Audiobooks narrated by Chris Monteiro

Praxis Tacticum: The Art, Science and Practice of Military Tactics

Pundits have long predicted the end of conventional warfare but for the foreseeable future, it is here to stay. Counterinsurgency, guerrilla warfare, terrorism, peace enforcement, policing. All these forms, like conventional warfare, are as old as mankind. Modern militaries claim to be professional bodies, responsible for the education, control, and discipline of their members. But at least one aspect of this claim is poorly executed: tactics are not taught to junior leaders, which is why this guide is essential for all junior leaders, officers, and NCOs alike. There is a military adage that there is no teacher like the enemy. True; but the wise commander prepares to meet that enemy and become their teacher instead. This is your essential study guide.

Colonel Charles S. Oliviero (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

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Desert Armour: Tank Warfare in North Africa: Beda Fomm to Operation Crusader, 1940-41

Robert Forczyk covers the development of armored warfare in North Africa from the earliest Anglo-Italian engagements in 1940 to the British victory over the German Afrikakorps in Operation Crusader in 1941. The war in the North African desert was pure mechanized warfare, and in many respects the most technologically advanced theatre of World War II. It was also the only theatre where for three years British and Commonwealth, and later United States, troops were in constant contact with Axis forces. World War II bestselling author Robert Forczyk explores the first half of the history of the campaign, from the initial Italian offensive and the arrival of Rommel's Panzergruppe Afrika to the British Operation Crusader offensive that led to the relief of Tobruk. He examines the armored forces, equipment, doctrine, training, logistics and operations employed by both Allied and Axis forces throughout the period, focusing especially on the brigade and regimental level of operations. Desert Armour goes back to the sources to provide a new study of armored warfare in the desert.

Robert Forczyk (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

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Hard Aground: The Wreck of the USS Tennessee and the Rise of the US Navy

Hard Aground brings together three intertwined stories documenting the US Navy's strategic and materiel evolution from the end of Civil War through the First World War. The first story focuses on the reconstruction of the US Navy following the swift and near-total dismantling of the Union Navy infrastructure after the Civil War. Jampoler argues that the federal government discovered that the fleet requested by the navy, and paid for by Congress, was the wrong fleet. The second story relates the short, tragic life of the USS Tennessee. The USS Tennessee was ordered on two unusual missions in the early months of the First World War, long before the United States formally entered the war. These little-known missions and the ship's shocking destruction in a storm surge in the Caribbean serve as the centerpiece of the story. Jampoler rounds out this fascinating account with the story of how the USS Tennessee's destruction prompted fierce deliberations about the US Navy's operations and chains of command for the remainder of the First World War and the high-level political wrangling inside the Department of the Navy immediately after the war.

Andrew C. A. Jampoler (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

Audiobook

Normandy to Nazi Surrender: Firsthand Account of a P-47 Thunderbolt Pilot

The late Van Slayden trained on the PT-3 kite-like biplane in 1937, but he learned fighter pilot operations flying 'by the seat of his pants,' walking away from five crashes. Shortly after the invasion of Normandy, he landed on Utah Beach to help establish a US Army Air Forces' (AAF's) presence in Europe. He flew the P-47 Thunderbolt, a fighter-bomber, in combat over Northern France and commanded the 36th Fighter Group-the 'Fightin' 36th-at Batogne, St. Vith, the Bridgehead at Remagen, Operations Grenade, Clarion, Varsity and other missions. His 22nd Fighter Squadron was the first in the AAF to land voluntarily on German soil. He was deep into Germany when the Nazis surrendered on May 8, 1945, which was remarkably anticlimactic. Van Slayden, a country boy from rural Tennessee, like so many of his contemporaries, stepped up to the challenge as part of the Greatest Generation.

