A Civilian's Guide to the U.S. Military: A comprehensive reference to the customs, language and structure of the Armed Fo rces

Written in a direct and unambiguous style, this book is like an academic primer to the military. It is a bit dry, but it is a complicated subject. The author gives a deep sense of the world in which our military people live--it is filled with fascinating vocabulary, traditions, etiquette, customs, and mores that cannot fail to increase the reader's respect and admiration for those people who choose to serve us in this capacity.I would have liked to see some more visualizations like graphs or charts to help to cluster departments, ranks, and distinctions of various kinds. I also think that illustrations of the badges, chevrons, and uniforms would be great, but I also understand that this would increase the cost of producing the book.If you want to understand the world of the military, this is a great introduction.

This is very interesting and well written even for someone who was in the military.

The authors did an excellent and very thorough overview of the different branches all the way from basic training/ boot camp, to deployment priorities, to service academies, to musical organizations. Useful both for civilians as well as vets/active duty/ family members who want to know something about other branches. I recommended it for a colleague who teaches a graduate course on social work with veterans, military, and their families.

I work with some military folks in my job, and this book was recommended to me. Its biggest strengths are its outlining of the organization and levels (paygrades) of the different branches of the military -- if you may be working with service persons or vets and you want to know what it means if someone is E-5 or O-2, or the different bodies they might be a part of within, say, the Navy, this is clear and well organized. However, it's not your be-all-end-all. I also found the dictionary of military slang to be more than someone at this basic level of understanding might need -- it seemed like there were about 100 pages on slang mostly relating to MREs. :-)

This is a textbook for a course I am taking. I saved a lot of money buying it here. This is a great reference book for anyone who may need to know about military life.

Nice book. All my prior info came from movies so this book is a big help. It is very detailed. It lists all the departments and subgroups of the military branches. It even writes down the official song of each military group.

This is a good book, but some things are a not quite right in practice, even if they are technically correct. See other comments about some issues, they are correct. The bias is definitely towards the army, and very little is devoted to the Coast Guard (semper paratus fellow Coasties!)That said, I would still recommend the book as a primary source, but I would also make sure if it is an important part of a story, double check for accuracy and terminology.

This is probably the best guide for civilians on how the different branches of the military work. Ms. Schading has details in the book only someone who has been there or really done an incredible job of research would know.

This has been a very useful introduction and I would certainly recommend to anyone interested in gaining an understanding of US military issues.

It is an excellent book to understand the structure, history and traditions of our military. I would highly recommend this for parents whose youth have chosen a military career or spouses of military personnel.