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The Trail of Tears (Cornerstones of Freedom, 2nd Series)
By Deborah Kent. 2005
Geronimo (Cornerstones of Freedom)
By Zachary Kent. 1989
General He Yingqin
By Peter Worthing. 2016
A revisionist study of the career of General He Yingqin, one of the most prominent military officers in China's Nationalist…
period (1928–1949) and one of the most misunderstood figures in twentieth-century China. Western scholars have dismissed He Yingqin as corrupt and incompetent, yet the Chinese archives reveal that he demonstrated considerable success as a combat commander and military administrator during civil conflicts and the Sino-Japanese War. His work in the Chinese Nationalist military served as the foundation of a close personal and professional relationship with Chiang Kai-shek, with whom he worked closely for more than two decades. Against the backdrop of the Nationalist revolution of the 1920s through the 1940s, Peter Worthing analyzes He Yingqin's rise to power alongside Chiang Kai-shek, his work in building the Nationalist military, and his fundamental role in carrying out policies designed to overcome the regime's greatest obstacles during this turbulent period of Chinese history.Bradley Manning perpetrated the biggest breach of military security in American history. This intelligence analyst leaked an astounding amount of…
classified information to WikiLeaks: classified combat videos and hundreds of thousands of documents from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and from embassies around the globe. Almost all of WikiLeaks's headline-making releases of information have come from one source only: Bradley Manning. The leaks affected governments the world over--the Arab uprisings were spurred, in part, by Manning's revelations. They propelled WikiLeaks to a level of international prominence it never had before. The world would never be the same. Bradley Manning's story is one of global significance, and yet he remains an enigma. Now, for the first time, the full truth will be told about a man who, at the age of only twenty-two, changed the world. Nicks's book paints a nuanced portrait of a man haunted by demons and driven by hope, impulsive and cocky yet idealistic enough to follow his conscience. Relying on numerous conversations with those who know Manning best, Nicks gives the full story of a bright, gay kid from middle America who signs on to serve his country and finds himself serving a cause he finds far more sinister, and why he betrayed his oath and fellow troops--and his own future--in order to fulfill what he saw as a higher purpose. Denver Nicks has written for The Daily Beast, The Nation, AlterNet, and other publications. He lives in New York City.The War Story Of Dillwyn Parrish Starr
By Louis Starr, Dillwyn Parrish Starr. 2013
Dillwyn Parrish Starr led a short life but he lived it at a tremendous speed when the First World…
War broke out he was a star American Football Player and scholar at Harvard However spurred on by his convictions he sailed to the U K in a rush and signed up for service as soon as possible thereafter he saw a great deal of fighting with the Royal Navy Armored car detachment However as the war stagnated to the static bloody fighting in the trenches he felt compelled to transfer to the prestigious Grenadier Guards in the British Army Always heavily engaged Dillwyn fought with great courage in both Flanders and on the Gallipoli campaign before falling to the overwhelming fire of the Germans at Ginchy during the infernal Somme battle in 1916 His letters are a vivid memento to a man who was universally respected even in a regiment with such high standards as the Grenadiers Guards cheerful and upbeat snuffed out too soon in the hell of World War OneIndian Americans of Massachusetts (American Heritage)
By Meenal Atul Pandya. 2018
Indians are the most recent immigrants in Massachusetts Though a tiny minority their contributions are numerous and far-reaching…
Swami Vivekananda arrived in Boston in 1893 and left a lasting legacy of Hindu philosophy Sushil Tuli opened a unique community bank Leader Bank as the first and only minority-owned bank in the state of Massachusetts The Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation at MIT created with the grant of 20 million by Desh and Jaishree Deshpande empowers MIT s researchers to make a difference in the world by developing innovative technologies Author Meenal Atul Pandya details the influence of Indians on Massachusetts historyMarlborough: The Hero of Blenheim (Great Commanders Ser.)
