Revision of the Commandants Professional Reading List
REVISION OF THE COMMANDANTS PROFESSIONAL READING LIST
Date Signed: 3/4/2019
ALMARS Number: 005/19
R 041405Z MAR 19
ALMAR 005/19
MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC DMCS//
SUBJ/REVISION OF THE COMMANDANTS PROFESSIONAL READING LIST//
REF/A/MSGID: MCO 1553.4B/CMC WASHINGTON DC/YMD: 20080125//
REF/B/MSGID: MCO 1610.7/DC MRA/YMD: 20150212//
REF/C/MSGID: MCO P1070.12K/DC MIFD/YMD: 20000714//
NARR/REFERENCE A IS MCO 1553.4B, PROFESSIONAL MILITARY EDUCATION. REFERENCE B IS MCO 1610.7, PERFORMANCE EVALUATION SYSTEM. REFERENCE C IS MCO P1070.12K W CH1, MARINE CORPS INDIVIDUAL RECORDS ADMINISTRATION MANUAL.//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/1. The Commandant’s Professional Reading List (CPRL) as promulgated by this message represents an updated version of those books most pertinent for professional development and critical thinking at each rank level.
2. The CPRL is arranged into two sections: “Commandant’s Choice” and “Grade Levels.” Each Marine shall read a minimum of five books from the “Commandant’s Choice” or “Grade Level” sections each year.
2.a. The Grade Level titles are separated into five levels for both enlisted Marines and officers. These levels coincide with specific ranks and Marines should attempt to read all titles within their level prior to proceeding to a higher level.
2.b. In addition to the reading list, Marines are highly encouraged to incorporate periodicals into their reading regimens. Scholarly and professionally oriented articles published by independent magazines and journals foster innovation, PME development, critical study of the profession of arms, and serious discussion regarding topics of interest to the Marine Corps. Professional publications inform debate on current, topical issues of relevance to the Marine Corps and promote intellectual growth of the individual Marine. Useful publications for professional development include, but are not limited to The Marine Corps Gazette, the Marine Corps Aviation Association Yellow Sheet Journal, Leatherneck, Naval Proceedings, War on the Rocks (web-based), and Small Wars Journal (web-based).
2.c. Per the references, completion of the CPRL reading requirement shall be noted in the individual Marines fitness report or be taken into account when assigning proficiency/conduct marks. How a Marine demonstrates completion of the annual requirement is at the discretion of the commander.
2.d. The CPRL and related information can be found at: https:(slant)(slant)grc-usmcu.libguides.com/usmc-reading-list. The website contains several enhancements to include pictures of book covers, short summaries, links to electronic versions of the books, additional materials to enhance unit Professional Military Education (PME) and links to other reading lists (e.g., Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, other Services, and Marine Corps University schools).
3. Commandant’s Choice MCDP-1: Warfighting
“Machine, Platform, Crowd: Harnessing Our Digital Future” A. McAfee and E. Brynjolfsson
“Non-Obvious: How to Predict Trends and Win the Future” R. Bhargava
“The Leader’s Bookshelf” J. Stavris
“First to Fight” LtGen. V. Krulak
“Hue 1968: A Turning Point of the American War in Vietnam” M. Bowden
“A World in Disarray” R. Haas
“Legacy: 15 Lessons in Leadership” J. Kerr
4. Grade Levels
4.a. Entry Level Enlisted: (Poolee, Recruit)
“Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance” A. Duckworth
“Battle Cry” L. Uris
“Corps Values” Z. Miller
“Gates of Fire” S. Pressfield
“Starship Troopers” R. Heinlein
4.b. Entry Level Officer (Candidate, Midshipman)
“Battle Cry” L. Uris
“Corps Values” Z. Miller
“Gates of Fire” S. Pressfield
“I’m Staying with My Boys” J. Proser and J. Cutter
“My Men Are My Heroes” N. Helms
“Starship Troopers” R. Heinlein
“The Killer Angels” M. Shaara
4.c. Primary Level Enlisted (Pvt, LCpl)
“Chesty” J. Hoffman
“Ender’s Game” O. Card
“The Last Stand of Fox Company” B. Drury and T. Clavin
“The Marines of Montford Point” M. McLaurin
“On Call in Hell” R. Jadick
“Ready Player One” E. Cline
“Rifleman Dodd” C. Forester
“The Warrior Ethos” S. Pressfield
4.d. Primary Level Officer (2ndLt, 1stLt)
“What Now Lieutenant?” Gen. R. Neal, USMC
“All Quiet on the Western Front” E. Remarque
“The Last Stand of Fox Company” B. Drury and T. Clavin
“The Marines of Montford Point” M. McLaurin
“With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa” E. Sledge
“Chesty” J. Hoffman
“What It is Like to Go to War” K. Marlantes
“Ready Player One” E. Cline
“Fields of Fire” J. Webb
“At The Water’s Edge: Defending against the Modern Amphibious Assault” T. Gatchel
“The Defense of Hill 781: An Allegory of Modern Mechanized Combat”
