Celebrate National Military Appreciation Month: Inspiring Adult Fiction and Nonfiction Reads

Updated March 25, 2026
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1795 : the order of the furies : a novel
Natt och Dag, Niklas
Paper Book
Two unlikely allies work to end the reign of a powerful cabal of depraved hedonists in 18th-century Stockholm in this spellbinding finale to the #1 internationally bestselling historical trilogy that is filled with "plenty of twists to satisfy thrill-starved readers" (The Washington Post)....
An American dreamer : life in a divided country
Finkel, David
Paper Book
A man navigates the deep divisions in America today and discovers that sometimes change can start by finding common ground with your neighbors in this immersive account by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Thank You for Your Service and The Good Soldiers. "A...
American Heroes: From the #1 Bestselling Authors of Walk in My Combat Boots
Patterson, James
Paper Book
A #1 national bestseller from the authors of Walk in My Combat Boots, celebrate the devotion and sacrifices of our nation's bravest heroes with this collection of stories from those serving in the line of duty. U.S. soldiers who served in overseas conflicts-...
American veteran
Williams, Leah (Television producer)
DVD
Today, America has nearly eighteen million living military veterans, from the 'Greatest Generation' to men and women coming home from recent tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. They join the now-silent ranks of American veterans reaching back to our earliest conflict, the Revolutionary War.
The art of war
Sunzi
Paper Book
For more than two thousand years, Sun-tzu's The Art of War has provided leaders with essential advice on battlefield tactics and management strategies. An elemental part of Chinese culture, it has also become a touchstone for the Western struggle for survival and success, whether in battle, in...
Beverly Hills spy / The Double-agent War Hero Who Helped Japan Attack Pearl Harbor
Drabkin, Ronald
Paper Book
"A beguiling tale of espionage and double-dealing in the years leading up to World War II. ... Strap in for a narrative that demands a suspension of disbelief--and richly rewards it." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review); Best Books of February Selection The untold story of...
Billy Lynn's long halftime walk
Fountain, Ben
Paper Book
Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction and a finalist for the National Book Award "Brilliantly done . . . grand, intimate, and joyous." --New York Times Book Review From the PEN/Hemingway Award-winning author of the critically acclaimed short story collection,...
Black Hawk down : a story of modern war
Bowden, Mark
Paper Book
Recounts a 1993 firefight in Mogadishu, Somalia, that resulted in the deaths of eighteen Americans and more than five hundred Somalis, examining the rationales behind the disastrous raid.
Blind tiger
Brown, Sandra
Paper Book
From a New York Times bestselling author, a war-weary soldier jumps from a moving freight train to avoid trouble-and lands in more than he bargained for. On the day Thatcher Hutton arrives in Foley, Texas, a local woman goes missing. Thatcher becomes the...
Ceremony
Silko, Leslie
Paper Book
The great Native American Novel of a battered veteran returning home to heal his mind and spirit One of The Atlantic's Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years More than thirty-five years since its original publication, Ceremony remains...
Chamber divers : the untold story of the D-day scientists who changed special operations forever
Lance, Rachel
Paper Book
The previously classified story of the eccentric researchers who invented cutting-edge underwater science to lead the Allies to D-Day victory In August 1942, more than 7,000 Allied troops rushed the beaches of Normandy, France, in an all but-forgotten landing. Only a small...
Code girls : the untold story of the American women code breakers of World War II
Mundy, Liza
Paper Book
The award-winning New York Times bestseller about the American women who secretly served as codebreakers during World War II--a "prodigiously researched and engrossing" (New York Times) book that "shines a light on a hidden chapter of American history" (Denver Post).
Conquering crisis : ten lessons to learn before you need them
McRaven, William H.
Paper Book
A New York Times Bestseller  #1 New York Times bestselling author Admiral McRaven tells stories from his life and career that illustrate the principles of effective leadership during times of crisis. Throughout his 40...
The Country Under Heaven
Durbin, Frederic S.
Paper Book
Set in the 1880s, the story follows Ovid Vesper, a former Union soldier who has been having enigmatic visions after an explosion at the Battle of Antietam. As he travels across the country following those visions, he finds himself in stranger and increasingly more dangerous encounters with other...
