Canadian Army Reading List- 11+ Years Of Suggestions and Ideas

[Marshall12345]

It was a pretty awesome 8 minutes though.

 

[a_majoor]

Passchendaele, The first "Chick Flick" with heavy artillery....

 

[RememberanceDay]

Charlie Wilcox, Sharon E. McKay. War Brothers, Thunder over Kandahar, same author.

 

[SeaKingTacco]

Ghosts have warm hands by Will Bird.  Best book, written by a Canadian, on WW1. it is in the top 5 ever written on that war.

 

[BDTyre]

Afghanistan:
"Fob Doc," "A Line in the Sand," "Witness to War," "Unexpected War," "Canada in Afghanistan" "Misson of Folly," "Kandahar Tour"

World War I:
"At the Sharp End," "Shock Troops," "Baptism of Fire," "Brave Battalion," "The Journal of Private Fraser," "Scouting Thrills" "Vimy"

World War II:
"Liri Valley," "Ortona" (okay, all the Mark Zuehlke books)

General:
"The Fighting Canadians," "Tarnished Brass" (this one is by Scott Taylor), "Who Killed the Canadian Military?" "A Soldier First"

That's it for my admittedly small collection.

 

[aesop081]

"Tarnished Brass" (this one is by Scott Taylor),

Not even fit to light a fire with at a book burning.......Complete and utter garbage.

 

[BDTyre]

Hence my pointing out who the author is! It's on my shelf, but I haven't read it yet. In my defense, it was only $2.

 

[jparkin]

Afghanistan:
"Fob Doc," "A Line in the Sand," "Witness to War," "Unexpected War," "Canada in Afghanistan" "Misson of Folly," "Kandahar Tour"

I just finished reading A Line in the Sand, I'm working on FOB Doc at the moment. I've got to say, the way these two books were written really holds my attention and gets me thinking. FOB Doc got onto the Editor's Picks: Top 100 list on amazon.ca in 2009. I would definitely recommend them to anyone interested in checking them out.

Jonathan

 

[Farmount1989]

http://www.lib.ru/MEMUARY/CHECHNYA/chechen_war.txt 
  Vyacheslav Mironov. Assault on Grozny Downtown - Chechen Campaign ‘95. V. Mironov was an infantry captain involved in heavy battles of the first days of the war.

Also, some more Russian readings:
  http://www.artofwar.ru/index_e.html

Hello,

I've made translation of the book of Slava, full version - http://artofwar.ru/a/abramow_o_b/ - "I was at that war" / "Assault on Grozny downtown"
The text is corrected and I'd appreciate very much Your comments about possible unclear things in it or pure mistakes. Welcome to do that in comments or per e-mail, the last renewed version was published on Oct. 12, 2011

Sincere best regards

 

[observor 69]

The End by Ian Kershaw
Why Did the Nazis Continue to Fight a Losing War?, Sep 28 2011
By Ronald H. Clark - Published on Amazon U.S.
This review is from: The End (Hardcover)
Ian Kershaw, the author of a number of excellent books on the Third Reich including a fine biography of Hitler, asks a key question in this book: when when it became obvious that Germany would lose the war, and continue to suffer devastating destruction, why did the Nazis continue to fight on in futility? The author first sketches the issue in a preface and then identifies the "dramatis personae" or key players in the drama in brief bios. Then in a substantial introduction, he outlines the issues and explanations that have been offered. While not a book of military history as such, there is certainly enough discussion of the Reich's military posture during and after key battles to satisfy those with such interests.

Rest of review at link.

http://www.amazon.ca/End-Ian-Kershaw/dp/1594203148/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1319317141&sr=1-1

 

[mariomike]

when when it became obvious that Germany would lose the war, and continue to suffer devastating destruction, why did the Nazis continue to fight on in futility?

This is one explanation I have read:

"The mental reaction of the German people to air attack is significant. Under ruthless Nazi control they showed surprising resistance to the terror and hardships of repeated air attack, to the destruction of their homes and belongings, and to the conditions under which they were reduced to live. Their morale, their belief in ultimate victory or satisfactory compromise, and their confidence in their leaders declined, but they continued to work efficiently as long as the physical means of production remained. The power of a police state over its people cannot be underestimated."
THE UNITED STATES STRATEGIC BOMBING SURVEY
(European War)
September 30, 1945

Highlight mine - mm.

 

[NBiederman]

Anyone have any recommendations on books that cover basic information regarding the CF? My fiance wants to learn about the CF, its history, rank structures, elements and so on and was looking for a "CF for dummies" type book. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[aesop081]

Anyone have any recommendations on books that cover basic information regarding the CF? My fiance wants to learn about the CF, its history, rank structures, elements and so on and was looking for a "CF for dummies" type book. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Even better......

www.forces.gc.ca

 

[q_1966]

"The world of the lower deck is a fertile field for research. Much has been written about naval policy and operations, but little insight into naval society exists other than the contemporary accounts of William Pugsley, a public relations officer who went "undercover" to report  life as viewed from the mess decks"]"The world of the lower deck is a fertile field for research. Much has been written about naval policy and operations, but little insight into naval society exists other than the contemporary accounts of William Pugsley, a public relations officer who went "undercover" to report  life as viewed from the mess decks"
http://cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol09/nm_9_3_1-22.pdf

Great Reading
Saints, Devils & Ordinary Seaman (1945)
Sailor Remember (1948)
Return to Sea (1960)
By Lieut.(S) later LtCdr. (Retired) William Pugsley

CFB Esquimalt (HMCS Naden) Naval Museum
http://navalandmilitarymuseum.org/

CFB Halifax (HMCS Stadacona) Naval Museum
http://psphalifax.ca/marcommuseum/index.html

 

[BadgerTrapper]

A lot of good recommendations, my next trip to Chapters should hopefully be an expensive one. Can anyone recommend any books that revolve around Battlefield medicine? I.e. Medics, Corpsmen etc.

