Books like 'The Fifties'
Readers who enjoyed The Fifties by David Halberstam also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical 20th century military, war & conflict politics cold-war war social-commentary technology historical-fiction military
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Red Winter by Marc Cameron
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIn this previously untold adventure, a young Jack Ryan goes behind the Iron Curtain to seek the truth about a potential Soviet defector in the most shocking entry in Tom Clancy's #1 New York Times bestselling series. 1985A top secret F117 aircraft crashes into the Nevada desert...Categorized as:
cold-war historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult -
The Promise by Ruth Saberton
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsNo matter what promises you make, some dark secrets refuse to stay buried... When Nell Summers stumbles across a photograph in her late father’s belongings, the faded image of a young soldier leads her to question everything she knows...Categorized as:
historical-fiction war military fiction ww2 historical 20th-century violent-conflict -
A Nightingale Christmas Promise by Donna Douglas
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFor the first time, a Nightingale nurses novel set during the First World War. Follow the senior staff as they overcome the trials of their training years. From Sunday Times top ten bestselling author, Donna Douglas. East London, 1914 Britain is preparing itself for war... -
To Wake the Giant: A Novel of Pearl Harbor by Jeff Shaara
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe New York Times bestselling master of military historical fiction tells the story of Pearl Harbor as only he can in the first novel of a gripping new series set in World War II’s Pacific theater. In 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt watches uneasily as the world heads rapidly down a dangerous path...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
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The Frozen Hours: A Novel of the Korean War by Jeff Shaara
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe master of military historical fiction turns his discerning eye to the Korean War in this riveting new novel, which tells the dramatic story of the Americans and the Chinese who squared off in one of the deadliest campaigns in the annals of combat: the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, also known as Frozen Chosin. June 1950...Categorized as:
cold-war historical-fiction military war 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
The Forgotten Bookshop in Paris by Daisy Wood
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFrom an exciting new voice in WWII historical fiction—and the author of The Clockmaker’s Wife—comes a tale of love and a betrayal that echoes through generations…Paris, 1940: War is closing in on the city of love. With his wife forced into hiding, Jacques must stand by and watch as the Nazis take away everything he holds dear...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
No Less Than Victory: A Novel of World War II by Jeff Shaara
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAfter the success at Normandy, the Allied commanders are confident that the war in Europe will soon be over. But in December 1944, in the Ardennes Forest, the Germans launch a ruthless counteroffensive that begins the Battle of the Bulge. The Führer will spare nothing to preserve his twisted vision of a “Thousand Year Reich,” but stout American resistance defeats the German thrust...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
Sharpe's Waterloo by Bernard Cornwell
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsJune 1815: The Duke of Wellington, the Prince of Orange, and Napoleon will meet on the battlefield...and decide the fate of EuropeWith the emperor Napoleon at its head, and enormous French army is marching toward Brussels. The British and their allies are also converging on Brussels - in preparation for a grand society ball...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
Saigon: An Epic Novel of Vietnam by Anthony Grey
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsVietnam's heady tropical landscape captivates fifteen-year-old Joseph Sherman on a hunting expedition to French colonial Saigon with his family in 1925. He is lured back again and again by his enduring fascination for the country and for Lan, a beautiful Vietnamese mandarin's daughter he could never forget... -
Those Who Dare by Phil Ward
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsBy May 1940, panzer divisions had decimated Belgium and reached Calais. Lietenant John Randal, a veteran of the U.S. 26th Cavalry Regiment, volunteers his expertise to help slow their advance. What unfolds is a blend of military guerrilla tactics, suspense, humor, and brotherly camaraderie-plus a little romance between the American GI and the widowed Lady Jane Seaborn... -
To the Last Man: A Novel of the First World War by Jeff Shaara
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsJeff Shaara has enthralled readers with his New York Times bestselling novels set during the Civil War and the American Revolution. Now the acclaimed author turns to World War I, bringing to life the sweeping, emotional story of the war that devastated a generation and established America as a world power.Spring 1916: the horror of a stalemate on Europe’s western front...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century 21st-century action-adventure adult -
And in the Morning by Elizabeth Darrell
