My Ten Favorite War Novels

[@michaelshurkin613]

What are your favorite war novels?

[@Tsagan]

For modern books, I like "Generation Kill" by Evan Wright and "War" by Sebastian Junger

[@alexocean9196]

The Killer Angels

[@williamguidotti9111]

Once an eagle by Anton Myrer

[@cunninghamianm]

HHhH by Laurent Binet (in French) about the assassination of Heydrich Looking forward to the video your 10 favorite war movies one day!

[@Philliben1991]

Define a war novel. For me one of the best is Dalton Trumbo's 'Johnny Got His Gun' or Graham Greene's 'The Quiet American'.

[@johnciummo3299]

Wonderful list. I agree with placing the original All Quiet on the Western Front as No.1. My wife and I have made eight trips to France over the years to visit the battlefields of the Western Front. Of course my wife has to shop the boutique’s in Paris for a few days before we make our way to the battlefields. Verdun is always the highlight of our trip. Haunting is a mild word to describe the feeling when one walks the woods surrounding Fort Douaumont. This is where Europe decided to commit collective suicide, and the West started it decline. I served as a US Marine in Vietnam. Part of my tour I was attached to Marine Recon. I remember coming across a couple for formerly French outposts near and in the Ashua Valley while on patrol. I remember the first time I viewed Section 317 years later, it reminded me of those long forgotten outposts we stumbled across. Manned by a junior French officer, a veteran NCO, and a section of native troops from the Colonial Army. Always at the mercy of a concerted Vietminh effort to take the position. Love your website. Best wishes. John.

[@andrewcombe8907]

Great list. I would add these books which emphasise the despair, brutality, utter destructiveness and insanity of war and many of which were by veterans 1. The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer about his service in the Wermacht in Russia 2. The Short Timers by Gustav Hasford about Vietnam 3. For Whom the Bell tolls by Ernest Hemmingway 4. HMS Ulysses by Alastair Maclean about his service on North Sea convoys 5. ChickenHawk by Robert Mason about being a chopper pilot in Vietnam 6. The Thin Red Line by James Jones about the Guadalcanal Campaign 7. Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut a sci fi novel but based on his experiences as a PoW surviving bombings by sheltering in a slaughterhouse 8. Dispatches by Michael Herr the Rolling Stone correspondent to Vietnam 9. The Quiet American by Graham Greene that prophesied the US in Vietnam 10. Quartered Safe Out Here by George McDonald Fraser about his service in Burma in WW2

[@michaelshurkin613]

Great stuff. I've read some of them. The memoires I left out of my list. I think I read Sajer but am not sure. Chickenhawk is terrific. Read that in high school. I need to do a separate video about memoires.

[@andrewcombe8907]

@@michaelshurkin613I strongly recommend “Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland” by Chris Browning: it is a fascinating study of peer group pressure and how ordinary policemen became mass murderers in WW2.

[@ryanh2479]

Forgotten Soldier is my favorite. Wonderful novel.

[@marijo1951]

As an Englishwoman I'd like to suggest a few British war novels, all semi-autobiographical. Actually the first one probably isn't a novel, but more a long novelistic prose poem - 'In Parenthesis' by David Jones, which details the life of a young infantryman in a Welsh-English regiment for a few months of WW1 up to and including the Battle of the Somme. Next I recommend Evelyn Waugh's 'Sword of Honour' trilogy, which is mainly about the frustration and boredom of war rather than the heroism, and is achingly funny in certain episodes. Thirdly I suggest six books by Olivia Manning, her 'Fortunes of War; comprising 'The Balkan Trilogy' and 'The Levant Trilogy', taking the reader from the outbreak of war in Bucharest to the aftermath of the Battle of El Alamein.

[@GTM9164]

All Quiet on the Western front in English become public domain on Jan 1 2025 so wait a week and you can probably find an ebook for free easily.

