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The Bookshelf

The CAR's Bookshelf is divided into leader development resources at leadership levels per FM 22-100. The definition of each level is supplied below, and bookshelf readings fall into one of two combined categories: direct/organizational or organizational/strategic.

DIRECT LEADERSHIP

Direct leadership is face-to-face, first-line leadership. It takes place in those organizations where subordinates are used to seeing their leaders all the time: teams and squads, sections and platoons, companies, batteries, and troops-even squadrons and battalions. Direct leaders are close enough to see-very quickly-how things work, how things don't work, and how to address any problems.

ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP

Organizational leadership skills differ from direct leadership skills in degree, but not in kind. That is, organizational leaders must deal with more complexity, more people, greater uncertainty, and a greater number of unintended consequences. They find themselves influencing people more through policymaking and systems integration than through face-to-face contact. Organizational leaders have staffs to help them lead their people and manage their organizations' resources. They establish policies and the organizational climate that support their subordinate leaders.

STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

Strategic leaders work in an uncertain environment on highly complex problems that affect and are affected by events and organizations outside the Army. Strategic leaders are responsible establish force structure, allocate resources, communicate strategic vision, and prepare their commands and the Army as a whole for their future roles. Strategic leaders, like direct and organizational leaders, process information quickly, assess alternatives based on incomplete data, make decisions, and generate support. However, strategic leaders' decisions affect more people, commit more resources, and have wider-ranging consequences in both space and time than do decisions of organizational and direct leaders.

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Direct- Organizational Leadership

Alverez, Everett, and Anthony Pitch. Chained Eagle. (Donald I. Fine Books: 1989)
Navy Lieutenant Alvarez, a pilot, was shot down over North Vietnam in 1964 and held prisoner until 1973. A duty-bound officer, he held fast to his religious faith and the values enshrined in the Constitution.

Ambrose, Stephen. Band of Brothers. (New York, New York, Simon & Schuster: 2001)
This gripping depiction of Easy Company re-creates some of the most critical moments of WWII and offers insights into the commanders and regular soldiers--the heroes who manned the battlefields.

Atkinson, Rick. The Long Grey Line. (Henry Holt & Company, Inc.: 1999)
The West Point Class of 1966 straddled a fault line in American history, speaking for a generation of American men and women about innocence, patriotism, and the price paid for our dreams.

Bennis, Warren and Goldsmith, Joan. Learning to Lead: A Workbook on Becoming a Leader. (Perseus Publishing: 1997)
This stand-alone workbook teaches managers how to develop into leaders. Using a thorough self-assessment section and more than 30 one-day skill-building exercises, it walks readers through the basics of leadership.

Berkowitz, Bruce. The New Face of War. (Simon & Schuster: 2003)
As American and coalition troops fight the first battles of this new century -- from Afghanistan to Yemen to the Philippines to Iraq -- they do so in ways never before seen. This book chronicles the new approach to warfare.

Clancy, Tom. Into the Storm- On the Ground in Iraq. (Berkley Books: 1997)
Into the Storm takes a look deep into the operational art of war as seen through the eyes of some of America's most outstanding commanders.

Clancy, Tom. Every Man a Tiger- The Gulf War Air Campaign. (Berkley Books: 2000)
A look deep into modern air power, as seen through the eyes of one of its most outstanding commanders... General Chuck Horner commanded the U.S. and allied air assets -- the forces of a dozen nations - during Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and was responsible for the design and execution of one of the most devastating air campaigns in history.

Clancy, Tom. Shadow Warriors: Inside the Special Forces. (Berkley Trade: 2003)
The focus is on special warfare, spotlighting Rangers, SEALs, Delta Force, the Green Berets and other less familiar organizations.

Crossland, Richard B. and James T. Currie. Twice the Citizen. (Fredonia Books: April 2002)
The "almanac" of Army Reserve facts and a handy reference.

Dunnigan, James F.. The Perfect Soldier: Special Operations, Commandos, and the Future of US Warfare. (Citadel Trade: 2003)
A leading U. S. military analyst offers a timely and useful survey of the history of special operations.

Durant, Michael J. and Steven Hartoy (Contributor). In The Company of Heroes: A True Story. (Putnam Pub Group: 2003)
The 1993 battle in Mogadishu between American soldiers and Somali militiamen gets a human-scale retelling in a harrowing memoir.

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Gladwell, Malcolm. The Tipping Point. (Little, Brown and Co.: 2002)
Defining that precise moment when a trend becomes a trend, the book probes the surface of everyday occurrences to reveal some surprising dynamics behind explosive social changes, to include the power of word-of-mouth and how very small changes can directly affect popularity.

