To The Last Salute

The Sound of Music endeared Georg von Trapp (1880?1947) and his singing family to the world, and it also showed how desperately the Nazis wanted Captain von Trapp for their navy. In To the Last Salute we learn why. Trapp?s own story of his exploits as a submarine commander during the First World War is as exciting as it is instructive, bringing to stirring life a little-known chapter in the naval history of that war. In his many guises, Trapp describes life as captain of Austro-Hungarian U-boats in the Mediterranean and Adriatic seas, emerging by turn as the Imperial Austrian naval officer, the witty observer of international politics, and the indefatigable and ultimately heartbroken patriot opposing the Allied enemy. He relates deadly duels with submarine sweepers, narrow escapes and excruciatingly close calls, and the spectacular sinking of cargo and war ships?all while maintaining a keen sense of the camaraderie of seamen from every corner of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Trapp?s story, in English for the first time, offers a rare combination of human interest, historical insight, and true life-and-death adventure.

They are the troops that nobody wants to see, carrying a message that no military family ever wants to hear. Since the start of the war in Iraq, Marines like Major Steve Beck found themselves charged with a mission they never asked for and one for which there can be no training: casualty notification. In Final Salute, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jim Sheeler weaves together the stories of the fallen, the broken homes they have left behind, and one man's effort to help heal the wounds of those left grieving. But it is not a book about war, politics, or liberal vs. conservative. Achingly beautiful and honest, it is a book that every American-every human-can embrace.

From the author of The Campaign and No Rules of Engagement… Pamela Wright will never forgive her sister for dying in the Afghanistan war, or the Army for Laura’s death, or anyone else for making it okay for Laura to go halfway around the world to fight for reasons Pam has never fathomed. Numb with grief, she buries her sister but not her rage. Among the mourners is Trish Tomlinson, who loved Laura long ago and has found the news of Laura’s death sharply painful. She remembers Pam as an unwelcome third wheel, but now finds comfort in the company of the young medical resident, and in the details of Laura’s journal that Pam shares. Brought together by grief, something more grows. Guilt and anger cloud their feelings and jeopardize any chance at a future. How can love blossom in the shadow of death?

All fighter pilots serving in any Air Force in the world MUST READ the chapters entitled "Dangling in the Air" and "Flights to Heaven." Lessons learned from opportune decisions taken by the pilots in these stories might one day help save your life. The Last Salute is a true compilation of some naughty and thrilling activities surrounding the lives of the young pilots and the officers of the Pakistan Air Force who served during the period of 1975-1990. The book also chronicles the tales of several fighter pilots who fatally crashed or safely ejected from their fighter jets when timely, split-second decisions helped save their lives. Read about a mid-air collision of two mirage aircraft that resulted in loss of both the aircraft and a pilot. Learn about the crash of C-130 carrying General Zia-ul-Haq, President of Pakistan. Certain facts about his mysterious crash have never before been revealed to the public. The last chapter is dedicated to describing activities in the small island of Bahrain and the Bahrain Amiri Air Force (BAAF). All of the stories contained in e Last Salute are original and true as personally known to the author and as confirmed by interviewing various witnesses. Some vital information has been held back without disturbing the crux of the matter. The main characters involved in all anecdotes were personally known to the author.

Presents a fresh view of the American Revolution, chronicling key events from 1776 to 1781 and assessing the repercussions for America, England, France, and other nations

A strikingly original investigation of the origins and dissemination of the world's most infamous greeting Sometimes the smallest detail reveals the most about a culture. In Heil Hitler: The History of a Gesture, sociologist Tilman Allert uses the Nazi transformation of the most mundane human interaction—the greeting—to show how National Socialism brought about the submission and conformity of a whole society. Made compulsory in 1933, the Hitler salute developed into a daily reflex in a matter of mere months, and quickly became the norm in schools, at work, among friends, and even at home. Adults denounced neighbors who refused to raise their arms, and children were given tiny Hitler dolls with movable right arms so they could practice the pernicious salute. The constantly reiterated declaration of loyalty at once controlled public transactions and fractured personal relationships. And always, the greeting sacralized Hitler, investing him and his regime with a divine aura. The first examination of a phenomenon whose significance has long been underestimated, Heil Hitler offers new insight into how the Third Reich's rituals of consent paved the way for the wholesale erosion of social morality.