[@johnwood6750]

I think the Aubrey/Maturin novels by Patrick O’Brien are my favourites, though more rip-roaring adventures than sobering portraits of the horrors of war. They are beautifully written, transporting you on to the deck of a man-o-war in the age of sail.

[@michaelshurkin613]

Totally agree. I've read them all at least twice. I don't quite think of them as war novels, though, bc they are so much more.

[@PBScourge]

Yes. Such classics. My dad gave me the first four when I was about 25. We’ve chatted about and discussed them ever since.

[@charlesbruggmann7909]

One of the reasons why the fighting is so accurately described is that O’Brien lifted many of his combat scenes directly from the after action reports in the archives.

[@johnwood6750]

@@charlesbruggmann7909 For sure, the whole of the first book is essentially a retelling of the exploits of Thomas Cochrane. I read that when O'Brien and his wife were invited on to a yacht for a holiday by an admirer, it became apparent that he barely knew one end of a ship from the other. Makes his vividly drawn sea battles all the more impressive :)

[@rafd3593]

P

[@MattGrimmett]

Matterhorn. How is this not on people's list? Geezus

[@ellioteaston7745]

Thank you for mentioning Grossman. Life and Fate is brilliant. I don’t think his Stalingrad was quite the same level.

[@Kormac80]

I was lucky enough to have Paul Fussell for a course called Lit and War and his book, The Great War and Modern Memory was the foundation. There were several novels and short story collections also. Each book was assigned with a relevant chapter from TGWAMM.

[@TravG-x8z]

The Red Badge of Courage should be top ten! Never before had readers got a glimpse of the reality of war until this novel came out in 1895 by Stephen Crane. This book should probably even be number one! It goes deep into the psyche and realities of the battlefield.

[@grahamwritesagain]

I would have added From Here to Eternity and The Thin Red Line (both by James Jones), Herman Wouk's The Caine Mutiny and Norman Mailer's The Naked and the Dead to that list.

[@captainnolan5062]

I love The Thin Red Line, and the Caine Mutiny.

[@c.augustedupin8860]

war and peace....not just the best war novel but a mediation in history as well.

[@michaelshurkin613]

Yeah, I was really tempted. I was also tempted to add Les Misérables.

[@captainnolan5062]

An excellent book and one of my favorites.

[@andrew-un2ly]

A Farewell To Arms by Hemingway is a powerful read, especially since Hemingway served in Italy during WW1, being injured as well. I also do agree with your take on All Quiet On The Western Front’s movie adaptations. I do think they bottled the ending on the recent one though.

[@Chiller11]

Thanks for the list. I’m unaware of any of the French novels, however, any film with Catherine Deneuve and Sophie Marceau is a must see. A couple of war adjacent novels that I learned from are; The Year of Living Dangerously by Peter Koch (1978) and The Quiet American by Graham Greene (1958). The former about the unsuccessful communist revolution against Sukarno in Indonesia and the second about the early stages of American entanglement in Vietnam. Both of those novels were eye openers for me.

[@a.bramble5606]

Winds of War and War and Remembrance come to mind. I liked those way back when.

[@captainnolan5062]

Excellent books (the American War and Peace).

[@rafd3593]

A favourite war novel is “Dispatches” by Michael Herr, which I later saw dramatised at the Cottesloe Theatre within The National Theatre, London. The Vietnam War was reproduced using “helicopters” that flew over the audience’s head and music of the time was played by a live band. My favourite history book is Antony Beevor’s “Stalingrad” part of which I read when my wife was in labour with our first child. Thank you for your recommendations. I have read the Heller and Remarque novels. I bought the Grossman book but donated it to the Oxfam shop in Cambridge (UK), as I could not find the time to read it - a doorstopper book! Thank you again.

"Dispatches" is NOT a novel😂😂😂😂

[@rafd3593]

Please replace reference to “ Dispatches” by “Birdsong” by Sebastian Faulks. Herr, though, admitted that parts of his book were invented; so, part non-fiction, part fiction.

