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Best Military Books

Engage with the powerful narratives and strategic insights within the realm of military literature, as praised and recurrently featured by prominent reading circles and book reviewers.

Recommendations from 44 articles, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Elon Musk and 112 others.
Best Military Books
100 books on the list
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Band of Brothers book cover
Band of Brothers
E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest
Stephen E. Ambrose - 2002-08-27 (first published in 1992)
Goodreads Rating
This book tells the incredible story of Easy Company, a group of ordinary men who became the World War II's most extraordinary soldiers. From their rigorous training to their heroic battles in France, Holland, and Germany, the men of Easy Company embodied selflessness, brotherhood, and sacrifice. This bestselling classic features a foreword from Tom Hanks and is the inspiration for the acclaimed HBO series. Experience the remarkable story of the Battered Bastards of the Bastion of Bastogne, the men who fought and died for each other, and the captain they loved who led them to victory.
Recommended by
Tulsi Gabbard
The Art of War book cover
The Art of War
Sun Tzu - 2005-01-11 NaN
Goodreads Rating
A timeless masterpiece on military strategy based on ancient Chinese warfare and thought, The Art of War has been adapted for use in politics, business, and everyday life. Widely read and respected for centuries, this book provides tactics and insights that help gain advantage over opponents, whether in the boardroom or on the battlefield.
Starship Troopers book cover
Starship Troopers
Robert A. Heinlein - 1987-05-01 (first published in 1959)
Goodreads Rating
Experience the ultimate space warfare in this controversial bestseller from acclaimed author Robert A. Heinlein. "The Bug War" has arrived, and the Terran Mobile Infantry is the only hope for humanity against these frightening and deadly enemies. Join a future recruit as he endures the toughest boot camp in the Universe and prepares for battles that could mean life or death.
With the Old Breed book cover
With the Old Breed
At Peleliu and Okinawa
E. B. Sledge - 1990-10-25 (first published in 1981)
Goodreads Rating
This powerful memoir follows the firsthand experience of a Marine in the Pacific Theatre during World War II. Based on notes kept secretly in a copy of the New Testament, the author captures the intensity and danger of war with unwavering honesty. Gain insight into the transformative experiences that shaped the author's emotions, mindset, and understanding of humanity.
We Were Soldiers Once...And Young book cover
We Were Soldiers Once...And Young
Ia Drang The Battle That Changed the War in Vietnam
Harold G. Moore - 2004-01-01 (first published in 1991)
Goodreads Rating
Experience one of the most savage and significant battles of the Vietnam War alongside 450 men of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry who were immediately surrounded by 2,000 North Vietnamese soldiers. General Moore and journalist Joseph Galloway, who was there during the fighting, interviewed hundreds of men who fought at Ia Drang Valley, including North Vietnamese commanders. We Were Soldiers Once...And Young offers a vivid portrait of war at its most inspiring and devastating, revealing man's most heroic and horrendous endeavor.
Black Hawk Down book cover
Black Hawk Down
A Story of Modern War
Mark Bowden - 1999-02-10
Goodreads Rating
Experience the intensity and danger of modern warfare in this riveting account of the battle in Mogadishu. A team of US soldiers must navigate through a teeming market to capture two Somali warlords, but what was meant to be a quick mission turns into a harrowing, all-night battle against thousands of armed Somalis. Mark Bowden's gripping narrative captures the heroism and brutality of war in vivid detail.
Old Man's War book cover
Old Man's War
John Scalzi - 2007-04-01 (first published in 2005)
Goodreads Rating
Joining the army is not usually what people do on their 75th birthday, but John Perry isn't like most people. In a world where interstellar space travel is possible, humanity is fighting for planets to live on, and aliens are willing to put up a fight. So, John decides to join the Colonial Defense Force to not only defend Earth but to potentially own a piece of planetary real estate. But the war far from Earth is brutal, and John soon realizes that it's much harder than he ever imagined. Old Man's War is a thrilling sci-fi story that explores humanity's quest for survival in the vastness of space.
The Guns of August book cover
The Guns of August
Barbara W. Tuchman - 2009-07-22 (first published in 1962)
Goodreads Rating
Discover the fascinating events and people that led to World War I with this Pulitzer Prize-winning book. The author, Barbara Tuchman, provides intricate details and an expert understanding of the subject that will leave readers captivated. Throughout this historical survey, Tuchman reveals how the war started, why it began, and how it could have been prevented. THE GUNS OF AUGUST offers an engaging perspective on a critical moment in world history that is not to be missed.
