Military Family Resources

In a nondescript Boston suburb, in a handful of low buildings buffered by trees and a lake, a group of men and women spend their days researching, testing, tasting, and producing the foods that form the bedrock of the American diet. If you stumbled into the facility, you might think the technicians dressed in lab coats and the shiny kitchen equipment belonged to one of the giant food conglomerates responsible for your favorite brand of frozen pizza or microwavable breakfast burritos. So you'd be surprised to learn that you've just entered the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Systems Center, ground zero for the processed food industry.

As America's Mercury Seven astronauts were launched on death-defying missions, television cameras focused on the brave smiles of their young wives. Overnight, these women were transformed from military spouses into American royalty. They had tea with Jackie Kennedy, appeared on the cover of Life magazine, and quickly grew into fashion icons.

With more than 3.3 million paper copies of previous editions in print, this book has set the gold standard for military-to-civilian career transition. It covers everything from organizing an effective job search, obtaining transition assistance, identifying transferable skills, developing employer-centered objectives, and conducting research to writing resumes and letters, networking, interviewing, negotiating salary, and finding a federal government job.

The Emmy award-winning news anchor of Outnumbered Overtime with Harris Faulkner and co-host of the talk show Outnumbered shares the lessons she learned growing up in a military family paying homage to the military ideals that shaped her and showing how everyone can benefit from bringing the wisdom of military service into their lives.

"Speak softly and carry a big stick" Theodore Roosevelt famously said in 1901, when the United States was emerging as a great power. It was the right sentiment, perhaps, in an age of imperial rivalry but today many Americans doubt the utility of their global military presence, thinking it outdated, unnecessary or even dangerous.
In The Big Stick, Eliot A. Cohen-a scholar and practitioner of international relations-disagrees. He argues that hard power remains essential for American foreign policy. While acknowledging that the US must be careful about why, when, and how it uses force, he insists that its international role is as critical as ever, and armed force is vital to that role.

In this audio book Mark DeVries explores the "revolving door" dilemma of youth ministry. Based on his own experience as a youth minister and on his work with churches in crisis, the author pinpoints problems that cause division and burnout. He then provides the practical tools and structures needed to lay a strong foundation for ministry—one that isn't built solely on a person.

Once, war was a temporary state of affairs. Today, America's wars are everywhere and forever: our enemies change constantly and rarely wear uniforms, and virtually anything can become a weapon. As war expands, so does the role of the US military.

Finkel, a journalist, follows the soldiers who serve in the Iraq War as they struggle to reintegrate into American society.

Combat veteran and author Hans Halberstadt takes readers deeper inside the elusive world of snipers than ever before, from recruitment and training to the brutality of the killing fields. Shadow Team is probably the most productive sniper team in American military history, accounting for 276 confirmed kills in a six-month span with no casualties of its own. The team's leader made what was-and may still be-the longest range kill with a 7.62mm rifle. For the first time ever, team members explain what it's like to kill a man and what it takes to become one of the elite.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The author of The Devil in the White City and Dead Wake delivers an intimate chronicle of Winston Churchill and London during the Blitz--an inspiring portrait of courage and leadership in a time of unprecedented crisis One of Chicago Tribune's Best Books of the Year So Far * "A bravura performance by one of America's greatest storytellers."--NPR "Churchill's lessons of resilience and his style of steady-handed leadership are essential to the state of mind of American readers."--Vanity Fair On Winston Churchill's first day as prime minister, Adolf Hitler invaded Holland and Belgium. Poland and Czechoslovakia had already fallen, and the Dunkirk evacuation was just two weeks away. For the next twelve months, Hitler would wage a relentless bombing campaign, killing 45,000 Britons. It was up to Churchill to hold his country together and persuade President Franklin Roosevelt that Britain was a worthy ally--and willing to fight to the end. In The Splendid and the Vile, Erik Larson shows, in cinematic detail, how Churchill taught the British people "the art of being fearless." It is a story of political brinkmanship, but it's also an intimate domestic drama, set against the backdrop of Churchill's prime-ministerial country home, Chequers; his wartime retreat, Ditchley, where he and his entourage go when the moon is brightest and the bombing threat is highest; and of course 10 Downing Street in London. Drawing on diaries, original archival documents, and once-secret intelligence reports--some released only recently--Larson provides a new lens on London's darkest year through the day-to-day experience of Churchill and his family: his wife, Clementine; their youngest daughter, Mary, who chafes against her parents' wartime protectiveness; their son, Randolph, and his beautiful, unhappy wife, Pamela; Pamela's illicit lover, a dashing American emissary; and the advisers in Churchill's "Secret Circle," to whom he turns in the hardest moments.   The Splendid and the Vile takes readers out of today's political dysfunction and back to a time of true leadership, when, in the face of unrelenting horror, Churchill's eloquence, courage, and perseverance bound a country, and a family, together.

