The news that bestselling writer and former Navy SEAL Chris Kyle was shot and killed on Saturday at a gun range in Texas (along with another victim whose name hasn’t been released) adds yet another headline to the recent spate of news about guns in America. Kyle was proud to be the deadliest soldier in American military history, as the title of his book American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History, attests. On May 14, Kyle’s publisher is slated to release his follow-up to American Sniper, American Gun: A History of the U.S. in Ten Firearms. For those wanting more context and history about the issue of gun rights in America (and less saber-rattling, political back-and-forth), we do what we’re known for at Kirkus: directing you to the books that do the best job of explaining the issue.
NONFICTION
Released: Nov. 13, 2012
"A fresh and balanced argument, though unlikely to convince most NRA members that liberals aren't the enemy."
Former
New York Times reporter and editor Whitney (
All The Stops: The Glorious Pipe Organ and Its American Masters, 2003, etc.) mounts an evenhanded review of the gun issue in the United States.
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NONFICTION
Released: Jan. 10, 2012
"A solidly reported story of a modern-day Samuel Colt who transformed the handgun business."
A
Bloomberg BusinessWeek editor takes expert aim at Glock--the man, the company, the handgun.
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NONFICTION
Released: Sept. 19, 2011
"Detailed, balanced and engrossing--sure to displease both sides of the gun-control debate."
In his first book,
Daily Beast columnist Winkler (Constitutional Law/UCLA) takes on the contentious issue of gun control in the United States.
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NONFICTION
Released: Oct. 12, 2010
"An entertaining work that combines technical details, biographies, political maneuvering and insightful military history."
An eye-opening, often grim history of automatic weapons, emphasizing the Soviet Union's murderous, wildly successful legacy.
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NONFICTION
Released: Nov. 1, 2007
"A breezy, easy-to-read exposé, though the author's staunch pro-firearms position may alienate readers who are anti-gun as well as anti-NRA."
One of its former regional political directors charges the National Rifle Association with being "a cynical, mercenary political cult."
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