Military and defence strategy Books

Book SynopsisAn SAS soldier explains the battle history of this prestigious military service, while teaching how you can defend yourself in both hand-to-hand and military combat.Seventy years after its inception, the Special Air Service (SAS) is recognized by many as one of the most decorated military forces in the world. Their soldiers do battle on a daily basis, taking actions that are normally swift, very hard hitting, and extremely secretive. They will go—willingly—deep behind enemy lines, taking on incredible odds and risking their lives in the hope of rescuing others.In the SAS Combat Handbook, you will be informed on all aspects of SAS operations. With never-before-seen photographs of these heroes in action and untold stories of individual acts of bravery, you will be taught the key combat methods that have made this military group exactly what they are: elite.Included are training tips that will teach you about various military tactics, such as:The art of cover and remaining hidden behind enemy linesThe keys to covert insertion and extraction operationsCounterterrorism skills, including building entry, ambush, and snipingFire battles on land, in the air, or at seaAnd so much moreFrom the gathering of intelligence to undercover operations, the SAS is made up of two hundred men who are rigorously selected, highly trained, and ready to face what others fear. They know what it takes to get the job done, and no matter the situation, their combat skills are the best in the business.

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Book SynopsisRobert Jervis argues here that the possibility of nuclear war has created a revolution in military strategy and international relations. He examines how the potential for nuclear Armageddon has changed the meaning of war, the psychology of...Trade ReviewA comprehensive analysis that thrusts Jervis into the front ranks of nuclear essayists. * Kirkus Reviews *A masterful book by one of America's preeminent strategists.... What the nuclear revolution has done is magnify in force and compress in time imperatives that were present in the pre-nuclear era; even the pursuit of unlimited victory was unrealistic. Jervis takes us through those implications in prose so lucid we feel we have known them all along. * Foreign Affairs *

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Book SynopsisBrings to life the world of the medieval knight in a witty yet informative guide.Table of Contents1. A Knight’s World • 2. Training • 3. Becoming a Knight • 4. Arms, Armour and Horses • 5. Orders of Knighthood • 6. Recruitment and Retinues • 7. Tournaments and Feats of Arms • 8. Campaigning • 9. Crusade • 10. Mercenaries • 11. Ladies and Damsels • 12. Siege • 13. Battle • 14. Ransoms and Booty • 15. Piety and Memory

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Book SynopsisRich Diviney is a retired Navy SEAL Commander. In a career spanning more than twenty years, he completed more than thirteen overseas deployments-eleven of which were to Iraq and Afghanistan. As the officer in charge of training for a specialized command, he spearheaded the creation of a SEAL directorate that fused physical, mental, and emotional disciplines. He led his small team to create the first ever "Mind Gym" in Naval Special Warfare that helped SEALs train their brains to perform faster, longer, and better, especially in high-stress environments. Since his retirement, Diviney has worked as a speaker, facilitator, and consultant, training more than five thousand business, athletic, and military leaders. Rich also works with Simon Sinek's organization, Start With WHY.Trade ReviewSo much of what I know about trust I learned from Rich Diviney. I'm so glad he wrote The Attributes. It's the go-to reference for anyone looking to improve the quality of trust and performance across their team * Simon Sinek, optimist and New York Times bestselling author of Start with Why and The Infinite Game *If 2020 taught us anything, it's that things can go sideways at any moment. Rich Diviney's incredible book The Attributes explains why some people thrive -- even when things get hard. It's about where grit, mental agility, drive, and leadership come from. Mastering skills on its own doesn't deliver success. Understanding how to cultivate your attributes is the key * Charles Duhigg, New York Times bestselling author of The Power of Habit *What is greatness made of? How do you grow into the best version of yourself? Many have explored these questions, and none have succeeded so brilliantly as Rich Diviney in this terrific, perspective-shifting book. The Attributes provides a powerful new model for achieving high performance-and, even better, a tool kit for reflection, assessment, and continual improvement. If you care about getting better, you need to buy this book * Daniel Coyle, bestselling author of THE CULTURE CODE *The Attributes is terrific. Rich Diviney has brought world-class experience and deep intelligence to one of the least understood yet crucially important aspects of human performance. If you call yourself 'a leader,' or if you want to call yourself 'a leader,' this book is a must-read! * Steven Kotler, New York Times bestselling author and executive director of the Flow Research Collective *

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Book SynopsisWaterloo is one of the most famous battles in history and it has given rise to a vast and varied literature. The strategy and tactics of the battle and the entire Waterloo campaign have been analysed at length. The commanders, manoeuvres and critical episodes, and the intense experiences of the men who took part, have all been recorded in minute detail. But the organization, structure and fighting strength of the armies that fought in the battle have received less attention, and this is the subject of Philip Haythornthwaite\'s detailed, authoritative and engaging study. Through a close description of the structure and personnel of each of the armies he builds up a fascinating picture of their makeup, their methods and their capabilities. The insight he offers into the contrasting styles and national characteristics of the forces that came together on the Waterloo battlefield gives a fresh perspective on the extraordinary clash of arms that ended the Napoleonic era.

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Book SynopsisNEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The first definitive history of Israel’s targeted killing programs, which have shaped the Israeli nation, the Middle East, and the larger world—from the man hailed by David Remnick as “arguably [Israel’s] best investigative reporter.” “An exceptional work, a humane book about an incendiary subject . . . full of shocking moments, surprising disturbances in a narrative full of fateful twists and unintended consequences.”—The New York Times WINNER OF THE NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD IN HISTORY • ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Jennifer Szalai, The New York Times • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The Economist, The New York Times Book Review, BBC History Magazine, Mother JonesThe Talmud says: “If someone comes to kill you, rise up and kill him first.” This instinct to take every measure, even the most aggressive, to defend the Jewish people is hardwired into Israel’s DNA. From the very beginning of its statehood in 1948, protecting the nation from harm has been the responsibility of its intelligence community and armed services, and there is one weapon in their vast arsenal that they have relied upon to thwart the most serious threats: Targeted assassinations have been used countless times, on enemies large and small, sometimes in response to attacks against the Israeli people and sometimes preemptively.In this page-turning, eye-opening book, journalist and military analyst Ronen Bergman—praised by David Remnick as “arguably [Israel’s] best investigative reporter”—offers a riveting inside account of the targeted killing programs: their successes, their failures, and the moral and political price exacted on the men and women who approved and carried out the missions.Bergman has gained the exceedingly rare cooperation of many current and former members of the Israeli government, including Prime Ministers Shimon Peres, Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon, and Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as high-level figures in the country’s military and intelligence services: the IDF (Israel Defense Forces), the Mossad (the world’s most feared intelligence agency), Caesarea (a “Mossad within the Mossad” that carries out attacks on the highest-value targets), and the Shin Bet (an internal security service that implemented the largest targeted assassination campaign ever, in order to stop what had once appeared to be unstoppable: suicide terrorism).Including never-before-reported, behind-the-curtain accounts of key operations, and based on hundreds of on-the-record interviews and thousands of files to which Bergman has gotten exclusive access over his decades of reporting, Rise and Kill First brings us deep into the heart of Israel’s most secret activities. Bergman traces, from statehood to the present, the gripping events and thorny ethical questions underlying Israel’s targeted killing campaign, which has shaped the Israeli nation, the Middle East, and the larger world.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“[Enriches] the existing literature by providing a fresh and convincing argument about the importance of domestic politics in international conflict.”—Konstantinos Xypolytos, Strife JournalWinner of the 2019 Stratfor Book Award for Geopolitical Analysis, sponsored by the Mackinder Forum“Rahe has written a clear and thorough history of the Pentecontaetia. His profound command of the sources and prose, supported by clear and well placed maps, makes this book a must for the general reader as well as scholars.”—Bob Strassler, founder and series editor, Landmark Ancient Histories

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Book SynopsisCombining military and deception histories - so often viewed in isolation - this book provides context for deceptions and adds a layer of knowledge regarding the planning of military operations. The result is a more complete and nuanced view of Allied operations than is to be found in most histories of World War II.

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Book SynopsisConscription, a feature of the British Army in wartime, did not cease with the end of the Second World War. For almost another two decades, men were conscripted for National Service and two years in the armed forces.For many it brought some discipline to their lives, for others, they got to see the world. Some fought in action in Cyprus, Malaya, Kenya, Korea and in many other far-flung parts of the dwindling empire. During the Cold War, it also ensured Britain could call on a professionally trained group of men in times of war.It was all to end by the early 1960s, but hundreds of thousands of men were trained using the information enclosed within the pages of The National Serviceman’s Handbook, a compilation of the various army training manuals issued throughout National Service.

