Books and Stuff about Sniping

This section of the web page is here to give you my own personal reviews on books and other sniping related stuff that I have personally read or have experience with. We also have an affiliation with Amazon.com so we could link straight to the specific book on the Amazon site. For those of you so inclined to purchase, just click on the book image on the left. These reviews are personal reviews and may not reflect the same views as what more traditional book review writers may write, but they are what I personally feel about the book. I also try to relate how relavent the subject matter is to the topic of sniping.

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Books (06/10/2014)
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Books

view item	Hardin Hollow ~ D. Larry Patterson This novel is based on a fictitious female girl raised in the Deep South by her father who was a former US Army sniper that returned from Bosnia as a badly wounded war veteran. The story moves along following the young girl as she is raised by her single father and learns the art of sniping from him and then eventually has to avenge her father’s death and other misdeeds performed by some local miscreants. The plot is fairly simplistic with no major surprises or plot twists as it just moves along through the story. Be warned, the dialog among the bad guys is insanely profane and crass and while it may be accurate for the geographic area (I honestly do not know) it detracts from any positive aspects of the story and distracts from the plot line. Keep in mind, I spent a good amount of time in the military with its associated language and use of profanity, and the dialog and language in this book was enough to be a turn off and at times made it hard to read. If you do not think it would bother you and you are looking for a story where the good guy (or gal in this case) wins without trouble, then give it a shot.
view item	Shifty's War ~ Marcus Brotherton This is the authorized biography of Sergeant Darrell "Shifty" Powers whom most of you will probably recognize as the sharpshooter from the Band of Brothers HBO mini-series, itself based on the true account of Easy Company during WWII. The family of Sgt. Powers commissioned the author, Mr. Brotherton, to write the biography of Sgt. Powers. While "Shifty" was not a sniper in its strictest sense, he was a sharpshooter, having taken out a few German snipers through the conflict. He was regarded as the best marksman in Easy Company and operated in a similar role as a designate marksman today with his M1 Garand. This book was oddly written from the first person perspective as if it were Sgt. Powers memoirs, which it was not, and I probably would have preferred that it be written in the traditional third person perspective. Regardless, the book was a good read and provided some personal insight into what the 101st went through in WWII. The book was well researched and drew from many interviews with Sgt. Powers, who passed away a while ago, and while the book does not offer much in terms of sniper history or instruction, it is none the less a good book for us all to read to help remember what our greatest generation went through on the ground in Europe, and it does have the marksman twist as well.
view item	Into Hell's Fire ~ Douglas Cavanaugh This book is a bit different than most sniper related books we review here. Into Hell's Fire is a spy novel based in the former Yugoslavia during their devastating civil war in the early 1990's. We read it because the infamous 'Sniper's Alley' is mentioned, and plays a part, in the story. Unfortunately it was not an integral part of the story and as such sniping was not a central theme in the story, but rather played a minor part. While the book is a novel, it is a historical novel and a lot is learned about the region as well as how sniping played such a large role, though a devastatingly negative one, in the conflict. The story is decent with an enjoyable plot, though not an overly complex or deep one. The history is fascinating, but at the same time it is sad to see to what depths humanity can sink. By reading the book you will not learn much about sniping, but you will learn about the role that it played in the conflict, which itself can be a lesson in the psychological effect of sniping, and how to potentially counter it, as well. For a self published book, the editing was actually quiet good and it has a more professional feel than many other self published books that are out there.
view item	Team Reaper, 3rd Ranger Batt's Deadliest Sniper Team ~ Nicholas Irving This book is an autobiography written by Sergeant Irving that tells the story of his deployment to Afghanistan as a sniper team leader in the prestigious Third Ranger Battalion. The book is fairly fast paced and spends only a limited amount of pages on his life story and focuses more on the actual deployment and combat. There are a number of good stories with a good amount of detail to engage the reader and those stories give the reader an understanding of how a sniper team operates within a Ranger Battalion. The problem is that the book appears to be self published without an editor, and it shows. The only grammar correction appears to have come from the spell checker on the author’s computer as the grammar throughout the book is really bad. And that is coming from an infantry grunt that is not great at grammar himself (that would be your humble author)! Unfortunately it gives an amateur appearance and makes it difficult to take the book serious. In fact, just having a high school English teacher, or any college graduate read through the manuscript once would have made a significant improvement. The horrible grammar is unfortunate as the story is a good story to be told and could have been an entertaining read if the reader was not constantly trying to determine what word was really intended to be written. If you need another sniper book to add to the library, give it a try, else wait until someone does at least a minor edit on the book. Yes, we read the revised edition, which apparently only added another chapter to the book, itself riddled with grammatical errors, and did not revise or correct the grammar throughout the rest of the book.
view item	The Red Circle: My Life in the Navy SEAL Sniper Corps and How I Trained America's Deadliest Marksmen ~ Brandon Webb & John David Mann This book is an autobiography written by Brandon Webb about his life, including his time as a sniper for SEAL Team 3 as well as the head instructor at the SEAL Sniper School. The book starts off a bit slow with Mr. Webb providing a recount of his childhood and events that lead to his pursuing becoming a Navy SEAL and then eventually becoming a sniper. Some of the details drag on a bit and it is not until half way through the book before the reader learns about Mr. Webb becoming a sniper. Many of the parts leading up to that point are interesting on a personal stand point, but be aware that the book is not completely about sniping. The sniping parts are fairly vague but there is enough detail about various missions to provide a good understanding of how Special Operations snipers operate. It is good to see the non-glorified, yet perhaps more important, parts of sniping emphasized in the book. One part we particularly enjoyed is the telling of the passion that Mr. Webb has for teaching, especially teaching the art of sniping. It is good to see and hear that others love to teach as we do here. For those chapters alone it made the book worth reading here at Sniper Central. There is also a good message about sticking to your goals and overcoming obstacles, which is a good message to hear. The rest of the book is fine, but similar to many of the other books about recent snipers that are currently gracing the shelves of the book stores, but the teaching chapters and positive message is what made this book stand out versus the others.
