Military and Political History

An outstanding book that should be on any special operator’s reading list, about the unit that effectively became the model for all other modern SOF units. It tells the story of the Special Air Service (SAS), Britain’s unconventional special forces unit born in the North African desert during World War II. Ben Macintyre follows the ragtag mix of adventurers, misfits, and soldiers who pioneered daring raids far behind enemy lines, using speed, deception, and surprise to strike the Axis where they least expected it. It was recently made into a tv series.

An interesting, in-depth look at the history leading up to the Iraq war. It examines the tangled relationship between the United States and Saddam Hussein from the late Cold War through the Gulf War and beyond. Steve Coll traces how a mix of misreading intentions, flawed intelligence, and political maneuvering on both sides allowed small provocations to escalate into open conflict. The book unpacks how personal ambition, national pride, and systemic blind spots set the stage for decades of instability in the Middle East.

Terrifying and plausible, Nuclear War is Annie Jacobsen’s minute-by-minute account of what could happen in the first hours after the launch of a nuclear missile. Drawing on interviews with military officers, scientists, and policymakers, she traces the chain of decisions and automated processes that would unfold once the alert is sounded. It shows how little time leaders have to act, the uncertainty baked into every stage, and how close the world has come to catastrophe in the past.

This is from a fascinating and increasingly forgotten part of history that still has ramifications today. Tunnel 29 tells the true story of a group of young West Berliners in 1962 who dug a tunnel under the Berlin Wall to help people escape from the East. Based on interviews and newly uncovered Stasi files, Helena Merriman follows their months of digging through dangerous, collapsing soil while evading informants and secret police.

This one should be required reading for anyone in the US military, or possibly every American. It follows four Japanese American families during World War II, tracing the experiences of young men from internment camps who volunteered to serve in the U.S. Army’s 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the most highly-decorated unit in U.S. military history (In less than two years of combat during World War II, its soldiers earned over 18,000 awards, including 21 Medals of Honor, over 4,000 Purple Hearts). Daniel James Brown weaves personal histories with the broader story of prejudice, resilience, and sacrifice, showing how these soldiers fought heroically in Europe while their families endured injustice at home.

The story of one of history’s most decisive naval battles, which took place in 1805 and destroyed Napoleon’s plans to invade Britain and confirmed the Royal Navy’s supremacy. The book shifts between the perspectives of admirals, captains, and common sailors, describing the strategy, confusion, and brutal ship-to-ship combat that shaped the fight.

An important book whose history is still unfolding. This is a firsthand account of the opening year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Drawing on his reporting as a Wall Street Journal correspondent, Trofimov follows Ukrainian soldiers, civilians, and leaders as they confront the shock of the assault and fight to hold their ground.

The story of the most famous slave revolt in history. Strauss reconstructs how Spartacus, a gladiator in the first century BCE, led an army of escaped slaves that repeatedly defeated Rome’s legions before the rebellion was crushed. This can be a tough period of history to read about because so much of it is imprecise. There’s a lot of “We think X happened, probably around this location…”

An engaging but maddening read that investigates the hidden war U.S. Special Forces fought in Afghanistan after most American troops withdrew in 2014. Donati follows Green Berets, Navy SEALs, and other speical operators who were tasked with propping up Afghan forces against the Taliban while facing impossible missions, shifting political goals, and little public accountability. She draws on front-line reporting to show how these soldiers operated in a shadow conflict that continued long after the war was declared “over.” There’s an account of a Green Beret who had recently lost both of his legs in combat who was back in the US and was required to attend a staged breakfast with a general despite attending his friend’s funeral the night before, who was then formally written up for wearing Army PT attire in his wheelchair in front of the cameras at breakfast. These people wonder why they have a retention problem.

Examines the six months of peace talks that followed World War I, when world leaders met in Paris to redraw national boundaries and determine the fate of empires. MacMillan focuses on the personalities and politics that shaped the Treaty of Versailles and other agreements, showing how the ambitions, rivalries, and compromises of figures like Woodrow Wilson, Georges Clemenceau, and David Lloyd George left a legacy that influenced much of the 20th century.

The Siege by Ben Macintyre recounts the 1980 Iranian Embassy crisis in London, when six armed men stormed the building and took 26 hostages. Over six days, negotiators and police tried to end the standoff peacefully, while the SAS prepared for a possible rescue. When a hostage was killed, the SAS launched a rapid, highly coordinated assault live on television, ending the siege in minutes. Macintyre examines the political context, the human stories inside the embassy, and the operation that cemented the SAS’s global reputation.