By John Hussey. 2004
John Churchill was born in 1650, the son of a defeated Cavalier captain, in a household which had been ravaged…
and rendered almost destitute by the English Civil War. Yet by the time of his death in 1722 he was among the richest men in the country, with a dukedom, a palace and a principality to call his own. His rise to power came through a combination of good luck, astute political manoeuvring, and a brilliance on the battlefield that made him easily the most successful general of his time. In this concise biography of the man and his military genius, John Hussey describes in detail the campaigns that made Marlborough famous: the 1704 campaign to save the Austrian empire, which culminated in the great victory of Blenheim, and the audacious invasion across Louis XIV's Ne Plus Ultra lines in 1711. These campaigns are put in the context of the times, to create a portrait of a man who is still celebrated as one of the world's greatest ever military commanders.Down in the Drink: Their Deadliest Enemy Was the Sea
By Ralph Barker. 2008
To crash or be shot down into the sea is a terrifying experience. And to escape to tell the tale…
is a rare and remarkable achievement. But that is precisely what each of the World War Two heroes described here has done; they have come 'down in the drink' and miraculously survived. In doing so, they have all qualified for the 'Goldfish Club'. Ralph Barker tells the hair-raising and inspiring stories of eight such air crews. There is the tale of the Beaufort that ditches in the North Sea, the Wellington crew stranded in the Bay of Biscay and the Mosquito fighter-bomber trapped in the sea off Burma, keeping afloaton the wreckage of his fuselage,concussed, his bones broken, withonly a flask of whisky to keep him going. In DOWN IN THE DRINK, the accounts of heroism and endurance match any from that historic time. They are stories of men from all corners of the British Commonwealth fighting for survival against unimaginable odds. No one could read of their experiences without being stirred by the proof they give that there is no limit to human courage.Dare To Be Free
By W.B. 'Sandy' Thomas. 2001
When the Germans invaded Crete in 1941, Sandy Thomas was shipped to the Greek mainland as one of their prisoners.…
Despite being severely wounded in the leg he attempted several escapes, including being carried out of his POW camp in a coffin. He finally succeeded in a spectacular escape, and made his way across Greece to Mount Athos, a rocky peninsula populated solely by monks. Here he evaded capture for over a year, before finally stealing a boat and navigating his way through winter seas to freedom in Turkey. This, his story, is one of the great escape narratives of the Second World War.The Honour and the Shame
By John Kenneally Vc. 2008
Many years after becoming the youngest person ever to be awarded the VC for attacking a company of Panzer Grenadiers…
on his own - an action that proved a turning point in one of the major battles of the Second World War - John Kenneally made an extraordinary confession. The courageous hero of the Irish Guards, who had taken on a whole company single-handed was not, in fact, John Kenneally at all, but Leslie Jackson, the illegitimate son of Neville Blond and Gertrude Robinson (a 'high-class whore'), who had deserted his former regiment, the Honourable Artillery Company. In THE HONOUR AND THE SHAME, he tells his story with great verve and frankness - a story of riotous living, great courage on the front line, and intense loyalties. Full of the escapades of battle - from the triumphant Tunisian campaign to the bloodbath of Anzio - and the many adventures of a freewheeling youth, THE HONOUR AND THE SHAME is a vivid portrait of a fascinating man.Six Years in the Hanoi Hilton: An Extraordinary Story of Courage and Survival in Vietnam
By John Mccain, Amy Shively Hawk. 2017
With a foreword by Senator John McCain.In 1967, U.S. Air Force fighter pilot James Shively was shot down over North…
Vietnam. After ejecting from his F-105 Thunderchief aircraft, he landed in a rice paddy and was captured by the North Vietnamese Army. For the next six years, Shively endured brutal treatment at the hands of the enemy in Hanoi prison camps. Back home his girlfriend moved on and married another man. Bound in iron stocks at the Hanoi Hilton, unable to get home to his loved ones, Shively contemplated suicide. Yet somehow he found hope and the will to survive--and he became determined to help his fellow POWs.In a newspaper interview several years after his release, Shively said, "I had the opportunity to be captured, the opportunity to be interrogated, the opportunity to be tortured and the experience of answering questions under torture. It was an extremely humiliating experience. I felt sorry for myself. But I learned the hard way life isn't fair. Life is only what you make of it." Written by Shively's stepdaughter Amy Hawk--whose mother Nancy ultimately reunited with and married Shively in a triumphant love story--and based on extensive audio recordings and Shively's own journals, Six Years in the Hanoi Hilton is a haunting, riveting portrayal of life as an American prisoner of war trapped on the other side of the world.Unbroken
By Laura Hillenbrand. 2010
On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only…
