Simons, Anna. The Company They Keep: Inside the U.S. Army Special Forces. New York: Free Press, 1997. New York: Avon Books, 1998. [pb]
Seamon, Proceedings, Jun. 1997, calls this the "definitive study of an often misunderstood branch of the U.S. Army.... For the dirty little wars that now seem inevitable, if and when the United States becomes involved, says Dr. Simons, the most potent weapon in our arsenal will be the Special Forces."
For Gole, Parameters, Spring 1999, The Company They Keep is "a very insightful book useful to anyone who would understand SF [Special Forces] as it really is.... The excellent and comprehensive sketch of the big picture drawn by the author familiarizes the reader with the totality of Special Forces, but she is particularly deft in penetrating the A-Team to reveal what makes it tick."
Simpson, Charles M., III. Inside the Green Berets: The First Thirty Years. Novato, CA: Presidio, 1984.
Stanton, Shelby L.
1. Green Berets at War: U.S. Army Special Forces in Southeast Asia, 1956-1975. Novato, CA: Presidio, 1985. New York: Dell, 1995. [pb]
Surveillant 4.4/5 notes that the book includes an "excellent treatment of the problems attendant on the transformation of early SF [Special Forces] activity in Southeast Asia under CIA and U.S. Army auspices to a mainly U.S. Army responsibility in 1963."
2.. Rangers at War: Combat Recon in Vietnam. New York: Crown/Orion Books, 1992.
Surveillant 2.4: This is the story of Long-Range Reconnaissance Patrols (LRRPs), "mainly used for intelligence missions and small-scale raids," in Vietnam.
3. Special Forces at War: An Illustrated History, Southeast Asia 1957-1975. Charlottesville, VA: Howell Press, 1990. [Gibish]
Sutherland, Ian D.W. [LTCOL/USA (Ret.)] Special Forces of the United States Army. San Jose, CA: R. James Bender, 1990.
Yang, FILS 12.4, notes that the author sees the Green Berets as part of the legacy of OSS. The book "briefly traces the illustrious career of Colonel [Aaron] Bank [USA (Ret.)].... OSS...[had] a profound influence on the doctrinal, institutional, and organizational makeup of today's S[pecial] F[orces].... SF has yet to overcome institutional misconceptions and prejudices within the U.S. Army.... Special Forces can be considered the unofficial SF 'bible.' While the book may well be the best overall publication on SF, it is not without some minor faults.... Despite its authenticity, thorough discussion, and extensive bibliography, the book contains no citations."
Thompson, Leroy.
1. Badges and Insignia of the Elite Forces. London: Arms and Armour, 1991.
Gibish notes that U.S. forces are covered on pages 14-33.
2. The Illustrated History of the U.S. Army Special Forces. Secaucus, NJ: Citadel Press, 1987. [Gibish]
3. The Rescuers: The World's Top Anti-Terrorist Units. Boulder, CO: Paladin, 1986. [Wilcox]
4. The U.S. Army in Vietnam. Newton Abbot, UK: David & Charles, 1990.
Gibish notes that Special Operations Forces are covered on pages 95-125.
Time-Life Books. Editors.
Commando Operations. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1991.
Time-Life Books. Editors.
Special Forces and Missions -- The New Face of War. Alexandria, VA:
Time-Life Books, 1990.
Von Hassell, Agostino. Strike Force: U.S. Marine Corps Special Operations. Charlottesville, VA: Howell Press, 1991. 1992. [pb] Staplehurst, UK: Spellmount, 1999.
Walker, Greg. At
the Hurricane's Eye: U.S. Special Forces from Vietnam to Desert Storm. New York: Ballantine Books, 1993. New York: Ivy Books, 1994.
Waller, Douglas C.
The Commandos: The Inside Story of America's Secret Soldiers. New
York: Simon & Schuster, 1994.
For Surveillant 3.6, this is an "excellent review of the role of Special Forces." The author "insists that the Special Forces are too politically sensitive to be left in the military's hands.... Highly recommended." McCombie, Parameters, Autumn 1995, says that Waller's is "a creditable and timely account of the training and employment" of special operations forces. The author provides chapters on "Army Special Forces, Navy SEALs, 20th Special Operations Squadron, and the Delta Force."
Walsh, Michael J. [LTCOM/USN (Ret.)], and Greg Walker. Seal! From Vietnam's Phoenix Program to Central America's Drug Wars: Twenty-Six Years with a Special Operations Warrior. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994. New York: Pocket, 1995. [pb]
From back cover: "This is the extraordinary story of Lt. Cmdr. Michael J. Walsh, a veteran of twenty-six years of combat with the Navy's ... SEALs." Merrill, www.milmag.com, notes that Walsh served five tours in Vietnam and "in several other countries, including Panama, Bolivia, Ecuador, Grenada and Lebanon. His duties in these countries involved training, intelligence, surveillance and some combat operations in Panama and Grenada."
White, Terry. Swords
of Lightening: Special Forces and the Changing Face of Warfare. London:
Brassey's, 1992.
FILS 12.2: "'Special forces and Intelligence are inter-dependent'... (p. 99) [The author] emphasizes elite military units over the generally more secretive foreign intelligence services.... [The work is an] informative, comprehensive, and contemporary overview."
Williamson, Charles
A. "Special Operations Intelligence." American Intelligence
Journal 11, no. 3 (1990): 15-17.
Wilson, George C. "The
Quiet Capabilities of Special Operations Forces Are Tailormade for This
Era." In Almanac of Seapower, 1994, 56-63. Arlington, VA: Navy
League of the United States, 1994.
Worthington, George
[RADM/USN (Ret)]. "Whither Naval Special Warfare?" U.S. Naval
Institute Proceedings 122, no. 1 (Jan. 1996): 61-63.
"After more than a decade of revitalization, how will [special operations forces] be employed?" Worthington expresses particular concern that past SOF experience will be standardized into rigid doctrine, while it is unconventionality that is really the point of SOFs.
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