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThere is a pressing need for a book on grand strategy that compares Western and non-Western cases historically, and that can be assigned to students. This book fills that gap nicely. Fettweis obviously knows the literature on grand strategy. He offers a crisp, opinionated, up-to-date, well-organized summary of what grand strategy is, and why it matters. The book is entirely readable and accessible and does not obsess over theory or jargon, yet it makes a serious contribution. * Colin Dueck, Professor of Political Science, George Mason University, and author of Age of Iron and Hard Line *The Pursuit of Dominance deals with an important subject in an interesting way, comes up with some crisp and salutary lessons and observations, and is written in an engagingly wry style. Fettweis has picked a sensible set of plausible historical cases to examine and his discussion of them is lively and insightful, sometimes demonstrating how profoundly things have changed. * John Mueller, Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Ohio State University, Senior Fellow, Cato Institute, and author of Atomic Obsession and The Stupidity of War *Recommended. Advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and general readers. * Choice *Table of ContentsPreface Introduction Chapter 1: The Roman Empire Chapter 2: The Tang Dynasty Chapter 3: The Mongols Chapter 4: The Ottoman Empire Chapter 5: Imperial Spain Chapter 6: The British Empire Conclusion Sources Index

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Book SynopsisJames Hankins challenges the view that the Renaissance was the seedbed of modern republicanism, with Machiavelli as exemplary thinker. What most concerned Renaissance political theorists, Hankins contends, was not reforming laws but shaping citizens. To secure the social good, they fostered virtue through a new program of education: the humanities.Trade ReviewMagisterial…Humanist scholars in the Italian Renaissance were concerned with many of the same puzzles that obsess us today…Hankins shows that the humanists’ obsession with character explains their surprising indifference to particular forms of government. If rulers lacked authentic virtue, they believed, it did not matter what institutions framed their power. * Wall Street Journal *Puts the politics back into humanism in an extraordinarily deep and far-reaching way…This is certainly a landmark publication…For generations to come, all who write about the political thought of Italian humanism will have to refer to it; its influence will be—like that of virtue itself in the theories of the authors it studies—nothing less than transformative. -- Noel Malcolm * American Affairs *Perhaps the greatest study ever written of Renaissance political thought. The breadth of James Hankins’s book surpasses that of the reigning incumbents, Hans Baron’s Crisis of the Early Italian Renaissance and the first volume of Quentin Skinner’s classic Foundations of Modern Political Thought. It is also a book of bold argument and relevance. Hankins concentrates on the classic Italian Renaissance—Petrarch to Machiavelli…However, he escapes the conventional fixation on Florence and its chancellors. Leonardo Bruni and Machiavelli are here, but so too are the Roman jurist Mario Salamonio, the Greek translator George of Trebizond, the travelling ‘merchant scholar’ Cyriac of Ancona. Nor does Hankins limit himself to the familiar canon, but mines a deep vein of histories, biographies, letters, orations and treatises, both printed and scribally published. His mastery of the archive is astonishing. -- Jeffrey Collins * Times Literary Supplement *Extraordinary…The central theme…is that Renaissance humanism was neither a superficial aesthetic movement nor a purely political one. At its core, it was a movement of moral reform…Hankins’s grasp of the Italian Renaissance is deeply learned and insightful…Virtue Politics demonstrates why Hankins has earned his place as one of the world’s best intellectual historians of that period. -- Khalil M. Habib * New Criterion *A magisterial work by one of the world’s leading experts on the intellectual history of the Renaissance…One of the many strengths of Hankins’ volume is the great erudition with which he persuasively presents a different paradigm for understanding the Italian Renaissance. -- Carl O’Brien * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *A work to celebrate…A major book which not only synthesizes much of his previous work, but develops it further in ways both pathbreaking and panoramic…As Hankins shows, the central project of humanism was political, to instill virtue in rulers; there was broad agreement on this one point, but fascinating disagreement on many others. Deeply scholarly but marvelously lucid and reader-friendly, this book will be the indispensable study of this whole topic. -- Noel Malcolm * Times Literary Supplement *So timely…A book that is not only the fruit of a long and accomplished career but that also offers a rich and deep perspective on two time periods simultaneously: the Italian Renaissance and our own. Which is another way of saying that Virtue Politics gives readers a clear-eyed account of how the most creative minds of the Italian Renaissance addressed the permanent problems of human nature, virtue, tyranny, and political decay. * Washington Examiner *Magisterial… Hankins has piled up evidence more than sufficient to make his case. He has, moreover, opened up a new field of study…Whatever the course of future scholarship, it will have been Virtue Politics that opened up the field and set the agenda for those who came after. -- Paul A. Rahe * Claremont Review of Books *[A] magnum opus…A history of the political thought of the Italian Renaissance: from Petrarch in the middle of the 14th century to Machiavelli in the early 16th…Hankins is a stylish and sensitive guide to these men and their works, acutely aware that the political questions with which they grappled—what made a tyrant? Could a good man serve him?—were, for them, far from purely theoretical…Readers of Virtue Politics will close the book not only with a richer understanding of the Renaissance, but with a sense of how very differently we might think about politics today. * Standpoint *A bold new argument about the nature and significance of Renaissance political thought and a sweeping new vision of humanism itself…An exceptional scholarly accomplishment—a tour-de-force defense of the aspiration to improve character, a survey of Italian humanism with a uniquely wide recognition of the range of issues it encompassed, and a provocative reinterpretation of Machiavelli’s thought that makes modernity’s dark prophet appear positively naive in comparison with Petrarch, all accompanied by lucid forays into contemporary political theory and philosophy. For students of early modern political thought and philosophy, Hankins’s book will be an essential point of departure for some time. -- Mark Jurdjevic * Journal of Modern History *[A] masterpiece…It shows—with erudition, diligent scholarship, and great intelligence—how the Renaissance humanists, beginning with Petrarch, became convinced that the viciousness and lawless violence of fourteenth-century Italy was not, as previous thinkers had suggested, a problem that could be solved through drafting better laws. Instead, they argued that the eight centuries of peace, stability, and unity under the Romans were a reflection not of that state’s laws but of the moral qualities of its rulers. -- Rory Stewart * Times Literary Supplement *Wide-ranging and magisterial…If a greater focus on character education based on classical virtue does come about in our own time, it’s reasonable to think that this shift will take its bearings and example from the past. Hankins’s history of the Renaissance humanists offers a useful starting place for discovering what that kind of cultural rejuvenation might look like. -- Ian Lindquist * Education Next *An accomplished study of the Renaissance humanists’ political thought…We are unlikely to see soon another book that combines such extensive and precise learning with such a mature and subtle grasp of important matters. We are fortunate to have it. -- Mark Blitz * Law & Liberty *Investigates how [Renaissance humanists] explored a whole range of political issues. These included questions of wealth and economic injustice, the legitimacy of imperial rule, whether states should freely accept migrants and how to deal with debilitating partisanship… This work should prompt us to ask profound questions about the current culture of politics…A landmark piece of scholarship that will influence the study of political thought in the Renaissance for years to come. -- Bijan Omrani * Literary Review *Virtue Politics gives an impressive and thorough tour of Renaissance humanism from Petrarch to Leonardo Bruni to Machiavelli…[It] puts on display the detailed investigation of sources that can only come with decades of thought and research. -- Amanda Madden * Renaissance and Reformation *James Hankins is one of the most important scholars at work today in Renaissance intellectual history, so a new monograph from him demands attention…Virtue Politics will reset the discussion of Renaissance political thought for the next generation. -- Craig Kallendorf * Neo-Latin News *An enormous, sprawling work, providing rich and detailed but nonetheless succinct encapsulation of much of classical and medieval as well as, of course, Renaissance political theory…[A] rich and deeply erudite discussion of the Italian Renaissance. -- Jesse Russell * VoegelinView *Virtue Politics…is both intellectual history and an intervention into contemporary education and political culture…[Hankins’s] sensitive and erudite readings of an impressively broad array of humanist texts make important contributions to our knowledge and understanding of humanism during Italy’s long fifteenth century. -- Charles F. Briggs * Intellectual History Review *Gives Renaissance political thought the place it deserves within the history of Western political thought. -- Tommaso De Robertis * Bibliotheca Dantesca *A magnificent and major reinterpretation of Italian Renaissance political thought, and of the Italian Renaissance itself…It is a pleasure to spend time with this text…Anyone teaching the Renaissance or the history of political thought should have this volume readily at hand. -- Stephen Varvis * Fides et Historia *Virtue Politics is suffused with eloquence, and truly innovative. James Hankins argues that Renaissance humanists worked for political regimes of vastly different types. What was important to them was that leaders put the interests of the state—its stability, peace, and flourishing—before their own more immediate enrichment, or desire for power, or other selfish imperatives. In short, they believed that you could and should judge the moral character of a state and of the people who ran it. The concept of ‘virtue politics’ offers a helpful corrective to prior attempts to situate Renaissance thinkers into teleologically conceived narratives of the history of political theory. Not only is this one of the most important books written on humanist political thought, it is in many ways the first, given the unique way Hankins frames his project. It will change the way scholars conceive of the history of political thought. -- Christopher Celenza, author of MachiavelliJames Hankins’s masterwork takes us from Petrarch’s struggles against a decadent academic clerisy to Machiavelli and Confucius. But the central narrative thread never loosens: that character and virtue are the anchors of all healthy political systems, whether democratic or not. The lessons for today are clear and profound. -- Robert D. Kaplan, author of The Revenge of GeographyA tour-de-force revisionist account of Italian humanism, and a courageous effort to revive the humanist practice of moral education for political leaders in our own day. Machiavelli thought that he lived in an age of historically unprecedented corruption among political leaders. If he were to survey the behavior of so-called leaders in our contemporary world…he might very well concede that at least a measure of Hankins’s moral virtue must accompany his own realist virtue if good government were to have any chance of being achieved today. -- John P. McCormick, University of ChicagoJames Hankins is one of the world’s most distinguished