Best Non-fiction War Books

List of most compelling nonfiction books about war.

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1	Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest by Stephen E. Ambrose 4.41 avg rating — 119,290 ratings score: 32,026, and 325 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2	Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War by Mark Bowden 4.29 avg rating — 62,082 ratings score: 26,705, and 272 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
3	Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand 4.37 avg rating — 900,056 ratings score: 21,743, and 222 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
4	Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10 by Marcus Luttrell 4.33 avg rating — 89,473 ratings score: 15,367, and 158 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
5	We Were Soldiers Once... and Young: Ia Drang - The Battle that Changed the War in Vietnam by Harold G. Moore 4.32 avg rating — 29,611 ratings score: 14,401, and 149 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
6	The Guns of August by Barbara W. Tuchman 4.17 avg rating — 72,517 ratings score: 13,934, and 145 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
7	Flags of Our Fathers by James D. Bradley 4.21 avg rating — 58,662 ratings score: 12,782, and 133 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
8	With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa by E.B. Sledge 4.45 avg rating — 38,353 ratings score: 12,683, and 131 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
9	The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan 4.32 avg rating — 23,474 ratings score: 11,642, and 123 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
10	A Bridge Too Far by Cornelius Ryan 4.26 avg rating — 20,078 ratings score: 11,446, and 121 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
11	Hiroshima by John Hersey 4.01 avg rating — 75,334 ratings score: 11,147, and 118 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
12	The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany by William L. Shirer 4.19 avg rating — 127,114 ratings score: 11,020, and 116 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
13	War by Sebastian Junger (Goodreads Author) 4.24 avg rating — 22,025 ratings score: 10,383, and 110 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
14	Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission by Hampton Sides 4.23 avg rating — 35,348 ratings score: 9,939, and 106 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
15	Shot Down: The True Story of Pilot Howard Snyder and the Crew of the B-17 Susan Ruth by Steve Snyder (Goodreads Author) 4.21 avg rating — 8,819 ratings score: 9,880, and 106 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16	Mary Edwards Walker: America's Only Female Medal of Honor Recipient by Ammar Habib (Goodreads Author) 4.36 avg rating — 7,915 ratings score: 9,155, and 92 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
17	Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege, 1942–1943 by Antony Beevor 4.32 avg rating — 35,129 ratings score: 9,133, and 95 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
18	The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer 4.37 avg rating — 10,658 ratings score: 9,043, and 96 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
19	Citizen Soldiers: The US Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany by Stephen E. Ambrose 4.23 avg rating — 22,577 ratings score: 8,696, and 93 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
20	Battle Cry of Freedom by James M. McPherson 4.37 avg rating — 30,082 ratings score: 8,292, and 88 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
21	The Art of War by Sun Tzu 3.96 avg rating — 447,494 ratings score: 8,258, and 88 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
22	Night (The Night Trilogy, #1) by Elie Wiesel 4.36 avg rating — 1,175,941 ratings score: 8,204, and 86 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
23	Generation Kill: Devil Dogs, Iceman, Captain America, and the New Face of American War by Evan Wright (Goodreads Author) 4.27 avg rating — 17,862 ratings score: 7,863, and 84 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
24	1776 by David McCullough 4.09 avg rating — 221,345 ratings score: 7,852, and 85 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
25	Dispatches by Michael Herr 4.22 avg rating — 18,832 ratings score: 7,831, and 84 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
26	D-Day, June 6, 1944: The Battle for the Normandy Beaches by Stephen E. Ambrose 4.29 avg rating — 28,018 ratings score: 7,303, and 79 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
27	On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society by Dave Grossman 4.12 avg rating — 10,192 ratings score: 7,110, and 75 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
28	The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II by Iris Chang 4.19 avg rating — 37,245 ratings score: 6,977, and 75 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943 (World War II Liberation Trilogy, #1) by Rick Atkinson 4.28 avg rating — 19,603 ratings score: 6,909, and 75 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
30	The Trigger: Hunting the Assassin Who Brought the World to War by Tim Butcher (Goodreads Author) 3.78 avg rating — 3,920 ratings score: 6,849, and 69 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
31	Storm of Steel by Ernst Jünger 4.12 avg rating — 15,882 ratings score: 6,698, and 72 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
32	The Fall of Berlin 1945 by Antony Beevor 4.29 avg rating — 15,912 ratings score: 6,322, and 68 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
33	Goodbye to All That by Robert Graves 3.92 avg rating — 14,262 ratings score: 5,890, and 66 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
34	Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell 4.09 avg rating — 56,448 ratings score: 5,656, and 64 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
