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Published Airpower Journal - Spring 1999

The Mystique of Airpower The Airpower Professional’s Book Club MAJ M. J. PETERSEN, USAF Editor, Airpower Journal There is no List with a capital L. The great books are simply the books which deal most incisively, most eloquently, most universally, and most timelessly with man and his world. —Milton Mayer

IN THE WINTER 1998 issue of Airpower Journal, we introduced the Airpower Professional’s Book Club. We’ve had an encouraging response so far and hope to keep hearing from you, our readers. Although it’s too early to publish our top-10 list, in this update we identify some of the titles that you have suggested. Perhaps this will help those of you who are still thinking about your own lists.

• The Air Campaign: Planning for Combat by John A. Warden III.
• Air Power: A Centennial Appraisal by Air Vice Marshal Tony Mason.
• All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque.
• Breaking the Phalanx: A New Design for Landpower in the 21st Century by Douglas A. Macgregor.
• Catch-22 by Joseph Heller.
• The Command of the Air by Giulio Douhet.
• For the Common Defense: A Military History of the United States of America by Allan Millett and Peter Maslowski.
• The First and the Last: The Rise and Fall of the German Fighter Forces, 1938–1945 by Gen Adolf Galland.
• The Future of War: Power, Technology, and American World Dominance in the 21st Century by George Friedman and Meredith Friedman.
• General Kenney Reports: A Personal History of the Pacific War by Gen George C. Kenney.
• The Generals’ War: The Inside Story of the Conflict in the Gulf by Michael Gordon and Bernard Trainor.
• The German Air War in Russia by Richard Muller.
• Going Downtown: The War against Hanoi and Washington by Col Jack Broughton.
• Green Light! A Troop Carrier Squadron’s War from Normandy to the Rhine by Dr. Martin Wolfe.
• Heart of the Storm: The Genesis of the Air Campaign against Iraq by Col Richard Reynolds.
• The Icarus Syndrome: The Role of Air Power in the Evolution and Fate of the U.S. Air Force by Carl H. Builder.
• Ideas, Concepts, Doctrine: A History of Basic Thinking in the United States Air Force, 1907–1964 by Robert Frank Futrell.
• The Impact of Air Power, National Security and World Politics edited by Eugene M. Emme.
• The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660–1783 by Alfred T. Mahan.
• The Long March by William Styron.
• The Luftwaffe: Creating the Operational Air War, 1918–1940 by James S. Corum.
• Makers of Modern Strategy: From Machia-velli to the Nuclear Age edited by Peter Paret and Gordon Craig.
• The Masks of War: American Military Styles in Strategy and Analysis by Carl H. Builder.
• Men at War: The Best War Stories of All Time edited by Ernest Hemingway.
• No Margin for Error: The Making of the Israeli Air Force by Ehud Yonay.
• The Painted Bird by Jerzy Kosinski.
• The Paths of Heaven: The Evolution of Airpower Theory edited by Col Phillip S. Meilinger.
• Revolution in Warfare? Air Power in the Persian Gulf by Thomas A. Keaney and Eliot A. Cohen.
• 1794: America, Its Army, and the Birth of the Nation by Dave R. Palmer.
• Soldier and the State: The Theory and Politics of Civil-Military Relations by Samuel P. Huntington.
• On Strategy: A Critical Analysis of the Vietnam War by Harry Summers.
• Strategy in the Missile Age by Bernard Brodie.
• Strike from the Sky: The History of Battlefield Air Attack, 1911–1945 by Richard P. Hallion.
• Thor’s Legions: Weather Support to the U.S. Air Force and Army, 1937–1987 by John F. Fuller.
• The U.S. Air Service in the Great War, 1917–1919 by James J. Cooke.
• Victory through Air Power by Alexander P. de Seversky.
• On War by Carl von Clausewitz.
• Winged Victory by Victor M. Yeates.

Remember to send your list by E-mail to aspj@maxwell.af.mil or mail it to Airpower Journal, Attn: Book Club, 401 Chennault Circle, Maxwell AFB AL 36112-6428.

