The Ultimate Book of Explosives, Bombs and IEDs/N.C. Asthana and Anjali Nirmal. Jaipur, Pointer Pub., 2008, xxxviii, 482 p., tables, figs., ISBN 81-7132-552-8.

    Contents: Acknowledgement. Preface. I. Explosives: the power behind everything: 1. Explosives and explosions: basics you must know. 2. Low but not lowly explosive. 3. High explosives: properties that matter to keep them on high. 4. Primary high explosives: they kick off everything. 5. High explosives: the illustrious nitric esters. 6. High explosives: the celebrated Nitroaromatics. 7. High explosives: the legendary Nitramines. 8. Composite explosives take the best of many things and make the very best. 9. Insensitive high explosives and some novel explosives. 10. Ammonium nitrate based explosive capture the world of non-military explosives. 11. The deceptive beauty of binary explosive. 12. Liquid and foam explosives: amazing, isn't it? 13. Milestones in the development of explosives. 14. Propellants: to shove hard but not to shatter. 15. Initiating devices: safety fuse, detonators and detonating cord. 16. How explosions do what they do: the mechanics of damage by explosions. 17. Oh, the so fascinating job of demolitions! 18. How to use explosives for breaching in tactical situations like urban fighting and hostage rescue. 19. The esoteric world of shaped charges, explosive lenses used in nuclear weapons and explosively formed projectiles. II. Bombs: to break the back of nations: 20. Bombs in a historical perspective. 21. The technology of bombs: an overview. 22. Some of the great bombs in service today. 23. Dig deep and hit hard: the bunker busters. 24. Cluster bombs: bombs that breed Bomblets. 25. The much-maligned Napalm, its cousins and fuel-air explosives. 26. Bombs take a technological leap and become smart. 27. Little bombs for big guys: grenades. 28. Springing nasty surprises: landmines. III. IEDs: ingenuity unlimited: 29. Make it, set it, forget it: the fascinating world of time delay and booby trap type IEDs. 30. Boom at the press of button: all about command actuated IEDs. 31. Designs of the time delay and remote control IEDs found in recent use in the Middle East. 32. The last resort: suicide bombs or victim operated IEDs. 33. Car bombs: the terrorist's most devastating weapon. 34. Getting into the war mode: terrorists' use of IEDs capable of being used in a military context. 35. Busting the myth of the mysterious liquid explosives called TATP and HMTD. 36. Explosives and IEDs made by amateurs. Appendixes: i. Jammers. ii. Detection of explosives. iii. High explosives at a glance. Selected bibliography. Index. 

    "This is a unique and most exhaustive encyclopedia of explosives, bombs and IEDs--from gunpowder to RDX; from door breaching to building implosions; from dumb bombs to smart bombs; from landmines to bunker busters; from napalm to fuel-air explosives; from alarm clock time bombs to IC chip controlled IEDs, from wired to remote control devices; from suicide bomb jackets to car bombs, everything is here.  

    Why do we need this book? Firstly, nobody in the world has written a book like this and secondly, because explosives are extremely important for the industry, the military and in everyday life.

    With terrorists' bombs exploding all over the country, everybody must know what they are all about. Presently, not only the common people but the media, the security forces and the intelligence agencies everybody has only intriguing, vague and wild notions about the arcane field of explosives and bombs. Such ignorance is dangerous because it distorts perceptions. Distorted perceptions result in defective policy-making. This book will educate and enlighten all of them.

    This book discusses not only all about explosives and bombs, their invention, and their inventors but also their place in history and industry, and the technology involved therein. This is a technical compendium, a collection of human stories, a historical survey, and a tribute to the conquests of technology, all blended into a highly readable treatise. This is as much a very high-standard reference book for those having some knowledge of explosives as it is a lively introduction to the subject for the layman.

    The only affordable and complete encyclopaedia of weaponry in the whole world -- exhaustive yet attractive, informative yet interesting with 264 extremely rare pictures, it is the The Ultimate Book of Explosives, Bombs and IEDs." (jacket)

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