35	In the Company of Heroes: The Personal Story Behind Black Hawk Down by Michael J. Durant 4.25 avg rating — 5,324 ratings score: 5,444, and 60 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
36	Helmet for My Pillow: From Parris Island to the Pacific by Robert Leckie 4.20 avg rating — 20,562 ratings score: 5,289, and 60 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
37	Flyboys: A True Story of Courage by James D. Bradley 4.18 avg rating — 20,963 ratings score: 5,252, and 58 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
38	Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles by Anthony Swofford 3.67 avg rating — 11,056 ratings score: 5,087, and 56 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	A Rumor of War by Philip Caputo (Goodreads Author) 4.16 avg rating — 14,430 ratings score: 4,996, and 55 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
40	The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour by James D. Hornfischer 4.33 avg rating — 10,114 ratings score: 4,972, and 54 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
41	The First World War by John Keegan 4.03 avg rating — 14,340 ratings score: 4,894, and 55 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
42	Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman by Jon Krakauer (Goodreads Author) 4.06 avg rating — 37,094 ratings score: 4,841, and 55 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
43	Red Platoon: A True Story of American Valor by Clinton Romesha 4.59 avg rating — 6,461 ratings score: 4,728, and 51 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
44	None of Us Were Like This Before: American Soldiers and Torture by Joshua E.S. Phillips 4.17 avg rating — 386 ratings score: 4,591, and 49 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
45	Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters by Dick Winters 4.30 avg rating — 17,033 ratings score: 4,193, and 46 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
46	Enemy at the Gates: The Battle for Stalingrad by William Craig 4.22 avg rating — 13,088 ratings score: 4,127, and 45 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
47	Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West by Dee Brown 4.24 avg rating — 87,438 ratings score: 4,040, and 45 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
48	Inside Delta Force: The Story of America's Elite Counterterrorist Unit by Eric L. Haney 4.17 avg rating — 10,226 ratings score: 3,976, and 44 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
49	The Civil War: A Narrative by Shelby Foote 4.54 avg rating — 7,575 ratings score: 3,967, and 44 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
50	Lions of Kandahar: The Story of a Fight Against All Odds by Rusty Bradley 4.34 avg rating — 4,774 ratings score: 3,899, and 43 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
51	The Face of Battle: A Study of Agincourt, Waterloo and the Somme by John Keegan 4.13 avg rating — 7,809 ratings score: 3,842, and 44 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
52	Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq by Thomas E. Ricks 4.08 avg rating — 7,252 ratings score: 3,760, and 43 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
53	Chickenhawk by Robert Mason (Goodreads Author) 4.24 avg rating — 13,640 ratings score: 3,714, and 42 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
54	One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer by Nathaniel Fick 4.18 avg rating — 10,357 ratings score: 3,657, and 41 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
55	The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 (World War II Liberation Trilogy, #2) by Rick Atkinson 4.35 avg rating — 14,078 ratings score: 3,635, and 44 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
56	The Great Escape by Paul Brickhill 4.22 avg rating — 9,418 ratings score: 3,620, and 42 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
57	The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914 by Christopher Clark 4.20 avg rating — 10,583 ratings score: 3,595, and 41 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
58	The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War by David Halberstam 4.21 avg rating — 8,164 ratings score: 3,460, and 40 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
59	Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA by Tim Weiner (Goodreads Author) 3.94 avg rating — 12,616 ratings score: 3,413, and 38 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
60	A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century by Barbara W. Tuchman 4.04 avg rating — 39,847 ratings score: 3,302, and 39 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
61	Churchill, Hitler, and "The Unnecessary War": How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World by Patrick J. Buchanan 4.09 avg rating — 1,345 ratings score: 3,248, and 34 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
62	My War Gone By, I Miss It So by Anthony Loyd 4.16 avg rating — 2,706 ratings score: 3,204, and 36 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
63	In Harm's Way: The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors by Doug Stanton 4.31 avg rating — 21,324 ratings score: 3,078, and 35 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
64	The Forever War by Dexter Filkins 4.12 avg rating — 10,593 ratings score: 3,029, and 36 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
65	Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan by Sean Parnell (Goodreads Author) 4.40 avg rating — 11,504 ratings score: 3,003, and 35 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
66	All the Countries: And the Few We Never Got Round To by Stuart Laycock 3.76 avg rating — 670 ratings score: 2,857, and 30 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
67	In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson (Goodreads Author) 3.87 avg rating — 193,346 ratings score: 2,849, and 31 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
68	The Good Soldiers by David Finkel 4.22 avg rating — 8,125 ratings score: 2,826, and 33 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