Cracking the Nazi code : the untold story of Agent A12 and the solving of the Holocaust code
Bell, Jason (Professor of philosophy)
Paper Book
The thrilling true story of Agent A12, the earliest enemy of the Nazis, and the first spy to crack Hitler's deadliest secret code: the framework of the Final Solution. In public life, Dr. Winthrop Bell was a Harvard philosophy professor and wealthy businessman. As an...
The Dead We Honor
Johnstone, William W.
Paper Book
Small town America is under attack-but one group of patriots are fighting back-in this explosive contemporary thriller from the bestselling Johnstones . . . THE FIGHT FOR THE SOUL OF AMERICA BEGINS Welcome to Maverick, Iowa. Once a thriving farm community, the...
End of active service
Young, Matt
Paper Book
A raw and rampaging debut novel from the author of the "inventive, unsparing, irreverent and consistently entertaining" (NYTBR) memoir Eat the Apple--the last phase of war for US veterans: returning home. What was it like? It's the only thing anyone...
Every day is a gift : a memoir
Duckworth, Tammy
Paper Book
In this New York Times bestseller, discover the inspiring story of Illinois senator and Iraq War veteran Tammy Duckworth. "Raw, unfiltered, powerful." --Adm. William H. McRaven  In Every Day Is a Gift, Tammy Duckworth...
Every Weapon I Had: A Vietnam Vet's Long Road to the Medal of Honor
Davis, Paris
Paper Book
The story of a Green Beret commander's heroism during the Vietnam War, and the long fight to recognize his bravery. When Col. Paris Davis was selected to lead one of the Green Beret A-teams organizing resistance to Communist incursions into South Vietnam, his commanding officer...
Grit, Spit, and Never Quit: A Marine's Guide to Comedy and Life
Riggle, Rob
Paper Book
Comedian Rob Riggle's frank, funny, and inspirational memoir about how the lessons he learned while serving in the US Marines prepared him for life, especially when it came to pursuing his comedy dreams. Before he graced movie screens in films like The...
Grunt : the curious science of humans at war
Roach, Mary
Paper Book
A New York Times / National Bestseller "America's funniest science writer" (Washington Post) Mary Roach explores the science of keeping human beings intact, awake, sane, uninfected, and uninfested in the bizarre and extreme circumstances of war. Grunt<...
Healing Wounds : A Vietnam War Combat Nurse's 10-Year Fight to Win Women a Place of Honor in Washington, D.C
Evans, Diane Carlson/ Welch, Bob (CON)/ Galloway, Joseph (FRW)
Paper Book
Featured in Kristen Hannah's new book The Women What is the price of honor? It took ten years for Vietnam War nurse Diane Carlson Evans to answer that question--and the answer was a heavy one. In 1983, when Evans came up with the vision for the first...
The Heart That Fed : A Father, a Son, and the Long Shadow of War
Sciacchitano, Carl
Paper Book
A PUBLISHERS WEEKLY TOP 10 BEST BOOK OF 2024 A NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BEST NEW COMIC OF 2024 FOR ADULTS A brilliant, "powerful" (Booklist) graphic memoir, and a loving son's exploration of his tumultuous relationship with his father, told through...
How Good It Is I Have No Fear of Dying : Lieutenant Yulia Mykytenko's Fight for Ukraine
Marlowe, Lara
Paper Book
Publishing on the third anniversary of the war in Ukraine: The gripping, heartrending story, told in her own words, of a formidable 29-year-old woman serving as a commander on the front lines of the War in Ukraine -- and an intimate, hair-raising look at modern warfare . . . ...
McNamara at War: A New History
Taubman, William
Paper Book
Robert S. McNamara was widely considered to be one of the most brilliant men of his generation. He was an invaluable ally of Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson as U.S. secretary of defense, and he had a deeply moving relationship with Jackie Kennedy. But to the country, McNamara was...
The military history book
Gilbert, Adrian
Paper Book
Discover the key themes and big ideas behind the key events in the history of warfare--from the dawn of civilization to the 21st century. Tracing the epic 5,000-year story of warfare from the earliest battles to the War on Terror, The Military History Book explores and...
