Today's Best Military Writing

Colonel Boyne's impressive compilation of the best military writing of the past five years reflects the wide range (and excellent quality) of writing on military topics, even if not all of its articles are easily accessible to lay readers. The anthology's 21 contributors cover both historical and contemporary events-from Spencer Tucker's history of Admiral Andrew Foote's service on an anti-slavery patrol during the mid-1800s to Stephen Flynn's proposal that the Coast Guard be put in charge of today's Homeland Security. Major Prisco Hernandez's essay ""No Master Plan"" even appears to straddle the temporal divide since its discussion of Army artillery during the Indian Wars may eventually be pertinent to the War on Terror, which also must deal with the challenges posed by dispersed targets, rugged terrain and long, vulnerable supply lines. Two articles-""The Looming Biological Warfare Storm"" and ""The Emerging Biocruise Threat""-make a gruesome matched set, as both illuminate how the potential of cheap (and rapidly proliferating) cruise missiles affects the possible outcomes of a biological war. A former director of the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum and a bestselling author, Boyne (Operation Iraqi Freedom; Dawn Over Kitty Hawk) has clearly chosen his selections not only for the pleasure of their prose but also with an eye to educating readers about the most pressing military issues of our time. For serious students of military science, the result is an absolute treasure trove.