Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm: Chronology and Fact Book
To many, the war waged against Iraq by the United Nations Coalition was a most successful operation, serving to liberate Kuwait and, in the U.S., engendering "a gift of pride" in ourselves and in our military leaders. Desert Storm helped heal the horrors of Vietnam, just as the one-sided Spanish American War helped unite the nation after the Civil War; or so the story goes. A review of this detailed chronology will serve to darken this picture for many users. The random deaths caused by accidents on board ships and from friendly fire and the listing of service people killed in action are part of the sobering record of this war presented by a noted military historian and author ofWorld War II in the North Pacific: Chronology and Fact Book(Greenwood, 1994). Daily accounts follow this general plan: (a) activities of major figures, crucial events, grand strategy; (b) U.S. ground forces activity (c) U.S. naval and air force activity; (d) other coalition forces; and (e) activities of Iraq's armed forces.The work includes a list of coalition prisoners of war, a complete list of all named or numbered military units engaged in the war, and biographical information for key U.S. and British personnel; biographical information for key figures from other countries is often limited to name, rank, and military unit. A carefully selected and constructed bibliography identifies official documents (mostly U.S.) and regimental and general historical accounts of the war. The effort made to make the glossary as complete as possible will be appreciated by users. Careful name and subject indexing makes it possible for users to locate information on total troop strength as of a certain day, tanks and aircraft destroyed, economic costs, and the death dates for individuals killed in action. Charts group statistical information. Two of three line-drawn maps show troop deployments for February 21 and 24. More detailed maps would be useful in enabling readers to follow order-of-battle details given in the text.Order of battle for the coalition is made clear in the text; Iraq's plans cannot be outlined for lack of information. The chronology does not include coalition diplomatic efforts, U.S. congressional activities, or comments of President Bush or other world leaders. Researchers on the war will be encouraged by the complexity of the work, taking time to consult the glossary, study maps, and read background material. Laypersons wishing to find a quick understanding of events will find it too detailed for their purposes. Highly recommended for academic and large public libraries.