Innovation on the Commandant’s List: What Marines Are Reading in 2025 (Part 1)

A closer look at the evolving Marine Corps reading list and the books guiding the next generation of warfighters.

The Marine Corps Reading List has long been a structured guide for professional development. In 2020, General Berger restructured it into the Commandant’s Professional Reading List (CPRL), transitioning from rank-based recommendations to a focus on thematic categories:

• Commandant’s Choice

• Profession of Arms

• Innovation

• Leadership

• Strategy

The 2025 update appears to be a work in progress, with no official ALMAR (a formal message to “All Marines”) yet issued to explain the changes. While not all original categories are explicitly called out, the list continues to emphasize key focus areas:

• Commandant’s Choice – spotlighting works personally selected by the Commandant

• Heritage – helping Marines learn from our past

• Leadership and Warfighting – preparing us for present challenges

• Innovation – developing forward-thinking Marines for the future

• Strategy still exists as a category, even if it is not directly mentioned in the FY25 update found on the Marine Corps University website.

For more information on the revised CPRL, visit the Commandant’s Professional Reading Program.

This post will highlight the new CMC Choice and Part 1 of the Innovation selections. While we link books to Amazon for convenience, most are available for free through DoD libraries, websites, or PDFs.

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CMC Choice

Once an Eagle: A Novel

By Anton Myrer, Harper Perennial Modern Classics; Reprint (March 12, 2013), Paperback 1,312 pages

Once an Eagle follows the life and career of Sam Damon, a principled soldier whose leadership and integrity starkly contrast with his ambitious and self-serving rival. Spanning from World War I through Vietnam, this sweeping novel explores the burdens of command, the moral complexities of war, and what it truly means to serve.