Women at War presents historical and present-day information on women in combat. After defining exactly what is meant by "war" and "combat," _Women at War_ presents historical and present-day views of the involvement of women in the military. The impact of regulations on women in combat is analyzed, as is the role of the American public in the controversy. Female combat is put into context with sociological theory; also discussed are readiness, cohesion, ability, sexuality, equal opportunity and family issues.      Excerpt Service in any aspect of the military is valuable. No one type of service to our country is better than another. All people who serve and have served our country I personally thank and respect. Many women as well as men would have preferred not to fight, but many women who wanted to serve in a combat role were not allowed to do so. They had no choice but to serve in the ways permitted. Some women served in combat either in temporary positions or because a crisis was the mother of invention. In an emergency, soldiers do what they have to do. TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments Preface 1 Tables 5 Abbreviations 7 Introduction 9 1 What Is War? 17 2 What Is Combat? 25 3 Evolution of Women's Involvement in War and Combat: The Historical View 45 4 Evolution of Women's Involvement in War and Combat: The Contemporary Scene 61 5 Law and Policy 89 6 The American Public (by James C. Skaine and Rosemarie Skaine) 119 7 Sociological Theory and the Evolution of Combat 133 8 Readiness 153 9 Cohesion 167 10 Ability 173 11 Sexual Issues 187 12 Equal Opportunity 197 13 Family 209 14 Toward Strength and Equality 223 Appendices 227 Notes 235 Bibliography 273 Index 287

Professional Reviews
Women in Military Service for America Memorial Foundation,
Rosemarie Skaine's book contains good, valuable, up-to-date information with a great many valuable oral history interviews. She explores a variety of extremely sensitive political issues surrounding the question of women in combat, including readiness, physical abilities, unit bonding and cohesion, and pregnancy.

Danville Area Community College, Danville, IL, Web Site
A richly documented analysis of the problems and issues surrounding the roles women participate in in the armed services. Beginning with apparently obvious but critically fundamental issues such as what "war" and "combat" really mean. Skaine examines the way women have participated in the military.

H-Net & MINERVA
Overall _Women at War_ is a fast paced, highly readable primer on the expansion of women's roles in the military. The book is a useful addition to MG Jeanne Holm's _Women in the Military: An Unfinished Revolution_, last updated in 1990. -- Reviewed by Pat Jernigan, Colonel, US Army, Retired.

Reader Reviews for "Women at War"

Reviewed by Loretta Scott	3/10/2007
Thank you for sharing, for I am a living soldier/nurse, I am a woman soldier of "Women at War". Blessings, Loretta Scott "YES I CAN" www.gulfnurse.com

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