‘Disturbingly brilliant. David Kilcullen, ever the thoughtful observer of wars and the people who wage them, captures the changes in warfare that already confound — and threaten to overwhelm us. He correctly shows that we are mentally and physically unprepared for the new nature of conflict, and will likely pay dearly for it.’
Stanley McChrystal, retired US Army General, and partner at McChrystal Group
‘Once again David Kilcullen succeeds in demonstrating how our adversaries are adapting faster than we are to the experiences of the recent past. Timely advice for defence strategists on how to apply those lessons, and to plan for the next conflict, not the last.’
Professor Sir David Omand, former UK Security and Intelligence Coordinator
‘To absorb Kilcullen’s insights is to be forced to rethink national and international security in this new century and to adjust military and nonmilitary institutions to a host of new realities. Senior policymakers have no choice but to do so.’
Gary Hart, member of United States Senate Armed Services and Intelligence Committees
‘An impressive exposé on how terrorists and non-state actors outmanoeuvre conventional militaries … At the heart of The Dragons and the Snakes is a Darwinian dialectic between the mighty dragons and the snakes that seek to subvert and outflank them … The Dragons and the Snakes is based on a formidable array of military and political sources.’
Malise Ruthven, The Financial Times
‘A dazzling performance ... This is a book that will keep you on your toes. It paints a breathtaking danger-laden picture of a world perennially at war, and of the strange and mesmerising process by which a snake eventually rears up, as fire-filled as a dragon.’
Peter Craven, The Saturday Paper
‘An eye-opening look at the state of strategic balance between the United States and its rivals, large and small … The author delivers a detailed and unsettling analysis of how America’s rivals have adapted to the modern strategic landscape — and how they hope to defeat us. Essential reading for anyone concerned with America’s future on the world stage.’ STARRED REVIEW
Kirkus Reviews
‘This book should be read by everyone in uniform.’
The Times
‘Interesting and provocative.’
The Sunday Times
‘Kilcullen argues persuasively that while the United States has been mired down in forever wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, our current and potential adversaries have gotten the jump on us. His book offers readers a skilfully annotated road map of contemporary conflict, describing in clear, measured prose how and why the days of American strategic and military preeminence are now behind us.’
Daily Beast
‘[A]n eye-opening and sobering read, but realistic and authoritative.’
Vin Arthey, The Scotsman
‘Kilcullen is a welcome guide, offering a neat summation of how both nation-states and terrorist groups alike learned to cope with America's conventional military primacy … Kilcullen's approach offers readers accessible insights into what are complex and dynamic trends.’
Diplomatic Courier
‘The Dragons and the Snakes is the best single piece out there-concise, well-written, and nuanced. It is both a timely introduction to the topic for the unfamiliar and a source of new discoveries and insights for the expert; an important book during changing times.’
PRISM
‘Thanks to Kilcullen's serious military experience, access to policymakers, thorough research, and eclectic academic interests, this Australian scholar has become one of the sharpest commentators on modern conflicts.’
Foreign Affairs
‘Kilcullen’s The Dragons and the Snakes is a timely invitation for the West to get its strategic house in order with some new thinking.’
The Bridge
‘David Kilcullen offers a wide ranging analysis of the strategic environment since 1993 ... compelling.’
Will Leben, Australian Outlook
‘An incisive work that has deservedly garnered a great deal of attention and is likely to be of enduring importance in debates about the decline of Western power.’
RealClearDefense
‘Timely … This book should be essential reading for anyone concerned about America’s future and Australia’s place in the global order it created.’
Peter Masters, Military Books Australia
Praise for Out of the Mountains:
‘This is a brilliant book by the most unfettered and analytically acute mind in the military intelligentsia. Kilcullen unflinchingly confronts the nightmare of endless warfare in the slums of the world.’
Mike Davis, author of Planet of Slums
Praise for Counterinsurgency:
‘Counterinsurgency is a valuable contribution to understanding the local, regional and global natures of the terrorist and guerrilla warfare threats confronting us and how tailored and customised approaches are required to resolve them in a comprehensive fashion.'
Washington Times
Praise for The Accidental Guerrilla:
‘The Accidental Guerrilla, a brilliant study by former Australian army colonel David Kilcullen … The book testifies to a great deal of hard work. Not only has Kilcullen had a privileged vantage point on the most important conflicts of our era, he has been thinking intently, reading widely but purposefully and taking notes the whole time. The result is probably the best book available on contemporary conflicts and how to fight them.’
Whit Mason, Australian Literary Review
