Books to Battles

In this episode of Books to Battles, Dr. Wendy Whitman Cobb and Colonel Cory Hollon welcome Lieutenant Colonel Rachel Reynolds to discuss Arkady Martine’s A Memory Called Empire and its connections to the Foundations of International Politics course. Poetry, memory technology, and an imperial succession struggle become ways to examine soft power, domestic politics, and strategies of denial. The discussion asks whether institutions can survive without the military power behind them and how smaller powers can make conquest costly. For strategists, the challenge is choosing the theory that helps explain the problem in front of them. Throughout, the hosts examine what fiction reveals about the possibilities and limits of applying international relations theories to complex strategic problems.

If you have questions, comments, or episode recommendations, please email us at bookstobattles@au.af.edu

Books Mentioned

John J. Mearsheimer, The Tragedy of Great Power Politics (WW Norton & Co., 2014).

Robert O. Keohane, After Hegemony: Cooperation and Discord in World Political Economy (Princeton UP, 2004).

Robert Gilpin, War and Change in World Politics (Cambridge UP, 1981).

Jeff Pearlman, Only God Can Judge Me: The Many Lives of Tupac Shakur (Mariner Books, 2025).

Everett Dolman, Pure Strategy: Power and Principle in the Space and Information Age (Routledge, 2005).

The opinions expressed here are those of the hosts or the guests and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Department of the Air Force, the Depart of Defense or War, or the United States Government.

In this episode of Books to Battles, Dr. Wendy Whitman Cobb and Col. Cory Hollon speak with Dr. Rob Hutchinson, SAASS Dean of Academics, about the school’s field study in Germany and its role in educating strategists. They explain how student research and discussions at historical sites connect classroom study to enduring questions about airpower, great-power competition, and the human consequences of strategic decisions. Stops including the Fulda Gap, Schweinfurt, Dresden, and Berlin provide opportunities to examine defense planning, strategic bombing, and the Berlin Airlift. Visits to Buchenwald and Mittelbau-Dora prompt discussion of the relationship between Nazi war production, forced labor, and the subsequent development of space technology. The conversation also explores how museums and memorials construct historical narratives and how engagements with American and German officials connect those histories to contemporary European security. The trip brings abstract strategic problems into contact with terrain, human suffering, and the choices facing an ally today.

If you have questions, comments, or episode recommendations, please email us at bookstobattles@au.af.edu

Books Mentioned

Joseph Maiolo, Cry Havoc: The Arms Race and the Second World War, 1931–1941 (Basic Books, 2012).

The opinions expressed here are those of the hosts or the guests and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Department of the Air Force, the Department of Defense or War, or the United States Government.

In this episode of Books to Battles, Dr. Wendy Whitman Cobb and Col. Cory Hollon welcome Dr. Jared McKinney, Dr. Chris Colley, and Col. James Day to discuss their contributions to Strategy and Airpower in the East and South China Sea. Colley examines the gap between the announced U.S. pivot to Asia and changes in military force posture, including its effects on Chinese perceptions. McKinney explores alternative U.S. responses to a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, including support short of direct war and scenarios in which Chinese actions could draw the United States into conflict. Day and Hollon discuss how airpower and joint all-domain operations could strengthen deterrence through survivability, flexibility, and temporary operational advantages. The discussion tests strategic ambitions against operational realities while asking whether Americans adequately understand the Chinese calculations they hope to influence.

If you have questions, comments, or episode recommendations, please email us at bookstobattles@au.af.edu

Books Mentioned

Michael A. Hunzeker and Mark A. Christopher, America’s Taiwan Dilemma: Allies’ Reactions and the Stakes for US Reputation (Cambria Press, 2025).

Jared McKinney, ed., Closing the Deterrence Gap in the Taiwan Straits (Air University Press, 2026, projected).

Jessica Chen Weiss, What China Wants: And What It Means for the World (Oxford University Press, 2027).

Henry Kissinger, On China (Penguin Books, 2012).

Amos C. Fox and Franz-Stefan Gady, eds., Multidomain Operations: The Pursuit of Battlefield Dominance in the 21st Century (Howgate Publishing Limited, 2026).

Robert Jervis, Perception and Misperception in International Politics (Princeton University Press).

X. “The Sources of Soviet Conduct.” Foreign Affairs 25, no. 4 (1947): 566–82.

The opinions expressed here are those of the hosts or the guests and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Department of the Air Force, the Department of Defense or War, or the United States Government.

The United States has publicly acknowledged on-orbit space control weapons for the first time. What does that announcement mean for deterrence, strategy, and the future of military competition in space? Dr. Derrick Frazier joins Books to Battles to unpack Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink’s remarks, explore the strategic logic behind space weapons, and consider how greater transparency about U.S. capabilities could shape an increasingly contested domain.