[@Tolstoy111]

The original English translation of "All Quiet on the Western Front" by Arthur Wheen entered the public domain on Jan 1.

[@garygoins2280]

I think Once An Eagle would bea great addition to this list. I have absolutely no quarle with you list, only a suggestion for a 11th addition😊

[@kendavis5853]

We were soldiers once and young.

[@captainnolan5062]

Non-fiction, but a great book.

[@kendavis5853]

@ oh. Novels. I missed that.

[@tiikkifi]

Your pronunciation of Väinö was correct enough for foreigner. The surname pronunciation Linna was also good, but for future you might try to clarify that it has two syllables Lin-na. The book itself is slightly censored version, the publishing company removed "politically and religiously provocative material and cleaned up profanities". The 2017 movie has some material from the original version, which was published as Sotaromaani/Warnovel in 2000. I am not sure which versions has been used as the source for the linked English version.

[@BookishTexan]

If you haven’t read them I would suggest Through the Wheat by Thomas Boyd and At Night All Blood is Black by David Dior.

[@andrewcombe8907]

I would add to all of this a historical analysis called “Ordinary Men: Police Battalion 101” by Christopher Browning. It is a study of a police battalion made up of men who were unfit for military service and weren’t committed Nazis but who due to peer group pressure became mass murderers.

[@SlothPossum]

thanks i'll be picking at least one of these up.

[@martinheidegger517]

Its not a novel, but an autobiography, 'Goodbye to all that' by Robert Graves. Read Catch 22 though. I felt the same reading the Gulag Archipelago as you did reading Littell. She was telling me what she was reading and I said I was reading 'A day in the life of Ivan Denisovich', and i pulled the copy out of my pocket to show her, she said she was Estonian, and that her grandfather was sent to the gulag, and never came back. She told me on 24/11/2024.

[@pipotherium]

Excellent list thanks - La 317eme section and Schoendorffer are stellar. Helie de Saint Marc's books are also well worth a read.

[@werke_und_tage]

Not a novel, but the best piece of writing about war ist the Iliad. It’s the alpha and the omega of literature.

[@kegan51]

Unknown soldiers is available on youtube.

[@elnaveganteperdido6373]

"Le Peur"/"The Fear" by Gabriel Chevallier. It is a book about the First World War, from the perspective of a French soldier. The interesting thing is that Gabriel Chevallier was in the First World War, so it is very possible that the novel is very autobiographical. I am not French but I share with you the admiration for French cinema and literature.

[@michaelshurkin613]

Thanks! I'll look for that.

[@charlesbruggmann7909]

@@michaelshurkin613 Also « Capitaine Conan » by Roger Vercel (another semi-autobiographical novel written by a veteran). Made into a fantastic film by Bertrand Tavernier in 1996 - the most striking difference is that the actors are in their 30s, so ten years older than the characters in the novel).

[@uslines]

"The Cruel Sea". #1 for me.

[@rexmccoy6451]

Thanks for this. I've only read 3 of them but I appreciate the insights. Especially into French sources that I would otherwise not known. I note that You did not mention the 1979 TV movie of All Quiet On the Western Front. I don't blame you. That's what it deserves, no mention. I prefer the 1930 movie also. Speaking of which, about your top 10 war movies, when do we see that list? I'm thinking 1961 El Cid. (Just kidding!) Thanks for your channel, it's nice to receive a rational informed look at the world that you offer, particularly with new perspectives. The French sources would be otherwise unavailable to us. Good luck.

[@michaelshurkin613]

I really liked the 79 tv movie, but I haven't seen it since. Does it hold up? Yeah, soon a list of top war movies :)

[@chrisaiken900]

Geoffrey Wellum - First Light. Story of an 18 year old Battle of Britain pilot

[@chrisaiken900]

My mistake, this is a biography not a novel

[@thelostcosmonaut5555]

I will be adding this to my list. I love reading about the Battle of Britain.