view item	The Sniper Anthology: Snipers of the Second World War ~ 10 Authors This book is a compilation of 10 different histories and/or stories of 10 different snipers during World War 2. Each chapter is written by a different author about a sniper of their own choosing. It is similar to a compilation of short stories and each is true to varying degrees. Some of the authors are well known authors that have written other books about snipers and sniping such as Adrian Gilbert, Dan Mills, Martin Pegler as well as others. Some chapters and authors did a better job of research than others, or there was just more information available about their specific sniper. Buy overall there were a few stories that were interesting and new, though if you have read many other books about sniping during this time period, you will have heard about many of the snipers listed in the book such as Simo Hayha, Vasili Zaitsev, and others. Since each chapter is written by a different author, they each have a different feel to them and cover their subject in a different level of detail. Overall it was an interesting book with some new material and if you are interested in sniping during World Ward 2, than this is a good book to read. If you are looking for an in depth detailed history of the sniping activities during the war, this is probably not the book for you.
view item	Sniper Pocket Book ~ Frank Fletcher & Rupert Godesen This little book is a field guide that is designed to fit into the pocket and provide a quick reference for sniping skills. There are many sections including history, organization, marksmanship, fieldcraft, range-e and some interesting facts thrown in as well. The book is well written by someone with obvious experience and there are numerous illustrations and images to help explain the subject matter. The book also comes with a plastic protective cover to help preserve it in foul weather. The authors are British, which is not a bad thing since the UK sports some of the best snipers in the world. All-in-all the book provides a good amount of useful information about a wide variety of topics as it relates to snipers. Perhaps it is not an all-encompassing book that covers all aspects of an operational sniper, but it is a handy reference book to store in your pocket. We have the books for sale here at Sniper Central and they are also available at http://www.milpkbk.co.uk.
view item	Sniper Elite: The World of a Top Special Forces Marksman ~ Rob Maylor & Robert Macklin This book is a telling of the military career of Rob Maylor, first with the British Royal Marine Commandos and then with the Australian SAS. The book is a fast reading first hand account of Rob's career and how he deployed around the world serving tours in Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan. Rob went through several different sniper schools in both the UK and Australia and operated as a sniper on most of those tours. While the book does cover some of the exploits of his operations as a sniper, there are not a lot of detailed accounts of sniping, but it does give a good overview of how the modern day sniper is deployed and utilized. Of course things are a bit different in elite units such as the SAS so the deploying of snipers may be a bit different than conventional units. Overall the book is a good and easy read and gives another good account of life as a military member today and while you do not get a lot of details about sniping, there is enough to keep it interesting worth a read.
view item	Sniping in the Great War ~ Martin Pegler The First World War started nearly 100 years ago and as it moves further from our memories we tend to forget the magnitude of "The War to End all Wars". Martin Pegler does a very good job reminding us of just how prevalent sniping was during the great war and while historical records are somewhat lacking and hard to find, he has managed to piece together a good amount of historical information to outline the importance that sniping had during this war. In the book there is more information as it pertained to the U.K and her allies than that is provided for the Germans and their allies, but there is still some information on the German sniping program as well. There are many excerpts from the various journals and books written by the big names in sniping during that time and it is interesting to read about the problems and successes straight from their own writings. There are not a lot of detailed accounts of sniping stories, but there is enough to keep the book interesting and moving well. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the history of sniping, especially since WWI is regarded as the start of the modern era of sniping and many of the tactics, methods and equipment we use now were developed during WWI. Some of those things have evolved since then, but some of them have not. The book is well documented with many footnotes and while a bit slow at times, as history books can be, it is still worth the effort and the reader will be well rewarded with a wealth of historical information.
view item	Through the Crosshairs of a Scope ~ Bill Anthony Well, there are sometimes when I really have to force myself to finish a book. This was one of those times. While the back cover indicates this book is fiction, it is promoted as being a firsthand account of actual events; of course it has to be marked as fiction because it is classified. I can honestly say that based off of the countless number of incorrect facts and information and the recounting of impossible shots, that the book is indeed complete fiction. Unfortunately it is pretty bad fiction. This is the debut book from the author Bill Anthony, but that does not excuse the very simplistic writing style. It is also obvious that it is a self-published (print on demand) book with the absence of an editor as there is an extreme amount of grammatical and spellings errors, and this is coming from someone (myself) who will never claim to be adept at grammar! The accounts of the book supposedly take place from 1964-1966 and are written from the perspective of one of the members of a 4 man "special ops" team that did such things as insert hundreds of miles by foot to take out a radar station in Russia, or shoot several soldiers on the other side of the Berlin wall in broad daylight, shoot the pilot of a new Mig-15 from 800 yards, just as the aircraft is lifting off the runway, with one shot from an 8mm Mauser. etc. I hate to just talk about the negatives of a book, but I had a hard time finding any good aspects of the book to bring up, even taken as fiction, it was not entertaining. Based on all of the points mentioned, I cannot recommend this book.
