Part II: All I want for Christmas is

Part II of the things I wouldn't mind finding under the tree covers books. I love reading and there is an enormous amount of books out there that I want to devour. So without futher ado, all I want for Christmas is books!

1. The Pentagon's New Map by Thomas Barnett. This book along with its sequel Blueprint for Action should be read by everyone. It lays out the military situation of the post-Cold War world and examines where and what kind of threats will emerge.
2. Blueprint for Action by Thomas Barnett. The sequel to The Pentagon's New Map, this book is absolutely brillant. The strategy Barnett lays out is simple. Instead of reacting to events in the world and letting our policies be determined by the actions of people who don't have American interests in mind, we should formulate and follow policies designed to make the world into the world we want it to be. If your actions are designed to make the world the way you want it to be, you've got no reason to complain when things don't go your way.
3. Seven Pillars of Wisdom: A Triumph by T.E. Lawrence. T.E. Lawrence is one of my heroes and I would really like to read his autobiography. Although I've heard that he exaggerates quite a bit in some sections, his memoirs are timely and shed insight into the processes and people that formed the modern Middle East.
4. Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq by Michael Gordon and Bernard Trainor. Cobra II presents the invasion and occupation of Iraq from a military standpoint. I have heard great things about it and I feel it would be a very interesting read.
5. Overthrow by Stephen Kinzer. I read and loved Kinzer's last book All the Shah's Men about the U.S. led coup de'tat in Iran in 1953. This is his follow up book and it focuses on the instances in American history that the U.S.A. has overthrown other rulers.
6. The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 by Lawrence Wright. I'm not sure about this book and that is exactly why I want to read it. I've read quite a few books on Al-Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden, so I'd like to read Mr. Wright's take on everything, because he has done an enormous amount of interviews for his book.
7. Republic of Fear: The Politics of Modern Iraq by Kanan Makiya. Mr. Makiya was one of the leading proponents of a U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. But this book was written before the first Gulf War and painted a picture of what was happening inside of Saddam Hussein's Iraq. It had a big impact when it hit on the first Bush Administration.
8. Milestones by Sayyid Qutb. Sayyid Qutb was a young Egyptian who journeyed to America. What he found there disgusted him and he returned to the Arab world where he authored Signposts and this book, Milestones. He is considered the father of modern jihad and anti-Americanism. His writings have had a profound effect on men such as Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Next up are graphic novels!