Military Development

In his thrilling and incredibly thoughtful book, Colonel Bruce Hurd thrusts us into the private world of an accomplished military officer as he describes the trials and triumphs of his 30-year career in the Air Force. With courage and honesty, Colonel Hurd unveils the fears, disappointments, and shame he overcame to be a life-changing leader both at home and abroad. His wit and ability to see the big picture give us a new perspective on possibilities.

World War Two shaped Matt Matthews even though he was born 20 years after it ended. As a kid, he was afraid he’d have to do what his father did in the 106th Infantry Division in the Battle of the Bulge. As a young adult, he was afraid he wouldn’t. If his father’s silence about war and being a POW said it all, what did it say? That silence and Matthews’ efforts to fill in the blanks molded his evolving definition of manhood and efforts to influence and love his own three sons.

While their husbands, brothers and sweethearts fought in Europe and their mothers, sisters and friends kept the home fires burning, for the first time, a group of remarkable women took to the skies. They weren't allowed into combat but risked their lives in bad weather and without radios to bring our boys the aircraft they so vitally needed. Employed by the Air Transport Auxiliary, these women were known as 'attagirls'. They proved that women, too, could master Spitfires, Mosquitoes and Hawker Hurricanes, forging a new path in aviation.

This is an autobiography about a man from New Jersey born in 1947. Following his graduation from high school in 1965, he enlisted in the Marines and went to Vietnam. Home and honorably discharged before turning 21, he meandered for a few years in the time of the anti-war movement and psychedelic drugs that were the late '60s and early '70s. He found his feet in aviation with his first introductory flight. He immediately knew piloting an airplane was what he wanted to do. His involvement in the drug culture led to incarceration and jeopardized his future, though.

This book argues that the elements that contribute to healing war trauma - including safety, connection, community, dialogue, mutual respect, diversity, and compassion - can help build a stronger nation. But this message comes with a warning and a challenge not just for caregivers, veterans service organizations, governmental departments, Congress, and the White House, but for all Americans. War creates incalculable suffering - not only among those on the front lines, but also among those left behind.

Before she was 30 years old, Vernice "FlyGirl" Armour had become a decorated naval aviator, Camp Pendleton's 2001 Female Athlete of the Year and Strongest Warrior winner, the first female African-American on Nashville's motorcycle police squad, and a member of the San Diego Sunfire professional women's football team. She's a force to be reckoned with, and she believes that women and men from all walks of life have the potential to achieve the highest levels of success with the right flight plan.

If America will survive and thrive in the future, we need our veterans to become the leaders and entrepreneurs who will rebuild our country. Veterans: Rebuild America offers a pathway for veterans who want to use their experiences and existing skills to thrive, find health, wealth, and peace of mind in the new economy.

The experience of the Vietnam War is almost impossible to grasp - the fear, smell, pain, and camaraderie. Boys were turned into men, men were transformed into soldiers, and then from soldiers to warriors. These warriors had wives who shared in their transformations. Some marriages were strengthened, while for others men and their families were left emotionally and spiritually battered. Focusing in on a singular company’s experience of war and its eventual homecoming, Andrew Wiest discusses the shared experience of combat and both the darkness and resiliency of war’s aftermath.

When you delete your adjectives, who are you? Most people limit themselves to their labels. They embrace barriers based on the box that society puts them in. But your adjectives aren’t your destiny. In Delete the Adjective: A Soldier’s Adventures in Ranger School, Lisa Jaster proves your merit should always trump your labels. Lisa didn’t confine herself to the adjectives of “middle-aged” or “female.” Instead, she became one of the first three women to graduate from the United States Army Ranger program. For those six months in the program, her adjectives didn’t matter.

Confessions of a Military Wife is an honest, witty, and often hilarious look at the life of the new-generation military wife. Mollie Gross learned the hard way to laugh instead of cry at what she could not control as a military spouse - and as she quickly discovered, nearly everything was out of her control!

Filled with delicious, original cookie recipes, 52 Weeks of Cookies recounts a mom's unique method of coping during her son's deployment. With plenty of sugar cookies but no sugarcoating, 52 Weeks of Cookies is an honest, uplifting story of family love during a crisis, with all the fear, grief, laughter, gratitude, and joy that comes with it.

In the wake of her mother's death, Jessica Pearce Rotondi uncovers boxes of letters, declassified CIA reports, and newspaper clippings that bring to light a family ghost: her uncle Jack, who disappeared during the CIA-led "Secret War" in Laos in 1972. The letters lead her across Southeast Asia in search of the truth that has eluded her family for decades. On the night of March 29, 1972, Jack's plane vanishes over the mountains bordering Vietnam. The crash eerily echoes the one Jack's father, Ed Pearce, survived in World War II, when Ed parachuted out of the plane before being captured.

In an attention-grabbing story, author Karl P. Monger shares his experiences as a United States Army officer, including the transition trials he experienced when he left the Army and sought to find purpose in civilian life. Despite government programs and 40,000 nonprofits dedicated to veterans, transition from the military remains a veteran’s greatest challenge. Monger highlights a common sense approach for veterans to gain control over their transition and shows how communities can help them achieve lives of hope and purpose.

7 Checklist Items for Success was made to challenge the conventional status quo of today’s self-help titles. It encourages listeners to alter their perspective to reflect a thankfulness about being alive and a willingness to become a beacon of hope to themselves and others around them.

On August 6, 2011, 30 American soldiers aboard Extortion 17 perished in the single greatest loss of Navy SEAL lives. Among them - Aaron Carson Vaughn, a small-town boy who grew up in the hills of Tennessee and lived a life larger than most. Told through the eyes of Karen, Aaron's mother, this tender story of faith, family, and love grips the heart and shows how one family raised an American warrior filled with courage, tenacity, and patriotism. The Vaughn's story is not one about war or about a grieving family, but rather one of triumph.

Alford L. McMichael served his country in the United States Marine Corps for more than 36 years and was the first sergeant major to serve as the sergeant major to the Allied Supreme Commander of NATO. In this indispensable guide, McMichael shares life lessons that may be employed by everyone from military personnel to corporate CEOs.

Wondering what you are in for as you move to your first military base, or as you try to recover from numerous deployments? Deployed! is the perfect solution for every member of a military family who wants a healthy family. From the time you finish boot camp to the time you return from your last deployment, this audiobook provides principles that will guide you in your journey through family life in the military.

Professional athletes, surgeons, first responders - all perform remarkable feats in the face of intense stress. Why do they thrive under pressure while others succumb? What separates the two is attitude. Resilient people meet adversity head on and bounce back from setbacks. They seem to naturally exude an inner strength - but studies show that resilience is something that anyone can build.

Was wissen wir wirklich über das Leben unserer Eltern, der Kriegskinder? Wann ist der richtige Zeitpunkt, zum Archäologen des eigenen Lebens zu werden und die Eltern zu befragen? Jürgen Wiebicke folgt den Berichten seiner Eltern, die konfrontiert mit dem Tod von einer radikalen Offenheit getrieben sind und ihre Erlebnisse nicht mehr für sich behalten wollen. "Man hat den Tod eines Menschen mit dem Brand einer Bibliothek verglichen. Bestimmte Geschichten können anschließend nicht mehr erzählt werden. In dieser Hinsicht ist der Tod ein einziger Skandal, ein großer Vernichter."

A compassionate, practical guidebook for veterans transitioning from active duty to civilian life and for the loved ones supporting their journey. "Challenging yet reassuring....a key addition to every veteran’s packing list ." --Stan McChrystal, General, US Army (Ret) and Co-Founder and CEO...