No Bullet Got Me Yet : The Relentless Faith of Father Kapaun
Stansifer, John
Paper Book
*A 2025 Kansas Notable Book!* The incredible story of Father Emil Kapaun, the most decorated chaplain in US military history, who has been declared "Venerable" by Pope Francis and is now a step closer to Sainthood. Father Emil Kapaun, a humble...
Peace Is a Shy Thing: The Life and Art of Tim O'Brien
Vernon, Alex
Paper Book
The first literary biography of Tim O'Brien, the preeminent American writer of the war in Vietnam and one of the best writers of his generation, drawing on never-before-seen materials and original interviews. "Vietnam made me a writer." --Tim O'Brien ...
The red horse : a Billy Boyle World War II mystery
Benn, James R.
Paper Book
The convalescent hospital Billy and Kaz find themselves in after their most recent exploits, is really a secret installation for those in the world of clandestine warfare to recover from wounds, physical and emotional. Some are allowed to leave; others are deemed security risks and are kept in...
The River We Remember
Krueger, William Kent
Paper Book
AN EDGAR AWARD NOMINEE In 1958, a small Minnesota town is rocked by a shocking murder, pouring fresh fuel on old grievances in this dazzling novel, an instant New York Times bestseller and "a work of art" (The Denver Post). On Memorial Day...
The Sailing of the Intrepid: The Incredible Wartime Voyage of the Navy's Iconic Aircraft Carrier (Original)
Williams, Montel
Paper Book
*A New York Post Best Book of the Week* From twenty-two-year naval and marine veteran Montel Williams comes a page-turning history of how one World War II aircraft carrier's crew defied all odds, redefining the very meaning of what it means to...
Same bed different dreams : a novel
Park, Ed
Paper Book
PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST * A wild, sweeping novel that imagines an alternate secret history of Korea and the traces it leaves on the present--loaded with assassins and mad poets, RPGs and slasher films, pop bands and the perils of social media "Your view of twentieth-century...
SEAL Team Six : memoirs of an elite Navy Seal sniper
Wasdin, Howard E.
Paper Book
TheNew York Timesbest selling book that takes you inside SEAL Team Six - the covert squad that killed Osama Bin Laden SEAL Team Six is a secret unit tasked with counterterrorism, hostage rescue, and counterinsurgency. In this dramatic, behind-the-scenes...
Send me : the true story of a mother at war
Skovlund, Marty, Jr.
Paper Book
The extraordinary story of American special operator and trailblazer Shannon Kent, who was killed at the age of 35 by a suicide bomber while hunting high value targets on a classified mission in Syria in 2019.  Of the 1.3 million active-duty service members in the U...
Shoot like a girl : one woman's dramatic fight in Afghanistan and on the home front
Hegar, Mary Jennings.
Paper Book
"A must-read about an American patriot whose courage and determination will have a lasting impact on the future of our Armed Forces and the nation."--Senator John McCain On July 29, 2009, Air National Guard major Mary Jennings "MJ" Hegar was shot down while on a Medevac...
The siege : a six-day hostage crisis and the daring special-forces operation that shocked the world
Macintyre, Ben
Paper Book
"For six days, it was the Iranian Embassy on Princes Gate in London that riveted the world. . . . Macintyre's superb reconstruction restores it to vivid, complex life."--The Washington Post A thrilling tick-tock recounting of one of the most harrowing hostage situations and...
Soldier girls : the battles of three women at home and at war
Thorpe, Helen
Paper Book
From an award-winning, "meticulously observant" (The New Yorker), and "masterful" (Booklist) writer comes a groundbreaking account of three women deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq, and how their military service affected their friendship, their personal lives, and their families. ...
A Soldier's Life: A Black Woman's Rise from Army Brat to Six Triple Eight Champion
Cummings, Edna W.
Paper Book
One woman's extraordinary personal journey in the US military and her triumphant effort to honor her predecessors with the Congressional Gold Medal Looking back on her remarkable career, Retired Army Colonel Edna W. Cummings can justly say that "the odds ain't good,...