a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane's bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.The lieutenant's name was Louis Zamperini. In boyhood, he'd been a cunning and incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails. As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile. But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown. Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater. Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion. His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will. In her long-awaited new book, Laura Hillenbrand writes with the same rich and vivid narrative voice she displayed in Seabiscuit. Telling an unforgettable story of a man's journey into extremity, Unbroken is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit. BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Laura Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit.The Man Who Saw Too Much: David Brill, Combat Cameraman
By John Little. 2003
This is the story of David Brill, one of the very best of Australian cameramen - past and present. He…
is in the same company as Damien Parer and Neil Davis.Over the past forty years he has covered wars and disasters all over the world. He filmed the fall of Saigon. He was in Moscow during the collapse of communism. He has covered countless other conflicts and natural disasters in Asia, Africa and North and South America.He has been single-mindedly dedicated to the pursuit of his craft: to get the story, get the film - always to preserve and present the human dimension, no matter how large or mindless the conflict or event.David Brill has paid a high price for this uncompromising style. He has two failed marriages, and at times has been overcome by demons such as alcohol. This biography is also a great adventure story, a journey through war zones and various hell holes of the world. And it is an inside look at what makes some people follow a profession where their life is on the line - as a standard feature of their day.War Behind the Wire: Australian Prisoners of War
By Michael Caulfield. 2008
The Tiger Man of Vietnam
By Frank Walker. 2009
The Vietnamese hilltribes made him a demi-god. The CIA wanted to kill him. This is the remarkable true story of…
Australian war hero Barry Petersen.As he flew over South East Asia towards Vietnam, Captain Barry Petersen struggled to keep an aura of calm. Inwardly he was incredibly excited. Aged 28, highly trained, with experience in anti-communist guerilla warfare, he was about to embark on the biggest and most important mission of his life.In 1963, Australian Army Captain Barry Petersen was sent to Vietnam. It was one of the most tightly held secrets of the Vietnam War: long before combat troops set foot there and under the command of the CIA, Petersen was ordered to train and lead guerilla squads of Montagnard tribesmen against the Viet Cong in the remote Central Highlands.Petersen successfully formed a fearsome militia, named 'Tiger Men'. A canny leader, he was courageous in battle, and his bravery saw him awarded the coveted Military Cross, and worshipped by the hill tribes.But his success created enemies, not just within the Viet Cong. Like Marlon Brando's character in 'Apocolyse Now', some in the CIA saw Petersen as having gone native. His refusal, when asked, to turn his Tiger Men into assassins as part of the notorious CIA Phoenix Program only strengthened that belief. The CIA strongly resented anyone who stood in their way. Some in the US intelligence were determined Petersen had to go and he was lucky to make it out of the mountains alive. The Tiger Man of Vietnam reveals the compelling true story of little-known Australian war hero Barry Petersen.'One of those great untold stories and Walker tells it with verve and excitement and, with meticulous attention to detail' - Sydney Morning Herald'Drips with adventure and intrigue and has at its centre a personality boys of all ages will identify with' - The Age'Walker's finely researched book goes beyond the biographical account of an Australian war hero' - Sun Herald'Walker's book about Petersen, The Tiger Man Of Vietnam, is well-crafted and racily written' - Weekend Australian'This account . . . is breathtaking in its scope and riveting in its research' - Sydney Morning HeraldThe gripping…
story of a small force of Australian Special Forces commandos that launched relentless hit and run raids on far superior Japanese forces in East Timor for most of 1942.These Australians were the men of the 2/2nd Australian Independent Company - a special commando unit. Initially stranded without radio contact to Australia, the Japanese declared these bearded warriors `outlaws? and warned they would be executed immediately if captured. The Australians drawn mainly from the bush, were chosen for their ability to operate independently and survive in hostile territory. As film-maker Damien Parer said after visiting in Timor in late 1942, `these men are writing an epic of guerrilla warfare?.Expertly researched by Paul Cleary, who is fluent in Tetum, the main language of the indigenous group of East Timor, it also contains insightful black and white photos.'A cracker of a read' - The Age'Paul Cleary has brought to life one of the great success stories of World War II' - Daily TelegraphThe Architect of Kokoda: Bert Kienzle - The Man Who Made the Kokoda Track
