★★★★★ 5
A Must Read That Belongs on Every Political, Social, or Military Strategist's Shelf
Format: Hardcover
LikeWar is the manual for warfare in the 21st century, a worthy successor to Singer's Ghost Fleet, and excellent debut work for Brooking. It belongs on the shelf of anyone who wants to seriously understand how war will be fought and social policy developed in the era of Facebook and Twitter.
There is a particularly urgent need for this book at a time when most tacticians have their eyes firmly fixed on enhancing cybersecurity through the protection of systems and hardware. While this is undeniably important, LikeWar reminds us that the information that is transmitted over that infrastructure is no less, and possibly quite a bit more important than the infrastructure itself. This message has never been more urgent than today when democratic nations struggle with balancing the need for an open civil society against the risks of foreign subversion and influence. This is the next great battle. It will be fought in the trenches of Facebook and the swamps of Twitter - wise commanders will bring LikeWar with them as field guide.
LikeWar stands out for its incredible scope and accessibility. Its coverage is comprehensive - everything from the 2016 election to the IDF's influence tactics are explored, analyzed, and fit into a comprehensive thesis about the changing face of war. Read LikeWar and you will have a confident grasp of the major developments in this new theater of combat. Yet the book remains eminently readable - this combat guide does not require a reader to slog through the bone-dry prose of a TRADOC manual or an academic paper. It is quick and engaging yet thorough at the same time.
In short, Singer and Brooking have written a manual for combat in the new millennium that is both engaging and substantial enough to leave their reader a master of the new face of battle.
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Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2018