Americans have invaded nearly half the world's countries and been militarily involved with all the rest, except Andorra, Bhutan and Liechtenstein. Christopher Kelly and Stuart Laycock take you on a global tour of America's military activity around the world from the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli and everywhere in-between. Whatever your political views this is an extraordinary and often surprising story. With personal photos, maps and an index to assist America Invades: How We've Invaded or Been Militarily Involved with Almost Every Country on Earth gives us history as it should be taught--calling out for more! In this extensive, whimsical volume, the authors posit what many have long suspected: the United States has invaded or been militarily involved with almost every country on the globe. Kelly, a longtime military-history buff, readily admits in his introduction that he drew inspiration for his first book from Laycock's previous work All the Countries We Invaded: And a Few We Never Got Round To, 2012) which covers Great Britain's overseas excursions. The two got to talking and discovered that the U.S. offered even greater fodder for such a compilation. It has invaded 84 out of the 194 countries recognized by the United Nations and has been militarily involved with 191 of those. (The holdouts, the authors note, are Andorra, Bhutan, and Liechtenstein.) Military action is never too far away for America, as Kelly notes: "Americans are always hoping for peace but usually preparing for war. The American Eagle is an ambivalent bird holding arrows in the talons of one foot and an olive branch in the other." A work such as this has the potential for being academically stodgy, but Kelly and Laycock deftly avoid that trap. Instead, they find colorful, obscure episodes from each country's past. Take, for example, Panama's Watermelon War of 1856: "It was really more of a Watermelon Riot, which was triggered by an intoxicated American railroad traveler who took a slice of watermelon from a Panamanian fruit merchant and refused payment. Fifteen Americans were killed in Panama City, and we sent our troops in to restore order." One drawback is that readers can get cast adrift on the sea of military and political acronyms in the book, but the authors do provide supporting materials, such as a glossary, maps, and a comprehensive index, at the back of the volume to provide perspective for those seeking clarification. Still, for a dedicated history fan, this is an invigorating travelogue, taking readers around the world and backward and forward through time. An intensive compendium of America's interactions, both good and bad, with other countries that rightly leaves out the philosophizing. --Kirkus Reviews America Invades. A provocative title for sure. Is this an account of American imperial aggression a la Howard Zinn, or perhaps a more neocon examination of historical nation building? Thankfully, nothing like that at all. The subtitle explains perfectly: How We've Invaded or Been Militarily Involved with Almost Every Country on Earth. That is completely accurate and leaves nothing out. Books like these almost always veer into political/idealogical riffing, and I can happily say that this doesn't happen once in this book. The purpose of America Invades is simple: inform in an entertaining fashion. And my does it succeed. A warning: if the subtitle sounds boring to you, you will probably be bored. Not much to do there. But for the interested, this incredibly accessible book promises to make you look at the world map a bit differently. I read Mr. Laycock's book first, the British version entitled All the Countries We've Ever Invaded (And the Few We Never Got Round To) while abroad in Edinburgh. The title grabbed my attention instantly, being a sucker for trivia and "Did you know" factoids. The emergence of Mr. Kelly's more relatable (being an American) book was pleasantly surprising, even more so on seeing the collaboration between the two men. Both books are written in a very conversational style; some may be turned off by that approach, but I found it appropriate. This is not a textbook and it does not claim to be; it's more "popular history." The book stays light throughout (think wordplay and terrible puns), both in tone and substance, making it easy for those who may have forgotten their world history lessons. I found myself frequently smiling or even laughing out loud as I read about our abundant (and sometimes awkward) international exploits. Another nice, if infrequent, plus about America Invades is that you don't necessarily have to read it front to back. The book is organized alphabetically by country, so it's easy to jump ahead and read the section on, say, Kenya, if that's what you would like to know. The book promises to be a good starting point for research, allowing the reader to make more informed and specific inquiries of more in-depth books. America Invades is exactly what it promises t