authorities on the political thought of the Italian Renaissance, and Virtue Politics is a truly monumental work of scholarship, destined to leave its imprint for decades to come. It is—to a quite remarkable degree—a history of newly discovered things: new writers, new texts, new ideas, new connections. -- Peter Stacey, University of California, Los Angeles[The] magnum opus of a consummate intellectual historian. James Hankins is the living authority on Italian fifteenth-century neo-Latin literature…Hankins understands that by breathing new life into a beleaguered Renaissance movement, one can also come to the rescue of the Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian heritages, now under fire, on which the Renaissance drew, in order to understand the currently debated legacy of Western modernity. Inviting readers into the midst of an ongoing fray, Virtue Politics reminds us that we all have high stakes in this game. -- Rocco Rubini * European Legacy *Magisterial…Humanist scholars in the Italian Renaissance were concerned with many of the same puzzles that obsess us today…Hankins shows that the humanists’ obsession with character explains their surprising indifference to particular forms of government. If rulers lacked authentic virtue, they believed, it did not matter what institutions framed their power. * Wall Street Journal *Puts the politics back into humanism in an extraordinarily deep and far-reaching way…This is certainly a landmark publication…For generations to come, all who write about the political thought of Italian humanism will have to refer to it; its influence will be—like that of virtue itself in the theories of the authors it studies—nothing less than transformative. -- Noel Malcolm * American Affairs *Perhaps the greatest study ever written of Renaissance political thought. The breadth of James Hankins’s book surpasses that of the reigning incumbents, Hans Baron’s Crisis of the Early Italian Renaissance and the first volume of Quentin Skinner’s classic Foundations of Modern Political Thought. It is also a book of bold argument and relevance. Hankins concentrates on the classic Italian Renaissance—Petrarch to Machiavelli…However, he escapes the conventional fixation on Florence and its chancellors. Leonardo Bruni and Machiavelli are here, but so too are the Roman jurist Mario Salamonio, the Greek translator George of Trebizond, the travelling ‘merchant scholar’ Cyriac of Ancona. Nor does Hankins limit himself to the familiar canon, but mines a deep vein of histories, biographies, letters, orations and treatises, both printed and scribally published. His mastery of the archive is astonishing. -- Jeffrey Collins * Times Literary Supplement *Extraordinary…The central theme…is that Renaissance humanism was neither a superficial aesthetic movement nor a purely political one. At its core, it was a movement of moral reform…Hankins’s grasp of the Italian Renaissance is deeply learned and insightful…Virtue Politics demonstrates why Hankins has earned his place as one of the world’s best intellectual historians of that period. -- Khalil M. Habib * New Criterion *A magisterial work by one of the world’s leading experts on the intellectual history of the Renaissance…One of the many strengths of Hankins’ volume is the great erudition with which he persuasively presents a different paradigm for understanding the Italian Renaissance. -- Carl O’Brien * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *A work to celebrate…A major book which not only synthesizes much of his previous work, but develops it further in ways both pathbreaking and panoramic…As Hankins shows, the central project of humanism was political, to instill virtue in rulers; there was broad agreement on this one point, but fascinating disagreement on many others. Deeply scholarly but marvelously lucid and reader-friendly, this book will be the indispensable study of this whole topic. -- Noel Malcolm * Times Literary Supplement *So timely…A book that is not only the fruit of a long and accomplished career but that also offers a rich and deep perspective on two time periods simultaneously: the Italian Renaissance and our own. Which is another way of saying that Virtue Politics gives readers a clear-eyed account of how the most creative minds of the Italian Renaissance addressed the permanent problems of human nature, virtue, tyranny, and political decay. * Washington Examiner *Magisterial… Hankins has piled up evidence more than sufficient to make his case. He has, moreover, opened up a new field of study…Whatever the course of future scholarship, it will have been Virtue Politics that opened up the field and set the agenda for those who came after. -- Paul A. Rahe * Claremont Review of Books *[A] magnum opus…A history of the political thought of the Italian Renaissance: from Petrarch in the middle of the 14th century to Machiavelli in the early 16th…Hankins is a stylish and sensitive guide to these men and their works, acutely aware that the political questions with which they grappled—what made a tyrant? Could a good man serve him?—were, for them, far from purely theoretical…Readers of Virtue Politics will close the book not only with a richer understanding of the Renaissance, but with a sense of how very differently we might think about politics today. * Standpoint *A bold new argument about the nature and significance of Renaissance political thought and a sweeping new vision of humanism itself…An exceptional scholarly accomplishment—a tour-de-force defense of the aspiration to improve character, a survey of Italian humanism with a uniquely wide recognition of the range of issues it encompassed, and a provocative reinterpretation of Machiavelli’s thought that makes modernity’s dark prophet appear positively naive in comparison with Petrarch, all accompanied by lucid forays into contemporary political theory and philosophy. For students of early modern political thought and philosophy, Hankins’s book will be an essential point of departure for some time. -- Mark Jurdjevic * Journal of Modern History *[A] masterpiece…It shows—with erudition, diligent scholarship, and great intelligence—how the Renaissance humanists, beginning with Petrarch, became convinced that the viciousness and lawless violence of fourteenth-century Italy was not, as previous thinkers had suggested, a problem that could be solved through drafting better laws. Instead, they argued that the eight centuries of peace, stability, and unity under the Romans were a reflection not of that state’s laws but of the moral qualities of its rulers. -- Rory Stewart * Times Literary Supplement *Wide-ranging and magisterial…If a greater focus on character education based on classical virtue does come about in our own time, it’s reasonable to think that this shift will take its bearings and example from the past. Hankins’s history of the Renaissance humanists offers a useful starting place for discovering what that kind of cultural rejuvenation might look like. -- Ian Lindquist * Education Next *An accomplished study of the Renaissance humanists’ political thought…We are unlikely to see soon another book that combines such extensive and precise learning with such a mature and subtle grasp of important matters. We are fortunate to have it. -- Mark Blitz * Law & Liberty *Investigates how [Renaissance humanists] explored a whole range of political issues. These included questions of wealth and economic injustice, the legitimacy of imperial rule, whether states should freely accept migrants and how to deal with debilitating partisanship… This work should prompt us to ask profound questions about the current culture of politics…A landmark piece of scholarship that will influence the study of political thought in the Renaissance for years to come. -- Bijan Omrani * Literary Review *Virtue Politics gives an impressive and thorough tour of Renaissance humanism from Petrarch to Leonardo Bruni to Machiavelli…[It] puts on display the detailed investigation of sources that can only come with decades of thought and research. -- Amanda Madden * Renaissance and Reformation *James Hankins is one of the most important scholars at work today in Renaissance intellectual history, so a new monograph from him demands attention…Virtue Politics will reset the discussion of Renaissance political thought for the next generation. -- Craig Kallendorf * Neo-Latin News *An enormous, sprawling work, providing rich and detailed but nonetheless succinct encapsulation of much of classical and medieval as well as, of course, Renaissance political theory…[A] rich and deeply erudite discussion of the Italian Renaissance. -- Jesse Russell * VoegelinView *Virtue Politics…is both intellectual history and an intervention into contemporary education and political culture…[Hankins’s] sensitive and erudite readings of an impressively broad array of humanist texts make important contributions to our knowledge and understanding of humanism during Italy’s long fifteenth century. -- Charles F. Briggs * Intellectual History Review *Gives Renaissance political thought the place it deserves within the history of Western political thought. -- Tommaso De Robertis * Bibliotheca Dantesca *A magnificent and major reinterpretation of Italian Renaissance political thought, and of the Italian Renaissance itself…It is a pleasure to spend time with this text…Anyone teaching the Renaissance or the history of political thought should have this volume readily at hand. -- Stephen Varvis * Fides et Historia *Virtue Politics is suffused with eloquence, and truly innovative. James Hankins argues that Renaissance humanists worked for political regimes of vastly different types. What was important to them was that leaders put the interests of the state—its stability, peace, and flourishing—before their own more immediate enrichment, or desire for power, or other selfish imperatives. In short, they believed that you could and should judge the moral character of a state and of the people who ran it. The concept of ‘virtue politics’ offers a helpful corrective to prior attempts to situate Renaissance thinkers into teleologically conceived narratives of the history of political theory. Not only is this one of the most important books written on humanist political thought, it is in many ways the first, given the unique way Hankins frames his project. It will change the way scholars conceive of the history of political thought. -- Christopher Celenza, author of MachiavelliJames Hankins’s masterwork takes us from Petrarch’s struggles against a decadent academic clerisy to Machiavelli and Confucius. But the central narrative thread never loosens: that character and virtue are the anchors of all healthy political systems, whether democratic or not. The lessons for today are clear and profound. -- Robert D. Kaplan, author of The Revenge of GeographyA tour-de-force revisionist account of Italian humanism, and a courageous effort to revive the humanist practice of moral education for political leaders in our own day. Machiavelli thought that he lived in an age of historically unprecedented corruption among political leaders. If he were to survey the behavior of so-called leaders in our contemporary world…he might very well concede that at least a measure of Hankins’s moral virtue must accompany his own realist virtue if good government were to have any chance of being achieved today. -- John P. McCormick, University of ChicagoJames Hankins is one of the world’s most distinguished authorities on the political thought of the Italian Renaissance, and Virtue Politics is a truly monumental work of scholarship, destined to leave its imprint for decades to come. It is—to a quite remarkable degree—a history of newly discovered things: new writers, new texts, new ideas, new connections. -- Peter Stacey, University of California, Los Angeles[The] magnum opus of a consummate intellectual historian. James Hankins is the living authority on Italian fifteenth-century neo-Latin literature…Hankins understands that by breathing new life into a beleaguered Renaissance movement, one can also come to the rescue of the Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian heritages, now under fire, on which the Renaissance drew, in order to understand the currently debated legacy of Western modernity. Inviting readers into the midst of an ongoing fray, Virtue Politics reminds us that we all have high stakes in this game. -- Rocco Rubini * European Legacy *