[@mike-williams]

I read Catch-22 many times in high school - once for pleasure and then about 4-5 times more for essays I had to write. I read some more Heller later but while thought-provoking at the time, it was not as memorable. I've not sought out war literature, but one crept up on me. It's "The Empress of Ireland" by Christopher Robbins, a memoir about the Irish film director Brian Desmond Hurst. Buried in a fairly rollicking memoir of a long life (1895-1986), is a chapter covering Hurst's service at the battle/massacre of Chanuk Bair in the WWI Gallipoli campaign, which left me in tears.

[@FabuS9]

In my humble opinion, a shamefully overlooked great war book is "The Sergeant in the Snow" by Mario Rigoni Stern. Written in a style that reminds me best E. Hemingway war novels, it speaks of resilience, camaraderie and humanity, featuring acts of compassion among soldiers fighting on different sides but facing a common enemy: the Russian winter. You can find online a preview, which features its truly impressing incipit. Once I read the first few rows I could not put down this book anymore and just kept reading.

[@jacquelinligot7893]

I tried to read it in its original Italian language, but I found it boring. I should try again

[@FabuS9]

​@@jacquelinligot7893 I red the original Italian version too, obviously with opposite results. "De gustibus non est disputandum", I guess!

[@jacquelinligot7893]

@@FabuS9 I'll have another go, I promise you! Italian is not my native language, so it may have coincided with a moment of fatigue. Talking about war novels in Italian, Primo Levi's (rare) novel "Se non ora, quando?" is a good read too.

[@FabuS9]

@@jacquelinligot7893 Thanks a lot for the suggestion, I just added it to my “to-read” list. I admire Primo Levi, read “La tregua” long time ago, but did not know "Se non ora, quando?". Funny enough that we have now here in the same chat both Levi and Rigoni Stern, as they were very good friends! If you are more familiar with English than Italian, I think that trying the translated version of “The Sergeant” might be a good choice. As I see it, non-professional writers like Rigoni Stern (and Levi itself) prefer telling raw facts rather than lulling the reader on a mattress of elegant prose. Thus, any decent translation won’t not lose much of what makes their stories so impressive. If I can sugest another Italian war novel, I think that also “One Year on the High Plateau” of Emilio Lussu is good. Thanks again for the suggestion!

[@jacquelinligot7893]

@@FabuS9 Actually my native language is French, and Italian is a cherished hobby. I decided to learn Italian quite late. I'll actually be bold (ish) and revert to the original Italien version of Rigori Stern's novel. Nothing like a steep hill (or what seems so) to train oneself. This has been my experience (my most difficult read was Lampedusa's masterpiece, "Il gattoppardo".) Hope you'll enjoy Levi's novel - it is fast paced and this story is unbelievable (I won't spoil). I have a soft spot for Primo Levi and read practically everything in Italian. "I sommersi e i salvati" is a tragic meditation on the suffering from having survived the Holocaust. Happy new year, Buon anno. And thanks to the host - Michael - for facilitating all this.

[@DAGDRUM53]

Hans Hellmut Kirst's Gunner Asch tetralogy, The Officer Factory, Night of the Generals, Soldiers' Revolt, The Wolves, Hero in the Tower & Nights of the Long Knives (especially brutal). Kirst was virulently anti-war. The Return of Gunner Asch is a good place to start.

[@captainnolan5062]

Seven war novels I have really enjoyed are: (1) The Lord of the Rings (J. R. R. Tolkien originally wanted the title to be 'The War of the Ring'), (2) War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy, (3) The Thin Red Line by James Jones, (4 & 5) A Farewell to Arms and For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemmingway, (6) Shogun by James Clavell, and (7) Killer Angels by Michael Shaara. You can then add to this list any of the Richard Sharpe novels by Bernard Cornwell (though in Sharpe's Waterloo Cornwell distorts and denigrates the valiant Dutch-Belgians, as do most English authors). Others would include 'The Young Lions' by Irwin Shaw and 'The Winds of War' and 'War and Remembrance' both by Herman Wouk. And why not add Dr. Zhivago to the list, as well as Rabble in Arms by Kenneth Roberts, and Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper).

