Remembering the fallen: 17 books from the American Revolution to modern wars

by Jack Kelly

🎧 Audiobook

America’s first blockbuster bestseller was Common Sense by Thomas Paine, a humble corsetmaker born in England. Although he joined the Army, Paine’s words would remain his best weapon. (“These are the times that try men’s souls,” he wrote after the first year of war.) Enjoy Kelly’s look at Paine, the early years of the Revolution, and the making of America. 

by Eric Metaxas

Coming June 2!

Revolution is an exciting and compulsively readable look at what the American Revolution meant for the America colonists, as well as the war’s place in world history. Bestselling author Metaxas is an enthusiastic guide to the entirety of the Revolution, starting in a courtroom in 1761 and going all the way to the world turned upside down at Yorktown. 

by Michael Shaara

🎧 Audiobook

I simply couldn’t recommend a Civil War novel other than Shaara’s Pulitzer Prize-winning classic. In simplest terms, The Killer Angels is the story of Gettysburg told in turns from perspectives on both sides of the battle. But it’s more—the consummate war novel, never shying away from the realities of armed conflict, all told in extraordinary prose. 

by Tim McGrath

🎧 Audiobook

For readers looking to continue a deep dive into Gettysburg, McGrath’s new history takes an interesting approach to the story. To start, he looks at the early lives of George Meade, Robert E. Lee, and Abraham Lincoln to show how they ended up at Gettysburg. And only then does he continue on to tell how they changed everything in that Pennsylvania town.

by Erik Larson

🎧 Audiobook

Not perhaps as closely focused on the military as the other books here, Larson’s history does examine the crucial event that led America into WWI. Until May 1915, the U.S. had been helping Great Britain fight Germany, but hadn’t entered the war. But as Larson shows, the sinking of the British passenger ship Lusitania made U.S. involvement inevitable. 

by Richard Rubin

🎧 Audiobook

Because of America’s late entry into WWI, it often receives less attention than, say, WWII. But the U.S. contribution was significant, not just to the winning of the war, but to the men who fought. In the hope of helping the country remember these men, Rubin set out at the beginning of the 21st century to track down the last living American veterans of the war and record their stories. 

by Tammye Huf

🎧 Audiobook

As debate rages in the segregated South about what African Americans owe the U.S., three young Black men enlist in the military after Pearl Harbor. Understanding who they truly are only becomes more confusing during the war, and their search for identity is further upended upon their return as they interact with family, those they love, and an unwelcoming society.

by Rebecca Siegel

🎧 Audiobook

Kids can also enjoy great Memorial Day reads, including this thrilling tale of America’s Ghost Army, populated by painters, fashion designers, and deception. To hide from Germany where the Allied invasion would come on D-Day, fake radio broadcasts, inflatable tanks, and entire mythical divisions were fabricated to preserve the truth of the intention to land at Normandy.

by Richard Hooker

🎧 Audiobook

Mash is the classic war comedy that launched the Academy Award-winning movie, as well as the TV show everyone Gen X or older knows as well as they do the Pledge of Allegiance. The novel is still darkly funny, and better yet, there’s a new audiobook available read by the delightful Scott Brick. So fire up the still and pour a martini to enjoy this one.  

by Steve Vogel

🎧 Audiobook

During one of the most brutally cold winters on record, 150,000 North Korean and Chinese troops surround 20,000 U.S. Marines and soldiers in the mountains. The Battle of Chosin Reservoir has entered military legend as a heroic fight for the Marines and a disgrace for the Army. Vogel’s book sets out to reevaluate the Army’s part in the battle and their honor.

by Jack Carr

🎧 Audiobook

Jack Carr is best known for his Terminal List series, following the career of current Navy Seal James Reece. But part of James’s backstory has always been his military father, Tom. Well, Tom now has his own military thriller series, starting with Cry Havoc, set on the eve of the Tet Offensive. As always, the military details in Carr’s book are perfect for the war buff.

by Wil Haygood

🎧 Audiobook

Already named a New York Times best book of the year so far, this book tells moving stories about the experiences of Black soldiers, nurses, activists, and more who were affected by the war in Vietnam. Some of the stories Haywood examines in this emotional work are about a decorated prisoner of war, a soldier disillusioned by the race riots at home, and a concert pianist who gave her life to bring war orphans to safety. 

by Phil Klay

🎧 Audiobook

A National Book Award Winner, Redeployment is a short story collection about soldiers fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as readjusting to civilian life after their deployments end. The stories show the brutality and absurdity of war, and the struggle to maintain a sense of self and faith. This is not a collection for the faint of heart.

by Doug Stanton

🎧 Audiobook

The sudden opening of the war in Afghanistan meant the U.S. military had to quickly find an unconventional way to fight in this remote country. Nothing illustrates this better than the special operation horse soldiers, a 12-man team of Americans who, along with their Afghan allies, formed a modern day cavalry in the days following 9/11.