view item	American Sniper ~ Chris Kyle with Scot McEwen and Jim DeFelice This book has received a lot publicity because of the fact that Chris Kyle is now the most lethal sniper in US Military History with 160 confirmed and 95+ unconfirmed kills. The book itself is an autobiography and is written from Mr. Kyle's perspective. An interesting part about the book is that there are paragraphs throughout the book written by his wife Taya and her perspective. The book flows well and while the author covers enough detail to know what is going on, there are not a lot of explicit details about the engagements, just some basic information about situations he found himself in. The book is a good look into the mind of some of our elite soldiers who have been in combat nonstop for 10 years now and you can see how the constant stress of combat can affect the psyche. The book covers some back ground history of Chris Kyle and how he was raised and how he got into the SEALs, etc. Throughout the book you can tell that the author was dedicated and loved God and country and how that even impacted his marriage. Again, there are not a lot of details about training or even details about equipment used, but a lot of that is restricted for operational security. At some point down the road it would be very interesting to get the "detailed" version of the story, but for now this book offers a good look into one of the best of the best and how sometimes it takes as much luck as it does skill to enter the annals of history. I recommend the book. (Warning: decent amount of ‘military’ language. Not recommended for the young)
view item	Seal Team Six: Memoirs of an Elite Navy SEAL Sniper ~ Howard E. Wasdin and Stephen Templin As the title of the book indicates this is the memoir of Howard Wasdin, who was a sniper in the elite Navy SEALs, and more specifically was a sniper for SEAL Team Six, their top tier counter terrorist team. The book is written in the first person perspective, as you would expect from a 'memoir' and it is fairly well written and enjoyable to read. You follow the author through his career and learn about his life before the SEALs as well. There is a decent amount about sniping included, both the good and the bad, the successes and the failures, though you will not find a lot of details about the sniping, just enough to keep sensitive information secure but it does provide enough detail to understand what is going on. The author served from the late 80's through the early 2000's where he suffered combat wounds and earned a Silver Star in Mogadishu, Somalia as part of the "Blackhawk Down" events. There are a few times when the book jumps between a narrative and more journal style of entries, but it does still flow smooth enough. The book also covers the depression and other personal trials that Mr. Wasdin suffered as a result of his wounds and stresses but ends with a very positive and uplifting conclusion. I would consider the book more about the experience and less about the details of a sniper and or life in the SEALs. The book is a good read though not extremely sniper oriented.
view item	Out of Nowhere ~ Martin Pegler The cover of this book indicates it is a history of the military sniper, from the sharpshooter to Afghanistan and in reality the author does a pretty good job of it. There is not a lot time spent on the history of the firearms which is a good change from most of the other "history of sniper" type of books and instead it does offer a lot of individual accounts of various snipers throughout the years, including some unique quotes and documented experiences from several centuries ago. This aspect of this book made it a good read with enough background information and history to provide the required knowledge, but not too much to make the book dry. This is the updated version of the book which includes an additional chapter involving the latest Middle East conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The only real complaint I have is that the author missed some fairly obvious details about the US equipment used which should of been caught before publishing, though the author and publishing company are based in the UK which probably explains the errors. Mr. Pegler is also a historian and as such does not himself provide insight to the life of a sniper but has approached it as a historian, providing an unbiased view, though perhaps missing some of the finer details that someone with experience may have presented. The progression of the book is nice, covering the major conflicts in the world over the past several centuries where snipers played a role. Overall this is a good book on the sniper role itself mixed with good personal quotes about the topic from actual snipers that have served in those conflicts.
view item	Jack Hinson's One-Man War, A Civil War Sniper ~ Tom McKenney This historical book takes you back to what would be considered the earliest days of sniping. Jack Hinson was a reluctant and older participant in the Civil war on the South side of the conflict. He wanted to remain neutral but the unfortunate slaying of two of his sons pushed him to take sides and he took up his one man sniping campaign along the Tennessee River. He is credited with over 30 kills at ranges in excess of 600 yards. The Author is a retired USMC Lt. Colonel who served in both Korea and Vietnam and is a historian who did extensive research into the Hinson story. With the author being from the South there did seem to be a certain bias toward the position of the South, though he does make an effort to present both sides to various events. There is not much detail on techniques or tactics beyond general conditions, especially for conducting such long range shots with early rifle technology. Lt. Col. McKenney also becomes quite descriptive and detailed in regards to other things such has personal feelings, smells, sounds, etc. in a way that not even the most detailed journal would include and those artistic liberties become a bit too much by the end of the book. Overall it does provide a very interesting look into not only a dramatic and somewhat tragic true story, but also a look into early sniping activities. There is a lot of background and build up provided before the actual one man war portion of the book begins, but this does provide some good historical information about that time in American history and in that particular theater of operations.
view item	Sniper: American Single-Shot Warriors in Iraq and Afghanistan ~ Gina Cavallaro and Matt Larsen This book is another compilation of actual stories from Snipers who have and are currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. The book is primarily written by Gina Cavallaro and she does a good job of narrating the individual sniper's stories mixed with their actual words. It is apparent that she has a good amount of experience writing these types of books and articles and I felt that both the authors did a good job of portraying the stories and snipers. It was not over the top and in some cases clearly showed the emotion and hardship that snipers and combat soldiers in general have to experience. While you will probably not learn anything new about snipers or sniper operations during these conflicts, it does provide a good overall look at sniper operations with both Infantry snipers in line units as well as Special Operations snipers. Not a bad read at all.
view item	Sniper Rifles: From the 19th to the 21st Century ~ Martin Pegler Compared to some of the other more in depth books covering the subject of Snipers and Sniper Rifles, this book is a little light and doesn't go into as much detail as those other books. But it does give a decent overview of the history and development of the sniper rifle over the years. Because it is not as in-depth it is a pretty quick read and the one thing I did like about the book is that there are some very nice high quality illustrations in the book that are original, some of them I would like to have as framed art. There is also a good amount of photos as well to compliment the text. Even though it is a light covering of the topic I did pick up one or two tidbits of history I did not know, though there were probably just as many errors and inaccurate pieces of information as well. Mr. Pegler is from the UK and there is a UK slant to the writing but if you are looking for a quick read about the history of sniper rifles to include developments in as recent as 2010, it will work and the price is right.
