REVISION OF THE MARINE CORPS PROFESSIONAL READING PROGRAM LIST
Date Signed: 7/8/2011
ALMAR Active Number: 027/11 2011
R 082003Z JUL 11, UNCLASSIFIED//, LMAR 027/11, MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC DMCS//, SUBJ/REVISION OF THE MARINE CORPS PROFESSIONAL READING PROGRAM LIST//, REF/A/MSGID:MSG/CMC WASHINGTON DC CMC/081912ZSEP2009//, AMPN/REF A IS ALMAR 029/09, UPDATE TO MARINE CORPS PROFESSIONAL READING LIST.//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/
1. TO ENSURE THE MARINE CORPS PROFESSIONAL READING LIST REMAINS RELEVANT, A REVIEW BOARD WAS CONDUCTED TO REVISE THE LIST IN ORDER TO REVITALIZE THE PROFESSIONAL READING PROGRAM. THIS ALMAR ANNOUNCES THE REVISED MARINE CORPS PROFESSIONAL READING PROGRAM LIST.
2. ACTION. EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, COMMANDING GENERALS AND COMMANDING OFFICERS ARE TO INCORPORATE THE NEW LISTS INTO THEIR COMMAND AND UNIT PROFESSIONAL MILITARY EDUCATION PROGRAMS.
A. EACH MARINE IS REQUIRED TO READ THE COMMANDANT’S CHOICE, “FIRST TO FIGHT: AN INSIDE VIEW OF THE U.S. MARINE CORPS” BY LTGEN VICTOR H. KRULAK, USMC (RET.).
B. EACH MARINE SHALL ALSO READ A MINIMUM OF ONE BOOK PER GRADE PER YEAR. I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE MARINES TO DISCUSS AND DEBATE THE ISSUES RAISED BY THE BOOKS ON THIS LIST TO BROADEN THEIR PERSPECTIVES AND BENEFIT FROM THE EXPERIENCES OF OTHERS. THESE DISCUSSIONS, CONDUCTED PROFESSIONALLY, SHOULD UNITE MARINES OF VARYING RANKS BY PROVIDING A COMMON LITERARY FRAME OF REFERENCE.
C. COMPLETION OF THIS REQUIREMENT SHALL BE NOTED IN THE INDIVIDUAL MARINE’S PROFICIENCY/CONDUCT (PRO/CON) REMARKS OR FITNESS REPORT, AS APPROPRIATE.
D. HOW A MARINE DEMONSTRATES COMPLETION OF THE ANNUAL REQUIREMENT IS AT THE DISCRETION OF THE COMMAND.
3. READING LIST BY GRADE
A. COMMANDANT’S CHOICE BOOK. “FIRST TO FIGHT: AN INSIDE VIEW OF THE U.S. MARINE CORPS” BY LTGEN VICTOR H. KRULAK, USMC (RET.).