In the latest installment of our fiction-a-month series, Books to Battles takes on Elizabeth Wein’s Code Name Verity. Through the lens of SAASS’s Airpower in the Age of Total War course, we explore the novel’s portrayal of air warfare, intelligence, resistance, and sacrifice during World War II. The conversation considers how fiction illuminates the human dimensions of airpower and the complex relationship between technology, strategy, and those who wage war.

What happens when the mission arrives before the military is ready for it? In this episode of Books to Battles, Col. Cory Hollon speaks with Lt. Col. Ryan Hess and Maj. Elizabeth Townsend, thesis award winners from SAASS Class XXXV, about how military organizations adapt to unfamiliar demands. Townsend examines General Moorman’s role in integrating space capabilities into military operations and his evolving views on an independent Space Force. Hess explores Task Force Holloman’s reception of Afghan evacuees during Operation Allies Welcome, emphasizing leadership, interagency cooperation, and cultural understanding. Both cases reveal how much depends on leaders who can build relationships across organizations, give people room to act, and adapt as circumstances change. However, success can obscure the improvisation and communication failures that helped shape the outcome. Together, they discuss mission command, the limits of preparation, and the challenge of turning improvised successes into lasting institutional improvements.

If you have questions, comments, or episode recommendations, please email us at bookstobattles@au.af.edu

The opinions expressed here are those of the hosts or the guests and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Department of the Air Force, the Depart of Defense, or the United States Government.

Dr. Wendy Whitman Cobb sits down with China scholar Lyle Morris to explore critical blind spots in the study of China’s military and strategic behavior. Drawing on his latest work, Morris examines the assumptions that shape Western analysis of China and identifies the political, military, economic, and international factors that could influence Beijing’s decision-making over Taiwan. The conversation highlights what analysts may be missing—and why it matters for strategy.

General Mike Minihan, U.S. Air Force retired, joins Books to Battles for a wide-ranging conversation on leadership, readiness, and the future of American airpower. Drawing on more than three decades of service—including command of Air Mobility Command and senior leadership roles in the Indo-Pacific—General Minihan reflects on preparing forces for great-power competition, building a warrior culture, and the lessons that have shaped his approach to leadership and warfighting.

On this episode of Books to Battles, Dr. Wendy Whitman Cobb sits down with General Adrian Spain, Commander of Air Combat Command, to discuss the challenges facing today’s Combat Air Forces. General Spain shares his perspectives on readiness, modernization, and preparing Airmen for future conflict, as well as the operational problems that demand greater attention. He also discusses the books and ideas shaping his thinking as a senior Air Force leader.

In the second installment of our Fiction-a-Month series, Books to Battles turns to Robert Heinlein’s classic The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress. We explore the novel’s depiction of revolution, resistance, political organization, and the strategic challenges facing a weaker actor confronting a more powerful adversary. Along the way, we connect Heinlein’s lunar rebellion to key concepts from the SAASS Military Theory course and consider what fiction can teach us about strategy and war.

In this episode of Books to Battles, Tobias Bernard Switzer discusses his new RAND report, Air Power, Not Air Forces, and the lessons drawn from U.S. efforts to build partner aviation capabilities in Iraq and Afghanistan. Switzer argues that future security force assistance should prioritize generating effective combat airpower over replicating Western-style air force institutions, emphasizing affordable capabilities, sustainable support, and organizational approaches better suited to partner needs.

Join co-editors Dr. Wes Hutto and Dr. Wendy Whitman Cobb for a discussion of The Three-Body Problem and International Relations, a new edited volume exploring what Cixin Liu's acclaimed science fiction trilogy can teach us about international relations and strategy. They discuss the book's origins, the value of fiction as a teaching tool, and how themes such as deterrence, diplomacy, strategy, and power help illuminate today's most pressing security challenges.

In this episode of Books to Battles, Col. Cory Hollon speaks with Dr. Peter Layton, a retired Royal Australian Air Force officer and grand strategist, about his concept of heterogeneous air power. Layton argues that the rising cost and complexity of manned combat aircraft has created a resilience problem for middle-power air forces, particularly in a prolonged war of attrition. Drawing on the Russia-Ukraine war, he examines how rockets, missiles, drones, and manned aircraft can combine to create an air force with greater resilience, scalability, and mass. The discussion explores the implications for air superiority, control of the air, precision warfare, industrial capacity, force design, and the future of air strategy and theory.

In the first installment of our Fiction-a-Month miniseries, Dr. Wendy Whitman Cobb is joined by Lt Col Rachel Reynolds to explore Joe Abercrombie’s The Heroes. Together, they examine the novel’s insights on leadership, war, and strategy, connecting its themes to SAASS 601, Foundations of Strategy, and contemporary military thought.

For more information on this podcast and the series, please visit us at https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/SAASS/Podcast/.

