Customer Reviews (2)

Gulf 1 The First War Against Iraq
Triumph Without Victory was published Jan 1992, just months after the defeat of Iraq and the liberation of Kuwait. This book was recommened to me by a US Armor Officer who was there and fought the Iraqis.

I was impressed by how quickly the staff of the US World News and Report team gathered so much information and how accurate much of it is - the book stands the test of time pretty well. The authors give a accurate and detailed picture of the politics before, during the war as well as the US and coalition forces preparation and execution of the battle. The maps are good, especially of the air force attack plans in a 3-D format which helps the reader understand the complexity of the battle plans.

I did not give the book a higher rating because I thought it tried to sensationalize several aspects of the politics - for example - the US developed huge bombs and rushed them into use to test them and take out Saddam Huessein. Sorry, but that is one aspect of war - testing new weapons. The authors feel that US diplomacy was cynical and George Bush Sr wanted war all along. The size of the Iraqi Army was smaller than Pentagon estimates, as were the casualties. Perhaps these are correct, but the way these opinions are presented are as media 'gotcha' scoops. The authors also imply that by leaving Hussein in power, the victory was hollow - despite the fact the US did exactly what the UN Charter specified, that taking out Hussein would leave Iraq a mess and our allies goal was only to liberate Kuwait, which we did. The victory was complete and to suggest otherwise is media propaganda.

All in all, this is a good book and does give a solid overview of the events from August 1990 invasion of Kuwait to Feb 1991 Cease Fire. There is a good balance of the political as well as military events and very good first hand accounts of the action from the ground and air from those who fought the battles. Other related books: The Commanders by Bob Woodard (more of the politics behind the scenes) Into the Storm, Eye Man a Tiger by Tom Clancy (he does write non-fiction)Thunder in the Desert by James Blackwell.

Excellent
U.S. News & World Report was founded in 1933, and has built a reputation for their thorough and evenhanded reporting. This book was compiled by the magazine's staff, drawing on their many resources, and is probably the most thorough treatment of the 1990-91 Persian Gulf War that you are likely to find. The book traces the conflict from Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, through the diplomatic maneuvering between Iraq and the United States, and on to the final Iraqi surrender.

I must say that I found this to be an excellent book on the Gulf War. The writers of the book go a long way towards being fair and evenhanded, reporting on Iraq's sponsorship of "some of the world's most deadly terrorist organizations..." and yet discussing America actions, including the attack on the "highway of death." Plus, I found the detailed information on the individual battles of the war made the war come alive in the reading.

Overall, I have not read another book on the Gulf War that comes close to this book for overall detail and readability. This is my favorite book on that war, and I give it my highest recommendations!
... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
Deception on the battlefield is surely as old as warfare itself. The examples stretch from the very beginnings of recorded military history –Pharaoh Ramses II’s campaign against the Hittites in 1294 B.C.—to modern times, when technology has placed a stunning array of devices into the arsenals of military commanders. Military historians often underestimate the importance of deception in warfare. This book is the first to fully describe its value. Jon Latimer shows how simple some tricks have been, but also how technology has increased the range and subtlety of what is possible –bogus radio traffic, virtual images, even smell. He draws examples from land, sea, and air to show how great commanders have always had, as Winston Churchill put it, that indispensable "element of legerdemain, an original and sinister touch, which leaves the enemy puzzled as well as beaten." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Latimer's Deception in War
This is one of the seminal works for denial and deception (D&D) studies.It is pretty much a must-have for all D&D scholars.Unfortunately, the author Jon Latimer died in January 2009, and this book is out of print.Fortunately, through Amazon, I tracked down this book in excellent used condition through another book retailer.

Worth reading
Obviously written by a professional. Not necessarily thrilling, but a worthwhile look into the history of military deception. Seperation by chapters of deception through the various mediums and modes of warfare is useful. Nevertheless, the chapter on deception in revolutionary and counterrevolutionary warfare (insurgency) is weak in comparison with the book's treatment of conventional/regular war.

