Small Wars Reading List

**Jugurtha** · 06-05-2007

After perusing the "library" one could become a bit overwhelmed. If there was to be a "Small Wars Reading List" what would it contain? I'm looking for a relatively condensed reading list that starts from more general small wars books and ends in the esoteric. Would the experts here kindly offer some suggestions?

I just noticed the RFI section of the board. Mods, if this topic belongs there please move it.

**mmx1** · 06-05-2007

Rupert Smith's "The Utility of Force" or Col. Hammes' "The Sling and the Stone" for a historical overview for how we got to where we are. I believe the latter is more readable.

For historical context, Mao's "On Guerrilla Warfare" (the Griffith translation is preferred) is a seminal work.

LtCol. Nagl's "Learning to eat soup with a knife" is a more academic piece comparing the successful British COIN campaign with the failed US campaign in Vietnam.

Regarding Iraq, Hashim's "Insurgency and Counter-Insurgency in Iraq" is a good, comprehensive examination of the makeup of the Iraqi insurgency.

Bard O'Neill's "Insurgency and Terrorism" is a good general dissection of insurgencies.

Gil Merom's "How Democracies lose Small Wars" is an interesting look at the difficulties democracies have in pursuing protracted, limited conflicts.

Once you get into history of specific conflicts, the possibilities are endless.

**Maximus** · 06-05-2007

Definitely add Galula's Counterinsurgency Warfare: Theory and Practice. I'd recommend starting with this and/or Mao. Also consider "Bing" West's The Village, as it does a great job describing the benefits/risks associated with the USMC CAP program in Vietnam and directly relates to what we're doing today. Last, maybe add Boot's Savage Wars of Peace as well. Hope this helps.

**Skipjack** · 06-05-2007

To add a few more to the mix--look at Robert Taber's The War of the Flea, the reprint of the 1940 USMC Small Wars Manual, and its descendant, FM 3-24 (Counterinsurgency), released in December 2006 and now available commercially. You might also want to hunt down a copy of Roger Trinquier's "Modern Warfare," based on his experience in Algeria. Finally, check the October 2006 edition of Military Review, which was a special edition "Counterinsurgency Reader."

Hope this helps.

**Granite_State** · 06-05-2007

I'd definitely put T.E. Lawrence's The Seven Pillars of Wisdom on there.

**Tom Odom** · 06-05-2007

Originally Posted by Jugurtha

After perusing the "library" one could become a bit overwhelmed. If there was to be a "Small Wars Reading List" what would it contain? I'm looking for a relatively condensed reading list that starts from more general small wars books and ends in the esoteric. Would the experts here kindly offer some suggestions?

I just noticed the RFI section of the board. Mods, if this topic belongs there please move it.

Not to stifle your query but you will get more from SWJ if you introduce yourself so we know your background. You are asking in essence for the "cliff notes" to the library of congress. We have dicussed this many times here and you can also get a head start on it using the search function.

Finally I have put a bibliography I worked up a year or so ago on here in 2 parts. Put them back together as one and the links should work.

Best

Tom

**Jugurtha** · 06-05-2007

Originally Posted by Tom Odom

Not to stifle your query but you will get more from SWJ if you introduce yourself so we know your background. You are asking in essence for the "cliff notes" to the library of congress. We have dicussed this many times here and you can also get a head start on it using the search function.

Finally I have put a bibliography I worked up a year or so ago on here in 2 parts. Put them back together as one and the links should work.

Best

Tom

Tom,

Thanks for the bibliography, that was exactly what I was looking for.

As to the other part, I've been away from the forum for a while and didn't know that the "Introduce yourself" thread had been deleted. Sorry for the consternation.

**Tom Odom** · 06-05-2007

Originally Posted by Jugurtha

Tom,

Thanks for the bibliography, that was exactly what I was looking for.

As to the other part, I've been away from the forum for a while and didn't know that the "Introduce yourself" thread had been deleted. Sorry for the consternation.

No consternation at all. Just helps us help you.