In this episode, Dr. Whitman Cobb and Col. Hollon sit down with Lt Gen Jason Armagost, Deputy Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command and the Class XXXV graduation speaker. They discuss strategic thinking, military leadership, and the enduring value of intellectual curiosity. Drawing on his experiences as a commander, Stanford fellow, and lifelong reader, Lt Gen Armagost reflects on the role of liberal arts education, the relationship between theory and practice, and the importance of cultivating creativity and critical thinking within military organizations. The conversation explores reading as a tool for professional development, examines challenges posed by emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, and considers how future leaders can avoid technological determinism while adapting to a changing character of war. The conversation concludes with a discussion of recommended books, strategic education, and the challenges facing the next generation of air and space leaders.

STICK AROUND FOR THE SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENT

After the discussion with Gen Armagost, Dr. Whitman Cobb and Col Hollon welcome Lt Col Rachel Reynolds back to the show to introduce a new mini-series that looks at each class during the year through a work of fiction. The team will discuss the assigned book on the last Wednesday of every month throughout the next school year.

This is the last show for this season. Thank you to all who have tuned in and especially those who have reached out to offer feedback and suggestions. We look forward to seeing you in the next school year, starting at the end of June!

Books to Battles: https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/SAASS/

Email: bookstobattles@au.af.edu

In this special episode of Books to Battles, members of SAASS Class XXXV take over the podcast to reflect on their experiences at the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies as they prepare to graduate. The students discuss why they chose SAASS, their impressions of the program, the challenges of the reading and thesis process, and the intellectual growth they experienced throughout the year. They also highlight the impact of the Germany staff ride, memorable courses and books, and the value of engaging with classmates and faculty from diverse professional and international backgrounds. Throughout the episode, the students emphasize how SAASS shaped the way they think about strategy, history, and military problem-solving.

This week, we bring you a special preview of Space Power Discussions, a podcast series with episodes produced by our SAASS students. Find out more by searching "Space Power Discussions" on your preferred podcast platform.

This episode of Space Power Discussions examines Test Gods, exploring the culture of experimental test pilots and risk in advancing aerospace capabilities. SAASS students connect lessons from flight testing to innovation, military space development, and strategic competition, highlighting how risk acceptance and experimentation shape the future of space power.

This week, we bring you a special preview of Space Power Discussions, a podcast series with episodes produced by our SAASS students. Find out more by searching "Space Power Discussions" on your preferred podcast platform.

This episode of Space Power Discussions explores The Power of the Space Club, examining how exclusive access to space capabilities shapes international politics. SAASS students analyze barriers to entry, prestige, and strategic influence, connecting the concept of a “space club” to today’s evolving domain and the implications for competition, cooperation, and emerging spacefaring nations.

In this episode, Dr. Whitman Cobb and Col. Hollon are joined by members of the SAASS 660 teaching team to discuss the course on Technology and Innovation and its role as the final course of the curriculum. The conversation examines how military innovation occurs, emphasizing the bureaucratic, organizational, and political challenges that shape the adoption of new ideas and technologies. The guests highlight the course’s focus on linking historical case studies to contemporary problems, encouraging students to think critically about how innovation is institutionalized. The episode also explores the course’s distinctive “Mother of All Briefings” exercise, which requires students to apply insights from past innovations to current technological challenges.

If you have questions, comments, or episode recommendations, please email us at bookstobattles@au.af.edu

Books Mentioned

Christopher J. Fuller, See It/Shoot It: The Secret History of the CIA's Lethal Drone Program (Yale University Press, 2017)

Michael W. Hankins, Flying Camelot (Cornell University Press, 2023)

Matt Hersch, Dark Star: A New History of the Space Shuttle (Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press, 2023)

Trent Hone, Learning War: The Evolution of Fighting Doctrine in the US Navy, 1898-1945 (Naval Institute Press, 2018)

William H. McNiel, Pursuit of Power: Technology, Armed Force, and Society (University of Chicago Press, 1982)

Stephen Rosen, Winning the Next War: Innovations and the Modern Military (Cornell University Press, 1991)

Jacquelyn Schneider and Julia MacDonald, The Hand Behind Unmanned: Origins of the US Autonomous Military Arsenal (Oxford University Press, 2025)

The opinions expressed here are those of the hosts or the guests and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Department of the Air Force, the Depart of Defense, or the United States Government.

In this episode of Books to Battles, hosts Dr. Whitman Cobb and Col Hollon interview the Chief of Space Operations, the senior uniformed leader of the U.S. Space Force, General Chance Saltzman, Gen. Saltzman traces his career from missile operations to leading a new military service and reflects on how the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies shaped his approach to critical thinking, communication, and strategy. He argues that space has transitioned from a supporting function to an integrated warfighting domain, requiring new doctrine, training models, and organizational structures. The conversation highlights the Space Force’s shift toward operating in contested environments, its growing integration into joint operations, and the strategic implications of commercial space partnerships. Saltzman concludes by assessing institutional progress and identifying force growth, training capacity, and resource execution as central challenges ahead.