In 1861, Americans thought that the war looming on their horizon would be brief. None foresaw that they were embarking on our nation's worst calamity, a four-year bloodbath that cost the lives of more than half a million people. But as eminent Civil War historian Emory Thomas points out in this stimulating and provocative book, once the dogs of war are unleashed, it is almost impossible to rein them in. In The Dogs of War, Thomas highlights the delusions that dominated each side's thinking. Lincoln believed that most Southerners loved the Union, and would be dragged unwillingly into secession by the planter class. Jefferson Davis could not quite believe that Northern resolve would survive the first battle. Once the Yankees witnessed Southern determination, he hoped, they would acknowledge Confederate independence. These two leaders, in turn, reflected widely held myths. Thomas weaves his exploration of these misconceptions into a tense narrative of the months leading up to the war, from the "Great Secession Winter" to a fast-paced account of the Fort Sumter crisis in 1861. Emory M. Thomas's books demonstrate a breathtaking range of major Civil War scholarship, from The Confederacy as a Revolutionary Experience and the landmark The Confederate Nation, to definitive biographies of Robert E. Lee and J.E.B. Stuart. In The Dogs of War, he draws upon his lifetime of study to offer a new perspective on the outbreak of our national Iliad.

Stories of working class life in Prestwich, Manchester during world war two

In a remote corner of Zangaro, a small republic in Africa, lies Crystal Mountain. At certain times of the day the mountain emits a strange glow. Only Sir James Manson knows why. The mountain contains ten billion dollar's worth of the world's most valuable mineral, platinum. " Not only exciting but truly surprising" --Atlantic. Now the only question is, how to get hold of it. Sir James knows how. Invade the country with a band of savage, cold-blooded mercenaries. Topple the government and set up a puppet dictatorship. Unleash the dogs of war.

An incredible story of the largely unseen but vital role that dogs play in our armed forces, Lisa Rogak's The Dogs of War is a must-read for animal lovers everywhere. Military working dogs gained widespread attention after Cairo participated in the SEAL Team 6 mission that led to Osama bin Laden's death. Before that, few civilians realized that dogs served in combat, let alone that they could parachute from thirty thousand feet up. The Dogs of War reveals the amazing range of jobs that our four-legged soldiers now perform, examines the dogs' training and equipment, and sets the record straight on those rumors of titanium teeth. You'll find heartwarming stories of the deep bond that dogs and their handlers share with each other, and learn how soldiers and civilians can help the cause by fostering puppies or adopting retirees.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Frederick Forsyth delivers an international thriller that takes readers into the darkest hearts of men and nations… In a remote corner of the impoverished African republic of Zangaro lies Crystal Mountain. At certain times of the day, the mountain itself seems to glow with a strange light. Only the ruthless and untouchable tycoon Sir James Manson knows why: the mountain contains billions of dollars worth of the world’s most valuable mineral—platinum. And he wants it all. To do so, he must first remove the unfriendly government currently in power and replace it with a puppet regime. Towards this end, Manson hires the deadly Cat Shannon and his team of mercenaries to do the dirty work. But he didn’t realize how bloody things were going to get. And when he betrays the mercenaries to a brutal fate, he doesn’t realize how far Shannon is willing to go for revenge…

They’re here. In America. Thousands of Islamic terrorists committed to a rabid jihad that ends only when they’ve butchered the last man, woman, and child. Worst of all, they have nukes. The Day of Jihad is at hand. The odds of Western civilization being snuffed out grow stronger each day. Compounding the threat, the Chinese are solidifying their grasp throughout Asia, while behind the scenes they sponsor the Islamic terrorists. Once an ineffective and weakening America crumbles, the Chinese are ready to extend their dominion over the entire planet. The Russian president is strengthening his grip on Europe and in the Middle East. Cyberwarfare is ramping up from Beijing to Moscow to Pyongyang to Tehran. And AGU—the Alliance for Global Unity is orchestrating it all. Only the shadow government known as the Society of Adam Smith, or SAS, may be capable of dealing with this threat. And it desperately needs the skills possessed only by that deadliest of hunter-killer teams, the Sleeping Dogs, including their newest member, an Australian. With his rogue brother, the monstrous Maksym, intent on killing his family, can Brendan Whelan reunite the Dogs in time? Heart pounding, non-stop action pulls the reader around the globe from one crisis spot to the next as Western civilization faces its worst onslaught in history.

"Although many books have depicted the roles of men and women in the Civil War, Dogs of War, on the other hand, contains important information on the roles that animal played in that brutal war. Few people know that many soldiers carried their pets with them when they went off to war, that dogs provided the recruits with both companionship and a connection to the home front, and that cats, birds and goats, not to mention Old Abe, the eagle, served as mascots. Mules and horses, however, were the animals that bore the brunt of the war alongside the American soldiers fighting against each other in a devastating war that was to see the preservation of the Union and the end to the scourge of chattel slavery." -- Amazon.com.