Colonel Van H. Slayden, Patrecia Slayden Hollis (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

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The Flying Grunt: The Story of Lieutenant General Richard E. Carey, United States Marine Corps (Ret)

Richard Edward Carey came from a broken home. Enlisting in the Corps in 1946 he later earned a commission, fighting at Inchon and Chosin in Korea before becoming a pilot. During his thirty-eight-year military career he witnessed and participated in major historical events, though a high school wrestling injury would eliminate him from the Mercury-7 space program. As a second lieutenant, he tackled General Douglas MacArthur on the way to Seoul in 1950. Carey would provide critical intelligence decisions enabling the successful defense of the Chinese attack on Hagaru-ri at the Chosin Reservoir. In 189 days of combat, he escaped death seven times, and was awarded the Silver Star and Bronze Star Medals. In Vietnam, he flew 204 combat sorties, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross and 16 Air Medals. In 1975, from Saigon, Carey led history's largest helicopter evacuation of refugees. In retirement, Carey served as a cabinet member for the governor of Ohio and ran the airport in his native home of Columbus. When the Careys moved to Texas, Carey continued supporting veterans, advocating for veterans' health care, aiding the drive to build accommodation for families of hospitalized veterans, and was a leader in the effort to build a veterans' cemetery in Dallas.

Alan E. Mesches (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

Audiobook

Plot Twist

Julie Cromwell is a selfish, manipulative, insecure woman, and those are her best qualities. She sets up a fake kidnapping to see if her husband will pay a million dollars for her safe return. Something goes wrong and she winds up dead. This is the first plot twist, but certainly not the last. Enter lead detective Karl Larkin and his partner, Ted Cramer. They are a team who refuses to let sleeping dogs lie. They begin rattling the skeletons in the family's closets. Larkin finds himself breaking one of his number one rules. You don't get involved with the family you are investigating, and you never, never fall in love with your prime suspect.

Donna J. Thompson (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

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Time in the Barrel: A Marine’s Account of the Battle for Con Thien

Con Thien was a United States Marine Corps firebase that was the scene of fierce combat for months on end during 1967. Staving off attacks and ambushes while suffering from ineffectual leadership from Washington as well as media onslaughts, courageous American Marines protected this crucial piece of land at all costs. They would hold Con Thien, but many paid the ultimate price. By the end of the war, more than 1,400 Marines had died and more than 9,000 sustained injuries. For eight months, James P. Coan's five-tank platoon was assigned to Con Thien while attached to various Marine infantry battalions. The author kept a diary recording the thoughts, fears, and frustrations. Time in the Barrel offers an authentic firsthand account of the daily nightmare that was Con Thien. With authentic depictions of combat, it allows listeners to fully grasp the enormity of the fierce struggle for Con Thien. More than a retelling of military movements, Coan's engrossing narratives focus on the sheer sacrifice and misery of one Marine's experience in Vietnam. Through his eyes, we experience the abysmal conditions the Marines endured, from monsoon rainstorms to the constant threat of impending attack. Climatic moments in history are captured through the rare, personal perspective of one particularly astute and observant participant.

James P. Coan (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

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The Quiet Warrior: A Biography of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance

Regarded as the standard biography of World War II naval hero Adm. Raymond A. Spruance. Spruance, victor of the battles of Midway and the Philippine Sea and commander of the Fifth Fleet in the invasions of the Gilberts, the Marshalls, the Marianas, and Okinawa, is one of the towering figures in American naval history. Yet his reserved, cerebral personality did not make 'good copy' for correspondents, and until the publication of The Quiet Warrior he remained an elusive figure. Thomas Buell has succeeded in evoking the nature of the man as well as recording the achievements of the admiral in this brilliant biography, which won the Alfred Thayer Mahan Award for Literary Achievement the year of its publication.

Thomas B. Buell (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

Audiobook

Strategy in the Digital Age: Mastering Digital Transformation

Digital transformation is much more than building a digital infrastructure to gather and process data. It is about understanding how digital technologies enable the creation of innovative services and products. It is about identifying new competitive positions and business models and thinking critically about how to both create and capture value. Strategy in the Digital Age directly engages these concerns and provides a comprehensive roadmap for planning a successful digital strategy and executing a digital transformation in organizations. Covering major topics such as big tech, data analytics, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, autonomy, cybersecurity, data privacy, and antitrust, strategy expert Michael Lenox outlines a set of novel, original frameworks to help those undertaking digital transformation at their organization devise their strategy. Listeners will also come away with a greater understanding of how to navigate the human dimension of digital transformation and tackle the numerous social and policy challenges raised by digital technology. With insights from major companies such as Spotify, Facebook, and Uber, Lenox delivers a compelling volume that offers both a foundational understanding of this dynamic environment and an action plan for those seeking a path to digital strategy implementation for their organization.

