First to Fight, An Inside View of The U.S. Marine Corps by Victor H. Krulak, Lieutenant General, USMC, Retired;1984; 252 pages; United States Naval Institute, Annapolis, MD; 0-87021-785-2; 4/2/09-4/7/09

From the Halls of Montezuma to the Halls of the Pentagon, General Krulak has seen much of what has made the Corp the storied institution that it is.  What he provides here is not so much a chronological history of the Corp, but a view of some of the personnel that have made the Corp.  He doesn’t focus on those who are already known by the public, such as Chesty Puller, but on those who have done smaller things that have given the Corp that special cachet.  He gives credit to those who have helped the Corp remain in existence through the many times that they have been attempted to been consolidated.  The sections of the book are titled; The Thinkers; The Innovators; The Improvisers; The Penny Pinchers; The Brothers, and The Fighters.  The Fighters was especially insightful because of his account of the siege of Khe Sanh, showed how sometimes we get a strategy in mind and stick with it no matter what happens.  A very insightful look at the history of the Marine Corps.  RRR