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MILITARY
BOOKS
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Richard S. Lowry
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Richard S. Lowry, USN, “is an
internationally recognized military historian, author and eleventh generation American. He is a veteran of the U.S. Navy Submarine
Service. He published The Gulf War Chronicles in 2003. He has been published in Military Magazine, Leatherneck and the Marine
Corps Gazette. Berkley Publishing released Richard’s next full-length book, Marines in the Garden of Eden in June of
2006. It is the story of America’s sons and daughters, who fought, bled, and died in a dusty desert town on the banks
of the Euphrates River.
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Richard has spoken to many community
organizations such as local chapters of the Military Officers Association, the Daughters of the American Revolution, Marines
for Life, Marine Corps League and the Florida Retired Chief Petty Officers Association on many different subjects relating
to the current war in Iraq and Operation Desert Storm. He is a member in the Florida Writers Association and founder of The
Orlando Writers Guild.
In June of 2004, Richard was
awarded a research grant from the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation and was invited to the Marine Corps Historical Center to
research the events of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Richard maintains a vast collection of Gulf War documentation. He has compiled
over four hundred hours of audio recordings of his and other interviews as well as thousands of pages of documentation. Richard
S. Lowry is the author of Marines in the Garden of Eden: The True Story of Seven Bloody Days in Iraq; US Marine
in Iraq: Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003; and, The Gulf War Chronicles: A Military History of the First War with Iraq.
According to the book description of
The Gulf War Chronicles: A Military History of the First War
with Iraq, “Extensively researched, painstakingly
documented, and dedicated to the courageous men and women who fought and served in the First War with Iraq, this is a factual
military history of Operation Desert Storm-and the only readable and thorough chronicle of the entire war. From the first
night of battle to Day Two, when Saddam struck back, to G Day and the eventual cease-fire, accomplished military historian
Richard S. Lowry delivers a detailed, day-by-day account of each battle and every military encounter leading up to the liberation
of Kuwait. Desert Storm was a war of many firsts: America's first four-dimensional war; the first time in military history
that a submerged submarine attacked a land target; the Marine Corps' first combat air strikes from an amphibious assault ship;
the first time in the history of warfare that a soldier surrendered to a robot; and more. And it was an overwhelming victory
for the United States and its allies. Intentionally presented without political commentary and ending with a complete listing
of the heroic Americans killed in Desert Storm as well as a battle timeline, glossary, bibliography, and resources, The Gulf
War Chronicles provides a much-needed understanding of the nature of modern-day, high-tech warfare and honors America's collective
resolve and commitment to freedom.
One reader of The Gulf
War Chronicles: A Military History of the First War with Iraq said, “It is now over 13 years since Operation
Desert Storm began on January 16, 1991. Given the length of time that has passed, one startling fact is evident in the Desert-Storm
Community, there is no single work that provides an accurate day-by-day, hour-by-hour account of Operation Desert-Storm, from
the onset of hostilities until the cease-fire declared at Safwan (extensively covered in Ally to Adversary: An Eyewitness
Account of Iraq's Fall from Grace by Rick Francona), until now.Richard Lowry's The Gulf War Chronicles strives to fill this
void and to do so in detail, yet still provides a fast-paced read.”
According to the book description of
US Marine in Iraq: Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003, “Operation Iraqi Freedom officially began
on March 20, 2003 and has become one of the most controversial conflicts of modern warfare. Thousands of US Marines were deployed
into Iraq in order to topple the dictatorship government and liberate the Iraqi people. This book examines the experience
of those "ordinary" Marines who fought on the frontline of one of the major battles in the operation, the battle
for An Nasiriyah. This title details the Marines' enlistment, levels of training and life in the Iraqi desert, as well as
exploring their important role in the complex stabilization operations after their hard-won victories on the battlefield.
US Marine in Iraq: Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003 offers a fascinating insight into the modern Marine Corps.” Publisher’s Weekly said of Marines
in the Garden of Eden: The True Story of Seven Bloody Days in Iraq, “This account of "the bloodiest
battle in the campaign to oust Saddam Hussein" in An Nasiriyah announces its overblown style in the first lines: "This
is a story of heroism and sacrifice—of life and death. This is a story of today's Marine Corps." According to Lowry
(The Gulf War Chronicles), the Marines and Special Forces "snatched victory from the jaws of defeat" and rescued
Private Jessica Lynch through compassionate heroism, despite the loss of 34 Americans, nearly half of whom died through accidents
and friendly fire. An essential target in the first days of the Iraq war, An Nasiriyah held two bridges over the Euphrates.