J. McDonough
4.e. Career Level Enlisted (Cpl, Sgt)
“On Combat: the Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and in Peace” D. Grossman
“Resilience” E. Greitens
“Outliers” M. Gladwell
“The Defense of Duffers Drift” E. Swinton
“The Killer Angels” M. Shaara
“With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa” E. Sledge
“Battle Leadership” A. Von Schell
“Ghost Fleet” P. Singer and A. Cole
“We Were Soldiers Once… and Young” H. Moore and J. Galloway
“The Revenge of Geography: What the Map Tells Us about Coming Conflicts and the Battle against Fate” R. Kaplan
“Left of Bang” P. Van Horne and J. Riley
“On Killing” D. Grossman
4.f. Career Level Officer (WO, CWO2, Capt)
“This Kind of War” T. Fehrenbach
“What Now Lieutenant?” R. Neal
“Attacks” E. Rommel
“Black Hearts” J. Frederick
“Into The Tiger’s Jaw” F. Petersen and J. Phelps
“War Made New” M. Boot
“Curious: The Desire to Know and Why Your Future Depends On It” I. Leslie
“Forgotten Warriors” T. Hammes
“Assault from the Sea: Essays on the History of Amphibious Warfare” M. Bartlett
“The Starfish and the Spider” O. Brafman and R. Beckstrom
“Out of the Mountains: The Coming Age of the Urban Guerrilla” D. Kilcullen
“Neptune’s Inferno: The U.S. Navy at Guadalcanal” J. Hornfischer
“On Killing” D. Grossman
4.g. Intermediate Level Enlisted (SSgt, GySgt)
“Towards the Flame” H. Allen
“All Quiet On the Western Front” E. Remarque
“American Spartans” J. Warren
“The Changing Face of War” M. Van Creveld
“This Kind of War” T. Fehrenbach
“Fields of Fire” J. Webb
“Leading Change” J. Kotter
“My Men Are My Heroes” N. Helms
“Thinking Fast and Slow” D. Kahneman
“The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution” W. Isaacson
“Once an Eagle” A. Myrer
4.h. Intermediate Level Officer (CWO3, CWO4, Maj, LtCol)
“Fleet Tactics and Naval Operations” W. Hughes and R. Girrier
“Command Culture” J. Muth
“Defeat into Victory” W. Slim
“Military Innovation in the Interwar Period” W. Murray and A. Millett “The Warriors: Reflections on Men in Battle” J. Gray
“The Utility of Force: The Art of War in the Modern World” R. Smith
“This Kind of War” T. Fehrenbach
“Team of Teams” S. McChrystal and T. Collins
“Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World’s First Digital Weapon” K. Zetter
“After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split in Islam” L. Hazelton
“Monsoon: The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power” R. Kaplan
“Cobra II: The Inside Story Of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq” M. Gordon and B. Trainor
“The Blitzkrieg Legend: The 1940 Campaign in the West” K. Frieser
“The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution” W. Isaacson
“Storming the City: US Military Performance in Urban Warfare from WWII to Vietnam” A. Wahlman
“The Mind of War: John Boyd and American Security” G. Hammond
4.i. Senior Level Enlisted (MSgt, 1stSgt, MGySgt, SgtMaj)
“Achilles in Vietnam” J. Shay
“Command Culture” J. Muth
“Forgotten Warriors” T. Hammes
“Just and Unjust Wars” M. Walzer
“No Bended Knee” M. Twining
“The Face of Battle” J. Keegan
“Team of Teams” S. McChrystal
“The Inevitable: Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future” K. Kelly
“The Innovators Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail” C. Christensen
“The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology” R. Kurzweil
“On Combat” D. Grossman
“Guns of August” B. Tuchman
“Start with Why” S. Sinek
4.j. Senior Level Officer (CWO5, Col-Gen)
“Another Bloody Century” C. Gray
“Assignment Pentagon: How to Excel in A Bureaucracy” P. Smith and D. Gerstein
“Dereliction of Duty: Johnson, McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff And the Lies That Led to Vietnam” H. McMaster
“Diplomacy” H. Kissinger
“Little Book Of Economics: How the Economy Works in the Real World” G. Ip
“Supreme Command: Soldiers, Statesmen and Leadership in Wartime” E. Cohen
“Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln” D. Goodwin
“The Federalist Papers” A. Hamilton
“The Landmark Thucydides” R. Strassler
“Every War Must End” F. Ikle
“The Soldier and the State” S. Huntington
“Strategy: A History” L. Freedman
“Treasury’s War” J. Zarate
“Guns of August” B. Tuchman
“The Innovators Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail” C. Christensen
“The Inevitable: Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future” K. Kelly
“Stilwell and the American Experience In China: 1911-1945” B. Tuchman
“Chairman Xi Remakes the PLA: Assessing Chinese Military Reform” P. Saunders, A. Ding, A. Scobell, A. Yang, and J. Wuthnow
5. Incorporate the new CPRL into their command and unit PME programs.
6. Semper Fidelis, Robert B. Neller, General, U.S. Marine Corps, Commandant of the Marine Corps.//