One of the Best
One of the best books I've read on the subject.Well organized with good detailed examples from history.I would highly recommend this work to both experts in military art as well as to the average military history buff.A very readable book and simply a fun spark for the imagination, enjoy.

Engaging and lively, this is the best book on the subject
As an armchair historian I was intrigued when I saw this book on a topic not widely written on or understood in western military thinking. Covering deception from ancient history to the 20th century (and beyond) Latimer examines the theory and practice of deception in war.

Dividing the book into sections dealing with air, land, naval, tactical and operational deception and then providing a detailed look at how deception works at each level has proved an excellent way to break down this complex topic. Each chapter is also full of colorful examples of deception efforts in history (eg. the British in WW2 observed the Germans building a intricate wooden mock-up airfield. On the day of its completion they sent over a lone Lancaster and dropped a large wooden bomb on it!). The lessons from history serve to illustrate each point Latimer brings up and keep the book lively and interesting.

Latimer has excelled at making this a very accesabile book which while it provides the detail a military buff wants is interesting enough to capture readers with a more general interest. I was genuinely disapointed when I completed the book, wishing there was more to read! ... Read more

Product Description
The Gulf War of 1991 heralded a new type of warfare - one dominated by speed and high technology, that yielded a remarkably low level of casualties among the Allied forces. Just under a million Allied troops were deployed to the Gulf region, where they faced not only the extreme heat, but also biological, chemical and suspected nuclear threats. This book assesses both Operation Desert Storm and OperationDesert Shield, examining each forces strategies, and the political and military figures who were involved on both sides. The operational side of Desert Shield is also detailed in full. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Mediocre introduction but probably best that can be done in only 96 pages
Most Osprey series booklets are good introductions to the battles/campaigns they cover. However, this one is not. Not that it does not do a good job for its length (96 pages). It is simply that the political history and military campaign (especially the former) are far too complex for 96 pages. It just cannot be done. In addition, but again due to the short length of the book, almost no perspective (political, military or in terms of military personalities [even of Husein]) from the Iraqi side is provided. This is the deepest flaw of book.

Good start
Like all 'Essential Histories' books of Osprey this one gives a clear, but limited account of the war. It covers the most important political and - especially - military aspects of the war. But many - also noteworthy - events aren't mentioned. So, if you (as a start) just want to know the essentials about this conflict; read this book. For more detailed information read a more comprehensive book.

Very good summary of the 1991 GulfWar
This book will give you a very good overview of the 1991 conflict in about 90 pages. The events leading to the war, the opposing forces and the description of the operations are clearly exposed. The day-by-day color maps showing the ground war and the progression of the coalition forces are particularly excellent. The chapter on casualties is especially interesting concerning the iraqi combat and civilian losses, considering the discrepancies in numbers previously published (from estimates as low as 750 military deaths to the wild and groundless 200'000 total deaths boasted by some media).

A great place to start
In order to have a good grasp on what's happening in Iraq today, an understanding of the war in 1991 is essential.There's a fair amount of literature on the "first" gulf war, but Finlan's book would be a great place to start if you're not already familiar with the subject.

The Essential Histories series is aimed towards the beginner, with the goal of providing a short and readable account of the main issues surrounding a particular conflict.Finlan's book does a very good job at providing context to the war by covering most of the relevant angles.If the book is to be faulted for anything, it would be that it's heavily skewed towards the military aspect of the war at the expense of the political details.The political background to the war was just as important as the military one and should have been given more attention.

Finlan's treatment of the subject is objective and fair for the most part.While the book is quite short (only 84 pages of text) the purpose of the book is to be introductory, not all inclusive. The only factual innacuracy is that he attributed the 1996 Khobar Towers attack to Saudi dissidents, but it is widely known that Hezbollah, working with Iran, were responsible for the attack.