Goleman, Daniel, Richard Boyatzis, and Annie Mckee. Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence. (Harvard Business School Press: 2002)
Here is a concept that every new (and old) boss should take to heart: The duty of a leader is to inspire positive feelings in workers. Also covered is the way leaders can ensure their organization's health and success.

Harvey, Jerry. The Abilene Paradox. (Josse-Bass Books: 1986)
The "Abilene Paradox" is a metaphor for how groups often agree to take actions that contradict whatindividual members believe is right. Humorous but right on target regarding personal ethics and group dynamics in the work environment.

Krzyseski, Mike and Donald T. Phillips. Leading from the Heart- Coach K's Successful Strategies for Basketball, Business and Life. (Warner Books, Inc.: 2001)
Coach K talks about leadership -- how to earn it, how to practice it, and how to use it to move an organization to the top and the importance of trust, communication, pride, and the commitment a leader must make to his team.

Malone, Dandridge M., COL (Ret.). Small Unit Leadership: A Commonsense Approach. (Presidio Press: 1984)
This book exemplifies leadership at all levels, giving the bottom-line big picture.

Meyer, John G. COL. Company Command: The Bottom Line. (Diane Publishing, Inc.: 1995)
A ready reference for the company commander, this book identifies tasks to complete & how to set new directions for the company. It inspires confidence to command with authority, including chapters on military justice & administrative law matters.

Moore, Harold. We Were Soldiers Once And Young: la Drang- The Battle That Changed the War in Vietnam. (Perennial: 1993)
There are stories here that freeze the blood....The men who fought at Ia Drang could have no finer memorial than this one.

Myrer, Anton. Once An Eagle. (HarperTorch: 2001)
A grim, exciting and almost overwhelming account of twentieth-century war. It is an astute study of the mind and character of a good general and a brilliant inside view of the life of a career officer in peace and war.

Smith, Perry. Taking Charge: Making the Right Choices (Avery Publishing Group: 1993)
This is a short, easy to read and use guide for leaders, written by the creator of the leadership program for the National War College.

Tenner, Edward. Why Things Bite Back. (Random House Inc.: 1996)
An examination of technology's unforeseen and often unpleasant consequences.

Wright, Robin. Sacred Rage. (Simon and Shuster: 2001)
For a generation, Muslim extremists have targeted Americans in an escalation of terror that culminated in the September 11 attacks. Our shared confusion -- Who are the attackers? Why are we targets? -- is cleared away in a book as dramatic as it is authoritative.

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Reviews of these books can be found at Websites such as Amazon, Borders, and Barnes and Noble among others.
[These examples do not constitute endorsement by the Department of the U.S. Army of this web site or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities such as military exchanges, Morale, Welfare and Recreation sites, the Department of the U.S. Army does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations.]

Organizational-Strategic Leadership

Ambrose, Stephen. Eisenhower. (New York, New York, Simon & Schuster: 1991)
The definitive one-volume biography of Eisenhower, combining extensive and varied sources, to create an unprecedented degree of scholarship and numerous interviews with Eisenhower himself: the soldier who became President.

Asprey, Robert. War In The Shadows: The Guerilla in History. (iUniverse Incorporated: 2002)
Tells the story of countries torn by armed insurgences and clarifies the causes of each conflict, providing the broad viewpoint necessary for understanding these conflicts in the historical terms of guerrilla warfare.

Atkinson, Rick. An Army at Dawn: The War in Africa, 1942-1943, Volume One of the Liberation Trilogy. (Holt and Co., Inc.: 2002)
The liberation of Europe and the destruction of the Third Reich is a story of miscalculation and incomparable courage, calamity and enduring triumph. In this first volume of the Liberation Trilogy, Rick Atkinson focuses on 1942 and 1943, showing how central the great drama that unfolded in North Africa was to the ultimate victory of the Allied powers and to America's understanding of itself.

Barnett, Thomas P.M. The Pentagon's New Map: War and Peace in the Twenty-First Century. (G.P. Putnam's Sons: 2004)
Since the end of the cold war, the United States has been trying to come up with an operating theory of the world—and a military strategy to accompany it. Now there’s a leading contender. It involves identifying the problem parts of the world and aggressively shrinking them. Since September 11, 2001, the author, a professor of warfare analysis, has been advising the Office of the Secretary of Defense and giving this briefing continually at the Pentagon and in the intelligence community. Now he gives it to you.

Bennis, Warren, Gretchen Spreitzer and Thomas Cummings (Editors). The Future of Leadership: Today's Top Leadership Thinkers Speak to Tomorrow's Leaders. (Jossey-Bass: 2001)
Provocative insights on leadership from a "who's who" of leadership thought including: Tom Peters, Charles Handy, and Jim Kouzes. The world's foremost leadership gurus come together in one place to offer their thoughts on leadership in the new economy.