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Book SynopsisThe most shocking year in history. Week by week, hour by hour.In his brilliant reconstruction, Richard Collier vividly brings one of the most momentous years in world history to life once again.This was a time of blitzkrieg and the Blitz; of the Battle of Britain and Dunkirk. From the fighting in Finland to the destruction of Coventry, from the sinking of the French fleet in Oran to the invasion of Norway, this is history at its most extraordinary and engaging.By recounting major episodes from the viewpoint of those actually involved, Collier provides enlightening glimpses of just what war represented to both the great and to the unknown, and reveals that while 1940 was a year of incredible folly, it was also a time of inestimable bravery.Perfect for readers of Anthony Beevor and Max Hastings, this is an unforgettable book about an unforgettable year, a year that shaped the world we know today.‘Masterly… you could be reading a spine-tingling thriller’ Sunday Express‘I would like to see this book made compulsory reading’ Evening Standard

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Book SynopsisThis volume is designed to be an in-depth and nuanced philosophical treatment of the virtue of obedience in the context of the professional military and the broader civilian political community, including the general citizenry. The nature and components of obedience are critical factors leading to further discussions of the moral obligations related to obedience, as well as the related practical issues and implications. Pauline Shanks Kaurin seeks to address the following questions: What is obedience? Is it a virtue, and if it is, why? What are the moral grounds of obedience? Why ought military members and citizens be obedient? Are there times that one ought not be obedient? Why? How should we think about obedience in contemporary political communities? In answering these questions, the book draws on arguments and materials from a variety of disciplines including classical studies, philosophy, history, international relations, literature and military studies, with a particular focus on cases and examples to illustrate the conceptual points. While a major focus of the book is the question of obedience in the contemporary military context, many similar (although not exactly the same) issues and considerations apply to other political communities and in, particular, citizens in a nation-state. Trade ReviewIn an era where we again see a clash of ideologies between major powers, ethical and disciplined decision-making in military and civilian organizations is a strategic edge for Western nations. On Obedience provides an enlightened and highly readable examination of this through the lens of the benefits and limits of obedience. In doing so, it redefines our understanding of obedience, disobedience and the grey spaces between, and what it means for the challenges of leading in the 21st century." —Maj. Gen. Mick Ryan, Commander Australian Defence College, Canberra"This book is an excellent philosophical exploration of the concepts of obedience and disobedience, aimed not just at the military but also at all of us in society who must obey the rules and laws of our communities. Dr. Kaurin encourages the reader to consider not just when to obey orders, but when we might be morally required to be disobedient." —CHAPLAIN (SQNLDR) Revd. Dr. Nikki Coleman, Senior Chaplain Ethicist, Royal Australian Air Force"This book is a liberal education: morally engaged, intellectually serious, wrestling with the difficult problems of our time, and guided by classical literature. Pauline Shanks Kaurin helps us think about the purposes of obedience, under what circumstances disobedience to the military's 'unconditional liability contract' is justified, and how 'critical obedience' better serves both the practical and ethical needs of our military." —Kori Schake, Deputy Director-General, International Institute for Strategic Studies, and editor with Jim Mattis of Warriors and Citizens"New work on ethics and obedience is needed now more than ever, and Dr. Kaurin's contribution is brilliant. Her analysis is spot-on, insightful, accessible, and grounded in the latest research. This book belongs on military and leadership required reading lists. Conversations are called for from wardroom to boardroom, and Kaurin shows the way." —Prof. Shannon E. French, Inamori Professor in Ethics, Case Western Reserve University"The status of the military profession is balanced on the relationship with its citizenry. In On Obedience, Dr. Shanks Kaurin addresses this critical, but poorly understood concept. It is truly a book for our time, readdressing the questions of honor and obedience situated in today's complex political environment." —Nathan K. Finney and Tyrell O. Mayfield, editors of Redefining the Modern Military: The Intersection of Profession and Ethics "Citing ambiguous and troubling cases and public controversies drawn judiciously from the recent experiences of irregular and hybrid warfare, the author demonstrates that the classical or conventional dichotomy of 'unquestioning (passive) obedience' to orders, versus 'willful disobedience' (as previous writers like Samuel Huntington characterized it for generations of military practitioners) will no longer suffice for understanding the nature of the complex choices and actions that now routinely confront the average soldier, sailor or Marine in the exercise of combat operations. These choices and actions will instead require the exercise by rank and file military personnel of mature judgment, political prudence, and moral discernment in the contemporary field of combat, whether land, sea, air…or even, now, in space (not to mention in the 'fifth domain' of cyber conflict). The careful analysis and scrutiny that Professor Kaurin brings to these complex issues will significantly aid and advance the training, education, and practical preparation of military personnel to exercise their new, heightened responsibilities for confronting armed conflict in the 'grey zone.' Her work constitutes a truly remarkable contribution to professional military education." —George Lucas, Distinguished Professor of Ethics emeritus, U.S. Naval Academy "No one can engage in warfare without confronting moral dilemmas. Military organizations try to instill obedience and discipline in their members for when that time comes, but most leave it to the individual to figure out what those words mean. Professor Kaurin has addressed these issues and offered a deep but accessible guide for the military profession." —B. A. Friedman, Military Analyst, author of On Tactics and 21st Century Ellis

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Book SynopsisNarrative medicine is a fresh discipline of health care that helps patients and health professionals to tell and listen to the complex and unique stories of illness. The Principles and Practice of Narrative Medicine expresses the collective experience and discoveries of the originators of the field. Arising at Columbia University in 2000 from roots in the humanities and patient-centered care, narrative medicine draws patients, doctors, nurses, therapists, and health activists together to re-imagine a health care based on trust and trustworthiness, humility, and mutual recognition.Over a decade of education and research has crystallized the goals and methods of narrative medicine, leading to increasingly powerful means to improve the care that patients receive. The methods described in this book harness creativity and insight to help the professionals in being with patients, not just to diagnose and treat them but tobear witness to what they undergo. Narrative medicine training in literary theory, philosophy, narrative ethics, and the creative arts increases clinicians'' capacity to perceive the turmoil and suffering borne by patients and to help them to cohere or endure the chaos of illness.Narrative medicine has achieved an international reputation and reach. Many health care settings adopt methods of narrative medicine in teaching and practice. Through the Master of Science in Narrative Medicine graduate program and health professions school curricula at Columbia University, more and more clinicians and scholars have obtained the rigorous training necessary to practice and teach narrative medicine. This text is offered to all who seek the opportunity for disciplined training in narrative medicine. By clearly articulating our principles and practice, this book provides the standards of the field for those who want to join us in seeking authenticity, recognition, affiliation, and justice in a narrative health care.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Part I: Intersubjectivity Chapter 1. Accounts of Self: Exploring Relationality through Literature Maura Spiegel and Danielle Spencer Introduction Self-Telling: Colm Tóibín and the Need to Tell Monologue and Dialogue: Dostoevsky and Bakhtin Recognition in Bechdel's Fun Home: Thickening the Story Identification and Refusal in Kazou Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go Conclusion Chapter 2. This Is What We Do, and These Things Happen: Experience, Emotion, and Relationality In The Classroom Maura Spiegel and Danielle Spencer Socio-relational dynamics and medical education The Narrative Medicine Classroom / Workshop Conclusion Part II: Dualism, Personhood, and Embodiment Chapter 3: Dualism and its Discontents I: Philosophy, Literature, and Medicine Craig Irvine and Danielle Spencer "Hi. How are you feeling today?": Tales of Alienation in Healthcare Biomedicine in recent history The Cave and the Machine: Philosophical Roots of Dualism Chapter 4: Dualism and its Discontents II: Philosophical Tinctures Craig Irvine and Danielle Spencer Philosophical Tinctures: Phenomenology and Narrative Hermeneutics Philosophical Narratives: Complexity and Multiplicity Soul Chapter 5: Deliver us from Certainty: Training for Narrative Ethics Craig Irvine and Rita Charon Narrative Ethics of Reading Narrative Ethics of Clinical Practice Ethics of Narrative Medicine Part III: Identities in Pedagogy Chapter 6: The Politics of Pedagogy: Cripping, Queering and Un-homing Health Humanities Sayantani DasGupta Introduction Crip Politics and the Medicalization of Health Humanities Queer Politics and the Problems of Intelligibility Un-Homing Narrative Medicine: Pedagogical Frames Conclusion Part IV: Close Reading Chapter 7: Close Reading: The Signature Method of Narrative Medicine Rita Charon The Origin and Fate of Close Reading Why Narrative Medicine Is Committed to Close Reading Close Reading and Its Progeny, Attentive Listening The Interior Processes of Close Reading Close Reading Enacts the Principles of Narrative Medicine Coda Chapter 8: A Framework for Teaching Close Reading Rita Charon One Way to Teach Close Reading Choosing Texts and Creating Prompts Time Space Voice Metaphor Conclusions and Room for Further Thought Part V: Creativity Chapter 9: Creativity: What, Why, and Where? Nellie Hermann Creativity in Our Everyday Lives What is Creative Writing for, particularly in the clinical context? Forms and Dividends of Creative Writing Creative Writing and Reflective Writing Chapter 10: Can Creativity be Taught? Nellie Hermann Strategies for Writing in the Health Professions A Teaching Tool: The Reading Guide for Reflective Writing The Approach to the Writing Student Finally: focus on the creative spark Part VI: Qualitative Ways of Knowing Chapter 11: The Ethnographic Field: Narrative, Visual, Contextual Edgar Rivera Colón Narrative Prelude Demystifying Qualitative Research Methods An Embodied, Reflexive Practice Making the world visible The Ethnographic Witness Part VI: Clinical Practice Chapter 12: A Narrative Transformation of Health and Health Care Eric Marcus and Rita Charon RC Tells the Clinical Story EM: Concepts-Transference and Transitional Space RC: Concepts-Creativity, Reflexivity, Reciprocity Coda Chapter 13: Clinical Contributions of Narrative Medicine Rita Charon Individual Interview/Relationship Techniques Clinician and Health Care Team Development Novel Narrative Practices Clinicians See Author Biographies Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisUses lucid text and concise charts to state the principles of war and present a conclusive picture of the world's complex weapons, armed forces, and tactics.