Anyone desiring a greater understanding of Iraq that doesn't know quite where to start would most likely benefit from this book.For those already familiar with Iraq and its history, this book will not provide anything new. ... Read more

Product Description
Webster's bibliographic and event-based timelines are comprehensive in scope, covering virtually all topics, geographic locations and people. They do so from a linguistic point of view, and in the case of this book, the focus is on "The Gulf War," including when used in literature (e.g. all authors that might have The Gulf War in their name). As such, this book represents the largest compilation of timeline events associated with The Gulf War when it is used in proper noun form. Webster's timelines cover bibliographic citations, patented inventions, as well as non-conventional and alternative meanings which capture ambiguities in usage. These furthermore cover all parts of speech (possessive, institutional usage, geographic usage) and contexts, including pop culture, the arts, social sciences (linguistics, history, geography, economics, sociology, political science), business, computer science, literature, law, medicine, psychology, mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology and other physical sciences. This "data dump" results in a comprehensive set of entries for a bibliographic and/or event-based timeline on the proper name The Gulf War, since editorial decisions to include or exclude events is purely a linguistic process. The resulting entries are used under license or with permission, used under "fair use" conditions, used in agreement with the original authors, or are in the public domain. ... Read more

Product Description
"Desert Battles" is a study of the nature of desert warfare with special attention to the evolution of weaponry, the organisation of forces, the impact of the desert environment on the ability of those forces to sustain battle, and the influences of the desert on battle tactics. After an examination of deserts as a physical context for battle, Watson focuses on seven campaigns: Napoleon's expedition to Egypt in 1798-99; the British campaign along India's north-west frontier from 1849 to 1852; the Iraq campaign during World War I; the British counterattack against the Italians in North Africa in 1940-41; the exploits of Erwin Rommel and his Afrika Korps in North Africa in 1941; the 1973 Yom Kippur War; and the 1991 Gulf War. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Very imaginative author
After finishing the book, I wonder if the author wishes he could have written about something different, but there was only money in writing about this topic, so the author took the assignment and then shoe-horned his own opinion in at the end. Up until the last chapter, the narrative is coherent, entertaining, and informative. But that last step is a doozy.

Basically, it comes down to how history has changed warfare forever, to the point that war is no longer sustainable in the way the West is now doing it. The weapons are too destructive, expensive, and mean-spirited to be employed for much longer. It was different in simpler times when to kill another man, you had to meet them eye-to-eye, and generals had to more-or-less field an equal force as the enemy. Now, a single technician can annihilate an entire nation-state from anywhere in the world. This is a game-changing transformation.

It means that the culture of annihilation practiced by our military and government is no longer appropriate. Restraint in the use of force must be exercised. Branding an entire group as "the enemy" and then blithely allowing that group's destruction to happen as a result of "collateral damage," or some other sanitized cliche because of how little the military is accountable for their own havoc will not succeed anymore. Not only will the public not tolerate seeing pictures of vast swathes of devastation, but basic human decency should dictate that our soldiers use the minimum amount of violence necessary to achieve victory.

The author points out that even the goal of victory is a misleading and futile endeavor, because what is victory? Is it the death of anyone who disagrees with Western politics enough to pick up a gun, or just the acquisition of a peace treaty? Does a situation suddenly become "ok" when representatives sign a paper promising they won't commit these atrocities anymore (but you can't come back and check up on us)?

Especially the last few pages of the last chapter, my hi-liter was getting a serious work-out. There's some intense fodder for some debate about the virtues of war, or if ever war is a viable alternative to conflict resolution. I disagree with the author on some points - mostly based on circumstantial evidence. But that's the problem - reality, like the enemy, gets to vote on the success of your plan, whether you like it or not. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

thirteen years later and no conclusion
One of the greatest revisionisms of the contemporary Middle Eastern history has been the readoption of the term "GULF WAR" for refering to the conflict to expel Saddam's forces from Kuwait.As noted bymany experts, this conflict was neither a war nor was it fought in thePersian Gulf.It was mainly a one-sided air campaign fought over the skiesof Iraq-- very much like the officially declared "non-war"against Serbia in Spring of 1999.

