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Tanker Books/Novels


glcanon

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A trip back in history.

It's ironic how in time things get forgotten and how the constant background noise of gibberish washes things out.

http://www.amazon.com/King-Killing-Zone-Kelly/dp/0393026485

For anyone interested in the development of the M1 Abrams, the make up of the armor, why certain guns were chosen, track, engines etc this book is pretty much the authoritative source. This book as far back as 1989 essentially in detail gives accurate accounts of things that in most armor forums was speculated about and often incorrectly stated as the "truth." It's amazing that Orr Kelly was able to get this information, was able to publish it, and better yet that it went largely unnoticed even by the self professed experts and loud mouths that most often had no idea what they were talking about.

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I've been stuck on The Battle of the Tanks: Kursk 1943 for a while now. It's extremely informative, especially on the operational to strategic level of war but doesn't delve a whole lot into the tactical fight. It also talks on everything combined arms, not just tanks. Definitely will give you all of the knowledge you would ever want to know about the battle or events that led to it out to WW I. Just a bit on the dry side.

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I've been stuck on The Battle of the Tanks: Kursk 1943 for a while now. It's extremely informative, especially on the operational to strategic level of war but doesn't delve a whole lot into the tactical fight. It also talks on everything combined arms, not just tanks. Definitely will give you all of the knowledge you would ever want to know about the battle or events that led to it out to WW I. Just a bit on the dry side.

Speaking of which, are there any good german/soviet books about the battle of Kursk?

I've found a couple of books on amazon, but there is always "that 1-star review" that makes me hesitate.

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Speaking of which, are there any good german/soviet books about the battle of Kursk?

I've found a couple of books on amazon, but there is always "that 1-star review" that makes me hesitate.

Search for books by David M. Glantz.

You cannot fail with Glantz, period.

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Search for books by David M. Glantz.

You cannot fail with Glantz, period.

I have heard there seem to be some problems with Glantz. :confused:

Something with him favouring the Soviet side compared to the German side.

I consider him to be one hell of an military historian and I haven't experienced what other people are talking about.

What is the prevailing opinion regarding him?

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I have heard there seem to be some problems with Glantz. :confused:

Something with him favouring the Soviet side compared to the German side.

I consider him to be one hell of an military historian and I haven't experienced what other people are talking about.

What is the prevailing opinion regarding him?

I do not know enough bookreading folks to say anything about "prevailing" opinion. However, if my meager experience is any judge, those who claim Soviet favoritism are usually folks with very firm "Germans were better in every way but lost because zergrushed" belief.

Glantz speciallizes in Soviet military art so tends to describe things in operational perspective, maybe that's why.

I'll just quote a paragraph about operational art from James Sterrett:

Operational art, and the wider view it promotes, has not always been well understood in the West (its existence was denied until the mid-1970s). One of the better examples of this Western blindness, and of the difference between Operational Art and Tactics, is provided by the blindness evident in von Mellenthin's book Panzer Battles and its famed descriptions of the 48th Panzer Corps's defense of the Chir River line against the Soviet 5th Tank Army. 48th Panzer's tactical successes against the half-strength 5th Tank Army are well-described in the book. What is not explained is of greater importance. 48th Panzer's tactical successes must be seen against 5th Tank Army's mission: pinning 48th Panzer Corps so that it could not interfere with the Middle Don Operation. That operation was a success, with operational results: 49 Axis divisions wiped out, the Italian 8th Army and Army Detachment Hollidt shattered, and the Axis driven from the middle Don, in significant part because 48th Panzer Corps was very successfully fighting the wrong battle. Again: Tactics is battle-fighting; Operational Art is arranging the battles to achieve a strategic goal.
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I just ordered Red Thrust and The Third World War and was notified about Armor at Fulda Gap (Cook) after the fact. The jacket says it's a "Visual Novel" and is pretty pricey (about the price of a new video card :debile2:). Anybody familiar with Armor at Fulda Gap?

Edit: I also purchased Weapons and Tactics of the Soviet Army.

Edited by Scrapper_511
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Edit: I also purchased Weapons and Tactics of the Soviet Army.

Yes, I received my second hand copy of Isby's 'Weapons and Tactics of the Soviet Army' last week and am looking forward to reading it once I get through the other books in my pile. A great single-source reference on Soviet weapons and tactics, as it says on the cover :)

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"Red Thrust" by Steven Zaloga, just arrived in the mail and it's been a very exciting read so far. What an excellent source to base SB scenarios on especially since it hypothesizes war during the early 90's.

Good to know you like it. This is on my Amazon Wish List, the purchase of which is dependent on getting through the aforementioned "pile".

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Good to know you like it. This is on my Amazon Wish List, the purchase of which is dependent on getting through the aforementioned "pile".

Be warned that it is a pretty quick read at about 250 pages. I don't regret buying it but $30US (new, Amazon) is expensive for a book that I could finish reading leisurely in a few days. I strongly suggest you buy used.

On another note, "Thunder Run" is highly recommended in this thread so I'm likely to get that in the near future.

Somebody close this thread already, until 3.0 is released. It's already eaten a third of my video card funds.

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Somebody close this thread already, until 3.0 is released. It's already eaten a third of my video card funds.

Too late ...

On another note, "Thunder Run" is highly recommended in this thread so I'm likely to get that in the near future.

If you like that then I suggest:

"Tuskers: An Armored Battalion in the Gulf War" - David S. Pierson

and

"Heavy Metal: A Tank Company's Battle to Baghdad" - Capt Jason Conroy, USA

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Haha.

Thanks for the suggestion. My next pick probably needs to be something that covers NATO tactics.

Well, there are now 30 years worth of Armor magazine back issues available online.

http://www.benning.army.mil/Armor/ArmorMagazine/content/BackIssues.html

That'll cover US tactics pretty well. Plus they often have articles written by authors from other NATO nations.

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