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Book SynopsisFew understand the devastation cyber weapons can wreak or how the United States will use them in a crisis. This title explains how cyber weapons work and how vulnerable America is to the world of nearly untraceable cyber criminals and spies. It reveals how successful foreign cyber espionage has penetrated the Pentagon, and the defense industry.Trade Review"Chilling... [A] harrowing - and persuasive - picture of the cyberthreat the United States faces today." -- Michiko Kakutani, New York Times "Clarke and Knake are right to sound the alarm." -- Wall Street Journal "[CYBER WAR] may be the most important book about national-security policy in the last several years." -- Slate "In this chilling and eye-opening book, Clarke and Knake provide a highly detailed yet accessible look at how cyber warfare is being waged and the need to rethink our national security to face this new threat." -- Booklist "Will strengthen Clarke's claims as one of the founding fathers of cybersecurocracy...It is worth buying this book if only for his pithy five-page vision of this coming apocalypse and a return to stone-age conditions within a week, all because of a few pesky hackers and viruses." -- Financial Times

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Book SynopsisAn engrossing compendium of high-seas military disastersFrom the days of the Spanish Armada to the modern age of aircraft carriers, battles have been bungled just as badly on water as they have been on land. Some blunders were the result of insufficient planning, overinflated egos, espionage, or miscalculations; others were caused by ideas that didn't hold water in the first place. In glorious detail, here are thirty-three of history's worst maritime mishaps, including: The British Royal Navy's misguided attempts to play it safe during the American Revolution The short life and death of the Imperial Japanese Navy The scuttling of the Graf Spee by a far inferior force The sinking of the Nazi megaship Bismarck "Remember the Maine!"—the lies that started the Spanish-American War Admiral Nelson losing track of Napoleon but redeeming himself at the Nile

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Book SynopsisEvery one of our systems is under attack from multiple vectors - our defenses must be ready all the time and our alert systems must detect the threats every time. This book provides concrete examples and real-world guidance on how to identify and defend your network against malicious attacks.Trade Review"A fifth domain of war has been added to land, air, sea and space: cyber. Malware capable of taking a nuclear program offline was science fiction 5 years ago: Stuxnet demonstrates that information security is now a matter of national security. This timely and necessary book provides an assessment of the current state of cyber warfare, and more importantly, where the conflict is heading. Highly recommended for information security professionals." --Eric Conrad, Lead Author, CISSP Study Guide, President, Backshore CommunicationsTable of ContentsForeword Introduction Chapter 1. What is Cyber Warfare? Chapter 2. The Cyberspace Battlefield Chapter 3. Cyber Doctrine Chapter 4. Cyber Warriors Chapter 5. Logical Weapons Chapter 6. Physical Weapons Chapter 7. Psychological Weapons Chapter 8. Computer Network Exploitation Chapter 9. Computer Network Attack Chapter 10. Computer Network Defense Chapter 11. Non-State Actors in Computer Network Operations Chapter 12. Legal System Impacts Chapter 13. Ethics Chapter 14. Cyberspace Challenges Chapter 15. The Future of Cyber War Appendix: Cyber Timeline

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Book Synopsis'War is an act of violence intended to compel our opponent to our will'Writing at the time of Napoleon's greatest campaigns, Prussian soldier and writer Carl von Clausewitz created this landmark treatise on the art of warfare, which presented war as part of a coherent system of political thought. In line with Napoleon's own military actions, Clausewitz illustrated the need to annihilate the enemy and to make a strong display of one's power in an 'absolute war' without compromise. But he was also careful to distinguish between war and politics, arguing that war could only be justified when debate was no longer adequate, and that if undertaken, its aim should ultimately be to improve the wellbeing of the nation. Combining military theory and pratice, On War has had a profound influence on subsequent thinking on warfare.This edition contains a detailed introduction examining Von Clausewitz's skill and reputation as a writer, philosopher and politTable of ContentsOn WarPreface to the Pelican EditionIntroduction by Anatol RapoportOn WarIntroduction by Col. F. N. MaudeIntroduction of the AuthorBrief Memoir of General Clausewitz by the TranslatorBook One: On The Nature Of WarI. What is War?II. End and Means in WarIII. The Genius for WarIV. Of Danger in WarV. Of Bodily Exertion in WarVI. Information in WarVII. Friction in WarVIII. Concluding RemarksBook Two: On The Theory Of WarI. Branches of the Art of WarII. On the Theory of WarIII. Art or Science of WarIV. MethodicismV. CriticismVI. On ExamplesBook Three: Of Strategy In GeneralI. StrategyII. Elements of StrategyIII. Moral ForcesIV. The Chief Moral PowersV. Military Virtue of an ArmyVI. BoldnessVII. PerseveranceVIII. Superiority of NumbersIX. The SurpriseX. StratagemXI. Assembly of Forces in SpaceXII. Assembly of Forces in TimeXIII. Strategic ReserveXIV. Economy of ForcesXV. Geometrical ElementXVI. On the Suspension of the Act in WarXVII. On the Character of Modern WarXVIII. Tension and RestBook Four: The CombatI. IntroductoryII. Character of the Modern BattleIII. The Combat in GeneralIV. The Combat in General (continuation)V. On the Signification of the CombatVI. Duration of the CombatVII. Decision of the CombatVIII. Mutual Understanding as to a BattleIX. The BattleX. Effects of VictoryXI. The Use of the BattleXII. Strategic Means of Utilizing VictoryXIII. Retreat After a Lost BattleSketches For Book Eight: Plan Of WarI. IntroductionII. Absolute and Real WarIII. (A) Interdependence of the Parts in War(B) Of the Magnitude of the Object of the War, and the Efforts to be MadeIV. Ends in War More Precisely Defined—Overthrow of the EnemyV. Ends in War More Precisely Defined (continued)—Limited ObjectVI. (A) Influence of the Political Object on the Military Object(B) War as an Instrument of PolicyConcluding Remarks by Anatol RapoportNotesReferencesGlossaryIndex

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Book Synopsis*WINNER OF THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON MEDAL FOR MILITARY HISTORY**A DAILY TELEGRAPH BOOK OF THE YEAR 2022*''No one interested in the history of Europe can afford not to read this stupendous book'' Simon Heffer, Daily TelegraphIron and Blood is a startlingly ambitious and absorbing book, encompassing five centuries of political, military, technological and economic change to tell the story of the German-speaking lands, from the Rhine to the Balkan frontier, from Switzerland to the North Sea. Wilson''s narrative considers everything from weapons development to recruitment to battlefield strategy.Germans'' military impact on the rest of Europe has been immense. If there is one constant it has been the sense of being beset by seemingly more powerful enemies - France or Russia or Turkey - and the need to strike a rapid knockout blow to ensure a favourable result. Almost inevitably, this has in practice meant protracted, relentless and often unwinnable wars, and - in 1939-1945 - moral catastrophe.The author of definitive books on the Holy Roman Empire and the Thirty Years War, Peter Wilson has with Iron and Blood written his masterpiece.''Hugely impressive'' Richard J. Evans, Times Literary SupplementTrade ReviewThe scholarship of this book is breathtaking [and] Wilson relates it with a command of his subject that is unparalleled. No one interested in the history of Europe, and of the Germans in particular, can afford not to read this stupendous book. -- Simon Heffer * Daily Telegraph *Endlessly fascinating ... History has returned to Europe, and Iron and Blood is an excellent place to start getting reacquainted with it. -- Oliver Moody * The Times *Hugely impressive ... By setting his account in the broader context of European history, Wilson launches a sustained attack on the teleological Prussocentrism of the traditional story. -- Richard J. Evans * Times Literary Supplement *Iron and Blood delves into politics, economics, technology and social developments. Its long view of Germany's military history, magisterial detail and acute analysis provide a new understanding of what was once Europe's warring heart. * The Economist *Ambitious ... While Germany cannot leave its past behind, it can learn from it, if it dares to look ... Iron and Blood is a timely book, arguing powerfully that 'German history should not be read backwards'. -- Katja Hoyer * History Today *Formidably erudite ... What is now Germany's shameful past was once Adolf Hitler's vision of the future. Reimagined by Vladimir Putin, that spectral vision now haunts our present. Hence the importance and urgency of Wilson's investigation. -- Daniel Johnson * The Critic *A work of first-rate scholarship ... will become the starting point for all students of military history, not only of Germany but of Europe as a whole. -- Jonathan Boff * BBC History Magazine *An ambitious book which was badly needed ... illuminating on the complicated relationship between Prussia, both state and society, and its army .... required reading for serious military historians. -- Barney White-Spunner * Aspects of History *There is much to admire in this book, from the astounding breadth of its scholarshipto its exceedingly ambitious scope ... a fresh perspective on German history. -- Stephen G. Fritz * Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs *

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Book SynopsisA New York Times bestseller! An epic history of the decline of American military leadership—from the bestselling author of Fiasco and Churchill and Orwell.While history has been kind to the American generals of World War II—Marshall, Eisenhower, Patton, and Bradley—it has been less kind to the generals of the wars that followed, such as Koster, Franks, Sanchez, and Petraeus. In The Generals, Thomas E. Ricks sets out to explain why that is. In chronicling the widening gulf between performance and accountability among the top brass of the U.S. military, Ricks tells the stories of great leaders and suspect ones, generals who rose to the occasion and generals who failed themselves and their soldiers. In Ricks’s hands, this story resounds with larger meaning: about the transmission of values, about strategic thinking, and about the difference between an organization that learns and one that fails.Trade Review"Engaging, informed . . . a highly entertaining book." —The Wall Street Journal"A masterful and critical study of the art of generalship from World War II through Iraq and Afghanistan by one of the smartest military experts out there." —The New York Times"[An important and timely book . . . trenchant, straightforward." —The Washington Post"Impressive . . . Stark, fact-based, and strongly argued." —Chicago Tribune "Ricks shines, blending an impressive level of research with expert storytelling." —The Weekly Standard "[A] savvy study of leadership. Combining lucid historical analysis, acid-etched portraits of generals from 'troublesome blowhard' Douglas MacArthur to 'two-time loser' Tommy Franks, and shrewd postmortems of military failures and pointless slaughters such as My Lai, the author demonstrates how everything from strategic doctrine to personnel policies create a mediocre, rigid, morally derelict army leadership... Ricks presents an incisive, hard-hitting corrective to unthinking veneration of American military prowess." —Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review) "Informed readers, especially military buffs, will appreciate this provocative, blistering critique of a system where accountability appears to have gone missing - like the author's 2006 bestseller, Fiasco, this book is bound to cause heartburn in the Pentagon." —Kirkus "Entertaining, provocative and important." —The Wilson Quarterly “This is a brilliant book—deeply researched, very well-written and outspoken. Ricks pulls no punches in naming names as he cites serious failures of leadership, even as we were winning World War II, and failures that led to serious problems in later wars. And he calls for rethinking the concept of generalship in the Army of the future.” —William J. Perry, 19th U.S. Secretary of Defense “Thomas E. Ricks has written a definitive and comprehensive story of American generalship from the battlefields of World War II to the recent war in Iraq. The Generals candidly reveals their triumphs and failures, and offers a prognosis of what can be done to ensure success by our future leaders in the volatile world of the twenty-first century.” —Carlo D’Este, author of Patton: A Genius for War “Tom Ricks has written another provocative and superbly researched book that addresses a critical issue, generalship. After each period of conflict in our history, the quality and performance of our senior military leaders comes under serious scrutiny. The Generals will be a definitive and controversial work that will spark the debate, once again, regarding how we make and choose our top military leaders.” —Anthony C. Zinni, General USMC (Ret.) “The Generals is insightful, well written and thought-provoking. Using General George C. Marshall as the gold standard, it is replete with examples of good and bad generalship in the postwar years. Too often a bureaucratic culture in those years failed to connect performance with consequences. This gave rise to many mediocre and poor senior leaders. Seldom have any of them ever been held accountable for their failures. This book justifiably calls for a return to the strict, demanding and successful Marshall prescription for generalship. It is a reminder that the lives of soldiers are more important than the careers of officers—and that winning wars is more important than either.” —Bernard E. Trainor, Lt. Gen. USMC (Ret.); author of The Generals’ War “The Generals rips up the definition of professionalism in which the US Army has clothed itself. Tom Ricks shows that it has lost the habit of sacking those who cannot meet the challenge of war, leaving it to Presidents to do so. His devastating analysis explains much that is wrong in US civil-military relations. America’s allies, who have looked to emulate too slavishly the world’s pre-eminent military power, should also take heed.” —Hew Strachan, Chichele Professor of the History of War, University of Oxford