[@alacazaba]

Not really a novel, but an account from a singular POV. Peter Maass' ""Love Thy Neighbor: A Story of War" - perhaps a prescient template for Ukraine, Putin, and the war as American/Western interests are drawn into the conflict.

[@Russ442100]

After 'All Quiet on the Western Front' it has to be: 'Sgt Lamb of the Ninth' by Robert Graves. There is a couple you have mentioned I will read I think.

[@jobuckley2999]

Very enjoyable. Thanks. Some excellent fictional war novels are The Killer Angels, This Hallowed Ground, Empire of the Sun and the Cain Mutiny.

[@a.bramble5606]

Absolutely, I forgot about Killer Angels. Would be at the top of my list. Right, and anything by Bruce Catton.

[@captainnolan5062]

Killer Angels is excellent.

[@captainnolan5062]

@@a.bramble5606 Catton's are History (not novels).

[@hans953]

Some very good suggestions here. I've only read three so far (Catch-22, The Kindly Ones and All Quiet) but will be checking the others out. When thinking of my own, I realized that most war books I've read are non-fiction. Some of my favorite war fiction though would be Going After Cacciato and Johnny Got His Gun: two novels that drive home the horrors of war without describing almost any fighting at all. Also, Stalingrad by Theodor Plievier. It's written from the German perspective and describes the battle from the moment the 6th army is surrounded through to their surrender in early '43. The author describes the merciless beating the Germans took as they were pounded into submission by Russian artillery, starvation and extreme cold. I remember only being able to go through about 50 pages at a time because it was just such a bleak and depressing read.

[@Atrahasis7]

A very erudite choice\collection, I would add maybe two for people in the comments, "They Fought for Their Country" by Mikhail Sholokhov, which shows the regular russian soldier in its worst and best, very down to earth novel. And some fun sci fi as well in Hammer Slammers by David Drake a vietnam war vet, amazing book for tank fans.

[@michaelshurkin613]

Thank you for the recommendations. I've heard of neither.

[@Atrahasis7]

@@michaelshurkin613 No problem I love your channel, greetings from Portugal.

[@DustyRhodesjr]

Thank you for a great discussion. I have already ordered one, will more. May I offer, without much justification, several war novels I have found important. These include Bomber by Len Deighton (a day in the life of a Lancaster crew, WWII and the civilians being bomber), Das Boot (The Boat) by Lothar-Gunther Buchheim (WWII German submarine action; terrifying), Battambang by Ron Poultron (Cambodia just before the Kymer Rouge takeover. I have spent a lot of time in Cambodia, and this rings true.), and Fires on the Plain by Sohei Ooka (A Japanese in Leyte, Philippines at the end of the war. Terrible. Ooka also wrote a memoir on his time in the Japanese army in the Philippines, WWII,) Thanks to others who offered suggestions. I agree that The Sorrow of War by Bao Ninh is tops, as are several other novels told from the Vietnames side.

[@DustyRhodesjr]

and maybe a stretch for some of you, but WWII Eastern Europe near the end of the war: The Savage Mountain by Wili Heinrich. I am happy I was not there, then.

[@erotzoll]

I strongly recommend "The Hunters" by James Salter. It is about F-86 pilots during the Korean War. The best war fiction i have read is "The Sorrow of War" by Bao Ninh. This is even better than Catch-22. It is the US Vietnam War from the North Vietnamese side. It is written as the memoir of a soldier.

James Salter-Hurwitz is a gem. I read all his books several times😂

[@PBScourge]

I watched La 317 Section last October. It blows me away every time.

[@michaelshurkin613]

It's so good!

Yes Perrier and Cremer act marvellously.

[@joefraracci6748]

Slaughter House Five was a good one. Also War and Peace.

