Book Review

Command Legacy: A Tactical Primer for Junior Leaders of Infantry Units
by Lt. Col. Raymond A Millen, U.S.A.

This review is coming from a civilian's viewpoint, though the book is marketed towards junior officers.

It basically boils down to a compilation of army field manuals seasoned with the author's experiences and historical references. If you're looking for war stories, this is not the book for you. Instead, it opened my eyes to all of the actual behind the scenes planning and preparation that must go into each mission. The author takes a very business-like (although I guess technically war is his business) approach discussing how to arrange troops for movement, attack, defense, and resupply.

Excerpt from the Preface:

I was prompted to write this book because there is no previous definitive source on small unit tactics. Existing manuals are too general, have too many doctrinal buzzwords, and are not applicable to company-level units. None addresses the details that infantrymen must consider and the tasks they must complete during any mission. Based on my own experiences in company command, I decided to write a book on tactics, techniques, and procedures that addressed the needs of junior leaders. This book represents my conclusions regarding tactical problems and missions and the link among tactical theory, doctrine, and practice. This is a single source reference for the purpose of priming junior leaders for tactical operations, instilling the concept of corporate effort, and inspiring thought. To be practical, any book on tactics must be specific, explaining in detail what needs to be done, why, when, and by whom. It must attempt to reconcile both what to think and how to think.

I believe this would be a good read for any soldier, but for a civilian, it might be a little tedious (I'm just a civilian, but I'm weird so it doesn't count).

I know, not much of a review, and I've got a stack of books I'm trying to get through at the moment, but those darn video games just keep getting in the way.