	In The Trenches 1914-1918 ~ Glenn R. Iriam NEW!! There are not many books written about sniping in World War I but there are a few such as 'A Rifleman Went To War'. This book is the memoirs of Frank Stanly Iriam who served with the Canadians on the front lines in W.W. I from 1914-1918. Frank spent nearly 4 years in the trenches operating as a scout, scout section leader and a sniper during that time. It is remarkable to think of spending that amount of time in some of the most inhumane conditions imaginable including being gassed several times. The book is a very personal account of his time in combat up until he was severely injured and removed from the front lines toward the end of the war. The account includes some personal confrontations with superior officers and there are times where you get a decent amount of complaining about various officers, but for the most part, the book is a good personal account of some intense fighting and trench warfare and it does provide an insight into how scout and sniping operations occurred during trench warfare, more so on the scouting. The amount of sniping details is limited, but there is enough to make it a worthwhile read. The books written in first person and are memoirs of Frank, so there are grammar oddities and other interesting wording that is a result of the period it was written. It has been nearly 100 years since W.W. I and the "great war" tends to be over shadowed by W.W.II, but this book brings some of the details to light and reminds you of just how bad the fighting conditions were. It is always amazing to see and hear of the fighting strength of young men that are fighting for a cause and this book is worth reading if you get the opportunity. This book is not available on Amazon.com as of yet, but here is a link to where you can purchase a copy Art Book Bindrey
view item	Red Sniper on the Eastern Front ~ Joseph Pilyushin Much like the book "Notes of a Russian Sniper" by Vassili Zaitsev, this book is the Memoirs of Joseph Pilyushin who was a sniper who fought from July of 1941 through Febuary of 1944 up at and around Leningrad. Pilyushin was not one of the top ranking snipers during the war, though 136 kills is very impressive, but his story is quite compelling and his writing style is much more personal. He does not actually talk in much detail about the details of the conflicts but does a good job of portraying the emotions and feelings. Pilyushin was older, 38 years of age, when he went to war so his perspective is quite a bit different than most memoirs you read. Of course, the great losses he suffered during the war would also change his outlook on the war; he lost his wife and one of his sons earlier in the war from artillery shelling, and then lost his other son later in the war, again to the shelling of the city Leningrad. Because of these losses, the accounts are more personal and emotional but there are still some good accounts of combat and the use of snipers during the battles on the Eastern front. The translation to English is not bad, but not as good as "Notes of a Russian Sniper". There are a few notes to help explain things as well as explain some corrections made from the original Russian version of the book that were inaccurate. All and all, it is a good read without the graphic detail and provides a better insight into the emotional perspective of an older soldier literally fighting to protect his home town.
view item	Notes of a Russian Sniper ~ Vassili Zaitsev This book is the one written by the legendary sniper Vassili Zaitsev many years ago and recently republished again. It was an interesting read from the perspective of Zaitsev himself and does provide a good account of his personal experiences. The translation was performed by several people and is very well done and there are a good number of foot notes explaining certain words and nuances of Russian culture that English speakers may not know. This also included some good information about Soviet military organization that I found helpful. The writing style from a half century ago is a different style than the war accounts you read now as you do not typically get the gory details. What you do get is a personal perspective of the Soviet mindset during WWII when their country was being over run by Germany. Having read several accounts from both sides of the war during the invasion of the Soviet Union, I can say that Zaitsev seems genuine in his feelings and recounting of his stories. There are some sketchy parts were the details are not enough to determine how authentic some stories may be, but for the most part it is a good personal account of Zaitsev's experiences and the experiences of Soviet snipers during the Battle of Stalingrad. As you might imagine, his own personal telling of his story is nothing like the movie "Enemy at the Gates" and more authentic and believable. For those looking for more details about the famous 'Duel' might be disappointed as the story is not overly detailed in his telling of the encounter and you may not learn anything new about it. All in all, I did find the book worth reading and a good learning tool.
view item	Trigger Men: Shadow Team, Spider-Man, the Magnificent Bastards, and the American Combat Sniper ~ Hans Halberstadt The author, Mr. Halberstadt, has done a pretty good job with this book compiling a series of true stories told by the people that experienced them. These stories are primarily from a year period in Iraq from several different units. There is also a few stories from other conflicts prior to Iraq as well as some information about the history of snipers and some details about the current sniper schools in the USMC and US Army. Over all the author is a bit over the top in terms of "rah rah snipers are the ultimate soldier" enthusiasm, but it does not detract too much from the down to earth telling of sniper operations by the actual snipers. It was a pretty good read and it does give a good feeling of how modern day sniper operations in a built up area go down and for that I recommend it as a good read.
view item	Sniper Ace: From the Eastern Front to Siberia ~ Bruno Sutkus This is not a typical book written by an accomplished author but rather more like a summary of the authors own sniper log book during WWII. The first half of the book covers Bruno Sutkus' fairly short but active combat time on the Eastern Front as a sniper. There is some information about the German Sniper school and other very interesting historical information about the German Sniper program during the war. It does read like a log book and actually has many log entries from his 209 confirmed kills including many photos from his log book as well as letters and commendations. For these reasons the book is worth reading, though it is a bit slow in the 2nd half of the book which covers his time spent in Siberia after the war and up until he finally gets back to his native land. I did find some parts of the book a bit troubling about his involvement as part of the Hitler Youth organization and the fact that it does not appear that he recognizes any wrong doing on the part of Germany during WWII, but there are not many comments about these subjects and if the book is treated as a soldier's After Action Report (AAR), it does have some good information.
view item	Silent Warrior: The Marine Sniper's Vietnam Story Continues ~ Charles Henderson This book is an add on to the the book that introduced the world to Carlos Hathcock, Marine Sniper, way back in the mid 1980's. This book contains much of the several hundred pages that were removed from the original manuscript of the Marine Sniper book as well as some additional information from the later years of Gunny Hathcock's life and I especially enjoyed the additional chapter on John Burke as well, it was well worth it. It was also nice to get some more information and details about some of the events but there is a decent amount of "literary license" where Mr Henderson filled in what various people may have been thinking or doing, including Gunny Hathcock at the end of his life. He admits in his forward that he had done so, so it is not a huge deal. The book is fairly scattered and covers a broad amount of events and I would not recommend this book until after you have read the original. Preferably this one right after the first. It is a pretty good addendum to the original and does provide some further insight into the legendary Marine and Sniper.