The Forever War book cover
The Forever War
Joe Haldeman - 2003-09-02 (first published in 1974)
Goodreads Rating
A reluctant soldier is drafted into an elite Military unit, and sent into a distant thousand-year conflict against an inscrutable alien enemy. As he fights for survival and to complete his duty, time dilation caused by space travel means he is aging months while centuries pass on Earth. Will he ever return home?
The Killer Angels book cover
The Killer Angels
The Classic Novel of the Civil War (Civil War Trilogy)
Michael Shaara - 1987-08-12 (first published in 1974)
Goodreads Rating
Experience the battle for America's destiny in this unforgettable story of two armies fighting for their dreams. In the midst of bloodshed and bullets, memories, promises, love, shattered futures, forgotten innocence, and crippled beauty also fall. Get ready to witness a dramatic re-creation of one of the most courageous and significant events of our nation's history in The Killer Angels.
1776 by David McCullough
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Battle Cry of Freedom by James M. McPherson
One Bullet Away by Nathaniel C. Fick
On Killing by Dave Grossman
Flyboys by James Bradley
Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant by Ulysses S. Grant
The Forever War by Dexter Filkins
Armor by John Steakley
The Face of Battle by John Keegan
Terms of Enlistment by Marko Kloos
Dauntless by Jack Campbell
Call Sign Chaos by Jim Mattis
Helmet for My Pillow by Robert Leckie
For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
This Kind of War by T. R. Fehrenbach
America's War for the Greater Middle East by Andrew J. Bacevich
On War by Carl von Clausewitz
The Pentagon Wars by James G. Burton
Start with Why by Simon Sinek
Endurance by Alfred Lansing
Red Platoon by Clinton Romesha
Turn the Ship Around! by L. David Marquet
A Bright Shining Lie by Neil Sheehan
Generation Kill by Evan Wright
Boyd by Robert Coram
Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley
The Good Soldiers by David Finkel
On Basilisk Station by David Weber
Sergeant Rex by Mike Dowling
Dune by Frank Herbert
A Higher Call by Adam Makos
On China by Henry Kissinger
The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold
Gaunt's Ghosts by Dan Abnett
The Liberator by Alex Kershaw
The Good War by Studs Terkel
Forging Zero by Sara King
The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven
The Dog Who Could Fly by Damien Lewis
All You Need Is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka
Ulysses S. Grant by Ulysses S. Grant
The Unforgiving Minute by Craig M. Mullaney
Blood on the Risers by John Leppelman
Lincoln and His Generals by T. Harry Williams
Dogs Of War by Lisa Rogak
Countdown 'til Daddy Comes Home by Kristin Ayyar
Grunts by John C. McManus
Brave Like Me by Barbara Kerley
Valor's Choice by Tanya Huff
Descent into Chaos by Ahmed Rashid
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell
2034 by Elliot Ackerman
Missionaries by Phil Klay
Dispatches by Michael Herr
Memoir of a Revolutionary Soldier by Joseph Plumb Martin
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
The Dichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink
The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer
Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink
Team of Teams by Gen. Stanley McChrystal
The Outpost by Jake Tapper
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes
A Rumor of War by Philip Caputo
Washington's Crossing by David Hackett Fischer
Leading Change, With a New Preface by the Author by John P. Kotter
My War Gone By, I Miss It So by Anthony Loyd
Military History by DK
The Complete Hammer's Slammers by David Drake
Burn-In by P. W. Singer
The Hunters by James Salter
Always Faithful by William W. Putney
Death's Head by David Gunn
I Love You Near and Far by Marjorie Blain Parker
Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek
The Program by Eric Kapitulik, Jake MacDonald
Empire of the Sun by J. G. Ballard
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain
White Sun War by Major General Mick Ryan
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
A Paper Hug by Stephanie Skolmoski
The Complete Strategy Collection by Sun Tzu, Niccolo Machiavelli, Miyamoto Musashi, Carol von Clausewitz, Kautilya Chanakya, Csa Publishing, Lionel Giles, Ninian Hill Thomson, Colonel J. J. Graham, R. Shamasastry
Buddy the Soldier Bear by Marie Joy
Twilight Company by Alexander Freed
The Praxis by Walter Jon Williams