Customer Reviews

Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm: Chronology and Fact Book

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The amount of information included in this single volume is staggering! All of the official U.S. service histories are found here, along with all primary, and most secondary Coalition forces. The author also included as much Iraqi information as possible from Coalition intelligence services. If there is a weak area this understandably is it, with Saddam being uncooperative. Still, Iraqi Order of Battle information is surprisingly complete, along with many interesting facts including Iraqi officer biographies.

This book saved me a great deal of time and money in my research, and I cannot endorse it enough.

In reviewing Hutchison's OPERATION DESERT SHIELD/DESERT STORM I have to keep in mind that it was originally published in 1995. Having collected and read dozens of other books on DESERT STORM Hutchison's volume book resembles a bound version of what you would expect to find as appendices and endnotes in larger more comprehensive studies of the subject. Still I found it refreshing to read through the chronology for some of the lesser advertised activities leading up to and occurring during the war.

This book was on my wish list for quite some time. As with many references the true value of this book is as a cue to search out and locate activities and personalities in other more detailed accounts.

Even being a participant in the Gulf War readining this book puts the scope of the entire deployment into perspective. Amazing detail and a great purchase, not excited about the price, but worth it for the paper I was writing.

Eschewing political history and detail, this book concerns itself solely with military actions and fact. Aiming especially to clarify ground actions, much space is also spent on naval and air operations, in that order. A great deal of effort was obviously spent to be as comprehensive as possible. For example, the book lists the captain of every coalition ship, as well as many of their biographies in a special section at the back. Facts like these are hard to come by, and are one of the it's greatest strengths. This book is simply the best book on the subject.

This book contains a wealth of information on the daily operations in the war in an easy to read/research format. It is an essential for any library and for the serious military historian. It also contains an excellant order of battle and all the names of those who did not return.

No read book. "Just" a collection of facts. Maybe the ultimate fact finding tool for professionals, but I was very disappointed by the low "entertainment value" of this book. In this sense you'll find r-Gen. Schwarzkorpf's book on the other end of the scale.