Customer Reviews

The Lifeblood of War: Logistics in Armed Conflict

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Thompson takes a good look at the effect logistics had on different wars, throughout history. The book is a good read for the history and for the look at a different part of war. He shows how great leaders understood the importance of taking care of their soldiers. The book is a quick read thorough most of it. Its a little slow toward the end with to much tactical detail.

Overall, it a good book to read for a historic look at the logistic side of war.

Logistics are the engine of war, but because the movement of troops, ammo, and fuel don't get the average reader's blood moving, it's often overlooked in the literature.

This study gets into the details of why logistics remain incredibly important, even with the technological advances of the modern era, and the story is told in a very detailed and interesting way. It's also comprehensive historically, covering the ancient campaigns of Alexander all the way up to NATO operations in Europe.

The author covers the subject of military logistics by surveying various military operations throughout history. It is not a comprehensive history, rather it uses specific conflicts to illustrate some points about how logistics has developed, or in some cases not developed, in the process of supporting military operations. It is fairly Anglo-centric which explains the fairly detailed chapter on the Falklands War, in which the author was a major player. There is also a sizable amount of the book devoted to Indochina 1945-1975, as well as an excellent account of the logistical challenges faced by the Allies during the campaign in Burma in WW2. For what it is intended to cover it does cover well, however it is not targeted for a general readership, rather those with a more specific interest in the subject.