100 books like Blood, Oil and the Axis

By John Broich,

Here are 100 books that Blood, Oil and the Axis fans have personally recommended if you like Blood, Oil and the Axis. Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of The Biology of Transformation: The Physiology of Presence and Spiritual Transcendence

Paul J. Mills Author Of Science, Being, & Becoming: The Spiritual Lives of Scientists

From my list on bridging the science and spirituality gap.

Why am I passionate about this?

I started practicing meditation while I was in high school and within 2 months of starting I had a metaphysical experience. That experience led me to become a scientist, I wanted to learn ways to study the spiritual using the methodologies of science. I've had a successful career with over 400 scientific publications and have had my work featured in the media and presented at hundreds of conferences and workshops around the world, including at the United Nations. Many scientists today are working to bridge the so-called gap between science and spirit and the positive effects they are having on increasing our understanding of what it is to be human.

Paul's book list on bridging the science and spirituality gap

Paul J. Mills Why did Paul love this book?

While there have been many books written about the spiritual side of the human being, few books have proposed the specific ways in which the spiritual interfaces with the human body.

In this book Dr. Tiffany Jean Barsotti proposes a new axis in human anatomy, the Reticular Activating System-Vagus Nerve-Alta Major Chakra Axis as the nexus of communication from higher consciousness to the physical and subtle energy bodies of the human being. She draws extensively on existing neuroscience research as well as the teachings of esoteric traditions, including Tibetan.

With the goal of creating a foundation and stimulating thought regarding energy physiology, the body-mind connection, and how our intention shapes our health and environment, this provides a new perspective on awakening awareness and consciousness.

By Tiffany J Barsotti,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Biology of Transformation as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

There are many important axes in human anatomy, including the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis, the Liver Triad Axis, and the Gut-Brain Axis. Less well known to Western medical scientists is a parallel system that can develop in the subtle energy body of the human being. This energy body, while not visible with our current technology, is well known in esoteric healing traditions. In The Biology of Transformation, author Tiffany Jean Barsotti proposes a new axis in human anatomy, the Reticular Activating System-Vagus Nerve-Alta Major Chakra Axis as the nexus of communication from Higher Consciousness to the physical and subtle energy bodies of…


Book cover of The UNtied Kingdom

Melody Johnson Author Of Beyond the Next Star

From my list on sci-fi that will melt your heart.

Why am I passionate about this?

Science fiction is a wonderful genre and a fun one to write because it offers authors the opportunity to explore age-old topics from a fresh perspective. For me, as both a writer and a voracious reader, the one thing that ties me to a great story—no matter the genre—is romance. Whether the hero is an alien from a faraway world or a werewolf with mechanical organs, the heart of a story is its characters, the relationships they form, and the healing power of love. Below are my top five recommended reads in science fiction that are sure to melt your heart!

Melody's book list on sci-fi that will melt your heart

Melody Johnson Why did Melody love this book?

A similar concept to Man in the High Castle, The UNtied Kingdom explores an alternate reality in which the Axis won World War II. The book begins in modern-day England where down-on-her-luck and former pop star, Eve, suffers a hang-gliding accident while filming a has-been “where are they now” reality TV show. She falls through a wormhole into the WWII alternate reality and is saved by Major Harker, only to be arrested as a potential Axis spy. When Harker embarks on a mission to infiltrate enemy lines, he drags Eve along on his mission for her Axis intelligence, and so begins their exciting, adventure-filled romance. Will he ever believe that she came from a different reality? Will she be able to help right the wrongs in his? Is this world the one she belongs in—with him? The questions that Johnson (no relation!) explores are intriguing, heart-wrenching, and kept me riveted…

By Kate Johnson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The UNtied Kingdom as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

When Eve Carpenter lands with a splash in the Thames, it's not the London or England she's used to. No one has a telephone or knows what a computer is. England's a third world country and Princess Di is still alive. But worst of all, everyone thinks Eve's a spy. Including Major Harker who has his own problems. His sworn enemy is looking for a promotion. The general wants him to undertake some ridiculous mission to capture a computer, which Harker vaguely envisions running wild somewhere in Yorkshire. Turns out the best person to help him is Eve. She claims…


Book cover of The Origins of the Second World War

Stewart Binns Author Of Barbarossa: And The Bloodiest War In History

From my list on 20th century conflict.

Why am I passionate about this?