[@DDB168]

I have some fiction recommendations: Bomber (Len Deighton); The Cruel Sea (Nicholas Monsarrat); From the City from the Plough (Alexander Baron). A cross section of air, sea and land there. They're all great. For non-fiction, Blackhawk Down is amazing.

[@dougsundseth6904]

I'll leave aside military SF, which I see as a separate genre, in part because that's too deep a well to dig for this subject. I will say that I don't see Starship Troopers (as great as it is) as Heinlein's best war novel. (The Moon is a Harsh Mistress is better, IMO.) A few I would mention: The Good Shepherd, C.S Forester, which does WWII convoy escort brilliantly. I really like his Hornblower novels as well, even though they aren't as historical as the Aubrey/Maturin novels. Run Silent, Run Deep, Edward Beach, which does US submarines against the Japanese almost as well. The entire Richard Sharpe series, by Bernard Cornwell, which I like better than his Saxon and Starbuck series. WEB Griffin's various WWII series, which are all tightly written and well researched. Winds of War, Herman Wouk

[@thelostcosmonaut5555]

If you liked Starship Troopers then youd probably love The Forever War by Joseph Haldeman. Its like the anti-Starship Troopers. I also suggest The Things They Carried by Tim Obrien which takes place in the Vietnam War.

[@AirB-101]

Thank you! Many of these older books I have never read (even the French ones)! But I wrote down. But firstly Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Sir! Your content is superb and pushes for thinking and further readings. Now I am surprised that you did not include Mark Bowden's Black Hawk Down in the list. Not the movie, the book. It is by far one of the best descriptions of an hour by hour of what was modern (urban) warfare in the late 20th Century. In fact, the whole idea of the "Integrated Tactical Network" so present at all levels of the US / NATO Armies today can be seen in this book since Bowden clearly explained how the 1990's communication systems and protocols made it quasi impossible for a tactical level Commanders on the ground (Army) to get info from another tactical level Air force Officer above in the air unless going through a 15-min back and forth circus. Hence missing vital timely info. The problem at the time was not technology, but network and Command-based decision making chain of command completely useless and noisy. Again, this is now central to the way the US Army and the French Army are designing their systems and armements. I used the US and FR since thay are the 2 largest exporter of Heavy metal stuff, hence imposing their Mil phylosophy elsewhere. But the notions of a flat command structures presented in Bowden's book are now seen even more in the AFU. A simple look at the AFU's current com & commands system is extremely interesting. The decision making process between a FPV drone Operator at the front and the Artillery or the Air Force or the troops is like ordering a Big Mac at the drive through and eating it in your livingroom. Anyway, all of these books are important. Thank you again! BTW, have I mentioned that Dec 25th in PL is always VERY spoko... So plenty of time to reply... 😛

[@michaelshurkin613]

Black Hawk Down is a great movie. And a great book.

[@AirB-101]

@@michaelshurkin613 Whiles we talk about movies... The movie "15 minutes of war", or in French "L'intervention" is a great one. Especially on the concept of the creation of the GIGN. They aren't a "war squad". I am sure that you already know about "The Assault" (L'Assaut) from the time a French Diplomat at the Commercial section in Algeria needed to give a 3-weeks notice before getting an okay so they could go to a meeting.

[@Chiller11]

Not really a novel though. A nonfiction historical account but it is an excellent book I agree.

[@darthenclave6946]

The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer is my favorite.

[@captainnolan5062]

How about Cross of Iron?

What about Ernst Jűnger's In Stahlgewittern?

[@willforlife_]

read a bunch of vietnam books as a teenager, I am not sure if I would think any of them would be spectacular if I read them now but, one scene would come up in my mind from time to time over the years was from The Killing Zone by Frederick Downs POW story from the war, that I have randomly thought of throughout my life, although sparingly Five Years to Freedom by James N Rowe cc

[@ellioteaston7745]

The Naked and the Dead

[@lanceslegion]

Very nice!

