A native of Canton, Illinois, Lance Q. Zedric has authored or co-authored six books and has had numerous articles published in popular magazines and scholarly journals.
    Mr. Zedric’s first book, "Silent Warriors of World War II: The Alamo Scouts Behind Japanese Lines," is the first and only published history of the elite Alamo Scouts, Sixth Army's top secret reconnaissance and raider unit which performed 106 missions behind Japanese lines in New Guinea and in the Philippines, including two daring POW camp liberations, without losing a man captured or killed. The unit, formed by General Walter Krueger in New Guinea in November 1943, boasts the finest record in U.S. military history. The Alamo Scouts are recognized as a forerunner of the modern Special Forces and as the Army’s first Long Range Surveillance Unit (LRSU).
    Silent Warriors was released in 1995 by Pathfinder Publishing of California, and has received wide literary acclaim from critics and prominent military figures, including Admiral Thomas Moorer, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the late William E. Colby, former Director of the CIA. The book has been a featured selection in the Doubleday Book Club; was nominated for the Bernard S. Dial Award for Excellence in Military History; and was the impetus for a History Channel documentary on the Alamo Scouts.
    Zedric's second book, Elite Warriors: 300 Years of America’s Best Fighting Troops (with Michael Dilley), was released in 1996 and contains brief histories of 52 elite units dating from 1670 to the present. "From the first Ranger unit formed in 1670 to the modern Navy SEALs, this book covers them all," said Zedric. "The book features units from virtually every war throughout our history and is the most comprehensive book available on the history of U.S. elite special operations forces. It is the only book that combines Army, Navy, Marine, and Air Force units into one volume. Elite Warriors is informative, colorful, and easy to read. It appeals to the general reader as well as to the military history buff."
    Elite Warriors has been a featured selection in the Doubleday Book Club and has received superlative reviews from several military publications, including "Behind The Lines: The Journal of U.S. Military Special Operations," which states that Elite Warriors "may be the single best overview of American military special operations ever written."
    Zedric’s third book, Losers, Users and Parasites: A Host’s Guide To Ridding Your Life of Unwanted People (Pathfinder, 1996), makes striking analogies between parasitic people and parasitic animals, and offers strategies on how to get rid of the bloodsuckers in life.
    In LUPs, Zedric defines "hosts" as those unfortunate souls who support parasitic people. He also provides a simple test which readers take to determine if they are a host. Subsequent chapters, include the "Mosquito," the "Tick," the Leech," the "Vampire," and "Fleas, Flies and Other Pests." Each chapter takes a no-holds-barred look at the traits of each parasite and associates it with its human counterpart. The book concludes with a "LUP Test," which examines if the reader possesses any parasitic tendencies of their own.
    LUPs is an absolute treat!" says Jacquelyn Powers, award winning author "The author's analogy between parasitic animals and parasitic people is funny, but also right on target." The book was reprinted in Spanish by laCaixa Press and is pending publication in Japanese.
    Zedric’s most recent work, “Sir John Jervis – Earl of St. Vincent” (with Emil J. Moriconi) was published in October 2006, and is a long overdue biography on one of Britain’s eminent naval figures of the Napoleonic Age who exposed internal corruption and help restore British naval dominance in Europe.
    Zedric’s other writing credits include three chapters in Wings of Glory, a book on the first fifty years of the United States Air Force by Faircourt International, and a chapter in the 1999 and 2001 editions of The Writer’s Handbook. Additional writing credits include articles published in The Writer, VFW, Behind the Lines, Heartland USA, Army, Indian Country, WWII Magazine (pending 2007) and other magazines. Additionally, Zedric has consulted on historical documentaries for the History Channel, PBS, Sunwood Entertainment, Flashback Television and others, and most recently on the 2005 release of the motion picture, “The Great Raid” by Miramax Studios.
Zedric received his bachelor's degree in history from Monmouth College in 1983. He also holds a Master's degree in history from Western Illinois University and is a graduate of the U.S. Army Intelligence School. During his four years in the U.S. Army, he served as an intelligence analyst in Korea; at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and in support of coalition forces during the Gulf War. He is the former Director of Public Information for Monmouth College and is a Special Education teacher in Illinois. For more information on Mr. Zedric’s books, writing/editing/research services, or to arrange a speaking engagement, contact him directly by email. alamoscouts@aol.com