By Robyn Kienzle. 2011
In my humble opinion, Bert Kienzle did more than any other single man to make Australian victory possible.' Peter FitzSimons,…
author of KokodaIn 1942, when the Japanese had invaded Papua New Guinea and the Australian soldiers sent to hold them back thought victory was impossible, one man, Bert Kienzle, changed the course of history.This charismatic man, well known in Papua for having run gold mines and plantations there, was charged with the seemingly impossible task of establishing a trail across the forbidding Owen Stanley Range in just a few short months.Out of jungle and mud, Kienzle carved a working transport route that his handpicked teams of native bearers, the now famous Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels, would work on alongside the Australian troops ensuring that the men got the food, munitions and medical support they needed. The feats that these men performed were heroic, and their endurance as they transported supplies along the Trail unparalleled. Bert Kienzle lived an amazing life and the transport route he established ? the legendary Kokoda Trail ? made Australia?s victory possible.This is his story.Marching with the Devil: Legends, Glory and Lies in the French Foreign Legion
By David Mason. 2017
`Since its creation in 1831, the French Foreign Legion has become the stuff of myth, fiction and dreams... Anyone thinking…
of joining up would be well advised to read this book first? - The Sun HeraldA real-life boy's own adventure, Marching With The Devil is an account of David Mason's five years in the infamous French Foreign Legion.David Mason graduated from the Australian National University with a law degree and an honours degree. Like those around him, he could easily have settled for a life of share portfolios, good suits, new cars and big houses. But David wanted more ? he wanted a challenge, an adventure, something beyond the ordinary that would test him physically and mentally. He looked around to see what he could do. Working in an open-cut mine . . . done that. Running a marathon . . . hmm, not hard enough. Climbing Everest . . . maybe? Joining the French Foreign Legion . . . perfect!Marching With The Devil is the gripping true story of what happened when an Australian lawyer left his comfortable existence and joined the legendary French Foreign Legion. He stayed for five years and served time in the elite Parachute Regiments. With the motto 'March or Die', the legion has a history of pain, grief and glory. David Mason takes us behind the myth to reveal exactly what happens: the adventure, the danger, the drinking, the fighting and the lies that sustain the legend.fore the final choice must be made.`Remarkable... It's hard not to think it a shame that a man of such obvious gifts should have wasted them on the legion, just so as not to have to feel like a quitter, even if this book was the result? - The Age`Marching with the Devil quickly turns into an insightful and honest account of an unpretentious Aussie's experiences in one of the most ramshackle and soul-destroying military organisations on Earth? - Courier Mail`A strangely compulsive read about one man?s quest for self knowledge? - Men's Health Magazine`Mason left a comfortable life in Australia to test himself in the crucible of the legion, and he writes about it 20 years after his service time necessary to give himself the distance and context he needed to write about an extraordinary and painful experience? - Sunday Mail BrisbaneSAS Insider: An elite SAS fighter on life in Australia's toughest and most secretive combat unit
By Robert Macklin, Clint Palmer. 2014
The true story of Australia's SAS and the soldier who was there from the start.Clint Palmer has spent much of…
his adult life in the SAS and has fought in this elite military unit as it developed from its fledgling beginnings into the highly trained, specialised fighting force it is today. He is an insider with the long view and this is his unique story of life in the SAS.As a bush kid in the Northern Territory of Australia, growing up in a one dog mining town, Palmer?s best friends were mostly Aboriginal kids, and the outside world barely existed. But he always had one driving ambition - the army. Enduring the toughest of tough training, Palmer soon demonstrated his fighting capabilities and became part of the Australian SAS. So began almost thirty years of service.We go with him to Iraq and Afghanistan, where he is at the heart of some of the worst fighting in Operation Anaconda in the Shahi-Kot Valley in 2002. He lets us in on what it?s like to have made well over a thousand parachute jumps, many of them in terrible conditions and into treacherous terrain which may have ended not just his career but his life. And he shares with us how this adrenalin fuelled world has become a lifelong commitment.Palmer is the man who knows the Regiment almost better than anyone, so SAS Insider really is the inside story of the SAS - and a gripping account of one Australian soldier?s life at the sharp end.Robert Macklin is a well-known Australian biographer and historian with more than twenty books to his credit. His most recent books include ONE FALSE MOVE, DARK PARADISE and the bestselling SAS SNIPER which he co-wrote with Rob Maylor.