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsEngland,1939. The Second World War threatens to destroy the Sheridan family. Sir Christopher Sheridan, a dashing hero of the First World War, is back in khaki. His brilliant intelligence skills are desperately needed by the War Office. David, his son, obsessed by the legend of his father’s brother, a Royal Flying Corps ace, takes to the air to fight the Luftwaffe... -
The Hooligans by P.T. Deutermann
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Hooligans fictionalizes the little-known but remarkable exploits of "The Hooligan Navy" that fought in the Pacific theatre of World War II. Loosely-organized in fast moving squadrons, PT (patrol torpedo) boats were the pesky nemesis of the formidable Japanese navy, dubbed "the mosquito fleet" and "devil boats" for their daring raids against warships, tankers, and transport ships... -
The Centurions by Jean Lartéguy
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThis is Jean Larteguy's most famous book that garnered international acclaim and sold millions of copies. It was also the basis for the movie, The Lost Command, starring Anthony Quinn. In his autobiography, Larteguy writes that he got the name of the book from when he was traveling with the Foreign Legion in the Sahara and came across an old Roman column at an oasis... -
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Stalingrad by Vasily Grossman
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsVasily Grossman’s Life and Fate has been hailed as a twentieth-century War and Peace. However, Life and Fate is only the second half of a two-part work, the first half of which was published in 1952. Grossman wanted to call this earlier work Stalingrad—as it will be in this first English translation—but it was published as For a Just Cause... -
The Short-Timers by Gustav Hasford
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThis novel was the source text of Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket". It follows the career of the sardonic narrator from the organized sadism of Marine basic training to an assignment as a combat reporter in Vietnam to his experiences as a platoon commander after the Tet offensive, portraying the descent into barbarism that marked America's intervention in Vietnam... -
To Glory We Steer by Alexander Kent
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAlexander Kent is the pseudonym of Douglas Reeman, a contemporary British writer. Reeman joined the British Navy at 16 and served on destroyers and small crafts during World War II, eventually rising to lieutenant. He later worked as a London detective and has served as a script advisor for television and film. He travels extensively, scouting locations for his books... -
The Point of Light by John Ellsworth
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsFor fans of All the Light We Cannot See, Beneath a Scarlet Sky, and The Nightingale comes an emotionally gripping, beautifully written historical novel about one woman’s epic, triumphant search for war crimes evidence during the darkest times of World War II. May 1940... -
1921: The Great Novel of the Irish Civil War by Morgan Llywelyn
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe Irish fight for independence is one of the most captivating tales of the twentieth century. Morgan Llywelyn, the acclaimed historical writer of books like Lion of Ireland, Bard and The Horse Goddess , is the writer born to bring this epic battle to life...Categorized as:
historical-fiction war politics fiction historical 20th-century audiobook literary-fiction -
Nino's Heart: A story of love and suspense set in WW2 italy. by J. D. Keene
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Bronx, 1934. Nino DiVincenzo, the son of a mafia crime boss, witnesses a gruesome murder that alters the course of his life forever. Forced out of his home as a teenager, he grows into a man on his own terms. Under the guidance of trusted mentors rather than a ruthless father, Nino’s deep faith and compassion for others ultimately lead him to Rome on a journey to become a Catholic priest... -
The 13th Valley by John M. Del Vecchio
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsPraise for "The 13th Valley," a Finalist for the American Book Award: "There have been a number of excellent books about Vietnam...but none has managed to communicate in such detail the day-to-day pain, discomfort, frustration and exhilaration of the American military experience in Vietnam." --Joe Klein, "The New York Times Book Review"" "The" novel about the Vietnam War.. -
The Rising Tide by Jeff Shaara
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA modern master of the historical novel, Jeff Shaara has painted brilliant depictions of the Civil War, the Revolutionary War, and World War I. Now he embarks upon his most ambitious epic, a trilogy about the military conflict that defined the twentieth century. The Rising Tide begins a staggering work of fiction bound to be a new generation's most poignant chronicle of World War II...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
Hara-Kiri: a novel of the Pacific War: Volume 5 by Craig DiLouie
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe fifth book in the popular Crash Dive series!Charlie Harrison finally achieves his dream of commanding the Sandtiger, leading her able crew on a war patrol to the Philippines in September 1944. Along the way, he faces the challenges of command, a malfunctioning boat, and a patrol area that appears devoid of enemy ships... -
A Nurse at War by Maggie Holt
