A Military Revolution?: Military Change and European Society, 1550-1800 by Jeremy Black

A Military Revolution?: Military Change and European Society, 1550-1800 by Jeremy Black  this is a rather short booklet that tries to argue whether there was a revolution in military affairs or not. Black attempts to make the case that the major changes in tactics were actually from later in the 18th century instead of the 17th. That instead of being created by the absolutist state they were a benefit of the changes in government. Their are lots of citations and a further reading section. There are some illustrations.

Recommended.

So there's been some controversy on late night TV?

Yes yes I know.  Nice to see I'm not the only one who isn't beating his chest over the "outrages" committed to O’Brien.

Deadly Force: Firearms and American Law Enforcement, from the Wild West to the Streets of Today by Chris McNab

Deadly Force: Firearms and American Law Enforcement, from the Wild West to the Streets of Today by Chris McNab describes the history of the use of guns by police throughout American history.  This is published by Osprey.  Before this my experience with them was solely based on the various short heavily illustrated titles on different military topics.  This is 300 pages with only 2 photo inserts and not a 3D computer generated map in sight.  McNab argues convincingly that throughout time there's been increasing professionalism and militarization of police use of force.  The development of swat teams in the 1960s and 1970s specifically.  He sometimes gets bogged down in describing events.  In the introduction he claims that he's just going to give the facts without moral judgments.  Unfortunately he repeatedly does exactly that.  Defending police use of force by pointing out that they were scared.  Strangely he doesn't consider that this also extends to the other individual involved.  This is certainly not the last word on the topic but it is an interesting place to start.

Recommended.

Note:This book was provided through Librarything's early reviewer Program.

The War for All the Oceans: From Nelson at the Nile to Napoleon at Waterloo by Roy Adkins and Lesley Adkins

The War for All the Oceans: From Nelson at the Nile to Napoleon at Waterloo by Roy Adkins and Lesley Adkins this is a rather strange book. It's an introductory history of the Royal Navy in the Napoleonic wars. No knowledge is assumed at all. Terms like "striking the colors" are defined in the text. On the other hand it's an amazing 560 pages long which would be rather daunting for the newcomer. The authors are looking for colorful scenes as opposed to scholarly analysis. It's a decent narrative history although some of the snap judgments can be annoying. There's a brief further reading section. Contains notes and a bibliography.

Mildly recommended.

Thought for the day

I've been weeding my RSS reader today.  Came to the realization that one blog author was pretentious and full of it.  Unfortunately it took me about a year to come to this conclusion.

Quotation [occasional]

"Democracy and Parliament are not being sidestepped — they are only being suspended"
Brent Rathgeber, Conservative MP

Grave Peril by Jim Butcher

Grave Peril by Jim Butcher this is the third book in the Dresden Files series of fantasy mysteries. This one involves vampires, an angry fairy godmother and enemies from Dresden's past. His repeated escapes by using legalistic loopholes as opposed to skill is a little frustrating. The conclusion changes things between Dresden and his love interest. Which will be interesting going forward. I'll pick up the fourth book.

Recommended.

The Battle: A New History of Waterloo by Alessandro Barbero

The Battle: A New History of Waterloo by Alessandro Barbero a few new insights backed up with the latest in scholarship makes this an excellent history of Napoleon's final defeat. Nice coverage of the Prussians movements during the day including the skirmishes that slowed them down. The introduction and conclusion seem a little rushed. If you're not an expert on the time you may be a bit confused. The different phases of the battle are described in a clear way. It helped me get a few things straight that I hadn't considered before.

Highly recommended!

The Deniable Agent: Undercover in Afghanistan by Colin Berry

The Deniable Agent: Undercover in Afghanistan by Colin Berry I'm never really sure how to review these things.  This is a biography however there are certain things that are obscured for security reasons.  So not exactly that good as a source but a very good read.  This describes the authors time in Afghanistan recovering weapons that were given to the Afghans by the west in their war with the Soviet union.  Berry is double crossed and finds himself in prison in 2002-03.  Considering the detainees controversy in Canada the torture this westerner experienced is chilling. Berry writes with wit and sarcasm that had me chuckling a few times.

Highly recommended!

The Liri Valley: Canada's World War II Breakthrough to Rome by Mark Zuehlke

The Liri Valley: Canada's World War II Breakthrough to Rome by Mark Zuehlke this is a detailed soldier's eye view account of the breaking of the German defensive system in Italy by the Canadiens.  Zuehlke has written several books on Canadian campaigns in WWII.  He is to be commended for finding witnesses and bringing to light sources that have never been used.  The only weakness here is that the account of the strategic background is confused at times.

Recommended.

The Lost Diaries of Adrian Mole, 1999-2001 by Sue Townsend

The Lost Diaries of Adrian Mole, 1999-2001 by Sue Townsend this is the collection of journal entries that originally appeared in the Guardian newspaper.  It is seventh in the series.  Unfortunately it comes off as a sort of best hits collection.  The characters are static at this point which doesn't surprise or bother me that much.  I did find it frustrating that Adrian navigates his way through the same events.  He falls in love with his therapist, is in a dysfunctional relationship, writes angry correspondence, his parents fall back into love and there's even a debate over school dress code.  The wider social commentary is muted.  I'm not sure if that was a space concern.  The last 10 pages are very good they deal with the characters reactions to 9/11.  I only wish there was more.

Recommended only for those familiar with the series.

Fool Moon by Jim Butcher

Fool Moon by Jim Butcher this is the second in the Dresden Files fantasy mystery series. Like the first book this is fluff. Werewolves are terrorizing Chicago. There are various permutations and conflicts making for a fast pace plot with lots of twists and turns. With an extensive series like this the main thing is whether not to continue. I've already purchased the third book so this held my interest enough to make the next sale.

Recommended.

Revolution and Intervention: The French Government and the Russian Civil War, 1917-1919 by Michael Carley

Revolution and Intervention: The French Government and the Russian Civil War, 1917-1919 by Michael Carley a little light reading over the holidays.  OK maybe not.  Scholarly book on French policy towards the Russian revolution and civil war.  It was pretty incoherent between economic interests who wanted to back the Whites and the politicians for the most part who wanted to cut deals with the Reds.  There's extensive use of archival sources and papers of the relevant officials.  It would help to have a working knowledge of the conflict and Czech legion before starting out.

Recommended.

Best of the year 2009

Following my usual tendencies this post is a little late.  Last year I read 196 books.  About half of those have been reviewed on the blog.  I'll probably turn out a few more in the upcoming days.  Of those books I read and reviewed here are the best.

• ARC Shades Of Grey by Jasper Fforde
• WWII Battle of Wits: The Complete Story of Codebreaking in World War II by Stephen Budiansky
• Biography/autobiography The Pursuit of Victory: The Life and Achievement of Horatio Nelson by Roger Knight
• RacingHitler's Motor Racing Battles: The Silver Arrows under the Swastika by Eberhard Reuss
• Fantasy The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
• Classic Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada

Happy New Year

May it be better than the last.