Recently I've become more intrigued by one of the more neglected parts of the history of war...the aftermath.
What happens in a country after the war is over? What happens to the victors or losers economies, population, demobilized armies, etc.? When a country is occupied what goes about during the occupation?
Of course there are plenty of works that talk about the foundations of the Cold War, post-Napoleonic Europe, etc. I'm interested more specifically in the actual administrative, logistical, and cultural aspects of what it's like for a country to enter the post-war phase.
Any good books would be greatly appreciated.
EDIT A good example of what I'm looking for would be Exorcising Hitler
I liked Norman Naimark's work "the Russians in Germany" 1945-1949. It deals with the early occupation and how that was achieved, as well what it was like for the German people in the zone of occupation.
As for the Japanese, try Embracing Defeat by John Dower.
cultural aspects
Not exactly what you are looking for, but I recently finished Confederates in the Attic, which looks at how the American Civil War is approached in the former Confederacy. The author travels around speaking with various people - re-enactors, UDC members, hardcore secessionists and so on. Very interesting to look at how deeply ingrained the war is in the psyche of some despite being (then) 130 years in the past. At least a few people would make you think they are still under occupation.
Are you by chance interested in the aftermath of the Spanish-American and Philippine-American War, i. e. the United States occupation of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines?
For Puerto Rico, there is The United States in Puerto Rico, 1898-1900 (Berbusse) and Constructing a colonial people: Puerto Rico and the United States, 1898-1932 (Cabán). Regarding the occupation of Cuba, I recommend the respective chapters of Cuba between empires: 1878 - 1902 and Cuba: Between reform and revolution by Perez. Also, Healy's The United States in Cuba, 1898 - 1902: Generals, politicians, and the search for policy (1963) has aged well.
The literature on the Philippines is endless. I guess Gates' Schoolbooks and Krags: the United States Army in the Philippines, 1898-1902 would be most interesting to you, but it's quite uncritical of the army's conduct and a bit dated. I'd recommend Benevolent assimilation: The American conquest of the Philippines, 1899 - 1903 (Miller) instead, but I don't remember if it's focus was on the administration in the Philippines. Stanley's A nation in the making might be useful too. If you're interested in the role race played in the occupation of the Philippines, Kramer's The blood of government: Race, empire, the United States, & the Philippines is brillant.
Mind you, these are all academic works that sometimes tend to get lost in details. I fyou're looking for an easy read, you will probably be disappointed.
If you're looking for a more theoretical work, you may like G. John Ikenberry's After Victory: Institutions, Strategic Restraint, and the Rebuilding of Order after Major Wars.
You may also like Adam Seipp's Strangers in the Wild Place: Refugees, Americans and a German Town, 1945-1952.
Lastly, Gerard Daniel Cohen's In War's Wake: Europe's Displaced Persons in the Postwar Order gives a good transnational perspective of post-WWII reconstruction.
Inside GHQ: The Allied Occupation of Japan and Its Legacy by Takemae Eiji (New York, Continuum, 2002) is pretty much the best general English work on the occupation of Japan in terms of giving a general overview of pretty much everything.
Embracing Defeat by John Dower (1999) is the other main recent English language work, which focuses more on social and cultural issues.