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Book SynopsisThe prizewinning historian and internationally bestselling author of D-Day reconstructs the devastating airborne battle of Arnhem in this gripping new account.On September 17, 1944, General Kurt Student, the founder of Nazi Germany's parachute forces, heard the groaning roar of airplane engines. He went out onto his balcony above the flat landscape of southern Holland to watch the air armada of Dakotas and gliders, carrying the legendary American 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions and the British 1st Airborne Division. Operation Market Garden, the plan to end the war by capturing the bridges leading to the Lower Rhine and beyond, was a bold concept, but could it have ever worked? The cost of failure was horrendous, above all for the Dutch who risked everything to help. German reprisals were pitiless and cruel, and lasted until the end of the war. Antony Beevor, using often overlooked sources from Dutch, American, British, Polish, and German archives

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Book SynopsisIs interrogational torture effective? What do we mean by "effective"? How brutal can torture get and be considered justifiable? In this book, John Schiemann adopts game theory in an attempt to answer these questions, walking the reader through the logic of interrogational torture - and finding that it is far more brutal than proponents believe.Trade ReviewDoes Torture Work? is a thought-provoking work that generates novel insights and avenues on a controversial topic. It should be required reading for anyone interested in the forces at play in the continuing, and in many ways growing, debate over torture. * Perspectives on Politics *Table of ContentsPreface ; 1 Interrogating Torture ; 2 Dangerous Torment ; 3 Benchmarking Interrogational Torture ; 4 A Quixotic Model of Interrogational Torture ; 5 A Realistic Model of Interrogational Torture ; 6 A Brutal Logic ; 7 A Matter of Calculation ; 8 Surprise Torture ; 9 Ambiguous Information and False Confirmation ; 10 Valuable Information, Selective Torture ; 11 Torturing Innocents, Resisting Torture ; 12 Torture's Garden ; Postscript ; Appendices ; A The RIT Model ; B Comparative Statics Analysis ; C Observations and Propositions ; Notes ; References

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Book SynopsisMission Failure argues that, in the past 25 years, the U.S. military has turned to missions that are largely humanitarian and socio-political - and that this ideologically-driven foreign policy generally leads to failure.Trade ReviewThe story is fascinating. Also, since one knows the conclusion, one has to ask whether that conclusion is fair and then what it means for future policy over the next few decades. Consequently, being able to critique a well-written analysis such as this is constantly fun and interesting for anyone interested in contemplating foreign policy decision making. Even though one may not agree with Mandelbaum every step of the way, he is objective in his overview and offers outstanding analysis in every chapter. * John M. Bublic, Barton College *[Mission Failure is] going to be one of the most talked about foreign policy books of the year...a must-read." - Thomas Friedman, The New York TimesSpecialists and general readers alike will appreciate his sure historical grasp, evenhanded assignment of fault, careful assessment of shifting domestic political considerations, and understanding of the foreign cultural barriers that so frustrated American intentions. A skilled, persuasive appraisal of a unique moment in our foreign policy history." - Kirkus Reviews (starred)Mission Failure is a commanding, synoptic review of US foreign policy choices and their outcomes (often unintended and unhappy) from 1993 to 2014. It is beautifully written and has that rarity in modern, policy-relevant books: deep knowledge of history, combined with the granular understanding of US policymaking-qualities that longtime readers of Mandelbaum's work have come to expect and appreciate." - Charles Lipson, University of Chicago, and author of Reliable Partners: How Democracies Have Made a Separate PeaceMission Failure is a startlingly original, creative new book-essentially an epitaph for America's foreign policy in the quarter-century since the end of the Cold War. This is a trenchant critique of the faltering efforts by both Republican and Democratic presidents to refashion governments and societies around the world, from Somalia and Bosnia to China, Iraq and Libya." - James Mann, author of Rise of the Vulcans and The ObamiansThis book, from one of the major analysts of American foreign policy, is well-written, wide in scope, and insightful and penetrating in its vivid dissection of what might call the Twenty Years Disaster. It is a provocative must-read that will be of interest not only to specialists, but to the general public in whose name the cascading foreign policy failure has been carried out." - John Mueller, author of Chasing Ghosts: The Policing of TerrorismA superbly written, masterful, and deeply provocative work by Michael Mandelbaum. He makes a compelling argument in opposition to what he terms a values-based rather than interest and security-based foreign policy and to the waste of America's foreign policy capital, resources and credibility in fruitless efforts to transform foreign societies." - Robert J. Lieber, Georgetown University, author of Retreat and Its Consequences: U.S. Foreign Policy and the Problem of World OrderMission Failure explains how nation-building came to be the chief focus of US foreign policy in the past generation, and unblinkingly underlines how large a failure that has been. Michael Mandelbaum is one of the country's most acute analysts of US foreign policy, and his book should be required reading for policymakers today." - Francis Fukuyama, Stanford University, and author of The End of History and the Last ManA well-told, lucid, thoughtful survey of world affairs…any student of the last quarter century would be well served to read this volume." - Wall Street JournalTable of ContentsChapter 1: IntroductionChapter 2: China, the Global Economy, and RussiaA New Administration in a New WorldChina and Human RightsEconomics as Foreign PolicyRussia: The Good DeedRussia: The Bad DeedChapter 3: Humanitarian InterventionThe InnovationSomalia, Haiti, RwandaBosniaKosovoFamous VictoriesChapter 4: The War on Terror and AfghanistanTo the World Trade CenterThe War on TerrorAfghanistan: SuccessAfghanistan: FailureAfghanistan: The Long GoodbyeChapter 5: IraqFrom War to WarFrom Success to FailureThe Wars After the WarThe Home FrontExit and ReentryChapter 6: The Middle EastThe Center of the WorldThe Peace ProcessLand for WarThe Democracy AgendaThe Arab SpringChapter 7: The RestorationThe End of the Post-Cold War EraThe Bubbles BurstThe RoguesThe Rise of ChinaThe Revenge of RussiaChapter 8: Conclusion

