Helping you read the right things….
DODReads hosts military book reviews on topics of interest to a professional military audience and to readers of military and military-related books. We focus on subjects such as leadership, philosophy, history, biography, military conflict, and personal development. Our reviews follow DODReads guidelines to ensure only authoritative and professionally written opinions appear on our website, in our social media, and in our newsletter.
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Third Shift Entrepreneur: Keep Your Day Job, Build Your Dream Job is about exploring and acting on entrepreneurial impulses while working full time for a traditional employer without expending significant personal financial resources.
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The Wright Brothers (Simon & Schuster, May 2015, 336 pages) David McCullough was smitten with the Wright Brothers as any
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Britain’s Secret Defences: Civilian Saboteurs, Spies and Assassins During the Second World War by Andrew Chatterton is an intriguing foray into super-secret guerrilla warfare plans developed by the British during World War II in anticipation of a German invasion. Early in the war, it became apparent that German forces intended to invade Britain. Several factions within the British government and military believed this invasion was inevitable. While leadership made plans to repel the Germans, others prepared for the worst.
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If you are considering writing, creating, or have already started and are looking for some inspiration, this book is definitely worth the investment of your time.
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The authors explain the importance of collecting and analyzing the right data based on a measure of success. There is a need for both hard and soft data. These measures only highlight what matters to success—converting intangibles and soft data to monetary impact. People must score their projects by using fully loaded, conservative, believable, money quantities only. The bottom line is the only thing that is convincing and universally understood. This fully loaded concept requires accounting for everything that goes in and everything that goes out. If one is going to spend time, money, blood, sweat, or tears, it is essential to count the cost, know what success means, and what the true result is. In the end, it is imperative to show the value of key contributors and decision makers.
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Commanding Petty Despots: The American Navy in the New Republic is a superbly researched volume by Dr. Thomas Sheppard, assistant professor of military history at the U.S. Marine Corps University Command and Staff College. Dr. Sheppard examines the early days of the American navy, focusing on the complex relationship between the first naval captains and the civilian leadership of the new republic.
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We’ve all heard it: the blustering War Story that starts with “So there I was…” and invokes a mental eye-roll, an internal response that is partly “Here we go again” and mostly “I really wish I had topped off my beer.” The anthology Our Best War Stories is the opposite of that. It is a riveting collection of short stories and poetry written by brave people who have clearly grappled with the highs and lows of the human condition.
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From CO to CEO is a treasure trove of wisdom for those suffering from the “unknown unknowns” of the transition process or those who seek to clarify their knowledge from someone who has been there before. This book provides the unvarnished truths that will answer most questions and then help veterans ask better questions in light of their new knowledge. From CO to CEO should be assigned reading for all service members and especially those within two years of transitioning.
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Andrew Dubbins wrote Into Enemy Waters: A World War II Story of the Demolition Divers Who Became the Navy SEALs so one of last surviving members of the UDT, 95-year-old George Morgan, can tell his version of the heroic stories from WWII. Dubbins introduces Draper Kauffman, an officer who joined the navy through an unusual route, established the UDT training pipeline, and led the UDT community throughout WWII.
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The authors’ overall theme is understanding how naval professionals think and how they should learn. More than that, the authors operationalize each of these essays for military educators. Each selection includes discussion questions crafted by the authors, equipping a seminar leader both with reading material and a path to guide a dialogue in seminar. Readers can use it as a template to develop syllabi tailored to the educational objectives of their own organizations
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Capt. Toti addresses the million-dollar question for service members–when is the right time to leave the military and start a civilian career? Using relatable examples from his navy career, he methodically guides the reader through common mistakes, attributes needed to succeed, and the defense contractor landscape most veterans transition into. He relates how private industry functions, the potential opportunities for veterans, resumes, targeting jobs, interviewing, and tricky subjects like defining one’s compensation. Capt. Toti is candid as he comments on poor practices, not sugar-coating his words as other civilian self-help books might do.
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The author’s detailed description of the Iraq landscape plus the care and attention he gives to the development of his characters are both prime points of this quick read. He does an excellent job of providing a familiar environment to those who have served while simultaneously bringing along the uninitiated reader. The reader will identify with 2LT Fitz as he navigates the early days of his army career in the most inhospitable of environments.
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Ryan packages his ideas about people, ideas, and technology as a force to better understand the enduring nature of, and changing character of, war. In doing so, he posits that globalization and the forces that drive it have led, and will continue to lead, to increased competition and conflict not only between militaries but the nation states that fund and support them. What will distinguish the leaders in these competitions will be how people who are professionally and self-educated take existing ideas and technologies, new technologies, and evolve them into new war-fighting strategies and concepts.
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West Point Admiral has something to offer everyone. At one level, it provides a tremendous insight into what it means to be a leader, to treat others with respect, and how to evaluate a new situation and make positive changes. Shelton focuses on the fundamentals of leadership, such as setting expectations up front, holding people accountable for their actions, while always taking care of them.
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Everyone gets out of the military at some point. It’s a realization that comes for all service members, regardless of career trajectory. Most of us will tell ourselves we’re prepared to tackle a second career, despite the uncertainty, because we’ve been tested and have demonstrated leadership. Less than a page into Chapter 1 of From CO to CEO, Bill Toti throws much-needed cold water on that notion.
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