Stewart Binns is a former academic, soldier, and documentary filmmaker, who became a writer quite late in life. He has since written a wide range of books in both fiction and non-fiction. His passions are history and sport. He has completed a medieval quartet called the Making of England Series, two books about the Great War and a novel set during Northern Ireland’s Troubles. His latest work of non-fiction, Barbarossa, tells the story of the Eastern Front (1945 to 1944) from the perspective of the peoples of Eastern Europe. He is now working on a history of modern Japan.

Stewart's book list on 20th century conflict

Stewart Binns Why did Stewart love this book?

Taylor’s book was controversial in many ways. He contradicted many of the conventional wisdoms about the war, but more importantly, he annoyed the stuffy world of historical academia by writing popular history which was accessible to a wide readership. He certainly led me to realise that history can be immediate and compelling rather than distant and dry.

By A.J.P. Taylor,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Origins of the Second World War as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A.J.P. Taylor's bestselling The Origins of the Second World War overturns popular myths about the outbreak of war.

One of the most popular and controversial historians of the twentieth century, who made his subject accessible to millions, A.J.P. Taylor caused a storm of outrage with this scandalous bestseller. Debunking what were accepted truths about the Second World War, he argued provocatively that Hitler did not set out to cause the war as part of an evil master plan, but blundered into it partly by accident, aided by the shortcomings of others.
Fiercely attacked for vindicating Hitler, A.J.P. Taylor's stringent re-examination…


Book cover of Unsung Eagles: True Stories of America's Citizen Airmen in the Skies of World War II

Mike Guardia Author Of Tomcat Fury: A Combat History of the F-14

From my list on military aviation.

Why am I passionate about this?

Mike Guardia is an Amazon Top 100 Bestselling Author and military historian. A veteran of the United States Army, he served six years on active duty (2008-2014) as an Armor Officer. He has written and lectured on various topics of modern military history, including guerrilla warfare, air-to-air combat, and World War II in the Pacific. He holds a BA and MA in American History from the University of Houston.

Mike's book list on military aviation

Mike Guardia Why did Mike love this book?

Unsung Eagles is an intimate tour-de-force of air combat in World War II told, literally, from the perspective of the pilots themselves. The pilots who provided their stories for this book were all unassuming men from humble backgrounds. Yet, after Pearl Harbor, they gladly raised their right hands and swore an oath to defeat the Axis Powers. These brave young men flew various combat missions over the European and Pacific theaters. Yet, after the war, they came home to resume their normal lives and said nary a word about their wartime service, until now.

By Jay A. Stout,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Unsung Eagles as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The nearly half-million American airmen who served during World War II have almost disappeared. And so have their stories. In Unsung Eagles, award-winning writer and former fighter pilot Jay Stout has saved an exciting collection of those accounts from oblivion. These are not rehashed tales from the hoary icons of the war. Rather, they are stories from the masses of largely unrecognized men who in the aggregate actually won it. These are "everyman" accounts that are important but fast disappearing. Ray Crandall describes how he was nearly knocked into the Pacific by a heavy cruiser's main battery during the Second…


Book cover of The Young Lions

Joe Kilgore Author Of A Farmhouse in the Rain

From my list on WWII era that explore conflicts on the home front.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve always been enamored with the World War II era. It was a time that seems virtually non-existent today, where almost everyone in my country was on the same page. There seemed to be a collective commitment to the struggle. An agreement that this was indeed good versus evil. Of course, I’m sure its nostalgic allure is much greater for those of us who didn’t actually have to live through it. But the strength, perseverance, and everyday heroism it brought out in soldiers and civilians alike, deserves to be chronicled and remembered forever.

Joe's book list on WWII era that explore conflicts on the home front

Joe Kilgore Why did Joe love this book?

What kind of people participated in the greatest conflict the world has ever known? Were the Allies really that different from the Axis soldiers? This book gives you the opportunity to look into what individuals on different sides of World War II were doing before they were trying to kill one another. You find yourself understanding what ignited one German’s initial patriotism, one American’s attempts to avoid the draft, and another’s struggles with antisemitism within his own ranks as well as the enemies. Above all though, it is the madness and futility of war that stays with you when the last page is turned.  

By Irwin Shaw,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Young Lions as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Young Lions is a vivid and classic novel that portrays the experiences of ordinary soldiers fighting World War II. Told from the points of view of a perceptive young Nazi, a jaded American film producer, and a shy Jewish boy just married to the love of his life, Shaw conveys, as no other novelist has since, the scope, confusion, and complexity of war.