[@Richard.HistoryLit]

I can only be interested in the Dresden Bombing WWII - reviewing five single volume histories of WWII...

[@captainnolan5062]

Then Slaughterhouse 5 is your novel.

[@Richard.HistoryLit]

@@captainnolan5062 I have heard of it. Dichotomy and polarity is not necessarily constructive however. Empirical reality is imho.

[@cv3183]

War and Peace - Tolstoy. Slaughterhouse 5 - Vonnegut

[@marywhite2407]

All Day Permanent Red .

[@JohnStephen-b1e]

The only, favourite by default, four or five war novels on my bookshelves : The Walled Orchard by Tom Holt (UK edition which includes Goatsong) Got me interested in the Peloponnesian War, the Sicily expedition in particular. Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield Got me interested in the Punic Wars. Shiloh by Shelby Foote Latium I & II by Romain Lucazeau Sci-fi, French, sort-of war novel. Set in an alternate future where the Roman Empire went global, then into space, then everyone died (the Hecatombe). A residual civilisation of almost god-like AIs remain, who end up in a civil war amongst themselves, whilst trying to shoo away aliens who encroach on the Empire. Also involves lots of ancient greek-speaking soldier dogs. La Bataille by Patrick Rambaud French, about the battle of Essling, during the Napoleonic Wars. Not really a favourite - I found the plot thin and the writing quite flat , but the reviews are mostly good, and the battle is described in quite a lot of detail, so other people might like it. Not sure how I came across the book, possibly an amazon recommendation based on my purchase of Outre-Terre by Jean-Paul Kauffmann French, about the battle of Eylau, during the Napoleonic Wars. Not a novel. Sort of travel book and musings about history. Mentioning because La Bataille brought it to mind, and it's much more interesting and better written (I think). Also, which might be of interest, he writes darkness - i.e. whatever he writes about, whatever the time of day, it has the feeling of being set in the dark (I think).

[@michaelshurkin613]

Latium I & II sound fantastic. I'll check them out. Yes, Gates of Fire is phenomenal.

[@slightlyconfused876]

The Good Soldier Svejk, Storm Of Steel, Goodbye To All That, All Quiet On The Western Front, Old Soldiers Never Die, The Adventures Of Simplicius Simplicissimus. Anabasis. Spike MIlligan's war memoirs (6 volumes),

[@johncarroll772]

Are a lot of Historical novels not also war novels 🤔

[@NJintheImagination]

You entirely missed the point of Statship Troopers. It is essentially Heinlein's love letter to fascism and his condemnation of liberal democracies. According to Heinlein facsicm is order, duty and responsibility, democracy is chaos and a pandering to the lazy, selfish and irresponsible. You either did not see this or havre fascist sympathies yourself. When they went to do the movie, the dire tor saw the book's fascist sympathies and made its into a comedic satire of the book. The politics of the book are Palin to see and impossible to ignore.

[@TheRightist]

Outlaws by Ernst von Salomon is pretty good

[@PBScourge]

I’ll throw a few in here: The Hunters by James Salter. (The Korean War doesn’t get enough love.) City of Thieves by David Benioff. This is about a pair of convicted thieves who are charged with stealing something for a Soviet general during the Siege of Leningrad.

[@michaelshurkin613]

Oh, I forgot about City of Thieves. Yes, it's great. I'll check out the hunters.

[@dougwalsh9282]

The Hunters is the best air war book and an amazing story on character. The movie was good but nothing like the more personal journey that the book portrays.

[@spartaguswoodall3062]

Better than Lawrence of Arabia? Do you quarrel, sir?

[@craigbalcom]

Joe Haldeman: 1968 and The Forever War.

[@thelostcosmonaut5555]

I recommend that book to everyone. Its fantastic!

[@knicklas48]

Catch-22??? Haha

[@wbl5649]

City of Thieves

[@sfooter1692]

Can’t see ‘The Centurions’ in the comments… Bizarre.