Ever since Clancy's first novel, The Hunt For Red October, rocked the publishing world upon its publication in 1984, winning a fan in President Ronald Reagan, Clancy has proved himself to be an indomitable literary force. While Clancy is best known for the techno-thriller genre he is credited with creating and the hard-boiled adventures of President Jack Ryan, he has also penned several works of non-fiction examining various aspects of the U.S. military, such as Submarine: A Guided Tour Inside a Nuclear Warship, Armored CAV: A Guided Tour of an Armored Cavalry Regiment, and Airborne: A Guided Tour of an Airborne Task Force.

Clancy has also co-written several of his studies with military personnel. These entries in his "Commander" series include Into the Storm: A Study in Command, written with armor and infantry General Fred Franks, and Every Man a Tiger with Air Force General Chuck Horner. The most recent installment in the series is a collaboration with Major General Tom Zinni, who served as former Secretary of State Colin Powell's special envoy to the Middle East before his opinions about the Iraqi War lead to his early resignation. In Battle Ready, Clancy tracks Zinni's long and prestigious military career, from his stint in Vietnam to his days directing strikes against Iraq and Al Qaeda. Clancy spins Zinni's tale into a masterful blend of biography, military history, and compelling narrative, with a particular focus on an often-unexamined aspect of our military leaders. "In the movies, military leaders are all drunken Nazis," Clancy told the Associated Press of Battle Ready, "In fact, these are very bright people who regard the soldiers and Marines under them as their own kids. I thought the people needed to know that. These are good guys, smart guys."

Battle Ready makes some inroads in presenting the more human side of the military leaders who are so often illustrated as callous war mongers in the media. Zinni's unflinching and often inflammatory criticisms of U.S. foreign policy provide the book with its powerful moral center, inspiring George Cohen of Booklist to assert, "...this is a book that demands our attention."

As for Clancy's own stance on U.S. involvement in Iraq, he is somewhat less rabble-rousing than Zinni, but no less candid. And on one occasion, Clancy claims he almost came to blows with former Pentagon adviser Richard Perle on the matter. "He was saying how Colin Powell was being a wuss because he was overly concerned with the lives of the troops," Clancy explained, "And I said, ‘Look -- he's supposed to think that way!' And Perle didn't agree with me on that. People like that worry me."

As for what the ever-prolific Tom Clancy has in the works next, he would only say, when asked what his Jack Ryan would have to say about the war, "I don't like to comment on works in progress." With a new book slotted for a 2006 release, Clancy's provocative comment may suggest that the controversy has only just begun to brew.

  (Mike Segretto)

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Good to Know
Tom Clancy's world is not all serious political intrigue -- it is occasionally fun and games. Clancy founded Red Storm Entertainment, a video game company responsible for such titles as "Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon" and "Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six." Clancy recently sold the company for a whopping $45 million.

While Tom Clancy is widely considered to be an authority on all things military, he has never actually served in the military. His failure to pass the eye exam kept him out of action.