Fighting inside the city was not part of the plan, but became inevitable when communications faltered and after Lynch's supply
unit blundered into Iraqi positions. With admirable courage, U.S. forces fought through the streets, captured the bridges
and rescued Lynch. Lowry's nuts-and-bolts description of the fight represents his strongest writing. Following the genre's
convention of portraying individual soldiers, Lowry includes virtually everyone he interviewed; there are dozens of names,
always followed by a flattering sketch (alternately "tough, yet fair" or "fair yet strict"). As additional
evidence that these soldiers are America's finest, he quotes their patriotic statements, affectionate letters to their children,
and their spouses' always favorable opinions. It took immense research to produce such detail, but Lowry's gushing account
may not extend far beyond the Marines involved and their families.”
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According to the book description of
New Dawn: The Battles for
Fallujah, “Fallujah. Few names
conjure up as many images of blood,
sacrifice, and valor as does this
ancient city in Al Anbar province
forty miles west of Baghdad. This
sprawling concrete jungle was the
scene of two major U.S. combat
operations in 2004. The first was
Operation Vigilant Resolve, an aborted
effort that April by U.S. Marines
intent on punishing the city's
insurgents. The second, Operation
Phantom Fury, was launched seven
months later. Richard Lowry's 'New
Dawn: The Battles for Fallujah' is the
first comprehensive history of this
fighting.
Also known as the Second Battle for
Fallujah, Operation Phantom Fury was a
protracted house-to-house and
street-to-street combat that began on
November 7 and continued unabated for
seven bloody and exhausting weeks. It
was the largest fight of Operation
Iraqi Freedom and the heaviest urban
combat since the Battle of Hue City,
Vietnam in 1968. Death and redemption
were found everywhere, from narrow
streets to courtyards, kitchens,
bedrooms, and rooftops. By the time
the fighting ended, more than 1,400
insurgents were dead, compared to
ninety-five Americans (and another
1,000 wounded).
Lowry (Marines in the Garden of Eden)
spent years researching and writing
his new campaign history. In addition
to archival research, New Dawn is
based upon the personal recollections
of nearly 200 soldiers and Marines who
participated in the battles for
Fallujah, from the commanding generals
who planned the operations to the
privates who kicked in the doors. The
result is a gripping, page-turning
narrative of individual sacrifice and
valor that also documents the battles
for future military historians.
The struggle against a determined
enemy at the crossroads of
civilization is the story of American
kids who grew up down the block from
you only to fly halfway around the
world to fight in the largest battle
of the war. 'New Dawn' is about their
courage, their sacrifice, and their
commitment to freedom. And it is a
story you will never forget.
About the Author: Richard S. Lowry is
an internationally recognized military
historian, public speaker, and author.
He is a Vietnam-era veteran of the
United States Submarine Service,
husband, father of three sons, and
longtime resident of Orlando, Florida.
He has published The Gulf War
Chronicles (iUniverse, 2003 and
iUniverse Star, 2008), Marines in the
Garden of Eden (Berkley Caliber, 2006
and 2007), and US Marine in Iraq:
Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003 (Osprey,
2006). Additionally, he contributed to
Small Unit Actions (United States
Marine Corps History Division, 2008)
and was commissioned by the History
Division to write a battle study of
Task Force Tarawa's involvement in the
2003 invasion. He has been published
in The Weekly Standard, Armchair
General, Military Magazine, and The
Marine Corps Gazette. In 2008, Richard
was the military consultant for David
C. Taylor's award-winning documentary
film, "Perfect Valor." The majority of
the stories in "Perfect Valor" are
pulled from the pages of New Dawn.
In 2006, Marines in
the Garden of Eden won the Silver
Medal for history from the Military
Writers Society of America. The Gulf
War Chronicles also received
recognition from MWSA in 2006 and has
achieved Editor's Choice, Reader's
Choice, and STAR distinction from
iUniverse. "Perfect Valor" earned the
Best Feature Documentary Award at the
2009 GI Film Festival."
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