Although we don’t yet have the consolidated list, it will be out soon. For those of you with Internet connections, keep your eye on the Air Chronicles home page (http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil). We’ll publish it there first.

If you missed our announcement in the Winter issue and wonder what is going on, APJ has inaugurated a new, continuing section—the Airpower Professional’s Book Club. In addition to soliciting titles from the “names” in the airpower arena, we also invited APJ readers to submit their own lists of the top-10 books for the airpower professional. Based on the lists we receive, we will develop our own. We hope you will read these books and E-mail (or write) a paragraph or two describing what you thought of the book, its permanence, its importance, and its overall value in the development of an airpower professional. We will publish all appropriate submissions in a section of Air Chronicles and will print selected responses in Airpower Journal.

To stimulate discussion both on-line and in the quarterly editions, we suggest that as you read one of these books, jot down ideas or comments that come to mind. After reading it, reflect on the central theme or subject and determine how the overall content of the work relates to that theme. Also reflect on any critical observations that you can make about the book. Again, write down your ideas as they occur to you. Then let the project lie fallow in your mind. After several days, peruse the book once again and draft your comments. Use your own words as much as possible. If you choose to quote from the book you are critiquing, do so sparingly. Lay aside your first draft for two or three days and then revise it for proper English and clarity.

A book-club review is composed of a critical evaluation. Always remember that we are looking for a critique of the book—not simply a description of its contents. So, when you write your paragraph or two, try to address these four key questions:

1. What is the book about? This question leads to other questions. Does the book have a central theme? Does it argue a thesis? What is the author’s purpose? (The latter may be stated explicitly in the preface or conclusion, or it may be implied within the book itself.) Did the author achieve that purpose? Early on, try to summarize the theme, thesis, or subject in a sentence or two. Strenuously resist any temptation to describe the full contents of the book; as noted above, your critical analysis of the book is what really counts.

2. Is the book reliable? The first question to ask about a work of nonfiction is, Is it true? Again, this question prompts other questions:

a. Who is the author? What are his or her qualifications for writing a book on this particular subject? Has the author written other books? If so, are those other works about a related subject?

b. Where did the author obtain information for the book? Is the book based on the author’s personal observations of events? Is it based on primary sources—letters, diaries, speeches, manuscripts, and archival records— that were contemporary or nearly contemporary with the period or subject about which the author is writing? Or is the book based on secondary sources—that is, on works written after the time of the event using the primary sources? As a related matter, be sure to include some mention of how the author identifies the sources upon which the book is based—by a bibliography, by notes, in the preface or introduction, or simply by casual references within the text.

c. Are the sources reliable? If the book is based on primary materials, are those materials credible? If based on secondary authorities, are those accounts reputable? Briefly but precisely identify some representative examples of the sources employed.

d. Does the author use evidence with care and discrimination? Does the author read into the evidence ideas or facts that are not there? Is the author fair to all parties, or is he or she swayed by bias or prejudice? Cite specific examples of bias or prejudice or of fairness. Also consider the following questions: Are the facts correct? Do you consider the interpretations valid? Is the thesis well supported by evidence and logical reasoning? Have you been persuaded to accept the author’s conclusions? Whatever your answers to the last four questions, explain your reasons for answering them as you did.

3. Is the material well presented? Is the book understandable? Are the contents well organized? Does the author introduce the subject in clear and simple terms, or does he or she presuppose the reader possesses general knowledge of the subject?

4. Does the book make a contribution to the field? What, if anything, did the book contribute to your knowledge and understanding of the subject? Would you recommend the book to someone else? Explain why or why not.¹

When you finish, send your submission to the same address as listed above. We prefer E-mail since we intend to post your comments on the World Wide Web in Air Chronicles as we receive them. If you disagree with another reader’s critique of a book, respond; we’re aiming at developing an ongoing discussion.

Note

1. Adapted from a student handout attributed to Dr. Harold T. Parker, professor emeritus at Duke University.

Disclaimer

The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.

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