view item	Long Rifle: A Sniper's Story in Iraq and Afghanistan ~ Joe LeBleu Well, this was a fairly interesting book but I did not find it as enjoyable as others on the subject and certainly not very in depth. It tended to be a shallow covering of a sniper's (LeBleu) experience in Iraq and a very brief mentioning of a little of LeBleu's experiences from a tour in Afghanistan. Neither experience was very intriguing or many details covered and the author seemed quite "confident" in his decisions and knowledge on various non sniping subject matters including politics. The read was fine, just not one I particularly enjoyed compared to other offerings from other authors in the same type of situations. There are not many sniping details covered so the read is more of a personal opinion type of book from the first person perspective. Enjoy it for what it is, just don't expect a detailed telling of sniping engagements and be prepared to wade through a lot of opinions on various subject matters.
view item	Sniper One: On Scope and under Siege with a Sniper Team in Iraq ~ Sgt. Dan Mills Wow! This has been one of the most enjoyable books to read on the subject of sniping in Iraq. Sgt. Mills was a Platoon Sgt in charge of a Sniper Platoon in the U.K. military (1st Battalion, Prince of Wales Regiment), over in Iraq in 2004. Sgt. Mills has a good writing style which makes it easy to read but what makes the book so good is the descriptions of the way of life of the modern sniper and soldier during combat. It is also an excellent illustration of how the modern day sniper integrates and operates with an infantry battalion. There are many times when the snipers are on patrol with standard battle rifles, SA80's in this case, and operating in a infantryman role, and then other times they have their sniper rifles, L96A1's, operating in a traditional sniper role. I think this is far more common then perhaps sniper teams would like to admit but shows the true versatility of the modern sniper. There are some very good stories and incidents in the book and you find yourself caught up in the same emotions as the participants. All in all, a great choice for a good read without much political thoughts... just soldiers doing their duty the best that they can.
view item	Backshot: Starfist: Force Recon, Book 1 ~ David Sherman & Dan Cragg This book is a little different from what we typically read and review for this page in that it is a science fiction novel. Looking for an easy Sci-Fi read I picked up this book because of the military theme and hoping to find a good series to read in the future. It turns out this book, number one in what appears to be a long series, has a very heavy sniping theme, based several hundred years in the future. I liked the authors' ideas on the future of military and infantry technology, especially in regards to Force Recon as well as sniping and how it would still play an integral role on the battlefield. It is a fun read that has sniping elements, and for that it was exactly what I was looking for in this type of book. Both the authors are ex-military so they get the protocol right as well as some of the inter service rivalries and those feelings. All in all, a good sci-fi read if that is what you are looking for.
view item	Ronin: A Marine Scout/Sniper Platoon in Iraq ~ Mike Tucker Ronin, unfortunately, is a true tale of a sniper platoon in the USMC that fell under the command of a commander who did not know how to properly utilize his Scout Sniper platoon. The author, Mr. Mike Tucker, was attached to this sniper platoon for about a 6-7 month time period and he relays interview information in the book. It is written in an odd format with most of the book composing of various interviews and after a while you get the feeling it is almost like a gripe session. But it appears (remembering that every story has two sides of which we only hear one side in this book) that it was justified frustration. There is not a lot of actual sniping experiences relayed in the book but it does outline and show the problems that can develop when a commander does not know how to properly utilize snipers and scouts and what will happen if soldiers loose trust in their commanders. If you are looking for a book with sniping experiences in it, this book is not for you, if you are interested in examining the various psychological effects of stress induced on combatants and the failure of leadership and the troops working together, this book offers a lot of insight.
view item	Hogs in the Shadows: Combat Stories from Marine Snipers in Iraq ~ Milo S. Afong I will have to say that I was quite impressed with this book. Sgt. Afong did a very good job relating a good all around assortment of stories of combat snipers over in Iraq. What possibly made the book so good is that the author, Sgt. Afong, served as a Sniper over in Iraq which allows him to tell the story in a different manner than the typical author who only interviews those that were there. Though Sgt Afong was there and writes the book, there was only a single fairly simple chapter relating to his story. The rest of the chapters were personal accounts about various other Snipers that served within the USMC in the same areas during 2004-2005. There are possibly a few over the top hurrah moments in the story telling but for the most part it is down to earth and there are some good tidbits to be gained from reading the book in regards to sniping in the sort of environment snipers find themselves in over in Iraq. Sgt. Afong has a straight forward writing style that is easy to read and as a whole the book was a nice change of pace from some of the self promoting or profiteering combat story telling that has become popular today.
view item	Sniper, A History of the US Marksman ~ Martin Pegler Well, perhaps a more appropriate title for the book might just be "A History of the US Marksman" as there is more history about the early development of the rifle and its use in combat than there really is about Sniping and/or Snipers. Perhaps it is just because I have read so many books about sniping that I have just read about the history of the musket and rifle development too many times and it has grown old, but I would probably prefer to see this information left out of books supposedly about the history of sniping. The development of the ball and cap just is not entirely relevant to the history of US Sniping. Descriptions of equipment used by the early marksman is one thing, but a full dissertation about the development of the various ignition systems is a bit out of place in a book titled "Sniper", I would prefer to have read more history about the marksmen themselves and training. Still, there is some good information about some of the various conflicts that US Snipers were involved in, there was just not as much detail and information as there was about the development and history of the rifle.
view item	13 Cent Killers, The 5th Marine Snipers in Vietnam ~ John J. Culbertson This book is written by a 5th Marine Sniper veteran from Vietnam which is both good and bad. The good part is that it is coming from someone who was there and is the real deal, and for that alone the book is probably worth reading. But I will be honest and say that the book is more a culmination of unrelated short stories, or experiences, of the 5th Marine Snipers in late 1966 and early 1967, and is not a historical account. It can be difficult to follow as the stories are not necessarily in chronological order and typically do not relate to each other from one chapter to the next. The writing is not the greatest as there are a few too many "... the enemy's head exploded like a smashed pumpkin" references as well as some odd inconsistencies like referring to the 173gr bullet and then in another chapter referring to it as a 168gr bullet, without any sort of explaining of why they may have been using 168's (I don't believe they ever did). Beyond that, the separate stories/chapters are good for giving an account of what it was like to be a combat sniper on the Vietnam battlefield and Mr. Culbertson certainly deserves credit for sharing the experiences of the 5th Marine Snipers, and for that, despite the books shortcomings, it is worth the read.