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAttractive, clever and wilful, Lily Knowles is desperate to leave home. So at twenty-one she escapes to London to train as a nurse, where she gathers many admirers - none more dashing than RAF officer Sandy Redfern, with whom she falls in love.But the coming of war, with the chaos of the Blitz, brings upheavals and unforeseen entanglements... -
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Full Circle by Judith Saxton, J.E. Johnson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsHitler's war is reaching out to affect every member of the Neylor family. Val Neylor, driving an ambulance through the blazing heart of London, is in an impossible position, for the man she loves is a fighter pilot with the Luftwaffe. And Jenny, whose husband Simon is flying Spitfires, finds herself working as a landgirl on a Devon farm... -
Frontline by Hilary Jones
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA SWEEPING DRAMA SET ON THE BATTLEFIELDS OF EUROPE AS A GLOBAL INFLUENZA PANDEMIC LOOMS...Frontline is the first book in a series charting the rise of a prominent British medical family in the twentieth century. From wars to a pandemic, the discovery of penicillin to the birth of the NHS, successive generations of the Burnett family are at the vanguard of life-saving developments in medicine... -
The Emperor's General (4 Cassettes) by James Webb, David Dukes
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings1997. Jay Marsh, Wall Street millionaire and grand old man of the diplomatic corps, takes a sentimental journey to the scene of his first triumphs and agonies, Manila, where as a brash young captain during World War II he served as aide-de-camp and confidant to General Douglas MacArthur. Marsh sees beyond the glittery capital of today to the horrifying days of 1945... -
El Invierno En Tu Rostro by Carla Montero
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsBrand NEW...Categorized as:
historical-fiction war military romance historical fiction 20th-century violent-conflict -
Cuckoo in the Nest by Michelle Magorian
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAs an evacuee, Ralph received a good education, but after the war Ralph's working-class father resents his education and his ambition to be an actor, and is furious when Ralph is sacked from the paper mill. The story traces Ralph's struggle to reconcile the disparate strands of his life...Categorized as:
historical-fiction war politics social-commentary young-adult fiction historical children-books -
The Clockmaker’s Wife by Daisy Wood
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe world is at war. And time is running out…London, 1940. Britain is gripped by the terror of the Blitz, forcing Nell Spelman to flee the capital with her young daughter – leaving behind her husband, Arthur, the clockmaker who keeps Big Ben chiming. When Arthur disappears, Nell is desperate to find him...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics social-commentary war 20th-century action-adventure adult -
The Bridges at Toko-ri by James A. Michener
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn one of his beloved early bestsellers, Pulitzer Prize–winning author James A. Michener crafts a tale of the American men who fought the Korean War, detailing their exploits in the air as well as their lives on the ground. Young and innocent, they arrive in a place they have barely ever heard of, on a ship massive enough to carry planes and helicopters...Categorized as:
cold-war historical-fiction military war 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
The Ugly American by William J. Lederer, Eugene Burdick
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe multi-million-copy bestseller that coined the phrase for tragic American blunders abroad.First published in 1958, The Ugly American became a runaway national bestseller for its slashing expose of American arrogance, incompetence, and corruption in Southeast Asia...Categorized as:
cold-war historical-fiction journalism military politics social-commentary war 20th-century -
Under the Frog by Tibor Fischer
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsShortlisted for the Booker Prize, Under the Frog follows the adventures of two young Hungarian basketball players through the turbulent years between the end of World War II and the anti-Soviet uprising of 1956... -
Reign of Hell by Sven Hassel
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsBurning, looting, raping, murdering, Hitler's Penal Regiment advanced on the centre of Warsaw leaving in their wake a bloody trail of death and destruction. They killed indiscriminately: Pole or German, man, woman or child - anyone who crossed their path was eliminated... -
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March Battalion by Sven Hassel
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsInto the screaming inferno of the Russian Front the Tank Battalions of Hitler’s Penal Regiments were thrown. That was no surprise: these soldiers were pure cannon fodder to the German High Command—men whose lives were considered expendable. And because they were treated like animals, they also learned to live like animals... -
Last Citadel by David L. Robbins
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsOne nation taking a desperate gamble of war.Another fighting for survival.Two armies locked in a bloody cataclysm that will decide history. . .David L. Robbins has won widespread acclaim for his powerful and splendidly researched novels of World War II... -
The General by C.S. Forester
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe book John Kelly reads every time he gets a promotion to remind him of ‘the perils of hubris, the pitfalls of patriotism and duty unaccompanied by critical thinking’ The most vivid, moving – and devastating – word-portrait of a World War One British commander ever written, here re-introduced by Max Hastings.C.S... -
