89 books like The Yellow Birds

This is a World War II memoir by United States Marine Eugene Sledge, first published in 1981. 

It is a powerful depiction of war, honest and authentic, describing what it was like to fight in some of the fiercest battles of World War II. The writing is vivid and gripping, sometimes humorous, but mostly reflective of the horrors of war. There is a very refreshing “non-commercial” tone to the narrative.

Sledge originally wrote this as a private memoir for his immediate family, a way to finally tell them what he could never verbalize in person. Sledge’s passion comes through on every page, a reminder that the best books come from the heart.  

Singlehandedly one of the greatest fictional books about war, Tim finds clever ways of imbuing readers with captivating characters.

Each short story gives insight into a war still misunderstood to this day.

As a veteran, I identify with the curious war stories and the unique character attributes displayed throughout them.

While cynical and the fictitious content questioned, The Things They Carried carries the weight of war and its lasting effects. 

Grossman is a former Army Ranger who digs deep into the psychological impact of taking human life through countless interviews with fellow soldiers of all kinds. Combining these accounts with thorough psychological research, Grossman comments on society's collective aversion to killing while helping us understand its complicated acceptance—and even encouragement—of wartime killing. What was most surprising to me was that historically, only about 4% of soldiers even fire their weapon during war, and how obviously that skews from the “norm” of combat portrayed in popular media. It’s an honest, eye-opening, and important piece of work that should be required reading for every service member, police officer, or anyone tasked with carrying society’s heaviest burden.

I wanted to understand why individuals in our society would volunteer to put themselves in harm’s way by joining—and sometimes reenlisting—to serve on the front lines in a far-flung region of little strategic value to our country (Afghanistan).

In this book, a couple of common themes popped up: camaraderie and heightened states of awareness. The bonds these young men cement when depending upon each other for life and limb take on meaning greater than life itself.

And the strange sense of control—and lack of fear—that can occur on the battlefield when adrenaline kicks in and everything slows down in the mind’s eye has parallels to situations that us outdoor adventure enthusiasts also crave—the “flow experience”—but at a level of intensity I can only imagine.

As a young psychologist during the Vietnam War, Edward Tick served his country not by enlisting himself but through tireless efforts to help those who returned from war traumatized. This was the first book that helped me understand that posttraumatic stress is not just some “disorder” that I’d suffer from forever. Rather, it is simply the human mind’s normal—probably unavoidable—response to combat, and, Tick argues, there is also such a thing as posttraumatic growth. He examines how ancient and modern societies train their warrior classes, noting that the ritualistic civilian-to-soldier process (we’d call it “boot camp” or “basic training”) often lacks a necessary counterpart today: that is, a formal soldier-to-civilian process, and this only compounds the issues of PTSD and the American military-civilian divide.

The sheer number of times I cried in this book is absurd. Marlantes is a Vietnam veteran and Navy Cross recipient who chronicles his journey leaving Yale University to serve as a Marine lieutenant in Vietnam. Throughout, he chronicles the struggle to readjust to civilian society and intermingles religion, philosophy, and psychology while recounting some of his most harrowing tales of combat. If you’ve ever had a loved one or friend serve who came home different and wondered why or how you can help, this is the book to read. 

Brown is the author of the New York Times bestselling Red Rising saga, and Dark Age is his fifth novel in the series. Set in a dystopian world where humans have been genetically enhanced and conquered the solar system, the fifth book takes you through the joys of battle to the crushing agony of losing friends on the battlefield. To punctuate just how little time there is to grieve while in battle, he kills beloved characters with a stroke of the pen and almost an afterthought, focusing more on the effort than people. Many veterans found the devastation of losing a friend in combat only to have to return to battle moments later within the pages of this book, and Brown specifically interviewed combat veterans to ensure his depiction was accurate. The result? A gripping page-turner that has you riding high on adrenaline, only to be crushed under the weight… show more.

...and a hard rain fell is a devastating firsthand portrait of a young man brutalized by the war from basic training to his final discharge and the nightmares that followed.

John Ketwig’s memoir pulls no punches in an account of his experience that is as eloquent as it is horrifying.

If you want to know what an ordinary soldier’s life was like, from basic training to the jungles and the recurring nightmares, this is the book.

Finkel, of The Washington Post, surpassed most Iraq reportage with his account of his time in Baghdad in 2007 with 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division – the 2-16 Rangers for short.

Embedded with soldiers on the shifting front lines of a savage war, what he showed was neither good nor bad: it just was.

Finkel’s title echoes The Good Soldier Svejk, Jaroslav Hašek’s first world war satire. There’s satire in Finkel, about American notions of Iraq and war that deepened with a home-front sequel, Thank You For Your Service. But there is also simple acceptance of these soldiers as human beings, placed in savage extremis. I carried Finkel’s example into every conversation about the West Point players’ experiences, losses, and lives.

I served in the 1st Cav when Black Sunday happened and then, a few years later, read this book as a newly commissioned second lieutenant, serving in 3HBCT, 1st Cavalry Division several of the men featured in Raddatz’s book. 

It provided deeply personal insights into why the boss was driven the way that he was. It was absolutely devastating to read the horror of a lost platoon alongside the struggles of the families back home. Through deeply personal narratives, Raddatz drives home the importance of being prepared for the worst both for the soldiers deployed and the families back home, managing rumors and fear during a mass casualty event, and the will to stay connected to those you served with.

Coming up on the 20-year anniversary of Black Sunday, I give cadets who ask me to commission them a copy of this book – it reminds all of us of… show more.