69	Marine Sniper: 93 Confirmed Kills by Charles Henderson 4.30 avg rating — 9,679 ratings score: 2,821, and 31 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
70	Delta Force: The Army's Elite Counterterrorist Unit by Charlie A. Beckwith 4.11 avg rating — 3,250 ratings score: 2,818, and 33 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
71	Retribution: The Battle for Japan, 1944-45 by Max Hastings 4.26 avg rating — 4,462 ratings score: 2,787, and 30 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
72	Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally 4.34 avg rating — 157,295 ratings score: 2,771, and 31 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
73	War is a Racket by Smedley D. Butler 4.24 avg rating — 6,051 ratings score: 2,722, and 30 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
74	To Hell and Back by Audie Murphy 4.25 avg rating — 7,345 ratings score: 2,658, and 31 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
75	Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 by Steve Coll 4.31 avg rating — 16,107 ratings score: 2,636, and 30 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
76	American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History by Chris Kyle 4.02 avg rating — 127,140 ratings score: 2,604, and 28 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
77	Seven Pillars of Wisdom: A Triumph by T.E. Lawrence 3.89 avg rating — 10,556 ratings score: 2,581, and 30 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
78	1939 - The War That Had Many Fathers: The Long Run-Up to the Second World War by Gerd Schultze-Rhonhof 4.51 avg rating — 265 ratings score: 2,549, and 27 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
79	Under the Sabers: The Unwritten Code of Army Wives by Tanya Biank 3.76 avg rating — 1,339 ratings score: 2,517, and 29 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
80	Unspoken Abandonment: Sometimes the hardest part of going to war is coming home by Bryan A. Wood 4.18 avg rating — 640 ratings score: 2,506, and 29 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
81	The Histories by Herodotus 3.99 avg rating — 49,572 ratings score: 2,460, and 30 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
82	The Last Train from Hiroshima: The Survivors Look Back by Charles Pellegrino 4.15 avg rating — 1,792 ratings score: 2,422, and 27 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
83	Armageddon: The Battle for Germany, 1944-1945 by Max Hastings 4.28 avg rating — 6,817 ratings score: 2,389, and 29 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
84	The Longest Winter: The Battle of the Bulge and the Epic Story of World War II's Most Decorated Platoon by Alex Kershaw (Goodreads Author) 4.17 avg rating — 7,194 ratings score: 2,317, and 29 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
85	Farewell to Manzanar: A True Story of Japanese American Experience During and After the World War II Internment by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston 3.67 avg rating — 16,626 ratings score: 2,248, and 26 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
86	History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides 3.92 avg rating — 36,648 ratings score: 2,226, and 26 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
87	The Wild Blue: The Men and Boys Who Flew the B-24s Over Germany 1944-45 by Stephen E. Ambrose 3.96 avg rating — 9,421 ratings score: 2,213, and 26 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
88	Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War by William Manchester 4.19 avg rating — 5,826 ratings score: 2,212, and 28 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
89	Night Draws Near: Iraq's People in the Shadow of America's War by Anthony Shadid 4.14 avg rating — 864 ratings score: 2,181, and 24 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
90	Horse Soldiers: The Extraordinary Story of a Band of US Soldiers Who Rode to Victory in Afghanistan by Doug Stanton 4.14 avg rating — 7,981 ratings score: 2,163, and 26 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
91	No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden by Mark Owen 4.01 avg rating — 52,367 ratings score: 2,159, and 25 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
92	A Stillness at Appomattox by Bruce Catton 4.37 avg rating — 6,024 ratings score: 2,146, and 25 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
93	Hiroshima Diary: The Journal of a Japanese Physician, August 6-September 30, 1945 by Michihiko Hachiya 4.30 avg rating — 1,508 ratings score: 2,092, and 24 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
94	In the Graveyard of Empires by Seth G. Jones 3.86 avg rating — 1,273 ratings score: 2,090, and 23 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
95	13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened In Benghazi by Mitchell Zuckoff (Goodreads Author) 4.29 avg rating — 21,699 ratings score: 2,087, and 24 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
96	The Conquest of Gaul by Gaius Julius Caesar 4.01 avg rating — 11,339 ratings score: 2,068, and 24 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
97	Survival in Auschwitz by Primo Levi 4.32 avg rating — 69,389 ratings score: 2,059, and 23 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
98	A Higher Call: An Incredible True Story of Combat and Chivalry in the War-Torn Skies of World War II by Adam Makos (Goodreads Author) 4.35 avg rating — 24,169 ratings score: 1,971, and 21 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
99	Meantime: The Aesthetics of Soldiering by Stephen Paul Register (Goodreads Author) 4.36 avg rating — 61 ratings score: 1,800, and 18 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
100	D-Day: The Battle for Normandy by Antony Beevor 4.17 avg rating — 10,573 ratings score: 1,737, and 20 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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1,707 books · 2,114 voters · list created September 19th, 2008 by Nostromo (votes) .