view item	Illustrated Manual of Sniper Skills ~ Mark Spicer I will say right off the bat that I really enjoyed this book. Mark Spicer is an experienced sniper with the UK military and this book itself is different in that it is not the same sniping manual that you see now a days, but instead it is a book outlining things learned from both good schools as well as real world experience. The subject matter is more along the lines of advanced knowledge and covers some very good topics. I especially appreciated the section about mountain sniping since I am here in Western Montana and I have already tried several of the ideas mentioned in the book that are not typically taught in any of the US schools. A lot of the mountain section comes from the German Alpine Sniper school that Spicer attended. The other wonderful part about the book is the photos, there are a lot, and they are very good. Real world photos as well as training. With the author being from the UK, there is a European influence to the book which again is nice to have a different perspective on things. All and all, I recommend this book.
view item	Snipers: Stalkers and Shooters - A History of Snipers ~ Kevin Dockery This book is a different read than your typical book about sniping, as the first half of the book takes you through the very early development of sniping tactics starting with the Long Bow in the medieval period up through modern sniping in Iraq and the history of Law Enforcement sniping. The second half of the book is personal biographies of some current military and law enforcement snipers written by their own hand, as well as a few industry professionals. The historical part was interesting but it seemed to have more details and information on the very old weapons and tactics then it did with the development of the modern day sniper and tactics today. There were a few things that were not quite right but for the most part it did have a good amount of little facts you don't see in most of the other books. The Biographies were okay, especially the military ones, though some of them drug on a bit and were perhaps a bit repetitive. Overall the book did offer some interesting facts I did not know before and the biographies, while seeming a bit out of place and almost like a separate book, offers some personal connection to the snipers themselves as men.
view item	Octopussy and The Living Daylights ~ Ian Fleming We all know who James Bond is from the movies, but the reality is the original books written by Ian Fleming are considerably more realistic and in my opinion more enjoyable. This was actually the first of the James Bond books I have read and I now plan to read more. The reason I read this book was because I heard that "The Living Daylights" was about sniping and worth the read. This book is actually a compilation of 4 short stories about James Bond, of which "The Living Daylights" is the one we care about, though the other three are good as well. If you recall the movie of the same title, there is a scene when 007 uses a Walther WA2000, the entire story is about the preparation of and the taking of that particular shot taken in the movie. The details of the sniping incident are fairly accurate, though there are some tactical flaws in Bonds sniping techniques. It is apparent that Ian Fleming did some good research leading up to the writing of this story, but back in the late 50's and early 1960's the tactics were not as developed as they are today and Mr. Fleming missed a few obvious flaws, but still it is an entertaining read and nice to see an entire short story dedicated sniping. I enjoyed it.
view item	Snipers: Profiles of the World's Deadlist Killers ~ Craig Cabell and Richard Brown This book takes a different look at snipers and sniping. While there is a brief history of sniping and some facts and tidbits sprinkled throughout the book, it really focuses on a few historical snipers and their shots. The book is written by two authors that really have no experience in sniping and it shows in various spots with some of their comments and opinions, and in some places it does distract from the book as there are some things that are just way off base. But it is a different take from the standard sniper book that seems to be rubber stamped into publication as of late. It has no real info about tactics or techniques and a brief and not very detailed section about equipment, but that was not the focus of the book. If you would like to read about some interesting historical snipers, good and bad, and some 3rd party insight into what "might" have happened in cases like the JFK assassination, then this book is worth the read.
view item	Sniper on the Eastern Front ~ Albrecht Wacker This book also bears the title "The Memoirs of Sepp Allerberger". Sepp is a fictional name given to an actual sniper to protect his identity. The book is the Memoirs of Sepp who joined as a young man just in time to be a part of the German withdrawal from Russia and up to its defeat in Germany. He became a sniper soon after he joined and survived the remainder of the war becoming the 2nd highest scoring sniper in his Theater of operation and was awarded the Knights Cross. The book is an okay read with a few good and interesting photos, but there is a lot of focus on the brutality of the Russians during the war with numerous accounts of prisoner brutality, though only minor mention of the German's equally brutal treatment of captured Russians. The insight and recounts of the battles are interesting especially to see how a sniper operated in a war of losing ground. But the frequent and very descriptive telling of gruesome scenes detracts some from the book. Yes, tell how the soldier caught a snipers bullet in the head, but do we really need to know the details of how the skull shattered and where all of the fleshy tissue ended up? What otherwise is a very unique story and experience worth telling of an Eastern Front sniper is sidetracked by unnecessary gruesome details of little importance.
view item	A Rifleman Went to War ~ H.W. McBride Henry McBride is one of the forefathers to modern sniping in the US Military. This book is a real treat and a book that everyone with military interest should read. It is a first hand account of his own experiences during W.W.I. Henry did not think the USA was getting into the war fast enough so he went North in 1915 to join the Canadians and headed over to France. The book is an enjoyable read and written in a free spirited manner that I enjoyed. H.W. is not overly dramatic or over zealous in his recounts of the war, he just matter-of-factly explains how it was. It is quite amazing how much of what he says is still true nearly 100 years later. H.W. was mostly a machine gunner during his two years of fighting in the war but he did operate as a sniper for several months during trench warfare, and there are a few chapters about it. His big agenda for the book is to emphasize the importance of rifle marksmanship and the individual infantryman, and yes, that is still the same 90+ years later.
view item	One Shot - One Kill ~ Charles W. Sasser and Craig Roberts This book has been around for a while and includes many real accounts about combat sniping as told by the men pulling the trigger. There are stories from many of the major conflicts in the past 75 years and overall is a good read. It may not be overly great reading and some of the facts may be sketchy based on memory, but the various stories do provide a good overall view of combat sniping.
