For senior leaders above Brigade

Military Review, Jan-Feb, 2005 by Peter J. Schoomaker

Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision Makers, Richard E. Neustadt and Ernest R. May, Free Press, New York, 1988, 329 pages, $18.95. History is a valuable tool for decisionmakers, but if used without careful consideration, it can blind the unwary with false analogies. This classic book offers senior leaders suggestions on how to use and avoid misusing the valuable experience history provides.

The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, Samuel Huntington, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1998, 368 pages, $15.00. In this incisive book, the renowned political scientist, Samuel Huntington, explains how "civilizations" have replaced nations and ideologies as the driving force behind global politics. While not everyone would agree with Huntington's main thesis, one cannot afford to ignore this important, persuasive book.

The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization, Thomas Friedman, Anchor, New York, 2000, 512 pages, $15.95. Thomas Friedman, the well-traveled New York Times foreign-affairs columnist, peppers The Lexus and the Olive Tree with engaging stories illustrative of his central theme--that globalization (the Lexus) is the central organizing principle of the post-Cold War world, although many individuals and nations resist by holding on to what has traditionally mattered to them (the olive tree). This book is an important primer on the modern world for all leaders.

War in European History, Michael Howard, Oxford University Press, New York, 2001, 176 pages, $17.95. In this slim but important book, one of England's most distinguished historians brilliantly summarizes the evolution of warfare in Europe from the Roman Empire to the nuclear age. For U.S. senior leaders, Howard's book offers an excellent, thought-provoking introduction to the broader history of the profession of arms and the role war has played in the evolution of Western civilization.

Makers of Modern Strategy: From Machiavelli to the Nuclear Age, Peter Paret and Gordon Craig, eds., Princeton University Press, NJ, 1986, 950 pages, $35.00. Makers of Modern Strategy is a wonderful anthology on the evolution of strategic thought. Moving from Niccolo Machiavelli to the present in 28 insightful essays, editors Peter Paret and Gordon Craig examine nuclear strategy. This book is a primer for all senior leaders who must think strategically on various issues.

The Making of Strategy: Rulers, States, and War, Williamson Murray, MacGregor Knox, and Alvin Berstein, eds., Cambridge University Press, New York, New edition, 1996, 704 pages, $27.99. Some of the most respected scholars in the field of strategic studies examine the formulation of strategy in all its complexity in The Making of Strategy. Senior leaders will find useful insight into the cultural, social, political, and organizational dimensions of strategic decisions in cases ranging from the Peloponnesian Wars to the formulation of 20th-century U.S. nuclear policy. The 17 cases display continuities in the principles of strategic thinking and breaks the 700-page book into convenient individual readings.

The Peloponnesian War, Donald Kagan, Viking Books, New York, 2003, 511 pages, $29.95. Senior leaders will want to read this valuable account of coalition warfare on land and sea in Ancient Greece. The book focuses on Athens' and Sparta's strategic planning, of their shifting alliances, and the effect individual leadership and civil-military relations had on implementing those plans. After 24 centuries, the lessons of this great war between two powerful city-states are still valid: economic strength does not guarantee victory, nor does military might ensure the ability to make peace.

Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Lies that Led to Vietnam, H.R. McMaster, Perennial, New York, Reprint edition, 1998, 480 pages, $16.00. In this important book, H.R. McMaster argues persuasively that President Lyndon B. Johnson wanted to fight the war on poverty, not the war in Vietnam. But, Johnson made decisions he believed would allow him to do both, which was a recipe for disaster. The Joint Chiefs of Staff exacerbated this by failing to provide Johnson with their best advice. Dereliction of Duty is a cautionary tale about how the military and its civilian leadership failed at the highest levels.

Victory on the Potomac: The Goldwater-Nichols Act Unifies the Pentagon, James R. Locher III, Texas A&M University Press, College Station, 2002, 524 pages, $34.95. Victory on the Potomac is a fascinating story of how Congress forced the Pentagon to undergo major reform during the mid-1980s. James R. Locher III, who was a major participant in the process, tells the inside story of the 1986 Goldwater-Nichols reforms that set the stage for increased jointness in the services. The book is an excellent primer on the creation of public policy and the interface between the Pentagon and Congress.

The Dynamics of Military Revolution, 1300-2050, MacGregor Knox and Williamson Murray, eds., Cambridge University Press, New York, 2001, 208 pages, $30.00. MacGregor Knox and Williamson Murray provide a conceptual framework and historical context for understanding the patterns of change, innovation, and adaptation that have marked war in the Western world since the 14th century. Case studies and a conceptual overview offer senior leaders an indispensable introduction to military change.