Showing titles in Military & Wars

Thomas B. Allen’s expertise in military history and strategy is combined with Roger MacBride Allen’s knowledge of technology to reveal a lesser-known yet fascinating side of the 16th president of the United States. Their authoritative narrative reveals Lincoln as our nation’s first hands-on commander in chief, whose appreciation for the power of technology plays a critical role in the North’s Civil War victory over the less-developed South.

As the Germans waged a brutal war across Europe, details of every Nazi plan, every attack, every troop movement were sent over radio. But to the Allied troops listening in―and they were always listening―the crucial messages sounded like gibberish. The communications were encoded with a powerful cipher, making all information utterly inaccessible … unless you could unlock the key to the secret code behind the German’s powerful Enigma machine.

The Civil War: 1860 - 1865 examines the people and events involved in the bloody war that pitted the Northern states against those that seceded to form the Confederacy.

In 1945, in a now-famous piece of World War II archival footage, four-year-old Michael Bornstein was filmed by Soviet soldiers as he was carried out of Auschwitz in his grandmother's arms. Survivors Club tells the unforgettable story of how a father's courageous wit, a mother's fierce love, and one perfectly timed illness saved his life and how others in his family from Zarki, Poland, dodged death at the hands of the Nazis time and again with incredible deftness.

No one in her sixth-grade class knows quite what to make of Ms. Loupe, with her short hair, her taped square "stage" on the floor, and her interest in improvisational theatre. After all, their school is on an Air Force base - a place that values discipline more than improv. But her students soon come to love her fresh approach; and when her dear brother goes missing in Afghanistan, and Ms. Loupe herself breaks down, they band together to support their teacher.

Caught up in Hitler's Final Solution to annihilate Europe's Jews, 15-year-old Jack Mandelbaum is torn from his family and thrown into the nightmarish world of the concentration camps. Here, simple existence is a constant struggle, and Jack must learn to live hour to hour, day to day. Despite intolerable conditions, he resolves not to hate his captors and vows to see his family again. But even with his strong will to survive, how long can Jack continue to play this life-and-death game?

The American Revolution is well under way in 1776, but things are looking bleak for General George Washington and his Continental Army. With Washington's hasty retreat from New York City in August, many think the war might soon be over. After all: how on Earth is this ragtag group going to defeat its enemy, the well-trained and well-funded military of the largest empire in history? But Washington soon realizes he can't win with military might. Instead, he must outsmart the British, so he creates a sophisticated intelligence network: the top-secret Culper Spy Ring.

By the time the United States joined the Second World War in 1941, the fight against Nazi and Axis powers had already been underway for two years. In order to win the war and protect its soldiers, the US Marines recruited 29 Navajo men to create a secret code that could be used to send military messages quickly and safely across battlefields. In this new book within the number one New York Times best-selling series, author James Buckley Jr. explains how these brave and intelligent men developed their amazing code.

On December 7, 1941, Japanese war planes appeared out of nowhere to bomb the American base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. It was a highly secretive and devastating attack: Four battleships sunk, more than 2,000 servicemen died, and the United States was propelled into World War II. In a compelling, easy-to-digest narrative, children will learn all about a pivotal moment in American history.

Great Battles for Boys takes kids to the front lines of iconic battles. In this volume of the popular history series, find out which strategies, weapons, and military leaders won - or lost - these famous American fights. And none of it's boring.

As World War II comes to a close, the United States and the Soviet Union emerge as the two greatest world powers on extreme opposites of the political spectrum. After the United States showed its hand with the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, the Soviets refuse to be left behind. With communism sweeping the globe, the two nations begin a neck-and-neck competition to build even more destructive bombs and conquer the Space Race. In their battle for dominance, spy planes fly above, armed submarines swim deep below, and undercover agents meet in the dead of night.

In 1942, the Gestapo sent out an urgent transmission: "She is the most dangerous of all Allied spies. We must find and destroy her." The target in their sights was Virginia Hall, a Baltimore socialite who talked her way into Special Operations Executive, the spy organization dubbed Winston Churchill's "Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare." She became the first Allied woman deployed behind enemy lines and - despite her prosthetic leg - helped to light the flame of the French Resistance, revolutionizing secret warfare as we know it.

The I Escaped Series: The World's Favorite Escapes. In this stellar, impactful book, a young teen navigates the devastating chaos of the Pearl Harbor attack during WWII. A Notable Children's Release from multi-award-winning Ellie Crowe and Scott Peters. 15-year-old Billy embarks on a perilous journey to save his father during the World War Two assault on Pearl Harbor. Initially dismissed as a mere drill, the reality quickly dawns on Billy and his family. The island of Oahu is under attack! Worse, his dad is down there on the USS Oklahoma, laid up in the sick bay with two broken legs. He'll ...

Entire books have been written about the causes of the American Revolution. This isn't one of them. What it is, instead, is utterly interesting, anecdotes, from the inside out close-up narratives filled with little-known details, lots of quotes that capture the spirit and voices of the principals, and action. It's the story of the birth of our nation, complete with soldiers, spies, salmon sandwiches, and real facts you can't help but want to tell to everyone you know.

In this seventh book in the series, boys learn about The Korean War (1950-53), also known as the “The Forgotten War.” Despite more than 2 million casualties, most people—young and old—can not fully explain this international conflict or why the United States sacrificed so much treasure to fight it. But your son will learn about stunning modern warfare—ensuring history is anything but “forgotten.”

This striking work of narrative nonfiction tells the true story of six-year-old Sachiko Yasui's survival of the Nagasaki atomic bomb on August 9, 1945 and the heartbreaking and lifelong aftermath. Having conducted extensive interviews with Sachiko Yasui, Caren Stelson shares the true story of a young girl who survived the atomic bomb and chronicles her long journey to find peace. This special book offers listeners a remarkable new perspective on the final moments of World War II and their aftermath.

Recruited by the US Army and Navy from small towns and elite colleges, more than 10,000 women served as codebreakers during World War II. Their efforts shortened the war, saved countless lives, and gave them access to careers previously denied to them. A strict vow of secrecy nearly erased their efforts from history; now, through dazzling research and interviews with surviving code girls, best-selling author Liza Mundy brings to life this riveting and vital story of American courage, service, and scientific accomplishment.

Discover World War 2's hidden heroes and villains. Spies, Code Breakers, and Secret Agents explores the intriguing world of spycraft and shows you what goes on behind the scenes in war. From spy schools and ciphers to sneaky tools and secret armies, this guide takes you on a declassified tour of the undercover operations that helped decide the outcome of World War 2. There's also more than a dozen short spy-ographies that cover some of the most famous (and infamous!) agents that were active during the war.

You can with these exciting tales of military battles written especially for boys who are reluctant readers. Popular history teacher Joe Giorello's hugely successful class "Great Battles for Boys" is now an engaging and best-selling nonfiction series written for boys ages eight to 14. Great Battles for Boys takes kids to the front lines of iconic battles. In this volume of the popular history series, find out which strategies, weapons, and military leaders won - or lost - these famous American fights. And none of it's boring.

World War II, October 1942: A plane carrying eight Americans crashes into the middle of the Pacific Ocean. With only four oranges and no fresh water between them, the crew has to band together and rely on each other for survival. What they think will be only a few hours or days before they are rescued turns into weeks lost at sea fighting off sharks, dehydration, hunger, and extreme heat.