Tom

**Lastdingo** · 06-05-2007

Rupert Smith "The Utility of Force"

**SWJED** · 06-05-2007

Just posted to our SWJ Blog and geared towards Marines and Sailors deploying to CENTCOM's AOR.

**Steve Blair** · 06-06-2007

I'm becoming more and more a fan of Mattis every day.

**Sargent** · 06-06-2007

Originally Posted by Steve Blair

I'm becoming more and more a fan of Mattis every day.

Did you ever see his email on professional reading? It got sent around late fall 2003, just before he deployed. We posted it at H-War.

http://h-net.msu.edu/cgi-bin/logbrow...0WJA&user=&pw=

Of course, being the troublemaker that I am, I wrote to him to discuss a point he made in the email. We had an interesting exchange. He too is a fan of old books (I suggested old books in another thread). Another Marine who was "famous" for what he read was Evans Carlson. When he departed to travel the PLA's AOR in 1937 he took two books with him: The Education of Henry Adams and The Bible.

**Jugurtha** · 06-06-2007

Originally Posted by SWJED

Just posted to our SWJ Blog and geared towards Marines and Sailors deploying to CENTCOM's AOR.

Excellent! I had the pleasure of working with him on TF 58. I have a funny story about him, but will not derail the thread with it.

**Jedburgh** · 06-09-2007

...for whatever reason, three books that I consider essential to any reading on insurgency tend not to be found on most "lists" I see published recently.

They are The Guerrilla Reader: A Historical Anthology, edited by Walter Laquer - published in '77, its a collection of essays and excerpts from larger writings on the subject throughout history. Its the companion volume to his outstanding book Guerrilla: A Historical and Critical Study, which was published the year prior.

The other book is Inside War: The Guerrilla Conflict in Missouri During the American Civil War, by Michael Fellman, published in '89. Not merely a history of the conflict, it offers insights that are of real value in the COE. When read in this context, I especially recommend the sections on Loyalty, Neutrality and Survival Lies and Collapse of the Sense of Security in the chapter on Civilians in Guerrilla War.

**Culpeper** · 06-09-2007

This is not prerequisite reading material. It is guidance and recommendations. For example, there is only one book by Bernard Lewis on the list who is a well known scholar on the Middle East. That one book led to me reading other books by the same author, which go into greater depth than the one book that is listed. I guess you can refer to the list as a primer to what is actually on the shelves. The list itself can be viewed as a symbol of avoiding contempt prior to investigation. I think it is meant to be a little overwhelming. That the subject matter is very deep.

**ericmwalters** · 06-25-2007

While I can certainly recommend the books mentioned in this thread for getting ones "toes wet" before plunging into the pool, I feel compelled to point out that we are entering a relatively new phase of small wars involving networked non-state actors which changes the ways and means of fighting them. Frank Hoffman has talked about the limitations of the new COIN manual given this in his Neo-Classical COIN article in the latest issue of PARAMETERS. Basically, much of the classic work (such as Galula's COUNTERINSURGENCY: THEORY AND PRACTICE and others) deal with communist insurgencies. The sources of the conflict are different in such situations than what we find ourselves dealing with the likes of Al Qaeda and its spinoffs to come.

In that vein, if you are looking for a basic historical treatment to get the "long view" to springboard from, I'd have to recommend Robert Asprey's WAR IN THE SHADOWS--get the original two volume set from a used bookstore or online source. While there is a condensed version available, the original treatment is more comprehensive. I'd start here. From this context, the theoretical works make more sense. Still, you'll have to deal with the limitations as Hoffman points out in his piece, but I'd imagine that will change over time as we get more exposure and contact with the new face of an old threat.

I'd submit that the real "revolution in military affairs" is primarily social. A good work that illustrates this in the non-state actor/terrorism realm is Marc Sageman's UNDERSTANDING TERROR NETWORKS. Lest one thinks the ways to beat terrorism is to merely "improve" social conditions, it won't be enough. The book explains why.