INFORMATION WARFARE READING LISTNavy Reading List

2022 INFORMATION WARFARE READING LIST

The letter from VADM Kelly Aeshbach introducing the Navy’s Information Dominance Reading list

Information Warriors,


As Commander and Force Master Chief for Naval Information Forces, we believe there has never been a more critical time to ensure our personnel are prepared to answer the call. In this era of Great Power Competition, it is critical that we cultivate a constant focus on learning and growing professionally and personally.


Information Warriors must continue to hone their skills and grow as leaders to drive our culture. We believe the books listed, generated by a variety of community leaders, will help build this culture and foster curiosity and learning.


John F. Kennedy, former President of the United States said, “If this nation is to be wise as well as strong, if we are to achieve our destiny, then we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries…We must know all the facts and hear all the alternatives and listen to all the criticisms.”


Today’s Information Warriors are the best-trained, best-educated and most committed warriors in our country’s history. The books on this list cover a wide range of topics to include the pillars of Naval Information Warfare, leadership, history, strategic thinking, toughness, warfighting, and strategic competition. Reading books recommended by the men and women who lead our community will make us better information warriors, ready to defend freedom and democracy.


With more than 100 books, our hope is that you see a few that draw your attention and inspire you to learn more. It all starts with reading the first book, but do not limit yourself to reading just the books on this list. Discover other books that interest you, and apply the lessons that can be learned from the experience of others.

“Thanks to my reading, I have never been caught flat-footed by any situation, never at a loss for how
any problem has been addressed (successfully or unsuccessfully) before. It doesn’t give me all the
answers, but it lights what is often a dark path ahead.” – Former U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis

Happy reading and HOOYAH!

— VADM Kelly A. Aeschbach Commander, Naval Information Forces

C5I

1Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World’s First Digital WeaponZetter, Kim
2Cyber War: The Next Threat to National Security and What to Do about ItClarke, Richard A
3Dark Territory: The Secret History of Cyber WarKaplan, Fred
4Grace Hopper and the Invention of the Information AgeBeyer, Kurt W
5Lights Out: A Cyberattack: A Nation Unprepared: Surviving the AftermathKoppel, Ted
6Likewar: The Weaponization of Social MediaSinger, P W
7Network-Centric Warfare: How Navies Learned to Fight Smarter Through Three World WarsFriedman, Norman
8Rhet Ops: Rhetoric and Information WarfareRidolfo, Jim

CRY

1Blind Man’s Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine EspionageSontag, Sherry
2Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War IIMundy, Liza
3Code Warriors: Nsa’s Codebreakers and the Secret Intelligence War Against the Soviet UnionBudiansky, Stephen
4Joe Rochefort’s War: The Odyssey of the Codebreaker Who Outwitted Yamamoto at MidwayCarlson, Elliot W
5The Liberty Incident Revealed: The Definitive Account of the 1967 Israeli Attack on the U.S. Navy Spy ShipCristol, A Jay
6The US Navy’s On-the-Roof Gang: Volume I – Prelude to WarZullo, Matt
7The US Navy’s On-the-Roof Gang: Volume 2 – War in the PacificZullo, Matt

EW

1Electronic Warfare in the Information AgeSchleher, D Curtis
2Tactics and Techniques of Electronic WarfareNalty, Bernard C
3Instruments of Darkness: The History of Electronic Warfare, 1939-1945 (Revised, Expanded)Price, Alfred
4The Invention That Changed the World: The Story of Radar from War to Peace (Revised)Buderi, Robert

History

11776McCullough, David
2A Sailor’s History of the U.S. NavyCutler, Thomas J
3A Soldier’s StoryBradley, Omar N
4Learning War: The Evolution of Fighting Doctrine in the U.S. Navy, 1898-1945Hone, Trent
5Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the PresentOren, Michael B
6Seize the Fire: Heroism, Duty, and Nelson’s Battle of TrafalgarNicolson, Adam
7The Conquering Tide: War in the Pacific Islands, 1942-1944Toll, Ian W
8The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval CommandGordon, Andrew
9Tanker War: America’s First Conflict with Iran, 1987-88Zatarain, Lee Allen

INT

1Dorwart’s History of the Office of Naval Intelligence 1865-1945Dorwart, Jeffery M
2Fair Play: The Moral Dilemmas of SpyingOlson, James M
3Miracle at MidwayPrange, Gordon W
4Spying in America: Espionage from the Revolutionary War to the Dawn of the Cold WarSulick, Michael J
5The Billion Dollar Spy: A True Story of Cold War Espionage and BetrayalHoffman, David E
6And I Was There: Pearl Harbor and Midway–Breaking the SecretsLayton, Edwin T
7The Admirals Advantage: U.S. Navy Operational Intelligence in World War II and the Cold WarFord, Christopher A

Leadership

1Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and LeadBrown, Brené
2Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters MostStone, Douglas
3Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity (Revised, Updated)Scott, Kim
4Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take ActionSinek, Simon
5The 360 Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the OrganizationMaxwell, John C
6The Caine Mutiny: A Novel of World War IIWouk, Herman
7The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership FableLencioni, Patrick M
8Work Rules!: Insights from Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live and LeadBock, Laszlo
9Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning OrganizationVan Der Wees, MR Vinesh D