	Spirit of a Sniper ~ Bill Russell This book is an interesting and entertaining read. The book is published in limited release and is available via direct contact. The book is based on the actual events of a South African sniper in WWII, as written by the subject himself. It is a bit odd in that it is written in the third person, which makes it read more like a novel than historical non-fiction. It is obvious in spots that some content was created to fill in the story, and it may be hard to determine fact from fiction. But that does not detract too much from the book itself. The book is interesting in both its sniping content, which is detailed and appears mostly accurate, and in the history of the South African military involvement in the various African and European campaigns. The Zulu influences are strong throughout the book, but not too much to cause a major distraction and it does offer additional insight to the culture of South Africa. I enjoyed learning about another part of the world and how they employed their snipers, even if history was enhanced by literary freedoms. If you are interested in reading it, you can contact Hendrik van der Schyff via email to order a copy, currently its $15 USD.
	Sniping Pamphlet No.28 Nigel Greenaway is reproducing this excellent sniper manual used by U.K. snipers. Its an excellent reprint of the 1946 No. 28 Pamphlet (U.K. military manual). There is a lot of information contained within the manual, and while its not nearly as in-depth or as long as FM23-10, it still contains a large amount of useful data. The information is more of a practical field nature, not so much of a technical nature. I found the tidbits and pointers that are in the manual are still very much useful today. There is more information about field craft then marksmanship, but that has always meen the specialty of the U.K. snipers. I found the manual excellent, and a valued addition to any library for both its historic value, and the information contained within. The cost is $25 USD or £15 sterling (cash only). Email Nigel Greenaway if interested in purchasing the manual.
view item	White Feather ~ Roy and Norm Chandler When I first heard about the new book about Carlos Hathcock several years ago, I feared that it would be a direct slam against the book by Charles Hendserson, I have been pleasantly surprised, as there is even a section in this book that praises the book by Henderson, very classy. This book is very in depth look into the life of the late Carlos Hathcock II, not just his war time exploits, but his entire life, including such things as his successful competition shooting and many other accomplishments. There are a lot of photos and copies of historical documents. This book is a great historical source of information and I strongly recommend it. Click on the image of the book to be taken to the Iron Brigade Armory site to purchase the book.
view item	Marine Sniper: 93 Confirmed Kills ~ Charles Henderson, E. J. Land This is the book that starts the interest for most people. It is about Carlos Hathcock, mostly about his exploits in Vietnam, but also with some insite into his childhood and post war experiences. Its great reading, and it makes you appreciate just exactly how much Gunny Hathcock did. The book is highly recommended.
view item	Sniper One on One : The World of Combat Sniping ~ Adrian Gilbert This series of books by Adrian Gilbert are a very good look into sniping, and its history. There is no actual tactics or how to information involved, its more about the actual use of sniping and their historical role in combat. Very very interesting reading.
view item	Stalk and Kill : The Sniper Experience ~ Adrian Gilbert Another book in the series by Adrian Gilbert. This one is focused more toward the actual experiences of the sniper, in a wide variety of conflicts. Once again it is more of a history book, but not a historical reference. He gathers a lot of first hand accounts and presents it in a tasteful way.
view item	Sniper : The Skills, the Weapons, and the Experiences ~ Adrian Gilbert This book goes more into the the technical side of sniping, and the developement history of the training, equipment, and tactics of sniping. It also goes into the impact of modern eletronics and other devices on sniping. This series of books by Adrian Gilbert covers about all the aspects of sniping, and does a pretty good job.
view item	The Ultimate Sniper : An Advanced Training Manual for Military and Police Snipers ~ John L. Plaster This is one of the more popular technical manual, and it has a ton of information. The book takes you from ground zero and works from there. It covers most of the aspects about being a sniper, from choosing your weapon, to ballistics, to special sniping applications. I personally think the book has a lot of fluff, but makes a good beginners manual.
view item	Sniper Training : Fm 23-10 Well, here it is in all its glory. This is the Field Manual that the US Army uses for its training. Since I am US Army trained, I'm very framiliar with this book, and it covers all the aspects of sniper training. The Army (at least instructors at the Sniper School) has come out with an adendum about sniper employment, but I doubt its included with the copy you buy from amazon. Keep in mind that this is an Army field manual, it is not written for the general public, so its not a good "reading" book. Its just stuffed full of useful info.
view item	U.S. Army Special Operations Target Interdiction Course : Sniper Training and Employment Well, here is the "other" army sniper training manual. The Special Operations Target Interdiction Course (SOTIC) has actually been around longer then the standard US Army sniper school. Once again, this is a US Army training manual, and isn't the best "reading" but its packed full of info.
view item	U. S. Marine Corps Scout/Sniper Training Manual This is a collection of lesson outlines that are used to teach the blocks or instruction at the USMC scout/sniper school. The information is dated (I believe 1979) and is in a odd format (that of a lesson outline). There is some valuable information, but it takes some digging in a clumsy format to retrieve, never the less, it is there. Obviously some of the equipment covered is no longer in use, like the redfield scopes.
view item	U.S. Marine Corps Scout-Sniper : World War II and Korea ~ Peter R. Senich Peter Senich is one of the big name history guys when it comes to sniping. His books are loaded with historical pics and copies of documents. The books are purely historical reference, and contain very little narrative or discriptions, but that is what the books are suppose to be. This one is about the USMC sniper program and equipment during WWII and Korea.
view item	German Sniper : 1914-1945 ~ Peter R. Senich Here is another of Peter Senich's books, this one deals with the German snipers during both the World Wars. Contains a whole ton of pics of all the german rifles and optics used during that time period. Its a must of those history buffs out there.
view item view item	The Master Sniper and Point of Impact ~ Stephen Hunter Okay, well, they are novels, they are about sniping, and they are entertaining reading. Don't take them much beyond that. Not everything is accurate, but they do a better job then most movies out there. Enjoy the books for what they are.