Michael Lenox (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

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Navy Dog: A Dog's Days in the US Navy

Having Seaman Jenna as the mascot on the USS Vandegrift was never meant to be a statement or symbolic act, or to put the crew on the radars of four-star admirals. Jenna came aboard unannounced, a Christmas gift that brought instant joy to the crew and transformed a gray ship into a home for 225 sailors. Her addition was not pre-approved by the chain of command-contrary to military protocol. Before long, Jenna became a phenomenon-the only dog on a Navy ship since World War II-despite the best efforts to keep her from the public eye. This orphaned Shiba Inu and the displaced crew shared countless adventures and trials during her five years on board. Jenna dodged being eaten in Korea (a country that still views dogs as edible fare), sidestepped Hawaii's strict quarantine law, avoided threats of being shot in Australia, charmed a Chinese admiral, and nearly initiated an international incident in Pakistan. Jenna became a symbol of the ship and of free will, and created a bond amongst the crew that remains strong decades later . . . long after her death. Neal Kusumoto is proud to say that he was the captain of that fine ship, blessed with a magnificent crew that included one special sea dog. Join Seaman Jenna as a part of the crew on her five-year adventure on the high seas.

Captain Us Navy (ret) Neal J. Kusumoto, Neal J. Kusumoto Captain Us Navy (ret) (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

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Fighting in the Dark: Naval Combat at Night, 1904-1944

Before the twentieth century ships when relied upon visual signaling, vessels beyond range of sight or a cannon shot, were blind, deaf, and dumb in the dark, making night battles at sea rare, and near always accidental. The introduction of certain technologies like the torpedo, the searchlight, radio, and then radar, transformed naval warfare by making night combat feasible and, in some cases, desirable. The process by which navies integrated these new tools of war and turned the dark into a medium for effective combat, however, was long and difficult. Fighting in the Dark tells the story of surface naval combat at night from the Russo-Japanese War through World War II. The book is about the process of confronting and mastering problems brought on by technological change during war. It does this by examining seven periods focusing on the Imperial Russian Navy in 1904-1905, the Imperial German Navy from 1914-1918, the Royal Navy from 1916-1939, the Regia Marina from 1940-1943, the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1942, the US Navy in 1943-1944, and the Royal Navy and Royal Canadian Navy from 1943-1944.The chapters are written by authors hailing from Australia, Canada, Italy, and the United States, all recognized masters in their subject.

Vincent O'hara (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

Audiobook

Eight Survived: The Harrowing Story Of The USS Flier And The Only Downed World War II Submariners To

The incredible wartime saga of the only American submariners to survive the sinking of their ship and evade enemy capture in WWII On the night of August 13, 1944, the U.S. submarine Flier struck a mine in the Sulu Sea in the southern Philippines as it steamed along the surface. All but fifteen of the more than eighty-strong crew went down with the vessel. Of those left floating in the dark, eight survived by swimming for seventeen hours before washing ashore on an uninhabited island. The story of the Flier and its eight survivors is wholly unique in the annals of U.S. military history. Eight Survived tells the gripping story of the doomed submarine and its crew from its first patrol, during which it sank several enemy ships, to the explosion in the Sulu Sea. Drawing on interviews with the survivors and on a visit to the jungle where they washed ashore-where a cast of fascinating characters helped the U.S. sailors evade the Japanese-Douglas Campbell fully captures the combination of extraordinary courage and luck that marked one of the most heroic episodes of World War II.

Douglas A. Campbell (Author), Chris Monteiro (Narrator)

Audiobook

Audiobooks Narrated by Chris Monteiro