3, and Mach-4 capable aircraft were on the drawing board. U.S. Air Force Prototype Jet Fighters details the evolution of these aircraft, using dozens of never-before-published photographs from government archives.