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Book SynopsisA wide-ranging rethinking of the many factors that comprise the making of American Grand Strategy.What is grand strategy? What does it aim to achieve? And what differentiates it from normal strategic thought--what, in other words, makes it grand? In answering these questions, most scholars have focused on diplomacy and warfare, so much so that grand strategy has become almost an equivalent of military history. The traditional attention paid to military affairs is understandable, but in today''s world it leaves out much else that could be considered political, and therefore strategic. It is in fact possible to consider, and even reach, a more capacious understanding of grand strategy, one that still includes the battlefield and the negotiating table while expanding beyond them. Just as contemporary world politics is driven by a wide range of non-military issues, the most thorough considerations of grand strategy must consider the bases of peace and security--including gender, race, the environment, and a wide range of cultural, social, political, and economic issues.Rethinking American Grand Strategy assembles a roster of leading historians to examine America''s place in the world. Its innovative chapters re-examine familiar figures, such as John Quincy Adams, George Kennan, and Henry Kissinger, while also revealing the forgotten episodes and hidden voices of American grand strategy. They expand the scope of diplomatic and military history by placing the grand strategies of public health, race, gender, humanitarianism, and the law alongside military and diplomatic affairs to reveal hidden strategists as well as strategies.Trade ReviewThis excellent edited volume addresses both the main issues of US grand strategy and how to expand the concept....The subject's relevance is underlined—rather than undermined—by the rise of unconventional threats: terrorism, pandemics, autocracy and environmental problems....[The book] aims to show that American grand strategy would be more effective if it did not ignore marginalized voices in its design, especially those that traditional scholarship has neglected....Thus, it approaches grand strategy in America in a new way, whereas its historical interest in issues not normally covered in traditional accounts makes it a welcome addition to the literature. * Georgi Asatryan and Jack Kalpakian, International Affairs *This collection...covers an impressive range of topics and offers a comprehensive snapshot of the history and current state of the scholarly conversations around U.S. grand strategy.... To the editors' credit, many of the essays speak directly to and even disagree with one another, highlighting tensions in grand strategy scholarship while also questioning the value of the central concept itself. In that sense, the volume appropriately raises far more questions than it answers, which, along with the overall readability of the chapters, make this collection very teachable. It would be a wonderful addition to upper-level undergraduate courses in history, political science, and international relations, and should be required reading for the foreseeable future in graduate seminars on the history of U.S. politics, diplomacy, and foreign relations. * Ed Martini, Journal of American History *The contributors seek to interject voices that have far too long been absent from the traditional conception of grand strategy as the sole province of presidents and diplomats. The noteworthy result is a valuable reformulation of grand strategy from merely statecraft to human relations in a globalized world in three critical dimensions, considering what grand strategy is, who influences it, and how to study it. The volume comprises a beneficial introduction and 22 exceptional chapters....All the chapters are well written and cogently argued, presenting a vast array of novel perspectives. This exceptional volume is an indispensable contribution to a more comprehensive discernment of American grand strategy that accounts for culture and incorporates original interpretations on this essential subject. Summing Up: Essential. General readers, advanced undergraduates through faculty, professionals. * Choice *While the volume invites researchers and historians to revisit colorful American characters and grand American ideas, it does not inundate the readers with terminology or language that undermine the appeal of the book to casual observers of American history....This book should be welcomed at any institutional, public, or home library....Aspiring military leaders should avail themselves of the opportunities that this book has to explore, such as vital military operations other than war. * Mark S. Cogan, Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs *Rethinking American Grand Strategy was thought provoking and enjoyable to read. * S.C.M. Paine, War in History *This fascinating and carefully organized anthology examines U.S. grand strategy from the Federalists to the present and strategists from W.E. B. du Bois to George H.W. Bush, from angles ranging from diplomacy to race....Thought provoking and enjoyable to read, a volume that invites further research. * S. C.M. Paine, War in History *This fascinating and carefully organized anthology examines U.S. grand strategy from the Federalists to the present and strategists from W.E. B. du Bois to George H.W. Bush, from angles ranging from diplomacy to race....Thought provoking and enjoyable to read, a volume that invites further research. * S. C.M. Paine, War in History *This volume... is a valuable contribution to the task of broadly rethinking the goals and tactics of U.S. foreign policy. The analyses it presents aresolidly rooted in history and provide thought-provoking insights into issues and actors that grand strategists rarely consider. * Jessica T. Mathews *'Grand strategy' is a term that is as difficult to define as it is widely used by scholars and practitioners. This volume's editors and contributors believe that the concept needs to be reconceived....It should be broadened beyond its roots in military affairs and conventionally defined security to include a variety of additional issues, such as immigration, public health, demographics, international assistance, and climate change. It also needs to reach beyond its traditional focus on the state as the only important player to include other influential voices and actors....This volume...is a valuable contribution to the task of broadly rethinking the goals and tactics of U.S. foreign policy. The analyses it presents are solidly rooted in history and provide thought-provoking insights into issues and actors that grand strategists rarely consider * Jessica T. Mathews, Foreign Affairs *This is, overall, a fantastic book. It's incredibly thought provoking and well researched. I appreciated that it challenged the current ways of thinking of Grand Strategy, and questioned the approaches taken by leaders throughout American history...This book would be a great read for a student of American History, Government, or Political Science, and I believe it offers a unique perspective to anyone looking to understand the use of Grand Strategy over the past two centuries. * Kyra Young, Corvallis Advocate *I have never seen the words 'grand strategy' and 'global health' in the same sentence, much less an exploration of race and grand strategy. Rethinking Grand Strategy is not what you likely expect, and is far better for it. It is a genuine step toward changing what we think about when we think about grand strategy and who does the thinking. * Anne-Marie Slaughter, Professor Emerita, Princeton University *This is a terrific collection on the highs and lows of US grand strategy and the debate over its significance. Giving ample room for dissenting voices, the volume reaffirms the necessity of strategic thinking for producing favorable outcomes on issues ranging from national security to reproductive politics. * O.A. Westad, Yale University *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Contributors Introduction- Christopher McKnight Nichols and Andrew Preston I. Frameworks 1. Getting Grand Strategy Right: Clearing Away Common Fallacies in the Grand Strategy Debate- Hal Brands 2. The Blob and the Mob: On Grand Strategy and Social Change- Beverly Gage 3. Turning the Tide: The Application of Grand Strategy to Global Health- Elizabeth H. Bradley and Lauren A. Taylor II. Historical Grand Narratives 4. Extending the Sphere: A Federalist Grand Strategy- Charles Edel 5. Grand Strategy of the Master Class: Slavery and Foreign Policy from the Antebellum Era to the Civil War-Matthew Karp 6. A Useful Category of Analysis? Grand Strategy and US Foreign Relations from the Civil War through World War I- Katherine C. Epstein 7. Grand Strategies (or Ascendant Ideas) since 1919- David Milne III. Recasting Central Figures 8. Woodrow Wilson, W.E.B. Du Bois, and Beyond: American Internationalists and the Crucible of World War I-I- Christopher McKnight Nichols 9. Franklin Roosevelt, the New Deal, and Grand Strategy: Constructing the Postwar Order- Elizabeth Borgwardt 10. Foreign Policy Begins at Home: Americans, Grand Strategy, and World War II- Michaela Hoenicke Moore 11. National Security as Grand Strategy: Edward Mead Earle and the Burdens of World Power- Andrew Preston 12. The Misanthropy Diaries: Containment, Democracy, and the Prejudices of George Frost Kennan- David Greenberg 13. Implementing Grand Strategy: The Nixon-Kissinger Revolution at the National Security Council- William Inboden 14. George H.W. Bush: Strategy and the Stream of History- Jeffrey A. Engel IV. New Approaches 15. Foreign Missions and Strategy, Foreign Missions as Strategy- Emily Conroy-Krutz 16. The Unbearable Whiteness of Grand Strategy- Adriane Lentz-Smith 17. Rival Visions of Nationhood: Immigration Policy, Grand Strategy, and Contentious Politics- Daniel J. Tichenor 18. Disastrous Grand Strategy: US Humanitarian Assistance and Global Natural Catastrophe- Julia F. Irwin 19. Denizens of a Center: Rethinking Early Cold War Grand Strategy- Ryan Irwin 20. Reproductive Politics and Grand Strategy- Laura Briggs V. Reflections from the American Century 21. Casualties and the Concept of Grandness: A View from the Korean War- Mary L. Dudziak 22. American Grand Strategy: How Grand Has It Been? How Much Does It Matter?- Fredrik Logevall Index

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Book SynopsisStrategy of Empire dispels the myth that Romans were incapable of longterm strategic thinking or maintaining any enunciated strategy for more than a brief period, acting as a welcome counternarrative to Edward Luttwak's The Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire: From the First Century A.D. to the Third.Trade ReviewAs an argument about the Roman Empire's ability to conceptualize and maintain an ongoing imperial strategy, the book succeeds and is highly recommended. It reinvigorates and reshapes the debate. * Law & Liberty *A military history of the Roman Empire with a twist. Using his expertise in strategic operations, [Lacey] makes a compelling argument that the Romans did think and plan strategically in governing.... Highly recommended. * CHOICE *This well-argued and exhaustively researched book will no doubt reopen the debate as to whether the Romans really were capable of strategic thought. * Military History Matters *...he[Lacey] writes honest, straightforward English, tells a good story, makes his disagreements with other scholars fairly and clearly and, even if one disagrees with some of his conclusions, the weight of his experience brings a sense of authority to what he writes. His reflections on the modern military world are especially valuable. * Peter Jones, Classics for All *Engagingly written and logically structured, this is an invaluable contribution to knowledge which moves the discussion far beyond the Luttwak/Isaac debate. The author's practical experience of military planning is brilliantly deployed throughout, and the fact that staff officers effectively use the modern equivalent of Roman itineraries to plan campaign moves is worth a whole book in itself. * Peter Heather, King's College London *Jim Lacey has already established himself as a major historian of politics and strategy in the twenty-first century. He has now brought his focus to Roman strategy and done so with the critical mind of a first rate strategist. This brilliant work replaces all other examinations of Roman strategy. * Williamson Murray, The Ohio State University *Drawing on a wealth of ancient and modern material, Lacey succeeds in bringing a fresh perspective to the question of grand strategy in the Roman empire. This book should become mandatory reading for anyone interested in the development of strategic military thought in any age. * David Potter, University of Michigan *Lacey... concludes that the western empire managed to survive for five centuries despite numerous enemies and environmental challenges because it remained committed to three strategic elements: securing the economic foundations of the empire, maintaining a military force second to none, and having a seemingly inexhaustible supply of soldiers. * New Testament Abstracts *Lacey also emphasizes the importance of economics to the Roman military machine. * Jesse Russell, The European Conservative *The facts presented are faultlessly accurate, and the story is told with a warm, almost conversational (albeit completely academic) tone that is insightful, often witty, and completely free of jargon, which allows the story it conveys to be easily understood by the widest possible audience. It contains enough food for thought to satisfy the most strait-laced academic while providing an easily absorbed and engrossing narrative that will be more than palatable to an amateur history enthusiast. It could as easily serve as summer beach reading as for a textbook for a college survey class. It is thus a worthy addition to any library devoted to ancient military history, or to history in general. * Journal of Military History *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants 1. Could the Romans Do Strategy? 2. How Dangerous Were the Barbarians? 3. Paying for a Strategy 4. The True Sinews of Strategy 5. The Core of Roman Strategy 6. Strategy at the Strate of Empire 7. Strategy after Augustus 8. The Year of the Four Emperors 9. The Infrastructure of Empire 10. An Army for Empire 11. Rome's Fleets 12. The Empire at High Tide 13. The Severan Interlude 14. New Threats 15. The Third Century Crisis 16. Diocletain, Constantine, and a New Empire 17. The Late Imperial Army and Strategy 18. Four Battles and a Divorce 19. The Gothic Challenge 20. The Aftermath of Adrianople 21. Denouement

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Book SynopsisThe United States maintains defense ties with as many as 60 countries, which not only enables its armed forces to maintain command globally and to project its force widely, but also enables its government to exert leverage over allies'' foreign policies and military strategies. In Defending Frenemies, Jeffrey W. Taliaferro presents a historical and comparative analysis of how successive US presidential administrations have employed inducements and coercive diplomacy toward Israel, Pakistan, South Korea, and Taiwan over nuclear proliferation. Taliaferro shows that the ultimate goals in each administration, from John F. Kennedy to George H. W. Bush, have been to contain the Soviet Union''s influence in the Middle East and South Asia and to enlist China as an ally of convenience against the Soviets in East Asia. Policymakers'' inclinations to pursue either accommodative strategies or coercive nonproliferation strategies toward allies have therefore been directly linked to these primary objectives. Defending Frenemies is sharp examination of how regional power dynamics and US domestic politics have shaped the nonproliferation strategies the US has pursued toward vulnerable and often obstreperous allies.Trade ReviewThe great strength of this book lies in the well-written and well-sourced narratives detailing relations between each frenemy state and the US. Taliaferro places these narratives in the context of four theoretical frameworks, concluding that neoclassical realism offers the most compelling explanation of US behavior. * T.C. Ellington, Wesleyan University, CHOICE *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Abbreviations and Acronyms used in the Texts and Notes Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Neoclassical Realist Theory, Alliance Politics, and Nonproliferation Chapter 3: The United States and Israel's Nuclear Weapons Program, 1961-1973 Chapter 4: The United States and Pakistan's Nuclear Weapons Program, 1975-1990 Chapter 5: The United States and South Korea's Nuclear Weapons Program, 1971-1981 Chapter 6: The United States and Taiwan's Nuclear Weapons Program, 1967-1978 Chapter 7: Conclusions

