The Gun (Chivers book)

The Gun is a nonfiction book written by journalist C. J. Chivers about the AK-47 rifle and its variants, and the impact they have had on the world. It covers the origins of the design, its invention and distribution, and the consequences of the pattern's spread around the world.

The Gun
AuthorC. J. Chivers
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreNon-fiction, military history
PublisherSimon & Schuster
Publication date
Oct 12, 2010[1]
Pages496
ISBN0-74327-07-6-2
OCLC795609613
Websitecjchivers.com/aboutthegun

Synopsis

A prologue relates two events in 1949 in the Soviet Union marking the beginning of the Cold War: the first Soviet nuclear test and innovation in the development of the automatic rifle; the former made total war unwinnable and the latter made smaller proxy wars the principle activity of the Cold War, and automatic rifles would prove the most lethal weapons of the Cold War.

Origins

Roughly the first third of the book is devoted to the history of the development of automatic firearms, including the biographies of Hiram Maxim, Richard Gatling, Paul Mauser, John T. Thompson, their eponymous automatic weapons, and their impact on warfare.

Invention and distribution

Chivers deconstructs the Soviet origin mythology of the Kalashnikov rifle. Chivers draws in part from his interview of Mikhail Kalashnikov.

Aftermath

Roughly the final third of the book covers the contest between the AK-47 and the M16 in the Vietnam War, and the spread of the adoption of the AK-47 by criminal, non-military, non-state actors.

Reviews

Reviews were generally favorable. Reviewers contrasted the broad scope of the book (automatic rifles) with its nominal scope (the Kalashnikov rifles), and noted the coverage of both technical aspects and social impacts and that the narrative is a human story, involving inventors, generals, and casualties. According to reviewers, Chivers' experiences as Marine, journalist, and weapons expert informed the work. The most common criticism was that some topics were considered diversions by reviewers who took the central topic to be the development of the Kalashnikov pattern or the contest between the AK-47 and the United States' M16 in the Vietnam War.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]

References
  1. Chivers, C. J. (12 October 2010). The Gun. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4391-9653-3.
  2. Hennessey, Patrick (December 2, 2010). "The Flesh and Blood Behind the AK-47". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  3. Boot, Max (October 29, 2010). "Arms and the Man". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  4. Keefe, IV, Mark A. (October 29, 2010). "A history of the AK-47, the gun that made history". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  5. Kim, Robert (October 16, 2010). "Everyman's Gun: Sheer numbers have made the AK-47 the world's primary tool for killing". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  6. Bonner, Raymond (January 28, 2011). "The Gun: The AK-47 and the Evolution of War by CJ Chivers – review". The Guardian. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  7. Matloff, Judith (October 2010). "Top Gun: How the Kalashnikov conquered the world". Slate. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
  8. Exum, Andrew (Autumn 2010). "Armed for a Fight". The Wilson Quarterly. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
  9. Rutten, Tim (November 26, 2010). "Book review: 'The Gun' by C.J. Chivers". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 2, 2018.

Further reading
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