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The author picks a cast of characters, some of whom won the Medal of Honor for their actions, and follows them through the battle. While he occasionally zooms out to look at the strategic view and events back in Washington, most of the book is spent with the troops doing the fighting. It is a wonderful, engaging read. I'm removing one star because the peek at leadership from Truman and MacArthur didn't seem particularly focused, more an opportunity to tell an amusing piece of trivia.

Jamie Thompson expertly walks a tightrope over one of the US's most emotionally charged issues, giving insight into how police look at the world while also not letting the institution of policing off the hook for instances of brutality. She gives a nuanced portrait of the members of Dallas SWAT, and provides the reader a valuable look into the how and why of SWAT teams in general. Her minute-by-minute account of the attack and its resolution are first-rate history.

One of the best books I've read in years.

Greenberg follows a group of researchers and law enforcement through some of the more notable investigations of cryptocurrency-funded crime. Bitcoin's blockchain was once widely believed to be untraceable, hence its widespread adoption by the criminal underworld. It wasn't, and this is the story of how that belief backfired.

I've removed one star due to some of the limitations of the technical explanations. There's always a fine line to walk between providing so much detail it loses readers versus providing just enough so that non-technical people get the gist of what's happening, and I don't feel that Greenberg walked that line particularly well here. What Bitcoin's blockchain is and how it works just isn't explained well enough given it's the central character in the story.

Otherwise, Greenberg does an excellent job revealing the mystery and provides a great look at some of the darker parts of the Internet.

Clapper, who often came across as a curmudgeonly gaffe machine during his time as Director of National Intelligence, seems very candid here. He recounts a long and winding career in intelligence, ending with a tour as DNI going into the 2016 election. He's honest about the (publicly acknowledged) things he did right and gives a straight answer for the things he screwed up.

I removed one star simply because I wish he had given some more details for the controversial programs that he commented on during his time as DNI. It's very interesting when he takes the time to explain what the purpose or utility of a program was, but on more than one occasion, he seems to simply gloss over something with a, "This was actually okay" and doesn't fill in any blanks.

Still though, an informing read for anyone who is a student of the IC.

Dobbs covers a wide cast of characters and some little known events, some of which were not publicly acknowledged until decades after the crisis ended. He includes a personal look at JFK and Khrushchev and is largely sympathetic to both. Overall, a great and gripping look at a terrifying slice of history.

Roach seems to have a knack for asking important people awkward questions. Here, she turns her investigation onto manned space travel and asks about a lot of things you've probably wondered about but were too polite to say out loud. Mary's books have yet to disappoint and this one is no exception.

Wonderfully written and well researched. Can frequently be gory, but you can't really discuss the history of the plains Indians without a frank discussion of violence. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Texas history or Native American tribes.

A lot of great insight into CCTs that's difficult to find elsewhere. Can occasionally be so reverent of CCTs that it's a little distracting (the book was co-authored by a relative of a Medal of Honor recipient CCT), but the contributions of partner SOF organizations are also noted extensively. The storytelling of Chapman's last stand is well constructed and absolutely worth the time for anyone with interest in the special operations community.

A scholarly look at the history of video games. Probably the most well-written and well-researched general history of gaming available.

Disorganized and not especially well written. This felt like it was thrown together relative to volume 1.

A broad history of gaming, beginning with a look at pinball and mechanical game systems.