Tags: afghanistan, africa, american-history, autobiographies, autobiography, best, biographies, biography, book-biography, book-memoirs, british-history, cia, colonialism, conflict, counter-insurgency, counter-terrorist, crusades, european-history, favorite, greenberets, history, history-american, imperialism, iraq, literature, memoir, memoirs, middle-east, military-history, military-intelligence, navyseals, non-fiction, nsa, peace, politics, religion, special-operations, u-k-history, u-s-airforce-para-rescue, u-s-history, uk-history, united-states-history, us-history, war, world-war, wwi, wwii

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People Who Voted On This List (2114)

Nostromo 366 books
7 friends

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads 3317 books
860 friends

Pat 1260 books
286 friends

Sara 437 books
46 friends

Sarah 164 books
6 friends

Pat 39 books
3 friends

Jamie 1970 books
44 friends

Joe 1368 books
61 friends

More voters…

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Comments Showing 1-50 of 65 (65 new)

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message 1: by Míceál (last edited Jan 29, 2009 08:49PM) (new)

Jan 29, 2009 08:47PM

Goodbye to All That,Band of Brothers E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest,Utah Beach The Amphibious Landing And Airborne Operations On D-Day, June 6, 1944,Omaha Beach D-Day, June 6, 1944,Masters of the Air America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany,Given Up for Dead America's Heroic Stand at Wake Island,Pacific Alamo The Battle for Wake Island,The Day of Battle The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944,Citizen Soldiers The U. S. Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany

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message 2: by Matt (new)

Feb 05, 2009 09:11AM

How I add a book to this list?

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message 3: by Míceál (new)

Feb 05, 2009 04:29PM

I don't know. I didn't start this list. I wanted to add the books in my post but didn't know how to do that either.

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message 4: by Rachel (last edited Mar 31, 2009 04:43AM) (new)

Mar 31, 2009 04:43AM

You add books to the list in the upper right corner.

It says "find/add books to list"

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message 5: by Nostromo (new)

Apr 02, 2009 02:35AM

I started the list to get book ideas. I intially thought it would be a list of books more akin to personal memoirs like Grant's, Caputo's and Grave's. But folks have added more history-type books, which is great. I have started reading and am enjoying McPherson's Battle Cry for Freedom based on reviews above. Many thanks - keep them coming.

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message 6: by Lisa (new)

Feb 22, 2010 11:24PM

both of the Rick Riordan books are fiction and shouldn't be on this list. They are good, but not in the proper category

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message 7: by Lisa (new)

Feb 22, 2010 11:26PM

Battle Cry of Freedom told me more about the Civil War in the Introduction than I learned from any other book.

It stated that prior to the Civil War, Harper's Weekly (THE news magazine of the day) used to refer to this country as "The United States ARE..." plural. But after the war it was always "The United States IS..." singular.

That explains the Civil War in a nutshell.

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message 8: by Lisa (new)

Feb 22, 2010 11:28PM

Maybe we want to divide this list into separate wars...Ancient, WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam,Desert Storm etc. It might be easier to order my choices.

I have a #1 favorite for WWII, but that means another one would have to be #2 even if it is my #1 favorite book about the Vietnam war.

