Military Veteran Authors

On Veterans Day or any other time, check out these books by authors who served in the military (including those from other countries).

Updated October 9, 2025
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Enduring freedom
Arash, Jawad
Paper Book
This powerful novel set in the tumultuous times surrounding 9/11 follows a teenage American army private and an Afghan boy living under the Taliban as they discover they have much more in common than they ever could have imagined.​ Baheer, a studious Afghan teen, sees his family...
The BFG
Dahl, Roald.
Paper Book
From the bestselling author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda!  One of TIME MAGAZINE's 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time The BFG is no ordinary bone-crunching giant. He is far too nice and jumbly. It's lucky for Sophie...
Charlie and the chocolate factory
Dahl, Roald.
CD
Roald Dahl's signature work--the story that was the basis for the classic film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory starring Gene Wilder--is available unabridged on audio for the first time. 4 CDs.
Charlie and the chocolate factory
Dahl, Roald
Paper Book
From the author of The BFG and Matilda! Willy Wonka's famous chocolate factory is opening at last! But only five lucky children will be allowed inside. And the winners are: Augustus Gloop, an enormously fat boy whose hobby is eating; Veruca Salt, a spoiled...
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Dahl, Roald.
Paper Book
Fantastic Mr. Fox is on the run! The three meanest farmers around are out to get him. Fat Boggis, squat Bunce, and skinny Bean have joined forces, and they have Mr. Fox and his family surrounded. What they don’t know is that they’re not dealing with just any fox–Mr. Fox would never...
James and the giant peach
Dahl, Roald.
Paper Book
From the World's No. 1 Storyteller, James and the Giant Peach is a children's classic that has captured young reader's imaginations for generations. One of TIME MAGAZINE's 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time After James Henry Trotter's parents are...
Matilda
Dahl, Roald.
Paper Book
From the bestselling author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The BFG! Adapted into a Tony Award-winning Broadway musical and a Netflix film! Matilda is a sweet, exceptional young girl, but her parents think she's just a nuisance. She expects...
The umbrella man and other stories
Dahl, Roald.
Paper Book
Is it really possible to invent a machine that does the job of a writer? What is it about the landlady's house that makes it so hard for her guests to leave? Does Sir Basil Turton value most his wife or one of his priceless sculptures? These compelling tales are a perfect introduction to the adult...
Escape! : the story of the great Houdini
Fleischman, Sid
Paper Book
* Major galley distribution at conferences * Harperteacher feature * Institutional advertising (Horn Book, Nov/Dec; SLJ, Sept.; Booklist, Aug. 1) * Escape! will be featured in the HarperCollins booth at major institutional conferences, including TLA, IRA, ALA, and NCTE * A...
Catch-22
Heller, Joseph.
Paper Book
Catch-22 is like no other novel. It is one of the funniest books ever written, a keystone work in American literature, and even added a new term to the dictionary. At the heart of Catch-22 resides the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, a hero endlessly inventive in his schemes to save...
The complete short stories of Ernest Hemingway
Hemingway, Ernest
Paper Book
The complete, authoritative collection of Ernest Hemingway's short fiction, including classic stories like "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place," and "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber," along with seven previously unpublished stories. In this...
A farewell to arms : the Hemingway Library edition
Hemingway, Ernest
Paper Book
The definitive edition of the classic World War I romance novel, featuring all of the alternate endings: "Fascinating...serves as an artifact of a bygone craft, with handwritten notes and long passages crossed out, giving readers a sense of an author's process" (The New York Times).
For whom the bell tolls
Hemingway, Ernest
Paper Book
Ernest Hemingway's masterpiece on war, love, loyalty, and honor tells the story of Robert Jordan, an antifascist American fighting in the Spanish Civil War. In 1937 Ernest Hemingway traveled to Spain to cover the civil war there for the North American Newspaper Alliance. Three...
The old man and the sea
Hemingway, Ernest
Paper Book
The last novel Ernest Hemingway saw published, The Old Man and the Sea has proved itself to be one of the most enduring works of American fiction. It is the story of an old Cuban fisherman, down on his luck, and his supreme ordeal: a relentless, agonizing battle with a giant marlin far out in...
Dune
Herbert, Frank
Paper Book
Frank Herbert's classic masterpiece--a triumph of the imagination and one of the bestselling science fiction novels of all time. Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of Paul Atreides--who would become known as Muad'Dib--and of a great family's ambition to...
The horse and his boy
Lewis, C. S.
Paper Book
Our hardcover and paperback digest editions of THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA are now graced with new jacket and cover art by 2-time Caldecott medalist David Wiesner.