Best, Geoffrey. Churchill. (London, Oxford University Press: 2003)
Winston Churchill's inspiring leadership in the Second World War is a stand-alone story. The book is about an extraordinary man and his long, controversial, colorful, contradictory and heroic career.

Bryson, Bill. A Short History of Nearly Everything. (Broadway Books: 2003)
This book covers life, the universe and everything, from the Big Bang to the ascendancy of Homo sapiens. In particular, "how we went from there being nothing at all to there being something, and then how a little of that something turned into us, and also what happened in between and since."

Clark, Andy. Natural Born Cyborgs. (Oxford University Press: 2003)
Our brains are naturally malleable, and we change and incorporate new technologies as they become available. This book discusses how humans bond with and adapt to dramatic changes in technologies.

Clausewitz, Karl. On War. (Michael Howard and Peter Paret, Editors and Translators. (University Press: 1984)
The most significant attempt in Western history to understand war, both in its internal dynamics and as an instrument of policy. This book dissects both the "how" and the "why" of war.

De Toqueville, Alexis. Democracy in America. (Signet Classics: 2001)
One of the most penetrating and astute picture of American life, politics, and morals ever written, this book provides an arms-length view of America as other see us.
Drucker, Peter. Managing the Future. (New Millennium: 2001)
Essential background on happenings in business processes across the globe.

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Elshtain, Jean Bethke. Just War Against Terror The Burden of American Power In a Violent World. (Basic Books: 2003)
In this hard-hitting book, Elshtain advocates "just war" in times of crisis and mounts a reasoned attack against the defenses of terrorism that have abounded since September 11. Arguing that those who defend terrorist acts on the basis of their "root causes"-poverty, political conflict, infringement of Western values on Islamic culture-minimize the responsibility of terrorists, Elshtain interrogates the sources of root-cause reasoning.

Farson, Richard. Management of the Absurd: Paradoxes in Leadership. (Simon & Schuster:1996)
This contrarians approach challenges leaders to look past trendy quick fixes and facile formulas and deal with the real dilemmas and complexities of managing people and organizations.

Ferguson, Niall. Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and Its Lessons for Power. (Basic Books: April 2003)
On the eve of World War II, the British Empire covered more than 13 million square miles, one-fifth of the earth's surface. More than half a billion people lived directly or indirectly under British rule. This unprecedented empire holds lessons for the ever-expanding American Empire.

Friedman, Thomas L.. From Beirut to Jerusalem. (Updated with a New Chapter) (Anchor: 1990)
As a reporter for UPI and The New York Times, Friedman was stationed in Beirut from 1979 to 1984, and in Lebanon from 1984 to 1989. He describes the sometimes horrifying, sometimes wondrous cities, for which nothing in his life had prepared him.

_______. The Lexus and the Olive Tree. (Knopf Publishing Group: 2000)
Globalization is not just a phenomenon and not just a passing trend. Replacing the Cold War system, it is the integration of capital, technology, and information across national borders in a way that is creating a single global market and, to some degree, a global village.

Goldsworthy, Adrian. The Roman Army At War, 100 BC to AD 200. (The Clarendon Press: 1996)
An historical examination of events during the 300 year period from when the Roman army was most powerful until it began loosing its strength and purpose.

Hall, Wayne. Stray Voltage: War in the Information Age. (United States Naval Inst.: 2003)
Along with knowledge war and information operations, the book discusses deception, information superiority, and knowledge management.

Huntington, Samuel P. Who Are We? The Challenges to America’s National Identity. (Simon & Schuster: 2004)
Huntington's new book is a subtle and complicated argument about the nature of American identity and its future salience. Huntington's argument about Anglo-Protestant culture does not allude to crude Anglo-centrism or Protestant chauvinism but a series of traits and practices that form the core of American culture. This book should appeal to Americans concerned about the future direction of their country.

Kaplan, Robert S. and David Norton. Translating Strategy into Action: The Balanced Scorecard. (Harvard University Press: 1996)
This book explains how to mobilize people to fulfill their organization's mission. It delves into business strategy, measurement and management, and it details the four categories of the balanced scorecard: financial performance, customer knowledge, internal business processes and learning & growth. This book is considered the basic reference book for developing a "Balanced Scorecard" and contains many case studies.

Kaplan, Robert and David Norton. The Strategy Focused Organization. (Harvard University Press: 2000)
Introduces a new approach to managing a business that makes strategy a continuous process owned by everyone, not just top management. Discusses the development of, need for, and use of "strategy maps". Provides follow-on case studies from the earlier book, Translating Strategy into Action.