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message 9: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Feb 23, 2010 12:17AM

Removed for being fiction:

All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque
The Iliad, by Homer
The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan
The Sea of Monsters, by Rick Riordan
The Titan's Curse, by Rick Riordan
The Battle of the Labyrinth, by Rick Riordan
The Last Olympian, by Rick Riordan
Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
Fields of Fire, by James Webb
The Killer Angels, by Michael Shaara

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message 10: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Feb 23, 2010 01:43AM

There's plenty of scope there for new lists, if you want to start them, Lisa. It's pretty easy to start a new list.

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message 11: by Nostromo (new)

Feb 23, 2010 03:06AM

To true.

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message 12: by Míceál (new)

Feb 23, 2010 03:42AM

I just added a bunch (2/22/10)

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message 13: by Allan (new)

Mar 14, 2010 07:11PM

I believe O'Brien states that The Things They Carried is a work of fiction, although it does feel quite real.

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message 14: by Richard (new)

Jul 22, 2010 02:46AM

New Dawn tells a story you will never forget - New Dawn: The Battles for Fallujah

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message 15: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Jul 22, 2010 09:39PM

You could vote for it.

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message 16: by [deleted user] (new)

Jul 23, 2011 12:35AM

I tried to add books but there was no 'Save' button or any other means of leaving the page which meant they were not added - a waste of effort

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message 17: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (last edited Jul 23, 2011 01:27AM) (new)

Jul 23, 2011 01:25AM

Um, you don't hit a "save" button; you can either vote for a book that's already on the list, by clicking "vote for this book" in the information under its title, or go to "add books to this list," where you can perform a general search or choose books from your own bookshelves. If you do the latter, the "vote for this book" button is to the right of the book's title. A list of the books you have voted for will appear to the right of the page.

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message 18: by [deleted user] (new)

Jul 23, 2011 01:18PM

Thanks Susanna - no point me having my own nerdy little list .... surely they should be added to the main list?

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message 19: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (last edited Jul 23, 2011 08:13PM) (new)

Jul 23, 2011 08:13PM

Uh, "your list" is added to the main list. All votes go to the main list.

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message 20: by [deleted user] (new)

Jul 23, 2011 08:38PM

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message 21: by Manray9 (new)

Mar 12, 2012 11:43PM

"Matterhorn" by Karl Marlantes is fiction and shouldn't be on this list.

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message 22: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Mar 13, 2012 01:25AM

Indeed it is; I'll remove it.

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message 23: by Dean (new)

Nov 02, 2012 11:14AM

#5 - "The Things They Carried" is a great book...And it is fiction. Should not be on this list.

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message 24: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Nov 02, 2012 08:37PM

Removed for being fiction:

The Things They Carried, by Tim O'Brien

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message 25: by Dean (last edited Nov 03, 2012 04:21AM) (new)

Nov 03, 2012 04:20AM

Thanks, Susanna. Great, helpful list.

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message 26: by Nostromo (new)

Dec 10, 2012 03:05AM

Susanna wrote: "Indeed it is; I'll remove it."

Susanna, thanks. How are you able to remove books? Nostromo (who stated this one)

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message 27: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Dec 10, 2012 07:46AM

I'm a GR Librarian. It's a function on the edit page.

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message 28: by Donna (new)

Feb 09, 2013 09:44AM

It doesn't look as if this page has seen much traffic recently, but I like it, and I also found a duplicate (Sherman's Memoirs), which I removed, along with 4 other unnamed duplicates that the system said had been taken out (I asked it to search for duplicates).

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message 29: by [deleted user] (new)

Apr 21, 2013 07:55PM

Susanna wrote: "Removed for being fiction:

All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque
The Iliad, by Homer
The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan
The Sea of Monsters, by Rick Riordan
The Titan's Curse,..."

Yes, The Killer Angels is classified as fiction, but it's a great primer for learning about the Civil War.

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message 30: by Stuart (new)

Jun 14, 2013 07:56PM

Susanna wrote: "I'm a GR Librarian. It's a function on the edit page."

Hello, can you remove The Regeneration Trilogy by Pat Barker as those are fiction. Currently ranked at 277.

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message 31: by Donna (new)

Jun 14, 2013 09:55PM

I've noticed that listopia, for some reason, is always a place that draws complaints, and often they are not all that valid, i.e., a book is not listed and the person can just put it on, or nonspecific, i.e., "This list sucks", which always makes me wonder what the individual is doing there anyway...and then there's this complaint, which I hadn't planned on turning into one. I just wanted to say I have gotten SO MANY really great ideas for my want-to-read books from this list! Thank you to the many individuals who added thoughtful selections, esp. the Catton series.