The last battle
Lewis, C. S.
Paper Book
A beautiful hardcover edition of The Last Battle, book seven in the classic fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. The full-color jacket features art by three-time Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator David Wiesner and black-and-white interior art by the series' original illustrator,...
The last battle
Lewis, C. S.
Paper Book
A mass-market paperback edition of The Last Battle, book seven in the classic fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia, featuring cover art by Cliff Nielsen and black-and-white interior artwork by the original illustrator of Narnia, Pauline Baynes. During the last days of Narnia,...
The lion, the witch, and the wardrobe
Lewis, C. S.
Paper Book
A full-color paperback edition of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, book two in the classic fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia. This edition is complete with full-color cover and interior art by the original illustrator, Pauline Baynes. Four adventurous siblings--Peter, Susan,...
The silver chair
Lewis, C. S.
Paper Book
A mass-market paperback edition of The Silver Chair, book six in the classic fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia, featuring cover art by Cliff Nielsen and black-and-white interior artwork by the original illustrator of the series, Pauline Baynes. Through dangers untold and...
War horse
Morpurgo, Michael.
Paper Book
A powerful tale of war, redemption, and a hero's journey. In 1914, Joey, a beautiful bay-red foal with a distinctive cross on his nose, is sold to the army and thrust into the midst of the war on the Western Front. With his officer, he charges toward the enemy, witnessing the...
Game
Myers, Walter Dean
Paper Book
This thrilling basketball story from New York Times bestselling author Walter Dean Myers is a strong choice for independent reading and sharing in the classroom. Thought-provoking and packed with court action, Game is a winner! Drew Lawson is all about basketball. Everyone in his life...
The greatest : Muhammad Ali
Myers, Walter Dean
Paper Book
"I'm not only the greatest; I'm the double greatest."-- Muhammad Ali in 1962 to the NY Times.The Louisville Lip. Cassius Clay. The Greatest.Muhammad Ali may be known by more than one name, but his accomplishments, both inside and out of the boxing ring, have earned him a singular place in history as...
Hoops
Myers, Walter Dean
Paper Book
A teenage basketball player from Harlem is befriended by a former professional player who, after being forced to quit because of a point shaving scandal, hopes to prevent other young athletes from repeating his mistake.
Slam!
Myers, Walter Dean
Paper Book
An exciting, eye-catching repackage of acclaimed author Walter Dean Myers' bestselling paperbacks, to coincide with the publication of SUNRISE OVER FALLUJA in hardcover.Seventeen-year-old Greg "Slam" Harris can do it all on the basketball court. He's seen ballplayers come and go, and he knows he...
Sing down the moon
O'Dell, Scott
Paper Book
The Spanish Slavers were an ever-present threat to the Navaho way of life.  One lovely spring day, fourteen-year-old Bright Morning and her friend Running Bird took their sheep to pasture.  The sky was clear blue against the red buttes of the Canyon de Chelly, and the fields and orchards of the...
1984
Orwell, George
CD
This major new stage production explores the world inside protagonist Winston Smith's head, as well as the world beyond it, and catches the euphoria and bliss buried deep underneath the cold face of Big Brother. In an age of mass surveillance, "total" policing, and GPS tracking, "1984" is as...
Animal farm
Orwell, George
Paper Book
One of Time magazine's 100 best English-language novels and the most famous of all twentieth-century political allegories * "A wise, compassionate, and illuminating fable for our times." --The New York Times This story of a group of barnyard animals who revolt against...
Nineteen eighty-four
Orwell, George
Paper Book
A deluxe hardcover edition of 1984: one of the most celebrated novels of the twentieth century, Orwell's cautionary tale of a man trapped under the gaze of an authoritarian state feels more relevant now than ever before. Winston Smith spends his days rewriting history to fit the...
Hatchet
Paulsen, Gary.
Paper Book
This award-winning contemporary classic is the survival story with which all others are compared--and a page-turning, heart-stopping adventure, recipient of the Newbery Honor. Hatchet has also been nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read....
The catcher in the rye
Salinger, J. D.
Paper Book
The "brilliant, funny, meaningful novel" (The New Yorker) that established J. D. Salinger as a leading voice in American literature--and that has instilled in millions of readers around the world a lifelong love of books.     "If you...
Franny and Zooey
Salinger, J. D.
Paper Book
"Perhaps the best book by the foremost stylist of his generation" (New York Times), J. D. Salinger's Franny and Zooey collects two works of fiction about the Glass family originally published in The New Yorker. ...
