Grunt

Grunt: the curious science of humans at war / Mary Roach 285 pgs.

Mary Roach writes about the most interesting topics.  This book has chapters on shark attacks, genital reconstruction and diarrhea. How can anyone dislike science?

Per usual, Roach has a way of leading the reader through topics in the most enjoyable way.  She is the master of getting herself into unusual situations and then asks all the questions you would ask.  Have more soldiers died of diarrhea than combat injuries?  How do you protect sailors from shark attack? How great are maggots at cleaning wounds?

Another home run by Roach.  Already looking forward to her next book.

The Generals: American Military Command from World War II to Today by Thomas E. Ricks

The Generals: American Military Command from World War II to Today by Thomas E. Ricks, 558 pages, US History

Thomas Ricks, author of two recent accounts of the Iraq War, Fiasco (2006), and The Gamble (2009), broadens his scope as he looks at the style and substance of leadership in the United States Army from the ascent of George Marshall through David Petraeus (though his recent woes occur after this book was published).
Ricks states that the Army has lost its way in abandoning Marshall and Eisenhower's practice of quickly relieving Generals when they were not aggressive enough, or when they performed poorly for other reasons. Ricks relates stories showing that this WWII practice had some faults, Generals were often blamed for events beyond their control, but when that practice was abandoned it was the soldiers and the Army itself that suffered.
Ricks does an excellent job giving us brief views of Generals whose names are writ large in our military history, like Patton, MacArthur and Westmoreland, and those less well-known, like Terry de La Mesa Allen, William Simpson, and William DePuy. Ricks pulls no punches, pointing out the failings of even the most well respected American generals. He is harsh in his assessment of the Army's post WWII leadership philosophies.

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Billy Lynn's long halftime walk

Billy Lynn's long halftime walk by Ben Fountain 307 pgs.

Billy Lynn and his fellow "bravos" were recorded performing bravely in Iraq by an embedded reporter.  Now they are home on a two week "Hero Tour" and getting treated like royalty.  Of course there is a lot of conflict between combat and the royal treatment.  Much of the book takes place at a Dallas Cowboy football game where the guys are trotted out at halftime to the adoring crowd who is also waiting to see Destiny's Child perform.

Even though this is a "war" book there is very little combat coverage.  Mostly we see the guys through Billy's eyes and learn about their tour and the kicker...they are getting sent back to finish their tour of duty.

I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to people who aren't into war books because the focus here is on the culture as a whole and the characters as individuals.  Billy is a young man but nothing ages you faster than a good firefight.  However, he recognizes that he still has a lot to learn.

This book is also featured in the Tournament of Books, a March madness kind of competition for books.

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The Innocent

The Innocent by David Baldacci 422 pp.

Will Robie is a professional hitman who works for the Feds. He does the jobs he is given until the night he refuses to kill the target he is assigned to kill. When the target is killed in front of him by a sniper, Robie finds himself running for his life without knowing why he has become a target. He ends up saving the life of a teenage girl whose parents were murdered and things get more convoluted...and dangerous. He ends up involved in the investigation of a bus explosion and multiple murders while dodging the unknown assailants who are trying to kill him. I've found Baldacci's books to be hit and miss. This is one of the better ones. While the situation is a bit far-fetched the characters, dialogue, action, and plot twists keep the story moving at a fast pace.

Zero Day

Zero Day by David Baldacci  448 pp.

I knew this book was going to be a heavy hitter when, 3 discs into the audiobook, the body count was up to seven, including a U.S. Army officer and his entire family, two of their neighbors, and a police officer in a small West Virginia town. What follows is an investigation by a lone CID investigator, John Puller, with the assistance of a small town police officer, Stephanie Cole. Add to the mix a corrupt coal company, a mysterious government bunker from the 1960s, a motorcycle gang, a possible terrorist threat and you have the makings of a very involved plot. There's an awful lot going on in this book and much of it was a bit far fetched in my opinion, especially the refusal of Army CID to send anyone to assist agent Puller in the investigation while the body count keeps rising. Side plots involving Puller's brother who is serving a life sentence in solitary at Leavenworth after being framed for treason and Puller's famous Army General father's dementia are not fully resolved. However, the ending leaves open the possibility of a sequel. I still prefer Baldacci's Sean King and Michelle Maxwell novels.

The Good Soldiers by David Finkel

The Good Soldiers by David Finkel, 287 pages, Iraq War.
Finkel's Pulitzer-Prize winning account of his time in Iraq with Col. Ralph Kauzlarich and the 2-16 battalio,n during 2007 and 2008. It is a very moving account of the war, with horrible things happening to very brave people, to our soldiers, the people working with them, civilians, and the forces fighting against them. Soldiers are wounded, some are killed and all of them seem irrevocably changed by the cataclysm in which they fine themselves.
This was our October 2010 book discussion choice.


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