We read about the real gulf war (80-87Iran-Irq war) in this classic by Bulloch & Morris.Written beforeAugust 1990, we read this book knowing the ending better than the authors. And this makes the fast-paced read gain an eery beat.What were theAmericans thinking when they established friendly relations with Iraq asSaddam's troops lobbed mustard gas on Iranians-- or when US provided thesatellite info which was used to launch the most horrific of the battles,the nerve gasing of the Iranians at Fao?The same goes with the rest ofthe "liberal" West who help strengthen the monsterous war machinewhich has been only contained at the price of the Iraqi people's suffering.

The Iran-Iraq war changed two nations-- and the strategic and historiccenter of the world-- forever.Iran is married to its religious rulers notbecause of any fanatic obsession, but because of the images of the youngboys who sacrificed themselves in the marshes around Shatt-ol-Arab.It'slike a mother wearing only black because of her dead children's memory. And Arab nationalism's death as a political movement happened in Iraq, notbecause of any courntry's peace deal with Israel.

I said we know theconclusion better than the authors-- but we really don't.All we know isthat there have been a couple more chapters and that the real conclusiontakes place sometime in post-Saddam Iraq and post-Fahd Saudi Arabia.Andhow it turns out, as in the Iran Iraq War, will depend a lot on where theUS-Iranian relations will be then. ... Read more

Product Description
Extensively researched, painstakingly documented, and dedicated to the courageous men and women who fought and served in the First War with Iraq, this is a factual military history of Operation Desert Storm-and the only readable and thorough chronicle of the entire war.From the first night of battle to Day Two, when Saddam struck back, to G Day and the eventual cease-fire, accomplished military historian Richard S. Lowry delivers a detailed, day-by-day account of each battle and every military encounter leading up to the liberation of Kuwait.Desert Storm was a war of many firsts: America's first four-dimensional war; the first time in military history that a submerged submarine attacked a land target; the Marine Corps' first combat air strikes from an amphibious assault ship; the first time in the history of warfare that a soldier surrendered to a robot; and more. And it was an overwhelming victory for the United States and its allies.Intentionally presented without political commentary and ending with a complete listing of the heroic Americans killed in Desert Storm as well as a battle timeline, glossary, bibliography, and resources, The Gulf War Chronicles provides a much-needed understanding of the nature of modern-day, high-tech warfare and honors America's collective resolve and commitment to freedom. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Great for U.S. Military War Buffs but Not Entirely Definitive
As a previous reviewer already mentioned, The Gulf War Chronicles isn't entirely an all-encompassing account of the 1991 Gulf War - with material mostly coming from U.S. sources and from the U.S. perspective - but it's probably the best book that attempts to be that at the moment. Although the author's intent was to make the book a "factual military history", I sensed pretty much right off the bat a skewing of facts to give readers an even more favorable impression of the U.S. effort. In the first chapter, the reason given for the first U.S. casualty of Desert Storm, LCDR Michael Speicher (who I admire as a hero), was one of several things that hinted to me that this might be a big U.S. Military propaganda piece.

The book makes the claim that the aircraft he was in was downed by a surface to air missile when almost all real evidence that exists - the wreckage that was found, accounts from members in his flight, and an account from the intel officer charged with determining the cause for the downed aircraft - has indicated that LCDR Speicher's plane was shot down by another aircraft. I got the feeling the account given in the book was an attempt to perpetuate the idea of U.S. invisibility in air combat, which made me wonder if I was going to get a lot more propaganda than a pure and balanced history of the war. Gladly, I didn't get that feeling as much as I thought would happen as I continued to read through.

Overall, it's a great overview and military account of Operation Desert Storm, especially from the Coalition perspective. I purchased this book, however, thinking it was a completely comprehensive and balanced analysis of the war which is why it didn't quite fit the bill for me.

One sided with serious factual errors and omisions - but the only book that covers the war in any detail.
This book is drawn almost entirely from US sources with no attempt to find any Iraqi sources to confirm or refute the assertions made. At one point the book asserts that the Gulf War was "the largest armor battle of all time" (p.172 and x). BIG MISTAKE!. Somebody forgot (or ignored?) the battle of Kursk (with 3 times the number of vehicles and twice the number of men). The battle of 73rd Easting is well reported except for the obvious omission that all of the M1 tanks knocked out were hit by friendly fire (this omission appears to have been an explicit choice). And that's just scratching the surface.