Kotter, John. Leading Change. (Harvard Business School Press: 1997)
This leadership guide identifies an eight-step process that companies must go through to achieve their goals. It also details change issues, the force behind successful change and future trends for organizations.

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Kouzes, James M. and Barry Z. Posner. The Leadership Challenge, 3rd Ed. (Jossey-Bass: 2002)
An inspirational and practical handbook, this expanded revision of a bestselling manual originally published in 1987 offers sound advice to corporate leaders and entrepreneurs, to managers and employees and to aspiring leaders in retail, manufacturing, government, community, church and school settings.

Mansoor, Peter R.. The GI Offensive in Europe: The Triumph of American Infantry Divisions, 1941-1945 (Modern War Studies.) (University Press of Kansas: 2002)
This book provides a comprehensive study of America's infantry combat performance in Europe during World War II, showing that the Army succeeded by developing combat effective divisions that could not only fight and win battles, but also sustain that effort over years of combat.

Nagl, John A.. Counterinsurgency Lessons from Malaya and Vietnam: Learning to Eat Soup with a Knife (Praeger Publishers: 2002)
Armies are invariably accused of preparing to fight the last war. Nagl examines how armies learn during the course of conflicts for which they are initially unprepared in organization, training, and mindset. He compares the development of counterinsurgency doctrine and practice in the Malayan Emergency from 1948-1960 with that developed in the Vietnam Conflict from 1950-1975, through use of archival sources and interviews with participants in both conflicts. In examining these two events, he argues that organizational culture is the key variable in determining the success or failure of attempts to adapt to changing circumstances.

Peters, Ralph. Fighting for the Future. (Stackpole Books: 2001)
Peters identifies a "new warrior class" and a new culture of conflict that could undo America on the battlefields of the future, as seen in the events of September 11, 2001. His writing--tough, yet elegant--makes dramatic new ideas accessible to the general reader, as well as to businessmen, diplomats, and soldiers.

Priest, Dana. The Mission: Waging War and Keeping Peace With America's Military. (Norton & Co: 2003)
Walk with America's generals, grunts, and Green Berets through the maze of unconventional wars and unsettled peace. Four-star generals who lead the military during wartime reign.

Puryear, Edgar. American Generalship: Character is Everything. (Ballentine Books: 2002)
Analyzes successful leadership in the US military and gives insight on how leadership has won wars andpreserved freedom for the West, seeking to understand how leaders obtain and develop their skills.

Senge, Peter. The Fifth Discipline. (Currency: 1994)
This guide provides a blueprint for establishing a learning organization -- that is, one where people expand their capacity to create results and where new patterns of thinking are nurtured. The text explains how actions create
reality and examines the process of building a learning organization.

Snider, Don M. and Gayle L. Watkins. The Future of the Army Profession. (McGraw-Hill: 2002)
Who are the future members of the Army profession and how is their competence to be certified to their client, the American people? This is a contemporary analysis of the Army profession, its knowledge and expertise, with conclusions and policy recommendations.

Strassler, Robert B., Editor. The Landmark Thucydides: A Comprehensive Guide To the Peloponnesian War. (Touchstone Books: 1998)
Thucydides called his account of two decades of war between Athens and Sparta "a possession for all time," and indeed it is the first and still the most famous work in the Western historical tradition. Considered essential reading for generals, statesmen, and liberally educated citizens for more than 2,000 years.

Sullivan, Gordon S. and Michael V. Harper. Hope is Not a Method: What Business Leaders Can Learn from America's Army. (Broadway Books: 1997)
Gordon, chief of staff of the U.S. Army under Colin Powell, and Harper tell how they kept the Army well-trained and equipped for traditional functions while preparing for a wide range of new and complicated missions, all in the midst of a dramatic reduction in both human and financial resources. Their approach is based on continuity and change, maintaining their focus on the Army's historic vision and values, while introducing new problem-solving techniques and training methods.

Sun-Tzu, Sunzi (Samuel Griffith-Translator). The Art of War. (Oxford Press: 1971)
The Art of War is the Swiss army knife of military theory--pop out a different tool for any situation. Folded into this small package are compact views on resourcefulness, momentum, cunning, the profit motive, flexibility, integrity, secrecy, speed, positioning, surprise, deception, manipulation, responsibility, and practicality.

Reviews of these books can be found at Websites such as Amazon, Borders, and Barnes and Noble among others.
[These examples do not constitute endorsement by the Department of the U.S. Army of this web site or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities such as military exchanges, Morale, Welfare and Recreation sites, the Department of the U.S. Army does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations.]

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