Early Summer 2018 Review of Two Military Books

I know for many summer vacation is around the corner so here’s my review of two military books for your summer travel…and also because Pastors also need a break from heavy theological reading!

For other suggestions check out also our previous post “2017 Memorial Day Weekend Lists of Recommended Readings.”

Robert O’Neill.  The Operator: Firing the Shots that Killed Osama bin Laden and My Years as a SEAL Team Warrior. New York, NY: Scribner, April 3rd 2018. 368 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

This is a book by the Navy SEAL who shot Osama Bin Laden.  This book not only tell the story of the mission to go after Bin Laden but also Robert O’Neill’s upbringing in Montana, how he joined the Navy and made it into the SEALs.  A fascinating book of a fascinating individual.

Like most autobiography of SEALs there is the story of what lead the author to joined the SEALs and also accounts of the grueling selection process to become a SEAL called Basic Underwater Demolition School or BUDS for short.  Every time I read about  BUDS I’m always amazed at how some people can endure such painful and difficult selection course in the military…only to make it into the SEALs and continue with the danger and suffering as a part of their job.  It makes me grateful for the men who have been willing to endure so much to become one of America’s elite warriors.  Eighty percent of people who start out in BUDS gets washed out and don’t make it.  O’Neill pointed out that no matter what the Navy does to try to increase the percentage without compromising with the rigor of the course it still is an eighty percent wash out rate: from improving the selection pool to begin with to start at BUDS and other means it still is that high of an attrition rate.  Still it is not all a bad thing given that the mission these guys take are so dangerous you want someone that won’t quite but enduring.

Besides the Bin Laden raid O’Neill has been in over four hundreds of missions as a SEAL in our post-9/11 military.  This include his participation with Operation Red Wings with the rescue operation to rescue and recover the SEALs that were ambushed that is made famous in the book and movie “Lone Survivor” and also the operation where SEALs rescued Captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates.  I enjoyed the author’s account of his involvement in these famous incidents.  I also appreciated the author’s account of the various raids and operations in Iraq including the one in which the SEALs actually swam to their objectives thus surprising the enemies.

Of course the part of the book that most readers would want to read about is the Bin Laden raid.  O’Neill tells of the mysterious circumstances of how he and other SEALs were called in for a training that left them behind from the other SEALs in their unit.  I thought it was neat to hear of O’Neill giving the account of why he and the other SEALs finally decided that this was a raid they were looking forward to, despite the risk at that time of not knowing whether the Pakistanis would stop them with forces on the ground or in the air.  These guys didn’t know if they were going to be captured and rotting in some military jail by the Pakistanis, if they were going to shoot it out with the Pakistanis if they were surrounded or if their helicopters would be shot down.  Some of the accounts in the book also matches other things that are known to the public such as the helicopter crash, the dog Cairo used in the mission and also the verification that it was Bin Laden.

An emotional book to read but it does bring some closure to 9/11.  There is a lot of controversy that surrounds the author and a lot that has been said bad about the author but still I felt I needed to give the author a fair reading.  The issue of silent professionalism aside this is an incredible story of one of our elite warriors who have risked his life countless times for our country that the American public do want to know about.  I must also note that the book has been edited and reviewed by the Pentagon.

 

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Terry Mcgowan.  The Silence of War: An Old Marine in a Young Marine’s War. New York, NY: Berkley Caliber, August 2nd 2016. 336 pp.

4 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

Unlike most of the books on Afghanistan and Iraq the author Terry Mcgowan went to these war zone in his late fifties while the average service-members are in their twenties.  A former Marine infantry captain who served for decades with the FBI and later retired Terry felt a strong compulsion to serve his country in a war zone after the terrorist attack against the United States on September 11th.

The author gave some back story to his life before he went to Iraq and Afghanistan.  When he was younger Terry served as a police officer before signing up with the Marines as an officer during the Cold War.  I thought it was fascinating to read his account of what the Marine Corps mentality was like during the days when many thought about fighting against the Soviet Union in what was predicted as being incredible odds and many Marines would be casualties.  Terry missed the Vietnam War and while he later left the Marines to become a veteran FBI agent his desire to see combat grew rather than subsided over time.  I thought it was interesting to read of how he called up the Marine recruiters to try to go back to the Marines after 9/11.  The recruiters must have thought he was crazy.  Eventually Terry was able to go to Iraq as a civilian contractor with the Department of Defense attached to the Marines but later he was part of what was called Law Enforcement Professional which allowed him to go to Afghanistan to assist with a Marine Corps infantry Battalion.

His description of the young Marines who served our country is an interesting perspective given that he’s much older than the guys serving.  I thought it was interesting and it made me thought about my own youthfulness during my time in the Marines and Iraq.  The book does have some sad moments when young men get injured or killed during combat.  The book managed to make me think a lot back to my own experience in Iraq.

One thing that I did find difficult with the book is that I felt many times the author was trying to prove himself because of his age; I thought it was risky and risky to the actual Marines as well.  Yet I couldn’t turn away from reading this book because it somehow reminded me of myself at a younger age where I yearn to put myself in dangerous situation in Iraq because I needed to do it for others and also to know that I did it.  But in the end though I felt he’s risked his life and even served with the Marines in combat and helped the unit he was with.  It made me appreciated the older guys who was in my Marine unit that I served with though I don’t think any of them was as old as he was.  Overall as a book it was insightful and unique for this was a man with vast experience going back to the front lines to help Marines come back home and also to tell us their stories.