Also the order of battle at the back of the book only records Coalition forces, a bias which pretty much sums up the book.

On the plus side it's the only book that covers the war in any detail, and establishes a firm timeline of events. However, if you want more than 50% of the story, you are going to have to wait for someone to write a more balanced account.

A solidly presented historical account
Written by Richard S. Lowry (a veteran of the United States Nuclear Submarine Service during the Vietnam War), The Gulf War Chronicles: A Military History Of The First War With Iraq offers a minute-by-minute chronological description of Operation Desert Storm. Drawing upon information, interviews, and diversely informative resources ranging from Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in August of 1990 to the September 11th attacks upon the United States, The Gulf War Chronicles is a solidly presented historical account and offers great insight into the complex interplay of events upon a world stage -- events that continue to have a reverberating impact in the current global war against international fundamentalist Islamic terrorism.

Enlightening.
My boss recently asked me to research the first war with Iraq as background for an article. I found that this book, unlike the others I read, was well researched. In addition, the tone was not condescending, which was refreshing. Richard Lowry went beyond the story as told by CNN or CBS, digging deeper and uncovering the real story. Excellent book!

Great work!
It is now over 13 years since Operation Desert Storm began on January 16, 1991. Given the length of time that has passed, one startling fact is evident in the Desert-Storm Community, there is no single work that provides an accurate day-by-day, hour-by-hour account of Operation Desert-Storm, from the onset of hostilities until the cease-fire declared at Safwan (extensively covered in Ally to Adversary: An Eyewitness Account of Iraq's Fall from Grace by Rick Francona), until now.

Richard Lowry's The Gulf War Chronicles strives to fill this void and to do so in detail, yet still provides a fast-paced read.

... ... Read more

Product Description
Bruce Allen Watson examines seven sieges: Jerusalem at the end of the First Crusade in 1099, Malta in 1565, Sebastopol during the Crimean War, Kut-al-Amara in World War I, Singapore in World War II, Dien Bien Phu, and the 1991 Gulf War. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Solid Overview
The author provides brief summaries on historical sieges and the factors that made them either a success or failure.The author describes the use of artillery, mobility, weapons, leadership or often the lack of, uniformity of units, and common tactics used by each side.The author provides a general overview of the specific sieges at certain time periods of war (Crusades, Post Crusade, Russia in the 1800's, WWI Iraq, French Indo-China, and briefly Desert Storm).His analysis and description on the WWI and earlier sieges contain more detail and analysis than the modern era sieges.Specific dates of key engagements with the number of troops fielded per side are not included, just the summary.The one negative is the book's print font size is very small and difficult to read at times. Overall a light read with references for future reading if one is interested in additional research or details on a particular siege.Good to borrow from a library. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Very Detailed Account
Dr. Bourque has written an excellent and highly detailed account of VII Corps' operations during Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Anyone who has an interest in military history and the Gulf War should read this. Most interesting is Dr. Bourque's thesis that the Ground War that VII Corps fought was not the cakewalk the sequestered press deemed it to be. Sure, Desert Storm wasn't the Bulge, but it wasn't just a live fire exercise either. As a Desert Storm veteran of the 4th Squadron, 7th Cavalry - division recon for the 3rd Armored Division, I heartily recommend this book.

Garryowen! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

America's Trafalgar
This is one of the best books that I have read about the US Navy's biggest fight so far and the reason why the Pacific even today is an American Lake. This Book has everything that a naval history bluff could ask for.
What with a desperate enemy on the ropes. Who hopes to hold on to their ill gotten Empire against some very unfriendly Americans led by the Navy's version of Patton - Admiral William "Bull" Halsey.
What follows is one glorious fight what with some very effective Submarine attacks, the Last Battleship Fight where the enemy gets their T crossed, the Destruction/ Sacrifice of the Japanese Aircraft Carriers, the Japanese Battle Line going against Jeep carriers & the Bulls Run. It's one hell of a story and its told very well indeed! ... Read more