First was Scalzi's novel, Old Man's War, an SF item in which elderly folks are recruited for a new life defending Earth and its colonies from aliens. Rather well-done; I'm champing at the bit to load the sequel in my Ematic.
Second was Osprey Campaign #242: Metz 1944: Patton’s Fortified Nemesis, or, what happened when Patton hit the belt of fortifications that were built on the French-German frontier. The book clarified a time span that had been mulled over by a number of books I read in my teen years.