Nuclear Weapons of the United States: An Illustrated History (Schiffer Military History)

As previously noted by other customers there are some minor typos. Yes, there are a few small indulgences of leftism by the author. Also yes, the book more fully discussed weapons "delivery" systems as opposed to getting deep into the weeds on the atomic/nuclear devices, but I am sure we all can agree most of that information probably goes beyond the scope of security clearance, let alone full comprehension anyway. All in all, I read this book cover to cover in two days, loved it and had found a perfect home in the military history section of my office library. Great info, amazing photos, and a phenomenal book for the normal person who doesn't hold a PhD. In Nuclear Physics....

This is a high quality hardcover printed on heavy glossy paper. It is replete with gorgeous photos of the bombs and their delivery vehicles, many quite rare and unique. For me the most striking one was of the B-58 Hustler, a close-up showing a clutch of four B43 nukes tacked on to the trailing edge wing roots. Originally the bomber only carried a single nuke in the underfuselage pod, but somebody figured out how to tweak the design so it could deliver five nukes instead. This is a rarely photograph. There are many others, including an interior shot of two nukes sitting in the bomb bay of a B-52, a panoramic shot of a B-52 loosing an AGM-69 SRAM, and a half-page shot of the AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missile. The author also explains some of technical details about how the weapons are used, and thus how their crews were trained. He explains the loft delivery technique, and another delivery mode called the Laydown. The book presents only weapon systems that actually became operational. Thus you will not find in these pages entries for the XB-70 Valkyrie, or the GAM-87 Skybolt and High Virgo ALBMs. There is, however, a beuatiful shot of the original B-1A in the entry for the B-1B. I think there are only three minor flaws with the book. First, as others here have commented, the text contains numerous typographical errors. These are a mere annoyance and should not bother anyone familiar with the material. Second, the book is now twenty years old. Many of the weapon systems described have since been withdrawn from service. These include the AGM-129 and the Pershing II IRBM. (the very idea of a stealthy cruise missile is just too good to go away. rest assured there is a top-secret replacement tucked away somewhere in a remote corner of the USAF's current stockpile). The third minor flaw with this book has something to do with that comment I just made. The author sometimes indulges in speculation as to the deployment history or technical aspects of the weapons described. For me this is okay because he gives reasons for why he believes so. The world of nuclear weapons is very murky even for those who work within it, and even educated guesses are welcome to this reader. Four stars. You will not be disappointed with this book!

Fine book on the subject. Well researched but some "off the mark" leftist, socialist rhetoric, cleverly added in the text.

REALLY GOOD BOOK GOT MY MONEY WORTH

If you look closely, there are indeed typos. I don't think you will notice, however. The photos and captions alone make this book a "must buy." You will not be disappointed.

This book has lots of great photos. It also seems to have a lot of information, but there are so many editing problems that I am reluctant to trust its technical and historical information. While I was reading it, I found typesetting issues, and many spelling errors. I was trying to enjoy it, not proofread it, so I'm sure careful scrutiny would uncover even more. Page 191 has at least nine errors! They include: "thier" instead of "their", "their" instead of "there" (twice!), "ver" instead of "very", and "nublear ant-aircraft" instead of "nuclear anti-aircraft". I really wanted to like this book, but the errors are so numerous and distracting, that I ultimately have to consider it a defective product. If only they had used a spell-checker and a proofreader, this could have been a five-star book. As it stands, it is merely a photo album with some captions might be correct.

Good data and much insight into this topic, a book for dedicated enthusiasts if there ever was one. The end!

my husband loves this book!