The story of the daring 1945 raid by U.S. Army Rangers, Alamo Scouts, and Filipino guerrillas to liberate more than 500 emaciated POWs from the Cabanatuan prison camp in the Philippines. The prisoners had survived the Bataan Death March and years of brutal captivity, and with Japanese forces killing captives as they retreated, time was running out. Sides weaves the parallel narratives of the rescuers’ harrowing approach and the prisoners’ endurance, in a tense account of courage, sacrifice, and survival in the closing months of World War II.

The story of the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in 1950, where U.S. Marines, surrounded by vastly larger Chinese forces in the frozen mountains of North Korea, fought their way to the sea through brutal combat and subzero conditions. Drawing on firsthand accounts, Sides captures the chaos of the surprise Chinese intervention, the courage and resilience of the Marines, and the leadership decisions that shaped one of the most legendary fighting withdrawals in American military history.

Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre recounts the audacious British deception operation of 1943 that helped turn the tide of World War II. The plan hinged on a corpse dressed as a Royal Marine, carrying false documents meant to mislead the Germans about the Allied invasion of Southern Europe. Macintyre follows the eccentric team of intelligence officers who crafted the ruse, the elaborate details that made it believable, and the chain of events that convinced German command to divert forces away from Sicily.

Somewhat similar to Rogue Heroes, in that this one covers the career of one of forefathers of modern special operations, William J. Donovan. He was a Medal of Honor recipient and World War I hero who went on to found and lead the Office of Strategic Services, the forerunner to the CIA. Waller traces Donovan’s rise from a decorated battlefield commander to America’s top wartime spymaster, navigating Washington politics, forging unconventional alliances, and building a global intelligence network from scratch.

The person who gave me this book called it the most important thing we’d ever read. It examines the trial of Adolf Eichmann, a key architect of the Holocaust, held in Israel in 1961. Arendt’s reporting for The New Yorker led her to the controversial conclusion that Eichmann was not a fanatical monster but an ordinary, bureaucratic functionary who committed atrocities through obedience, careerism, and moral disengagement; a concept she called “the banality of evil.” It will lead you to consider how ordinary individuals can become complicit in extraordinary crimes.

An account of the decades-long conflict between the Apache peoples and the U.S. Army during the mid-to-late 19th century. Hutton tells the story through the intertwined lives of key figures, including Apache leaders like Cochise, Victorio, and Geronimo, as well as U.S. Army officers and scouts such as Mickey Free, whose kidnapping as a boy helped ignite the war. The book covers shifting alliances, betrayals, and brutal campaigns that spanned the American Southwest and northern Mexico, in a struggle shaped by cultural misunderstanding, frontier politics, and the clash between expansion and survival.

In one of the most realistic depictions of life in modern war, Evan Wright follows the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion of the U.S. Marines during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Embedded with the unit for two months, Wright captures the raw, unfiltered reality of modern warfare through the eyes of the Marines, men nicknamed for their quirks and personalities, from “Iceman” to “Captain America.” The book blends frontline action with moments of dark humor, moral conflict, and insight into how young, highly trained soldiers navigate chaos, questionable orders, and the constant threat of death.

American Massacre by Sally Denton investigates one of the seminal moments of the Mormon Church, and the source of a good deal of their early wealth: the Mountain Meadows Massacre, when a group of Mormons decieved and slaughtered more than 100 emigrants traveling through Utah in 1857. Denton reconstructs the political and religious tensions in the Utah Territory, including Brigham Young’s leadership, the U.S. government’s pressure on the Mormon community, and the climate of suspicion and fear that preceded the killings. She draws on archival sources and survivor accounts to show how responsibility was deflected for decades and how the massacre remained shrouded in denial and myth. This story loosely formed the basis of a recent popular Netflix series, American Primeval.  

The story of Kit Carson, a frontiersman, trapper, and soldier whose life intersected with the expansion of the United States across the Southwest in the 19th century. Sides follows Carson from his early days as a fur trapper to his role as a guide, Indian agent, and Army officer during the wars against the Navajo, culminating in the forced Long Walk relocation. The book blends biography with a broader history of Manifest Destiny, the Mexican-American War, and the clash between Native nations and an expanding republic. Sides portrays Carson as a complex figure; respected for his skill and courage, yet deeply entangled in the violence and displacement that defined the American conquest of the West.

A chronicle of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 and the massive international manhunt for his killer, James Earl Ray. Sides reconstructs the events leading up to the shooting in Memphis, the chaos and grief that followed, and Ray’s escape across the United States and into Europe. Drawing on extensive research, he shows how the FBI, police agencies, and journalists pursued one of the most wanted fugitives in history, while capturing the tense social and political climate of late-1960s America.

An account of the 1953 CIA-backed coup in Iran that overthrew Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh and restored the Shah to power. Shows how the operation reshaped Iran, U.S. foreign policy, and the Middle East for decades to come. A cautionary tale about interventionism and a vivid look at a pivotal moment in modern history.