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message 32: by [deleted user] (new)

Jun 14, 2013 10:47PM

Donna, there are both valid an invalid complaints on every list. I looked at one yesterday about "Best Book Series" and wondered why the hell The Taming of the Shrew and On the Road were listed.

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message 33: by Donna (new)

Jun 15, 2013 12:59AM

Well, of course there are valid complaints too. I'll see if I can find the link you mentioned and zap those. Obviously they are just misplaced...and I swear that there's a troll out there who puts Twilight on every list, regardless of genre. But my main point was to express my appreciation for the good stuff that people added and that I think did me some good.

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message 34: by [deleted user] (new)

Jun 15, 2013 05:10AM

http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/13...

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message 35: by Donna (new)

Jun 15, 2013 06:02AM

Jonathan Brett wrote: "http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/13..."

Did not find On the Road, but there are 13 pp. & I only had time to go through 5 of them. Removed Taming of the Shrew and The Three Musketeers. Was sorely tempted to remove Little Women, but since there was a Little Men at some point I didn't dare. (Librarians are held strictly accountable, so when in doubt, I leave it alone). It may be someone else has found & removed On the Road. If you see it again, let me know what page it's on & I'll get it. I am not an employee, just one of many volunteers, but I signed on because I really hate seeing misplaced books in listopia. Thanks...it's a nifty list. When I get a minute, I will go back & vote!

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message 36: by [deleted user] (new)

Jun 15, 2013 06:15AM

Three Musketeers is part of a series, though.

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message 37: by Donna (new)

Jun 15, 2013 06:30AM

The only series of which I can find it to be considered a part is the complete works of Dumas, which does not qualify for our purposes.

I will be away from the site for a few days on personal business. If you want other titles removed, I am sure someone can help, or you can apply to be a Goodreads librarian.

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message 38: by [deleted user] (new)

Jun 15, 2013 04:01PM

I'm already a Goodreads librarian, but I don't delete things. As for Three Musketeers, those that I mentioned on the other page are, in fact, part of the Musketeer series. In each one, D'Artagnan, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. Collectively, the three books are known as The d'Artagnan Romances.

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message 39: by Neil (new)

Sep 15, 2015 10:33PM

Battle Cry is a work of Fiction and should not be on this list.

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message 40: by Ian (new)

Sep 24, 2015 07:45PM

The Yellow Birds, currently ranked at joint 391, is fiction.

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message 41: by Elyse (new)

Oct 18, 2015 03:35AM

Why is Undaunted Courage on this list? Lewis & Clark weren't at war. They were out exploring. It's been awhile since I read this book so maybe I forget - Did President Jefferson declare war on an Indian tribe? If yes, I don't remember that part. I know L & C had to protect themselves and their party but I don't remember any war.

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message 42: by JohnNY (new)

May 29, 2017 11:37PM

GREAT LIST!!

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message 43: by Nostromo (new)

Nov 22, 2017 10:07PM

Thanks JohnNY!

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message 44: by Donna (new)

Sep 03, 2018 02:47AM

The system found and removed 1 duplicate.

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message 45: by Donna (new)

Sep 03, 2018 03:13AM

The system found and removed another duplicate.

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message 46: by Sean (new)

Jul 12, 2019 11:58PM

Dispatches and The Things They Carried are both fiction, both in the top 100.

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message 47: by Donna (new)

Jul 13, 2019 01:47AM

Sean wrote: "Dispatches and The Things They Carried are both fiction, both in the top 100."

Au contraire, Pierre. I mean Sean. Dispatches, by Michael Herr is nonfiction. However, The Things They Carried is indeed fiction, and has been removed from #59:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

The system found and removed 3 duplicates.

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message 48: by Sean (new)

Aug 06, 2019 01:45AM

Hi, I found another one to be removed (I think). Into the Wild, #854 on page 9.

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message 49: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Aug 08, 2019 12:31AM

Yeah, it's non-fiction, but I haven't read it so can't say as to whether it's a "war" book or not.

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message 50: by Donna (new)

Aug 08, 2019 06:47AM

Sean wrote: "Hi, I found another one to be removed (I think). Into the Wild, #854 on page 9."

It is not a war book, and it is gone now.

I have also removed The Nightingale, by Kirsten Hannah, from the same page; it is fiction.

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