Each year nearly 250,000 servicemembers and their families leave the military. While a few (10 percent) go into full-time retirement, most expect to work for at least another 10, 20, or 30 years. So, what kind of employment decisions will they make? Where will they live? When and where will they retire? Faced with numerous forks in the road, most transitioning military want to make smart re-careering, relocation, and retirement decisions. They welcome useful advice. Like a good friend, Military-to-Civilian Success for Veterans and Their Families is designed to help anyone achieve transition success in the less structured and more chaotic civilian world.

The unapologetic, laugh-your-ass-off military memoir both vets and civilians have been waiting for, from a five-tour Army Ranger turned YouTube phenomenon and zealous advocate for veterans.

Anyone in military life will find inspiration, support, and appreciation in this collection of personal and grateful stories about the important role our members of the armed forces and their families play in serving our great country.

Brye reflects on her family's military service and offers a lifetime's worth of insight, comfort, wisdom, and a bit of humor to fellow military moms who are navigating the unpredictable life that accompanies having a child--or children--in uniform.

Describes how David French, a thirty-seven-year old father of two, Harvard Law graduate, and president of a free speech association, and his family dealt with his decision to answer the call to serve his country by going to war in Iraq.

The true story of the fierce band of women who battled Washington--and Hanoi--to bring their husbands home from the jungles of Vietnam.

Growing up in a military family, journalist and news anchor Harris Faulkner experienced firsthand how success in life is rooted in the knowledge, integrity, and duty that came from her military surroundings. She shares the formative lessons in leadership and work ethic she learned from a lifetime spent absorbing the military mindset, and offers recommendations for how all families can benefit from the guiding principles of military life.

Former Navy SEAL Senior Chief James Hatch tells a fierce, moving tale of being badly wounded on a special ops mission that ended his two-decades-long military career; his searing recovery; and the struggle to live life off the speeding train of war.

Here is a book for finding your way as a warrior and adapting to a peaceful life at home. The techniques of yoga and meditation have extensive scientific support for their effectiveness in relaxing the stress response, sharpening mental acuity, boosting immunity and recovery time, and promoting a general sense of health and psychological well-being. InYoga for Warriors, acclaimed teacher Beryl Bender Birch presents a beginner-friendly approach that she originally developed while working with civilians and first-responders in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.

Documents the author's marriage to a fellow Iraq War veteran, describing the impact of his brain injury on their relationship, their shared efforts to overcome post-traumatic stress, and the lack of support for veterans.

The challenges of reintegration can come as a surprise, but you can arm yourself with the skills needed to face this difficult time and help your partner build the resilience needed to heal. This book will be your guide

Military families with children face many of the everyday challenges that those families not in the military face, but they also face other challenges that the rest of us don't. This book looks at the special issues and concerns of military families raising children and provides support and resources for those families.

Offers straightforward answers to questions commonly asked by wounded U.S. military veterans and their family members. Brings together information on medical treatments, as well as financial, legal, and tax matters.

A one-stop guide to navigating the may financial issues facing today's military while serving, when preparing for transition or retirement, and during their past military lives and careers. It covers general financial planning along with many specific aspects of money management vital to military members and their families.

Collection of first-person essays written by military family members about marriage, parenting, moving, deployment, grief, careers, faith, friendship, and more in military life.

Tanya Biank gives us the inside story of women in today's military and their professional and personal challenges from the combat zone to the home front.