The Survivor: How I Made It Through Six Concentration Camps and Became a Nazi Hunter
Lewkowicz, Josef
Paper Book
"Sobering, unforgettable reading. This is a standout of its kind." - Publishers Weekly "A riv­et­ing, deeply mov­ing mem­oir. The writ­ing is descrip­tive and dra­mat­ic, pre­serv­ing Lewkowicz's deep emo­tions." - Jewish Book Council This is the remarkable story of Josef Lewkowicz-...
The things they carried
O'Brien, Tim
Paper Book
Depicting the men of Alpha Company, The Things They Carried opened our eyes to the nature of war in a way we will never forget. It is a life-changing meditation on war, memory, imagination, and the redemptive power of storytelling. In the decades since its publication it has never failed to...
The Unit : my life fighting terrorists as one of America's most secret military operatives
Gamal, Adam
Paper Book
The first and only book to ever be written by a member of America's most secret military unit―an explosive and unlikely story of service and sacrifice. Inside our military is a team of operators whose work is so secretive that the name of the unit itself is classified....
Valiant Women : The Extraordinary American Servicewomen Who Helped Win World War II
Andrews, Lena S.
Paper Book
National Bestseller * Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist A groundbreaking new history of the role of American servicewomen in WWII, illuminating their forgotten yet essential contributions to the Allies' victory, hailed as "an ingenious look at WWII" (Publishers Weekly,...
Walk in my combat boots : true stories from America's bravest warriors
Patterson, James
Paper Book
Discover "the stories America needs to hear" (Admiral William H. McRaven, US Navy (Ret.)) with these moving and powerful recollections of war, told by the men and women who lived them. Walk in my Combat Boots is a powerful collection crafted...
The war on warriors : behind the betrayal of the men who keep us free
Hegseth, Pete
Paper Book
AN INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER FROM PRESIDENT TRUMP'S NOMINEE FOR SECRETARY OF DEFENSE Real men fought for our freedoms. It's time we fought for theirs. Pete Hegseth joined the Army to fight extremists. Then that same Army called him one. The military Pete...
What feasts at night
Kingfisher, T.
Paper Book
An Instant New York Times, USA Today, and Indie Bestseller A Barnes & Noble Best Horror Book of 2024 A Goodreads Best Horror Choice Award Nominee Enter a cold, silent forest and find out what feasts at night in this new gothic tale...
Why We Serve : Native Americans in the United States Armed Forces
Harris, Alexandra N./ Hirsch, Mark G.
Paper Book
Rare stories from more than 250 years of Native Americans' service in the military Why We Serve commemorates the 2020 opening of the National Native American Veterans Memorial at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, the first landmark in Washington, DC,...
The Wives
Gorrindo, Simone
Paper Book
"[Simone] Gorrindo's prose is inviting and fluid, and her storytelling is intimate and vivid...[an] engaging, evocative memoir." --The New York Times Book Review "A hopeful, unifying memoir." --People This profoundly intimate memoir...
The women
Hannah, Kristin
Paper Book
A #1 bestseller on The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times! From the celebrated author of The Nightingale and The Four Winds comes Kristin Hannah's The Women--at once an intimate portrait of coming of age in a...
The women with silver wings
Landdeck, Katherine Sharp
Paper Book
"With the fate of the free world hanging in the balance, women pilots went aloft to serve their nation. . . . A soaring tale in which, at long last, these daring World War II pilots gain the credit they deserve."--Liza Mundy, New York Times bestselling author of Code...
You are worth it : building a life worth fighting for
Carpenter, Kyle
Paper Book
The youngest living Medal of Honor recipient delivers an unforgettable memoir that "will inspire every reader" (Jim Mattis) NATIONAL BESTSELLER | A Marine Commandant's Reading List selection On November 21, 2010, U.S. Marine Lance Corporal Kyle Carpenter was...
Your Presence Is Mandatory
Vasilyuk, Sasha
Paper Book
Winner of the 2025 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature | Gold Medal Winner for the 94th Annual California Book Awards | Longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize A riveting debut novel, based on real events, about a World War II veteran with a secret that...

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