view item	The War of the Rats ~ David L. Robbins This book is historical fiction about the legendary sniper duel between Zaitsev and Thorwald during the battle of Stalingrad. There is a love story mixed in, which kind of hurts the overall story of the book, but the book has a lot of historical accuracy mixed with fiction, and offers some good entertainment along with historical data that allows you to learn some history at the same time.
view item	Dead Center ~ Ed Kugler Ed wrote a good book here. It was about his two years spent in vietnam as a USMC Scout Sniper. Ed's time in country was not spent as a traditional sniper, but more as a small unit hit and run tactics. There are certainly times when him and his teammates used their sniping skills, just not as much as some might think. I actually think Ed's experience is more in line with most soldiers who spent time as an operational sniper. I enjoyed reading the book, and recommend it.
view item	Dear Mom : A Sniper's Vietnam ~ Joseph T. Ward J.T. was an accomplished sniper in vietnam, and this is his story, based around his letters he sent home to his mother. The book has some good stories about JT's experiences, and it reads ok. I didn't find it as good as some of the others, but its worth reading. Plus, it has the destinction of being the book that exposed Charles B. Mawhinney to the spot light.

Software

view item	Sniper Elite ~ Namco Sniper Elite is a pure sniper game, but, it is a sniper game for the general public, so it is not a simulator and is very dumbed down. But it does have things like ballistics that most games with snipers in them do not. The game is scripted missions with not a whole lot of freedom to do various things, and a long shot is about 150 meters. So, if you are looking for a good sniper simulator, this is not going to satisfy you. But, it is entertaining and is a pure sniper game.
view item	Rainbow 6 Gold ~ Red Storm Entertainment Okay, well, I like games also! A few things, Rainbow 6 is a great game, but it has its limitations. The fact that ballistics are not modeled is the biggest draw back. While Rainbow 6 doesn't model snipers exactly, there are areas that where a simu-snipers can be used. Especially if you play the excellent multi-player games.
view item	Rainbow 6 : Rogue Spear ~ Red Storm Entertainment This is the sequel to Rainbow 6, and it actually models snipers, giving them special deploy positions in the planning phases, and some other capabilities. It actually has a couple of sniper rifles. (PSG-1, SVD, M82A1???, and the Walther WA2000). The game also sports other updates to the original R6, but still no ballistics modeling.
view item	Ghost Recon ~ Red Storm Entertainment Well, here is the next in the line from Red Storm. This is a more "military" based game then the Rainbow 6 family. The maps are more wide open, and there is more of a focus on squad based tactics. In regards to sniping, its probably the best yet. Ballistics have been modeled on a very limited scale, but better then before. There is also ghillie suits and the ability to go prone. The multiplayer games are much more slow and not nearly as fast pace shoot'em up, which can be good for some, but boring for others. The single player game is lots of fun.
view item	Delta Force Land Warrior ~ Nova Logic Okay, okay! Enough already! I've had so many requests and mention of the DF series of games I decided to put it up. I have never been a real fan of the DF games, they are just too arcadish for me, the realism just isn't up to the level of the R6 games. BUT, DF does indeed model ballistics a lot better then R6. There is a huge following for this game, so a lot of people obviously do not feel the same as me. To be honest, I have not played this one multiplayer, it "might" be better then the single player.
view item	Hitman & Hitman 2 ~ Eidos New!! 11/22/02 Here are some games that portray the "darker" side of the art of sniping. While its a game, I do not recommend these games for anyone who is not mature. These games portray the criminal life of assination. For a single player games, they do a great job of creating the sense of survival and sneak and peak. They are not just shoot'em up games, you have to actually think and plan. The orginal Hitman was revolutionary, but the newly released Hitman2 is more "evolutionary" and some think it didn't live up to the hype. Either way, the games are fun and an interesting twist on the sniping profession (and one I do not support in the "real world").
view item	Operation Flashpoint ~ Code Masters New!! 11/22/02 Operation Flashpoint is another first person shooter, but on a grand scale. Not only is there some sniping involved, but there are tanks, aircraft, and other vehicles to operate. Flashpoint actually made an effort to portray ballistics and likewise offers more realism. Of course, its not totally accurate but is at least better then then "laser" rifles most all FPS. Everything in Flashpoint is BIG, landscape and all. Overall, its not a bad play, though sniping takes a very limited role.

Videos & DVDs

Click on the above image to search amazon.com for all sniper related Videos and DVDs.

view item	Enemy at the Gates (Added 08/15/01) This is the most recent "sniper" movie, it was released in early 2001 and was fairly successful. It attempts to recreate the historical duel between Konings/Thorvald and Zaitsev. The movie is okay as a movie, but I was not too happy with it. They missed a good opportunity to portray snipers in a better light, and to really show some good sniping scenes, but they didn't. I didn't like that every shot was a head shot, the ending was completely screwed up (the real one was better), and that there were several inconsistencies. But hey, its entertainment I guess, and probably worth watching.
view item	Carlos Hathcock:Marine Sniper To be honest, the quality of the video is pretty bad, its pretty much just a home video camera recording an interview with Carlos Hathcock. The saving grace is Carlos himself, as he relates a lot of personal experiences and some other insites.
view item	Ultimate Sniper This video is intended to go along with Col. Plasters "Ultimate Sniper" book, but I didn't find the video very useful. In fact, it was pretty disappointing. I don't know if I'm expecting too much, but the video was all fluff, and only skirted on important issues. There could have been a time limitation, but it just didn't seem to have much focus, and showed just about enough to get someone in trouble.
view item	Sniper Well, here is the one full length movie that is all about a sniper(s). Unfortunately they really blew the technical side of sniping. There is not enough room on this page to write all the things they got wrong in the movie. But I will give it one thing, its entertaining. If you go into it with an effort not to criticize everything about the sniping art, then it'll probably be entertaining to you.

Useful Field Gear

If you have any other media you would like me to check out and post a review, please email me!

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