(No, I did not read all 11 pages of this thread )

 

[MikeL]

Amazon search came up with these titles
http://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=war+medic

http://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=sr_nr_scat_928712_ln?rh=n%3A928712%2Ck%3Acorpsman&keywords=corpsman&ie=UTF8&qid=1358094938&scn=928712&h=47d5929ffbcfc17d9b1e447ee0ba03b31cb67440

http://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=node%3D928712&field-keywords=combat+medic&rh=n%3A916520%2Cn%3A!927726%2Cn%3A927728%2Cn%3A928712%2Ck%3Acombat+medic

There is also Fob Doc

Military doctors serving in Afghanistan usually spend their entire tour in the relatively safe confines of the main base. FOB Doc is the story of one Canadian doctor who spent nearly his entire tour in combat. Captain Ray Wiss was stationed at Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) in Kandahar province, the birthplace of the Taliban and the most intense zone combat in Afghanistan. He shares the 'terror and boredom' of the front-line soldier's life in this candid personal diary. One day, he might be participating in combat operations, treating severe and bloody injuries and coping with the deaths of fellow soldiers, both Afghans and NATO allies; another day, he might be writing about the challenges of going to the latrine in sub-zero weather. FOB Doc is heartbreaking and hilarious, often on the same page.

http://www.amazon.ca/Fob-Doc-Ray-Wiss/dp/1553654722/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1358094780&sr=1-1

 

[jeffb]

This is one explanation I have read:

"The mental reaction of the German people to air attack is significant. Under ruthless Nazi control they showed surprising resistance to the terror and hardships of repeated air attack, to the destruction of their homes and belongings, and to the conditions under which they were reduced to live. Their morale, their belief in ultimate victory or satisfactory compromise, and their confidence in their leaders declined, but they continued to work efficiently as long as the physical means of production remained. The power of a police state over its people cannot be underestimated."
THE UNITED STATES STRATEGIC BOMBING SURVEY
(European War)
September 30, 1945

Highlight mine - mm.

A counter to the USSBS and the later United States Gulf War Air Power Survey, can be found in Gian P. Gentile's book How effective is strategic bombing: Lessons learned from WW II to Kosovo. This book systematically illustrates how flawed the USSBS was in its design. He argues that it was set up to try and set the conditions to create an independent US Air Force. (During the 2nd World War air power was split between the services with the Army largely responsible for strategic bombing). It's an interesting read for those interested in the role of strategic air power and weather it is effective or not.

Gentile, Gian P. How Effective is Strategic Bombing: Lessons learned from World War II to Kosovo. New York: New York University Press, 2001.
ISBN: 0-8147-3135-X

 

[mariomike]

A counter to the USSBS and the later United States Gulf War Air Power Survey, can be found in Gian P. Gentile's book How effective is strategic bombing: Lessons learned from WW II to Kosovo. This book systematically illustrates how flawed the USSBS was in its design. He argues that it was set up to try and set the conditions to create an independent US Air Force. (During the 2nd World War air power was split between the services with the Army largely responsible for strategic bombing). It's an interesting read for those interested in the role of strategic air power and weather it is effective or not.

Gentile, Gian P. How Effective is Strategic Bombing: Lessons learned from World War II to Kosovo. New York: New York University Press, 2001.
ISBN: 0-8147-3135-X

The USSBS - Europe was a massive project. The RAF hoped to do likewise, but Churchill rejected it. He said it would be a waste of post-war resources. Perhaps he also wanted to distance himself from the area bombing campaign, now that the war was won.

The British Bombing Survey Unit ( BBSU ) was tiny in comparison to the American one. They had to compete for documents and access to top Nazis, most notably Albert Speer.

Professor Zuckerman had always advocated attacking transportation and communications, rather than area bombing. But, his report was suppressed by the Air Ministry, as was the "Final Dispatch" of Bomber Harris.

There was also uncertainty in America: "Even General Arnold had doubts about how effective the air war had been. The British-American strategic air forces had blasted factories and cities from one end of the Reich to the other. Unquestionably a huge amount of structural damage had resulted. Yet it was clear that this destruction had not had the effect on the enemy's war effort that Arnold had expected and hoped for, the effect "we all assumed would result."
Craven and Cate  "Germany: The Climax of Strategic Operations"

 

[Leafheart11]

Hello, I am hopefully going to be in the forces soon enough (just waiting to hear back). In the meantime I am working a desk job that allows for some time to read a book. I was wondering if there are any books that any of the forum users could recommend some books on Canadian Military strategies specifically looking at the Infantry tactics/strategies as that is my chosen field.

If this is the wrong place to put this I do apologize I just was unsure as to where this should go when I was scanning the forum lists.

 

[Leafheart11]

Sorry it is for some reason not allowing me to edit my previous post but it should read: "...books that any of the forum users could recommend on Canadian Military strategies specifically..."