B. RECRUIT/POOLEE
“I’M STAYING WITH MY BOYS” BY JIM PROSER AND JERRY CUTTER
“THE UNITED STATES MARINES: A HISTORY” BY EDWIN H. SIMMONS
C. PRIVATE/PRIVATE FIRST CLASS
“A MESSAGE TO GARCIA” BY ELBERT HUBBARD
“RIFLEMAN DODD” BY C.S. FORESTER
“BLINK” BY MALCOLM GLADWELL
“1984” BY GEORGE ORWELL
“NO TRUE GLORY” BY BING WEST
“THE GIFT OF VALOR” BY MICHAEL M. PHILLIPS
D. LANCE CORPORAL
“THE 360 DEGREE LEADER” BY JOHN MAXWELL
“THE AFGHAN CAMPAIGN” BY STEVEN PRESSFIELD
“MY MEN ARE MY HEROES” BY NATHANIEL R. HELMS
“STARSHIP TROOPERS” BY ROBERT HEINLEIN
“THE UGLY AMERICAN” BY EUGENE BURDICK AND WILLIAM J. LEDERER
“WE WERE ONE” BY PATRICK K. O’DONNELL
E. CORPORAL
“AFGHANISTAN” BY STEPHEN TANNER
“ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT” BY ERICH MARIA REMARQUE
“CHOSEN SOLDIER” BY DICK COUCH
“FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS” BY JAMES BRADLEY
“GHOST SOLDIERS” BY HAMPTON SIDES
“NOBLE WARRIOR” BY JAMES E. LIVINGSTON, COLIN D. HEATON, AND ANNE-MARIE LEWIS
“ONCE A MARINE” BY NICK POPADITCH AND MIKE STEERE
“THE DEFENCE OF DUFFER’S DRIFT” BY ERNEST DUNLOP SWINTON
“MARINES IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN” BY RICHARD LOWRY
F. SERGEANT
“AMERICAN SOLDIERS” BY PETER S. KINDSVATTER
“COMMON SENSE TRAINING” BY ARTHUR S. COLLINS
“COUNTERINSURGENCY WARFARE” BY DAVID GALULA
“FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH” BY MAJOR TED MCKELDIN
“THE KILLER ANGELS” BY MICHAEL SHAARA
“A SOLDIER’S LOAD AND THE MOBILITY OF A NATION” BY S.L.A. MARSHALL
“STORM OF STEEL” BY ERNST JUNGER
“THE VILLAGE” BY BING WEST
“TIP OF THE SPEAR” BY G.J. MICHAELS
“WITH THE OLD BREED” BY E.B. SLEDGE
G. STAFF SERGEANT
“A BELL FOR ADANO” BY JOHN HERSEY
“AMERICAN SPARTANS” BY JAMES A. WARREN
“THE ARAB MIND” BY RAPHAEL PATAI
“ATTACKS” BY ERWIN ROMMEL
“BATTLE CRY” BY LEON URIS
“THE DEFENSE OF HILL 781” BY JAMES MCDONOUGH
“THE FACE OF BATTLE” BY JOHN KEEGAN
“THE LAST STAND OF FOX COMPANY” BY BOB DRURY AND TOM CLAVIN
“MCCOY’S MARINES” BY JOHN KOOPMAN
“ON KILLING” BY DAVE GROSSMAN
“SOLDIERS OF GOD” BY DAVID HAGBERG
“THE SPEED OF TRUST” BY STEPHEN M.R. COVEY
H. GUNNERY SERGEANT
“AFGHAN GUERILLA WARFARE” BY ALI JALALI AND LESTER W. GRAU
“TIGER FORCE: A TRUE STORY OF MEN AND WAR” BY M. SALLAH AND M. WEISS
“ISLANDS OF THE DAMNED” BY R.V. BURGIN AND BILL MARVEL
“KILLING GROUND ON OKINAWA” BY JAMES H. HALLAS
“THE MISSION, THE MEN, AND ME” BY PETE BLABER
“ON COMBAT” BY DAVE GROSSMAN AND LOREN W. CHRISTENSEN
“RIDE THE THUNDER” BY RICHARD BOTKIN
“THE SAVAGE WARS OF PEACE” BY MAX BOOT
“VICTORY AT HIGH TIDE” BY ROBERT D. HEINL
“WE WERE SOLDIERS ONCE AND YOUNG” BY HAROLD G. MOORE AND JOSEPH L. GALLOWAY
I. MASTER SERGEANT/FIRST SERGEANT
