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goalkerm's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
5.0
Amazing book. Fast paced writing about a man who literally affected how the US views and fights its wars.
thehosk's review against another edition
5.0
Inspiring book, will written and Boyd helped change the world he lived in and inspire others to do the same.
John Boyd is a fascinating person, who in many occasions hours out of his way to enter combat with people, military leadership, processes and the pentagon.
He was also dozen by honesty, integrating and motivated by doing the right thing.
His ideas changed military strategy and influenced gulf war strategy.
Great book, researched well and written in engaging and informative way.
John Boyd is a fascinating person, who in many occasions hours out of his way to enter combat with people, military leadership, processes and the pentagon.
He was also dozen by honesty, integrating and motivated by doing the right thing.
His ideas changed military strategy and influenced gulf war strategy.
Great book, researched well and written in engaging and informative way.
paulfrost86's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.25
terras's review against another edition
4.0
Well researched book with dozens of good stories of Boyd that allow you to understand him and his theories better. They can get a little tedious as you go on “hosed ‘em” stories happen frequently. But I imagine they happened frequently with Boyd as well. Perhaps that shows the friendships/brotherhood he had with others. Acceptance of his eccentricities and run-ons for the brilliance that you saw within all that.
tintinintibet's review against another edition
2.0
"Some say Boyd has become a cult figure. But no one who knows the Acolytes or the U.S. Marines or the growing use of Boyd's ideas in business believes this is cultish activity."
Unfortunately the biography makes me feel like I'm being sold on something. Haphazard foreshadowing, repetition, and lack of unridiculed opposition were all distracting.
Subject matter: 4
Unfortunately the biography makes me feel like I'm being sold on something. Haphazard foreshadowing, repetition, and lack of unridiculed opposition were all distracting.
Subject matter: 4
jchammer's review against another edition
5.0
Cornerstone reading for anyone who wants to lead in the military, or manage acquisition operations. Also a good story about a paradigm-shifting airman.
jasperburns's review against another edition
4.0
This is an excellent biography about one of the most famous fighter pilots in history. It is over-the-top and every story feels just a little bit too exaggerated. And it almost feels as if the author is engaged in hero-worship. But this hyperbole is part of its appeal; he sells Boyd as a figure to be admired and put on a pedestal. It is fun to read about such a figure.
From a Big 5 psychological standpoint, Boyd seems like he may have maxed out disagreeability. He seemed to love doing what he wanted, and screw whatever anyone else thought. I found his sense of purpose motivating, and his lack of fear of retribution from his seniors as freeing for myself.
While I have been cursorily exposed to E-M diagrams as part of our air-to-air threat study, I never really understood the depths of its origins, and learning about Boyd's hard-fought work in developing E-M theory was fascinating.
What was most valuable to me was learning about his paper Destruction and Creation, where he describes in clear and concise detail a theory of thinking that is very close to what I've been working on myself. This paper, which I've now read separately, would be a full five-stars from me. The next most important insight to me was OODA loops, which I knew from ROTC but had the importance drilled more deeply into me here. The more you think about it, the more subverting an enemy's decision cycle makes sense. I thought it was useful to understand that the "best" wartime tactic might actually be worse than the least expected one. This, and the development of maneuver warfare rather than attrition warfare, is a valuable insight.
Everyone else in aviation, especially tacair, should read this book. It makes me feel pride in our profession and was enjoyable to boot.
View my best reviews and a collection of mental models at jasperburns.blog.
From a Big 5 psychological standpoint, Boyd seems like he may have maxed out disagreeability. He seemed to love doing what he wanted, and screw whatever anyone else thought. I found his sense of purpose motivating, and his lack of fear of retribution from his seniors as freeing for myself.
While I have been cursorily exposed to E-M diagrams as part of our air-to-air threat study, I never really understood the depths of its origins, and learning about Boyd's hard-fought work in developing E-M theory was fascinating.
What was most valuable to me was learning about his paper Destruction and Creation, where he describes in clear and concise detail a theory of thinking that is very close to what I've been working on myself. This paper, which I've now read separately, would be a full five-stars from me. The next most important insight to me was OODA loops, which I knew from ROTC but had the importance drilled more deeply into me here. The more you think about it, the more subverting an enemy's decision cycle makes sense. I thought it was useful to understand that the "best" wartime tactic might actually be worse than the least expected one. This, and the development of maneuver warfare rather than attrition warfare, is a valuable insight.
Everyone else in aviation, especially tacair, should read this book. It makes me feel pride in our profession and was enjoyable to boot.
View my best reviews and a collection of mental models at jasperburns.blog.