Nine stories
Salinger, J. D.
Paper Book
The "original, first-rate, serious, and beautiful" short fiction (New York Times Book Review) that introduced J. D. Salinger to American readers in the years after World War II, including "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" and the first appearance of Salinger's fictional Glass...
More scary stories to tell in the dark
Schwartz, Alvin
Paper Book
All those who enjoyed shuddering their way through Alvin Schwartz's first volume of Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark will find a satisfyingly spooky sequel in this new collection of the macabre, the funny, and the fantastic.Is it possible to die -- and not know it? What if a person is buried too...
Scary stories to tell in the dark
Schwartz, Alvin
Paper Book
This spooky addition to Alvin Schwartz's popular books on American folklore is filled with tales of eerie horror and dark revenge that will make you jump with fright. There is a story here for everyone -- skeletons with torn and tangled flesh who roam the earth; a ghost who takes revenge on her...
Where the sidewalk ends : the poems & drawings of Shel Silverstein
Silverstein, Shel.
Paper Book
Shel Silverstein, the New York Times bestselling author of The Giving Tree, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up, and Every Thing On It, has created a poetry collection that is outrageously funny and deeply profound. Come in . . . for where the sidewalk ends, Shel Silverstein's world begins. ...
Falling up : poems and drawings
Silverstein, Shel.
Paper Book
From New York Times bestselling author Shel Silverstein, the classic creator of Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, and Every Thing On It, comes a wondrous book of poems and drawings. Filled with unforgettable characters like Screamin' Millie; Allison Beals and her twenty-five...
A light in the attic
Silverstein, Shel.
Paper Book
From New York Times bestselling author Shel Silverstein, the creator of the beloved poetry collections Where the Sidewalk Ends, Falling Up, and Every Thing On It, comes an imaginative book of poems and drawings--a favorite of Shel Silverstein fans young and old. A Light in the...
Of mice and men
Steinbeck, John
Paper Book
A controversial tale of friendship and tragedy during the Great Depression "A thriller, a gripping tale . . . that you will not set down until it is finished. Steinbeck has touched the quick." --The New York Times John Steinbeck's classic novella follows an...
Of mice and men
Steinbeck, John
Paper Book
A controversial tale of friendship and tragedy during the Great Depression "A thriller, a gripping tale . . . that you will not set down until it is finished. Steinbeck has touched the quick." --The New York Times John Steinbeck's classic novella follows an...
The pearl
Steinbeck, John
Paper Book
The classic novella from Nobel Prize-winner John Steinbeck explores the secrets of man's nature, the darkest depths of evil, and the luminous possibilities of love. Like his father and grandfather before him, Kino is a poor diver, gathering pearls from the gulf beds that once...
The fellowship of the ring
Tolkien, J. R. R.
CD
The Fellowship of the Ring
The hobbit, or, There and back again
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Paper Book
The journey through Middle-earth begins here with J.R.R. Tolkien's classic prelude to his epic fantasy Lord of the Rings trilogy. "A glorious account of a magnificent adventure, filled with suspense and seasoned with a quiet humor that is irresistible... All those, young...
The return of the king : being the third part of The lord of the rings
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Paper Book
The standard hardcover edition of the concluding and final volume of The Lord of the Rings includes a large format fold-out map and extensive appendices. In this epic high fantasy, as the Shadow of the Dark Lord Sauron grows across the land, the Companions of the Ring have become...
The two towers : being the second part of the Lord of the rings
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Paper Book
The middle novel in The Lord of the Rings--the greatest fantasy epic of all time--which began in The Fellowship of the Ring, and which reaches its magnificent climax in The Return of the King. Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The...
The two towers : being the second part of the Lord of the rings
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Paper Book
The middle novel in The Lord of the Rings--the greatest fantasy epic of all time--which began in The Fellowship of the Ring, and which reaches its magnificent climax in The Return of the King. Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The...
Cat's cradle
Vonnegut, Kurt.
Paper Book
"A free-wheeling vehicle . . . an unforgettable ride!"--The New York Times Cat's Cradle is Kurt Vonnegut's satirical commentary on modern man and his madness. An apocalyptic tale of this planet's ultimate fate, it features a midget as the protagonist, a...
Slaughterhouse-five : or, The children's crusade, a duty-dance with death
Vonnegut, Kurt.
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER * Kurt Vonnegut's masterpiece, Slaughterhouse-Five is "a desperate, painfully honest attempt to confront the monstrous crimes of the twentieth century" (Time). Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best novels of all time * One of...

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