“THE ACCIDENTAL GUERILLA” BY DAVID KILCULLEN
“COURAGEOUS FOLLOWER” BY IRA CHALEFF
“FIELDS OF BATTLE” BY JOHN KEEGAN
“FORGOTTEN WARRIORS” BY THOMAS HAMMES
“GHOST WARS” BY STEVE COLL
“THE GUNS OF AUGUST” BY BARBARA W. TUCHMAN
“THE LEXUS AND THE OLIVE TREE” BY THOMAS FRIEDMAN
“THE PASSION OF COMMAND” BY BRYAN MCCOY
“SEVEN DEADLY SCENARIOS” BY ANDREW KREPINEVICH
“THE SLING AND THE STONE” BY THOMAS X. HAMMES
“TECHNOLOGY AND WAR” BY MARTIN L. VAN CREVELD
J. MASTER GUNNERY SERGEANT/SERGEANT MAJOR
“ACHILLES IN VIETNAM” BY JONATHAN SHAY
“AT THE WATER’S EDGE: DEFENDING AGAINST THE MODERN AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT” BY THEODORE GATCHEL
“THE CRISIS OF ISLAM” BY BERNARD LEWIS
“THE COLDEST WAR” BY DAVID HALBERSTAM
“CRISIS LEADERSHIP” BY GENE KLANN
“THE GENERAL” BY C.S. FORRESTER
“THE MASK OF COMMAND” BY JOHN KEEGAN
“NO BENDED KNEE” BY MERRIL B. TWINING
“ON WAR” BY CARL VON CLAUSEWITZ
“A PEACE TO END ALL PEACE” BY DAVID FROMKIN
K. OFFICER CANDIDATE/MIDSHIPMAN
“THE ARMED FORCES OFFICER,” DOD
“MY MEN ARE MY HEROES” BY NATHANIEL R. HELMS
“UNITED STATES MARINES: A HISTORY” BY EDWIN H. SIMMONS
“ON INFANTRY” BY JOHN A. ENGLISH
L. 2ND LIEUTENANT/WARRANT OFFICER/CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER 2
“THE ART OF WAR” BY SUN TZU
“BLINK” BY MALCOLM GLADWELL
“COUNTERINSURGENCY WARFARE” BY DAVID GALULA
“LEADERSHIP: THE WARRIOR’S ART” BY CHRISTOPHER D. KOLENDA, WALTER F., JR. ULMER, AND BARRY R. MCCAFFREY
“THE MISSION, THE MEN AND ME” BY PETE BLABER
“THE SAVAGE WARS OF PEACE” BY MAX BOOT
“SOLDIERS OF GOD” BY ROBERT D. KAPLAN
“THE SPEED OF TRUST” BY STEPHEN M.R. COVEY
“STORM LANDINGS” BY JOSEPH H. ALEXANDER
“A TACTICAL ETHIC” BY DICK COUCH
“THE VILLAGE” BY BING WEST
M. 1ST LIEUTENANT/CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER 3.
THE FIRST SEVEN BOOKS OF THIS LIST SHOULD BE READ IN ORDER AS THEY TRACE THE EVOLUTION OF WARFARE FROM FIRST TO FOURTH GENERATION.
“THE ENLIGHTENED SOLDIER” BY CHARLES EDWARD WHITE
“SEEDS OF DISASTER” BY ROBERT DOUGHTY
“STORMTROOPER TACTICS” BY BRUCE I. GUDMUNDSSON
“COMMAND OR CONTROL” BY MARIN SAMUELS
“THE BREAKING POINT” BY ROBERT DOUGHTY
“FIGHTING POWER” BY MARTIN L. VAN CREVELD
“TRANSFORMATION OF WAR” BY MARTIN L. VAN CREVELD
“ATTACKS” BY ERWIN ROMMEL
“BATTLE LEADERSHIP” BY ADOLF VON SCHELL
“THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR” BY DONALD KAGAN
“THE LAST STAND OF FOX COMPANY” BY BOB DRURY AND TOM CLAVIN
N. CAPTAIN/CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER 4
“THE ARAB MIND” BY RAPHAEL PATAI
“THE DEFENSE OF HILL 781” BY JAMES MCDONOUGH
“THE GENERAL” BY C.S. FORRESTER
“LIONS OF IWO JIMA” BY FRED HAYNES
“LOST VICTORIES” BY ERICH VON MANSTEIN