1968 by Joe Haldeman
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn 1968, a nation fought two wars: one abroad...and one with itself. On one front, Spider walked point and tried to survive an insanity he neither accepted nor understood. On another, his "girl," Beverly, drifted into a strange counterculture that offered her dangerous freedoms at the price of her innocence. In 1968, a great black leader was murdered on a balcony in Memphis.. -
Stalingrad by Theodor Plievier
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA fictional account of the the destruction of the entire German Sixth Army in the decisive battle of the European War. Translated from German by Richard and Clara Winston... -
My Unconquerable Soul by Allyson Jeleyne
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhile other ladies turn their country homes into soldiers' hospitals and host charity bazaars to fund the war effort, Linley struggles just to keep Wolford Abbey afloat. Driving tractors and managing servants is not the life she dreamed of in those magical days before the war...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult age-gap -
Khaki Town by Judy Nunn
Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsKhaki Town, Judy Nunn's stunning new novel, is inspired by a wartime true story which the Government kept secret for over seventy years.'It seems to have happened overnight,' Val thought as she pulled the beers. 'We've become a khaki town.' It's March 1942. Singapore has fallen. Darwin has been bombed. Australia is on the brink of being invaded by the Imperial Japanese Forces... -
Days of Infamy by Newt Gingrich, William R. Forstchen
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 14 ratings“Absolutely brilliant! Fast paced and filled with tension and suspense. Every page resonates with the momentous events and great personalities of World War II – and scenes so carefully crafted you feel like you’re there. This is a ‘must read’ for all who look at history and wonder: “What if…” -- Oliver North, Lt. Col., USMC (Ret...Categorized as:
historical-fiction military politics war 20th-century action-adventure adult alternate-history -
The Gun by C.S. Forester
Rated: 3.91 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsIt is the time of Napoleon. The place is Spain, where his troops are busy propping up Joseph, Napoleon's brother, as king. Spaniards hate a master, and rebel. They fight a desperate, protracted, bitter and merciless guerilla war.Into the hands of a guerilla band falls a remarkable cannon, an 18-pounder that transforms the rebels into a besieging army...Categorized as:
historical-fiction war military politics fiction classics action-adventure historical -
The Cyclist by Fred Nath
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratings"The story is brilliantly executed... Nath’s biggest success is the sustained atmospheric tension that he creates somewhat effortlessly." - Little Interpretations "A haunting and bittersweet novel that stays with you long after the final chapter – always the sign of a really well-written and praiseworthy story. It would also make an excellent screenplay... -
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Naked Earth by Eileen Chang
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAfter leaving the Mainland for Hong Kong in 1952, Eileen Chang was commissioned by the United States Information Service to write two books, one of which was her magnificent novel Naked Earth... -
The Revolt of Gunner Asch by Hans Hellmut Kirst
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBook is used and has been withdrawn from service from a Library. Book has a Library Binding and the usual Library Stamps, Stickers, Card Holder, Library Markings. May or May Not have a Dust Jacket... -
A Most Clever Girl by Stephanie Marie Thornton
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA Novel of an American SpyA thrilling tale of love, loyalty, and espionage, based on the incredible true story of Elizabeth Bentley, a Cold War double agent spying for the Russians and the United States, from USA Today bestselling author Stephanie Marie Thornton... -
Chieftains by Bob Forrest-Webb
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDuring the late 1970s and early 80s tension in Europe, between east and west, had grown until it appeared that war was virtually unavoidable. Soviet armies massed behind the 'Iron Curtain' that stretched from the Baltic to the Black Sea.In the west, Allied forces, British, American, and armies from virtually all the western countries, raised the levels of their training and readiness... -
The Good Time Girls at War by Fiona Ford
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWorld War Two casts a dark shadow over the Hammersmith Palais de Danse, but the show must go on...April 1940. Violet Millington, is ready to rediscover the joy of living. As she waltzes into the palais, to begin her new life of boosting morale in war swept London, she must leave her family's sorrow behind her. But soon Violet discovers she's not the only one with something they're running from... -
The Gates of November by Chaim Potok
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 10 ratings"REMARKABLE . . . A WONDERFUL STORY."--The Boston GlobeThe father is a high-ranking Communist officer, a Jew who survived Stalin's purges. The son is a "refusenik," who risked his life and happiness to protest everything his father held dear...
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