World of War: A History of American Warfare from Jamestown to the War on Terror

Nester (history, St. John’s Univ.; Land of War) does well in relaying the entirety of the U.S. military history, from the first colonial settlements to the present. Arrangement is chronological and progresses through the more important conflicts in American history. The author details the background stories and intriguing tidbits of various wars, such as the differences between U.S. troops and their British counterparts during the Revolutionary War and the psychological casualties in World War II. But he also maintains brevity appropriate for a book of this nature. He pulls no punches; James Madison, George McClellan, Ronald Reagan, and others draw criticism. He also mentions relevant films and literature from different eras, but the recitation of numbers—troops participating on each side and the ones killed, wounded, and missing in action—may feel monotonous at times to some readers. Librarians should also be aware that the book contains a statement that American colonists suffered worse horrors than they inflicted upon their Indigenous, French, and Spanish adversaries.