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Book SynopsisBringing together experts from across the globe to provide a comprehensive introduction to strategic studies, this is the only overview to critically engage with both enduring and contemporary issues that dominate strategy. Throughout the chapters, readers are encouraged to explore key debates and alternative perspectives. A debates feature considers key controversies and presents opposing arguments, helping students to build critical thinking skills and reflect upon a wide range of perspectives.The new edition has been thoroughly updated to incorporate the latest developments in the field of strategic studies. Four new chapters feature in-depth coverage of cyber power and conflict, strategic culture, the evolution of grand strategy in China, and the relationship between military technology and warfare.Digital formats and resourcesThe seventh edition is available for students and institutions to purchase in a variety of formats, and is supported by online resources- The e-book offers aTrade ReviewThis forward-thinking, comprehensive textbook is a must-have for instructors of international relations and strategic studies in the modern age. It covers a broad range of theoretical and topical issues ranging from strategic theory to nuclear weapons, from irregular warfare to great power competition. Incorporating military and scholarly views, the chapters provide students with in-depth instruction on a variety of the most critical strategic issues of our time. * Dr Molly Dunigan, Senior Political Scientist, RAND Corporation, and Senior Lecturer, Carnegie Mellon University *Strategy in the Contemporary World is the most comprehensive introduction to strategic studies. Drawing on the expertise of leading scholars, this volume is an essential text to understand the broad range of debates and contemporary problems that shape the study and the practice of strategy. * Dr Damien Van Puyvelde, Director of the Scottish Centre for War Studies, University of Glasgow *Contemporary strategy involves enduring issues of force and war, but it also includes an expanding cast of characters in a rapidly changing technological environment. The relationship between traditional theory and modern dilemmas is complex, and students of strategy may struggle to make sense of it all. John Baylis, James Wirtz, and Jeannie Johnson have assembled an outstanding roster of experts to guide them. * Dr Joshua Rovner, Associate Professor, American University *More than just a fresh coat of intellectual paint, the 7th edition of Strategy in the Contemporary World is an important new instalment in an ongoing seminar about how the basic issues of international security affairs are evolving in an ever-changing world led by some of the most important contemporary thinkers on the subject. An indispensable resource for teachers and scholars. * Dr Michael C. Desch, Packey J. Dee Professor of International Affairs; Brian and Jeannelle Brady Family Director, the Notre Dame International Security Center *Table of Contents1: John Baylis, James J. Wirtz, and Jeannie L. Johnson: Introduction: Strategy in the Contemporary World Part I: Enduring Issues of Strategy 2: Beatrice Heuser: The History of the Practice of Strategy from Antiquity to Napoleon 3: Michael Sheehan: The Evolution of Modern Warfare 4: Thomas G. Mahnken: Strategic Theory 5: John Garnett and John Baylis: The Causes of War 6: Dmitry (Dima) Adamsky: Strategic Culture 7: Justin Morris: Law, Politics, and the Use of Force 8: Ryan Grauer: Technology and Warfare 9: Roger Z. George: Intelligence and Strategy 10: Daniel Moran: Geography and Strategy Part II: Contemporary Problems 11: James D. Kiras: Irregular Warfare: Terrorism and Insurgency 12: C. Dale Walton: Nuclear Weapons in the Twenty-first Century 13: John Baylis: The Control of Weapons of Mass Destruction 14: John Ferris: Conventional Power and Contemporary Warfare 15: Sheena Chestnut Greitens: Humanitarian Intervention and Peace Operations 16: Ryan C. Maness, Rebecca Lorentz, and Brandon Valeriano: Cyber Conflict in the Age of Great Power Competition 17: Stephanie Ortmann and Nicholas Whittaker: Geopolitics and Grand Strategy 18: Oriana Skylar Mastro: Chinese Grand Strategy Part III: The Future of Strategy 19: Amitav Acharya and Jiajie He: Strategic Studies: The West and the Rest 20: Columba Peoples: Strategic Studies and its Critics 21: James J. Wirtz: A New Agenda for Security and Strategy? 22: Colin S. Gray and Jeannie L. Johnson: The Practice of Strategy 23: Sir Lawrence Freedman: Does Strategic Studies Have a Future?

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Book SynopsisThis book explores the evolving role of land forces, paying particular attention to the changes that have taken place in the art of commanding and executing combat, as well as the role of rapid technological innovation and information dissemination in shaping warfare.Table of ContentsDr Meir Finkel: Foreword 1: Dr Mikael Weissmann and Dr Niklas Nilsson: Approaching Land Warfare in the 21st Century Part 1: Land Warfare 2: Dr Christopher Tuck: The Future of Manoeuvre Warfare 3: Dr Niklas Nilsson: Commanding Contemporary and Future Land Operations: What Role for Mission Command? 4: Dr Christopher Kinsey and Colonel Ronald Ti: Combat Logistics in the 21st Century: Enabling the mobility, endurance, and sustainment of NATO land forces in a future major conflict 5: Jim Storr: The Command of Land Forces 6: BA Friedman and Henrik Paulsson: Tactical Tenets: Checklists or Toolboxes 7: Dr Mikael Weissmann: Urban Warfare: Challenges of Military Operations on Tomorrow's Battlefield 8: Dr Jack Watling: Emerging Technologies: From Concept to Capability 9: Air Commodore (Rtd) Andrew Curtis: Interoperability Challenges in an era of Systemic Competition 10: Dr Tua Sandman: The moral component of fighting: Bringing society back in 11: Gen (Rtd) Professor Martin CM Bricknell: Military Health Services supporting the Land Component in the 21st Century Part 2: Case studies 12: Dr Bruce I. Gudmundsson: The Operational Cultures of American Ground Forces 13: Brad Marvel: 1. People's Liberation Army Operations and Tactics in the Land Domain: Informationized to Intelligentized Warfare 14: Dr Markus Balázs Göransson: A Strategy of Limited Actions: Russia's Ground-Based Forces in Syria 15: Dr Eado Hechet and Dr Eitan Shamir: The Role of Israel's Ground Forces in Israel's Wars 16: Dr Alex Neads and Professor David J. Galbreath: Tactics and Trade-Offs: The Evolution of Manoeuvre in the British Army 17: Dr Olivier Schmitt and Dr Elie Tenenbaum: Caught between a rock and a hard place: the French army, expeditionary warfare and the return of strategic competition 18: Scott Boston: Trends in the Land Warfare Capability of Poland and the Visegrad States, 1991-2021 Conclusions 19: Dr Mikael Weissmann and Dr Niklas Nilsson: Towards a versatile edge: Developing land forces for future conflict

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Book SynopsisThe 53rd edition of the SIPRI Yearbook analyses developments in 2021 in security and conflicts; military spending and armaments; non-proliferation; arms control; and disarmament.

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Book SynopsisHow has it happened that the United States and the Soviet Union have managed to get through more than four decades of Cold War confrontation without going to war with one another? Historian John Lewis Gaddis suggests answer to this and other vital questions about post-war diplomacy in this new book.Gaddis uses recently declassified American and British documents to explore several key issues in Cold War history that remain unresolved: Precisely what itwas about the Soviet Union''s behaviour after World War II that American leaders found so threatening? Whether the United States really wanted a sphere of influence in post-war Europe? What led the Truman administration first to endorse, but then immediately to avoid American military involvement on the mainland of Asia? This is a provocative exercise in contemporary history, certain to generate new insights on both past and present aspects of the age we live in.Trade Review`However circumscribed the tropics, Gaddis manages to infuse into each one a richness of association, of apposite generalization, which lifts them beyond the level of standart academic treatment. he is revealed above all as a highly rational and liberal-minded observer, a sharp dissector of human folly, who is yet quick to appreciate strengths where they are to be found ^times higher education-august 1988'Gaddis writes superbly well, no mean task when mixing narrative, analysis, personal reflection and advocacy ... Gaddis' powers of synthesis are, as ever, most impressive of all.' The Washington Post'Gaddis raises some interesting and timely questions ... This provocative and well-argued work is recommended' Library Journal

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Book SynopsisClausewitz in English is a work of intellectual history that examines the reception of Carl von Clausewitz''s military theories in Britain and the United States up to 1945. In the first comprehensive study of the literature, Christopher Bassford argues that the impact of Clausewitzian theory - particularly the classic On War, published in 1832 - has been underestimated and he follows the trail of Clausewitzian influence from pre-1873 Britain to 1945. Bassford finds that among those who explicitly discussed Clausewitz and his theories were soldiers, journalists, historians, political scientists and propagandists. In bringing this literature to light, Clausewitz in English makes a persuasive case for Clausewitzian theory having had a major impact on the broad development of British and American military thinking. It will be of interest to a wide range of military and intellectual historians.Trade ReviewBassford has thoroughly combed a wide range of sources and his work is a valuable bibliographic guide to Anglo-American literature on Clausewitz. * Albion *Professor Basford's account is clear and convincing. It helps those who study both military history and strategy to obtain a better idea of Clausewitz's influence and hence to judge more accurately the views and actions of those who in the twentieth century played a key part in the formulation of strategic decisions. All those interested in matters military should read this book very carefully indeed. * Paul M. Hayes, Keble College, Oxford, EHR Nov.96 *

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