“THE MASK OF COMMAND” BY JOHN KEGAN
“PASSION OF COMMAND” BY BRYAN MCCOY
“SOURCES OF POWER” BY GARY KLEIN
“STARSHIP TROOPERS” BY ROBERT HEINLEIN
“THE TIPPING POINT” BY MALCOM GLADWELL
“VICTORY AT HIGH TIDE” BY ROBERT D. HEINL
“WE WERE SOLDIERS ONCE AND YOUNG” BY HAROLD G. MOORE AND JOSEPH L. GALLOWAY
O. MAJOR/CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER 5
“THE CRUCIBLE OF WAR” BY FRED ANDERSON
“THE GUNS OF AUGUST” BY BARBARA W. TUCHMAN
“IN THE GRAY AREA” BY SETH FOLSOM
“THIS KIND OF WAR” BY T.R. FEHRENBACH
“THE LANDMARK THUCYDIDES” BY ROBERT STRASSLER
“THE LAST STAND: CUSTER, SITTING BULL, AND THE BATTLE OF LITTLE BIGHORN” BY NATHANIEL PHILBRICK
“THE LEXUS AND THE OLIVE TREE” BY THOMAS FRIEDMAN
“MASTERS OF WAR” BY MICHAEL HANDEL
“ONCE AN EAGLE” BY ANTON MYRER
“TEAM OF RIVALS: THE POLITICAL GENIUS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN” BY DORIS GOODWIN
“TIGER FORCE: A TRUE STORY OF MEN AND WAR” BY M. SALLAH AND M. WEISS
“UTMOST SAVAGERY: THE THREE DAYS OF TARAWA” BY JOSEPH H. ALEXANDER
“WIRED FOR WAR” BY P.W. SINGER
P. LIEUTENANT COLONEL
“A BELL FOR ADANO” BY JOHN HERSEY
“ACCIDENTAL GUERILLA” BY DAVID KILCULLEN
“AT THE WATER’S EDGE: DEFENDING AGAINST THE MODERN AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT” BY THEODORE GATCHEL
“THE BLITZKRIEG LEGEND” BY KARL-HEINZ FRIESER
“THE BOTTOM BILLION” BY PAUL COLLIER
“BRUTE: THE LIFE OF VICTOR KRULAK” BY ROBERT CORAM
“CARNAGE AND CULTURE” BY VICTOR HANSON
“DEFEAT INTO VICTORY” BY WILLIAM SLIM
“FORGOTTEN WARRIORS” BY THOMAS HAMMES
“A PEACE TO END ALL PEACE” BY DAVID FROMKIN
“SEVEN DEADLY SCENARIOS” BY ANDREW KREPINEVICH
Q. COLONEL TO GENERAL
“ANOTHER BLOODY CENTURY” BY COLIN GRAY
“THE COLDEST WINTER” BY DAVID HALBERSTAM
“THE CRISIS OF ISLAM” BY BERNARD LEWIS
“DECODING CLAUSEWITZ” BY JON SUMIDA
“DERELICTION OF DUTY: JOHNSON, MCNAMARA, THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF, AND THE LIES THAT LED TO VIETNAM” BY H.R. MCMASTER
“DIPLOMACY” BY HENRY KISSINGER
“FAULT LINES: HOW HIDDEN FRACTURES STILL THREATEN THE WORLD” BY RAGHURAM RAJAN
“HOW WARS END” BY GIDEON ROSE
“POORER RICHARD’S AMERICA” BY TOM BLAIR
“TRIED BY WAR: ABRAHAM LINCOLN AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF” BY JAMES MCPHERSON
“SUPREME COMMAND: SOLDIERS, STATESMEN, AND LEADERSHIP IN WARTIME” BY ELIOT A. COHEN
R. THE LIST CAN ALSO BE FOUND AT
WWW.MCU.USMC.MIL/LEJEUNE_LEADERSHIP/PAGES/PROPROGBRANCH.ASPX
6. SEMPER FIDELIS, JAMES F. AMOS, GENERAL, U.S. MARINE CORPS, COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS.//
Respectfully,
Richard Pellish
AC/S G-2, MCBJ, Okinawa, Japan
Room 100A, Building 1
Camp Foster
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