Book cover of The Great Crusade: A New Complete History of the Second World War

Robert Kirchubel Author Of Atlas of the Eastern Front: 1941-45

From my list on WWII theater: the Nazi-Soviet War.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have been interested in the Nazi-Soviet War since my high school years, and I am happy to say my views have become more sophisticated in the intervening 50 years! During the Cold War I served as a US Army Armor officer for 28 years and globally across 18 time zones (retired lieutenant colonel). Thereafter, I earned a PhD in modern European history, specializing in the 20th-century German military, from Purdue University. I have researched, taught, and written extensively on all aspects of military history, particularly WWII. My latest book, an operational level [of war] history of Barbarossa for the Campaigns and Commanders series (University of Oklahoma Press, in preparation as of mid-2024).

Robert's book list on WWII theater: the Nazi-Soviet War

Robert Kirchubel Why did Robert love this book?

This is an updated edition of what I consider the best single-volume, manageable history of WWII (<500 pages). Willmott offers keen analysis in every sentence; not a word is wasted.

I include this book here because he does such an excellent job of both covering the Nazi-Soviet War and contextualizing it within the greater WWII. The benefits of reading this book, even for those familiar with WWII, are many.

By H. P. Willmott,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Great Crusade as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

After 50 years, World War II still looms large in contemporary thought as a great crusade which kept the world free from the tyranny of the Axis Powers. How the Allied Powers managed to forge their victory, and defeat the enemy, is an oft-told story which has changed little since 1945 when the first memoirs and histories began to appear. Now, in this original and provocative book, H.P. Willmott offers a fresh examination of the two concurrent conflicts that led up to war. Interweaving episodes from the European and Far East theatres chronologically, Willmott narrates the entire course of the…


Book cover of Destructive Creation: American Business and the Winning of World War II

Alexander J. Field Author Of The Economic Consequences of U.S. Mobilization for the Second World War

From my list on U.S. mobilization for World War II.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a scholar, I take pleasure in developing novel interpretations and arguments and persuading colleagues and readers of their merits. Over the past two decades, I’ve advanced a new macroeconomic narrative for the United States. In earlier publications, I argued that the Depression years were the most technologically progressive of the twentieth century. Behind the backdrop of double-digit unemployment, potential output grew rapidly, an increase that helped enable the country to produce prodigious amounts of WWII armaments. It also, I maintain, established most of the supply side foundations for the golden age (1948-73). The conventional wisdom tends instead to credit U.S. postwar economic dominance to experience manufacturing military durables. 

Alexander's book list on U.S. mobilization for World War II

Alexander J. Field Why did Alexander love this book?

The book gives great insight into the role of organized efforts at persuasion in establishing and reinforcing much of what we think we know about mobilization for the war.

Business wanted credit for the success of war production, even though most of it was achieved in government owned, government operated (GOGO) or government owned, contractor operated (GOCO) plants. The public sector played a much larger role in planning, directing, and controlling the mobilization effort than business wished the American public to acknowledge.

By Mark R. Wilson,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Destructive Creation as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

During World War II, the United States helped vanquish the Axis powers by converting its enormous economic capacities into military might. Producing nearly two-thirds of all the munitions used by Allied forces, American industry became what President Franklin D. Roosevelt called "the arsenal of democracy." Crucial in this effort were business leaders. Some of these captains of industry went to Washington to coordinate the mobilization, while others led their companies to churn out weapons. In this way, the private sector won the war-or so the story goes.
Based on new research in business and military archives, Destructive Creation shows that…


Book cover of Desert War: The North African Campaign 1940-1943

John Sadler Author Of Blitzing Rommel

From my list on the War in the Desert 1940 – 1943.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a successful published author of military history nonfiction and fiction with 44 titles in print and have been a lifelong obsessive on the subject of WWII which was my parents’ war. I started on a diet of black & white war movies, then epics such as Tobruk, Raid on Rommel et al. I have been lecturing on the subject at the former Centre for Lifelong Learning at Newcastle University (Now the ‘Explore’ Programme) for 25 years. I am also an experienced and much travelled WWII Battlefield tour guide, with experience of guiding all the major Western Front campaigns. I’m a lifelong historical interpreter and re-enactor.

John's book list on the War in the Desert 1940 – 1943

John Sadler Why did John love this book?

