Anti-war & Imperialism Books

A collection of books primarily about war, occupation, regime change and military interventions with a heavy focus on the actions (both modern and historical) of the American Pig Empire and its various “western” allies or client states (like Israel and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.)

Although the majority of these books are written from an anti-war perspective, our fascination with militarism in western “democratic” societies makes it impossible to completely filter out authors who insist that America is not an evil empire installing globalized capitalism at bayonet point, and is instead merely the victim of a series of tragic mistakes that somehow always benefit rich American corporations, but actively harm people living in the nations we attack. Please be advised to read volumes from this list with an vigilant eye towards pro-Pig Empire propaganda at all times.

Finally, please note that books in this section are primarily concerned with the subject of conventional warfare and as such readers looking to explore anti-war protest movements, or the economic imperialism of American foreign policy are advised to visit the Books About Injustice & Anti-colonialism, Marxism, Anarchism & Liberation Ideology Books or Books about Neoliberalism & Austerity pages, as appropriate.

America’s War for the Greater Middle East: A Military History

Andrew Bacevich – Review – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

Killing Hope: US Military and CIA Interventions Since World War II

William Blum – Review – Blurb & Excerpts – Obit – Bonus

Rogue State: A Guide to the World’s Only Superpower

William Blum – Review – Review – Blurb & Excerpts – Bonus

The 51 Day War: Ruin & Resistance in Gaza

Max Blumenthal (warning) – Review – Blurb

The Management of Savagery

Max Blumenthal – Review – Blurb – Bonus

Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq’s Green Zone

Rajiv Chandrasekaran – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

9-11 (1st Edition)

Noam Chomsky – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

Because We Say So

Noam Chomsky – Review – Excerpt – Bonus

The Culture of Terrorism

Noam Chomsky – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

Failed States: The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy

Noam Chomsky – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

The Fateful Triangle: Israel, the United States, and the Palestinians (1984)

Noam Chomsky – Review – Bonus – Bonus – PDF

Making the Future: Occupations, Interventions, Empire and Resistance

Noam Chomsky – Review – Review – Wiki – Bonus – Bonus

Who Rules the World?

Noam Chomsky – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus

Year 501: The Conquest Continues

Noam Chomsky – Blurb – Bonus – PDF

On the Justice of Roosting Chickens

Ward Churchill (warning) – Review – Wiki – Bonus – Bonus

Imperial Crusades: Iraq, Afghanistan and Yugoslavia

Alexander Cockburn, Jeffrey St. Clair – Blurb

The Spoils of War: Power, Profit and the American War Machine

Alexander Cockburn – Review – Obit – Bonus

Nation Within: The History of the American Occupation of Hawai’i

Tom Coffman – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus Bio

Blood on the Border: A Memoir of the Contra War

Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

Canada in Africa: Three Hundred Years of Aid and Exploitation

Yves Engler – Review – Review – Teaser – Blurb – Bonus

The Black Book of Canadian Foreign Policy

Yves Engler – Review – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus

Ropes of Sand: America’s Failure in the Middle East

Wilbur C. Eveland – Review – Blurb – Obit

The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade

Andrew Feinstein – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

China Tangle: American Effort in China from Pearl Harbor to the Marshall Mission

Herbert Feis – Blurb

Empire’s Workshop: Latin America, the U. S. and the Rise of the New Imperialism

Greg Grandin – Review – Review – CYR Essay – Bonus – Bonus

Kissinger’s Shadow: The Long Reach of America’s Most Controversial Statesman

Greg Grandin – Review – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

The Last Colonial Massacre: Latin America in the Cold War

Greg Grandin – Review – Review – Review – Review – Bonus

The Best and the Brightest

David Halberstam – Review – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War

David Halberstam – Review – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

Chain of Command: The Road from 9/11 to Abu Ghraib

Seymour Hersh – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

The Killing of Osama Bin Laden

Seymour Hersh (warning) – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus

The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House

Seymour Hersh – Review – Review – Blurb – CYR Note – Bonus

How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States

Daniel Immerwahr – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

Blowback: The Costs and Consequences of American Empire

Chalmers Johnson – Review – Blurb – Obit – Bonus – PDF

In Our Image: America’s Empire in the Philippines

Stanley Karnow – Review – Review – Obit – Excerpt – Bonus

Gangsters of Capitalism

Jonathan M. Katz – Review – Review – Interview – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

All the Shah’s Men

Stephen Kinzer – Review – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus

Overthrow: America’s Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq

Stephen Kinzer – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus – PDF

Hidden Terrors: The Truth about U.S. Police Operations in Latin America

A.J. Langguth – Review – Blurb – Excerpts – Bonus

Against Empire

Michael Parenti – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus – PDF

Dark Threats and White Knights

Sherene H. Razack – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus

The Balfour Declaration: Empire, the Mandate and Resistance in Palestine

Bernard Regan – Review – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2003 to 2005

Thomas E. Ricks – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

War’s End: Profiles from Bosnia, 1995-1996

Joe Sacco – Short Review – Blurb – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army

Jeremy Scahill – Review – Blurb – CYR Essay – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus

Dirty Wars: The World Is a Battlefield

Jeremy Scahill – Review – Review – Interview – Bonus – Bonus

The Assassination Complex: Inside the Government’s Secret Drone Warfare Program

Jeremy Scahill, The Intercept Staff – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus

The Road to 9/11: Wealth, Empire, and the Future of America

Peter Dale Scott – Review – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus

The Liberal Defense of Murder

Richard Seymour – Review – Review – Review – Blurb – Blurb – Bonus

A Bright Shining Lie

Neil Sheehan – Review – Review – Excerpts – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus

The Pentagon Papers: The Secret History of the Vietnam War

Neil Sheehan – Review (Sorta) Bonus – Bonus

Stilwell & the American Experience in China: 1911-1945

Barbara W. Tuchman – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus

The Guns of August/The Proud Tower

Barbara W. Tuchman – Review – Review – Review – Review – Blurb

Kill Anything That Moves: The Real American War in Vietnam

Nick Turse – Review – Review – Review – Interview – Excerpt – Bonus

The Phoenix Program

Douglas Valentine – Review – Blurb – Blurb – Bonus – PDF

Base Nation: How U.S. Military Bases Abroad Harm America and the World

David Vine – Review – Review – Review – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

Democracy Matters: Winning the Fight Against Imperialism

Cornel West – Review – Review – Review – Excerpt – Bonus

Passionate Declarations: Essays on War and Justice

Howard Zinn – Blurb – Bonus – Bonus

Terrorism and War

Howard Zinn – Review – Review – Bonus – Bonus – Bonus

Below the Cut

In my experience, it is possible to at least learn something when reading even the worst non-fiction offerings. Specifically, these books taught me to wish I had not bought them, and to ponder the virtues of a rummage sale. As always, there’s a full “caveat emptor” policy in effect for books below the cut line.

Rebellion: The History of England from James I to the Glorious Revolution