METOC

1Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His TimeSobel, Dava
2Sextant: A Young Man’s Daring Sea Voyage and the Men Who Mapped the World’s OceansBarrie, David
3The Forecast for D-day: And the Weatherman behind Ike’s Greatest GambleJohn Ross
4Tide of War: The Impact of Weather on WarfarePetriello, David R
5Tracks in the SeaHearn, Chester G

SPACE

1Physics of the Future: How Science Will Shape Human Destiny and Our Daily Lives by the Year 2100Kaku, Michio
2Space Warfare: Strategy, Principles and PolicyKlein, John J
3The Right Stuff (Second Edition, Revised)Wolfe, Tom
4This New Ocean: The Story of the First Space AgeBurrows, William E
5Navy’s Needs in Space for Providing Future CapabilitiesNational Research Council

Strategic Competition

1Active Defense: China’s Military Strategy Since 1949Fravel, M Taylor
2China’s Quest for Great Power: Ships, Oil, and Foreign PolicyCole, Bernard D
3How to Lose the Information War: Russia, Fake News, and the Future of ConflictJankowicz, Nina
4Red Storm RisingClancy, Tom
5Russia, China, and the United States in Central Asia: Prospects for Great Power Competition and Cooperation in the Shadow of the Georgian Crisis – SchWishnick, Elizabeth
6The Folly and the Glory: America, Russia, and Political Warfare 1945-2020Weiner, Tim
7The Hundred-Year Marathon: China’s Secret Strategy to Replace America as the Global SuperpowerPillsbury, Michael
8The Next 100 Years: A Forecast for the 21st CenturyFriedman, George
9The Return of Great Power Rivalry: Democracy Versus Autocracy from the Ancient World to the U.S. and ChinaKroenig, Matthew
10The Revenge of Geography: What the Map Tells Us about Coming Conflicts and the Battle Against FateKaplan, Robert D
11To Rule Eurasia’s Waves: The New Great Power Competition at SeaGresh, Geoffrey F
12We Have Been Harmonized: Life in China’s Surveillance StateStrittmatter, Kai
13World OrderKissinger, Henry

Strategic Thinking

1Antifragile: Things That Gain from DisorderTaleb, Nassim Nicholas
2Army of None: Autonomous Weapons and the Future of WarScharre, Paul
3Choosing Civility: The Twenty-Five Rules of Considerate Conduct (Special)Forni, P M
4Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True InspirationCatmull, Ed
5Diversity and Inclusion the Submarine Way: What Life Underwater Taught Me about InclusionJohn Gregory Vincent,
Deborah CakeFortin
6Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less TimeTracy, Brian
7Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of LessMcKeown, Greg
8Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving in (Revised)Fisher, Roger
9Manipulating the OODA Loop: The Overlooked Role of Information Resource Management in Information WarfareSchechtman, Gregory M
10Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational BehaviorBrafman, Ori
11The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail–But Some Don’tSilver, Nate
12Thinking, Fast and SlowKahneman, Daniel
13Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical ThinkingBrowne, M Neil

Toughness

110-Minute Mindfulness: 71 Habits for Living in the Present MomentDavenport, Barrie
2Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the OddsGoggins, David
3Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and WhyGonzales, Laurence
4Emotional Agility: Get Unstuck, Embrace Change, and Thrive in Work and LifeDavid, Susan
5Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy Seals Lead and WinWillink, Jocko
6Faith of My Fathers: A Family MemoirMcCain, John
7Grit: The Power of Passion and PerseveranceDuckworth, Angela
8Leading with Honor: Leadership Lessons from the Hanoi HiltonEllis, Lee
9LegacyKerr, James
10Man’s Search for MeaningFrankl, Viktor E
11The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin OlympicsBrown, Daniel James
12The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials Into TriumphHoliday, Ryan
13The Road to CharacterBrooks, David
14Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and RedemptionHillenbrand, Laura
15We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and EnduranceHowarth, David
16Warrior Mindset: Mental Toughness Skills for a Nation’s PeacekeepersAsken, Michael J

Warfighting

1@War: The Rise of the Military-Internet ComplexHarris, Shane
2Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of ThermopylaePressfield, Steven
3Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies (Anniversary)Diamond, Jared
4Just and Unjust Wars: A Moral Argument with Historical IllustrationsWalzer, Michael
5Team of Teams: New Rules of Engagement for a Complex WorldMcChrystal, Stanley
6The Good ShepherdForester, C S
7The Good SoldiersFinkel, David
8The Kill Chain: Defending America in the Future of High-Tech WarfareBrose, Christian
9The Moon is DownSteinbeck, John
10The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power (Revised)Boot, Max
11War in 140 Characters: How Social Media Is Reshaping Conflict in the Twenty-First CenturyPatrikarakos, David
12When the Tempest Gathers: From Mogadishu to the Fight Against ISIS, a Marine Special Operations Commander at WarMilburn, Andrew

To View this list online 2022 INFORMATION WARFARE READING LIST

This reading list can be purchased directly from DODReads. Our primary customer is the Department of Defense and we make it very easy for your supply officer to purchase a reading list of choice. We accept purchase cards and for large orders accept payments through Contracting / SAM.   DODReads is veteran owned and operated with most of our profits going back to serve military readers.

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