One of the earlier classic accounts of the whole of the Desert War from the pen of a celebrated war correspondent of the era who was actually there. This is a good and accessible history of the War which features all the main advances and retreats of both sides and includes interesting commentary on the desert generals, ours and theirs.

By Alan Moorehead,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Desert War as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A celebrated war correspondent offers his eyewitness account of the desert campaign in North Africa during World War II, describing the epic conflict between Allied and Axis powers from 1940 to 1943, in a volume that incorporates the complete texts of The Mediterranean Front, A Year of Battle, and The End of Africa. Reprint.


Book cover of The Secret of the Stones

Mike Handcock Author Of Truthseekers: The Biggest Question in World History

From my list on archeological adventures with action, mystery and ancient knowledge.

Why am I passionate about this?

I first picked up a Clive Cussler book over ten years ago. I previously only ever read nonfiction. I was hooked. I always thought these action-adventure archeological-style novels would be toilet paper, but I was wrong. These books made me want to write them. For years before, I had studied the Egyptians, Sumerians, Incas, Mayans, and Templars. You name it and I knew about it, so I took my own experience and excitement and started creating my own books. The recommendations I have here are from some of the best of the best in the genre if you like sitting on the edge of your seat, twists and turns, and some really interesting history that most of us don’t know.

Mike's book list on archeological adventures with action, mystery and ancient knowledge

Mike Handcock Why did Mike love this book?

Ernest Dempsey is a maverick. He really pushes the gauntlet and what I like is that he has strong but flawed characters. I mean - who doesn’t want to own the International Archeological Agency - but its owner, Tommy, is actually just a pudgy rich kid.

Dempsey himself couldn’t get a book deal at all… for years, and then he persevered and just exploded. That’s like his plots and characters. They build and build, and they face lots of action. There is never a still moment in this book. Hero Sean Wyatt finds his friend kidnapped and a professor murdered, and this sets him off chasing a 4,000-year-old mystery.

This book is like Indiana Jones. You don’t quite take it seriously, but you enjoy it immensely. 

By Ernest Dempsey,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Secret of the Stones as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE GREATEST WANT OF MAN ISN'T WEALTH OR POWER. IT'S IMMORTALITY.

After a historian is murdered while investigating an ancient text, a former government agent learns his best friend has also gone missing. He soon discovers his friend has been abducted in order to uncover a 4000 year old mystery buried deep in the southeastern United States.

If this secret is uncovered, it could bring about a pandemic unlike anything the world has ever seen.

And that's exactly what one man wants. So he can remake the human race in his image.

Welcome to the International Archaeological Agency.

The Secret…


Book cover of A Call to Arms: Mobilizing America for World War II

Iwan W. Morgan Author Of FDR: Transforming the Presidency and Renewing America

From my list on why FDR was the greatest American president.

Why am I passionate about this?

I consider FDR the greatest of all presidents for leading America with distinction in the domestic crisis of the Great Depression and the foreign crisis of World War 2 and creating the modern presidency that survives today in the essential form he established. I have written books on Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan during fifty years as a US history professor in UK universities. I always intended to write a book about how FDR reinvented the presidency that these Republicans inherited, something I finally did in ‘retirement’. My five chosen books explain the challenging times he faced and the leadership skills he displayed in meeting them.     

Iwan's book list on why FDR was the greatest American president

Iwan W. Morgan Why did Iwan love this book?

This is a vivid retelling of the US production miracles that enabled America and its Allies to win World War 2. Instead of overwhelming readers with dry numbers, the book comes alive by focusing on the human dimension. Klein credits FDR for understanding that the US had to become the ‘Arsenal of Democracy’ to win the war, while lionizing innovative industrialists and engineers who turned this vision into reality and the federal officials who cleared the way for their operations to succeed. He also highlights the struggles of the millions who endured disruption and discomfort in migrating to undertake war work far from their home regions. This is essential reading to understand the home front in America’s greatest foreign war. 

By Maury Klein,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Call to Arms as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The colossal scale of World War II required a mobilization effort greater than anything attempted in all of the world's history. The United States had to fight a war across two oceans and three continents--and to do so, it had to build and equip a military that was all but nonexistent before the war began. Never in the nation's history did it have to create, outfit, transport, and supply huge armies, navies, and air forces on so many distant and disparate fronts.

The Axis powers might have fielded better-trained soldiers, better weapons, and better tanks and aircraft, but they could…


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