Customer Rating: 
Summary: Amazing!
Comment: I wasn't in the mood to read a war story but I had heard Marcus Luttrell on the radio and wanted
more details of his story. I bought his book quite a while ago and didn't pick it up until recently
and literally couldn't put it down. I'm a woman who doesn't read war stories very often at all
(Band of Brothers is the only one I can think of off the top of my head) but this one really
intrigued me. It really explained in more detail situations I never knew, and I've known quite a
few military personnel.
At the beginning Luttrell is in the present but then he goes
back to his intense training, even that he has wanted to be a Navy SEAL since childhood. He has
quite a wry sense of humor that is hidden at times and made me laugh out loud more than once. (Like
how he could wrestle alligators and snakes but dealing with snow for the first time about killed
him.) I'm from snow country so that's funny to me!
When Luttrell was explaining how
the Afghans dealt with daily life, that was quite intriguing. I would never have known that and I
found it very interesting how he combined a military book with a short history lesson while still
keeping the story.
My only complaint was that in the middle of the book the language
got a little rough. Okay, quite rough. Military, right? Not necessary.
In any
case, this book was worth the read. I've recommended it to many people and my own personal copy now
has a waiting list.
Customer Rating: Summary: Absolutely amazing.
Comment: We owe such a debt to these men that we can never repay. This story unfolds like a movie, only it
has a better 'script' than anything Hollywood could muster. As you are pulled in and gripped by
this incredible narrative, you are sobered and humbled that this isn't entertainment - this is real
pain, real sorrow, real sacrifice, real heroism.
After reading this book I recently
learned of another SEAL, a childhood friend, who gave his life serving the Iraqis. It's so
refreshing to learn that our country still produces such extraordinary men.
Customer Rating: Summary: A counter view - from a moderate woman's perspective
Comment: I don't read "war stories". I am after all a woman - who doesn't live in the military world, or with
family and friends who are serving. My idea of a war story is The Kite Runner (Riverhead Essential
Editions) or Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a
Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times. The stories of the machinations and impact around
the war, not of those fighting it in the trenches. On top of that in political circles, my die-hard
republican acquantances call me "flaming liberal", my die-hard liberal acquaintances call me
"ultra-conservative" (I think that makes me moderate).
And still --- And still, I feel
this is a story that will appeal to everyone - if they read it through. Yes, as others point out
Marcus is an over-the-top, unabashed patriot with hyperbole equally promoting patriotism, the SEALs
superiority and vilifying the humanitarian constraints placed on them and that damned liberal media.
This level of "greatest, best, worst, and most evil" would make even Trump, the master of hyperbole,
blush. (And for the first half of the book - will undoubtedly annoy dedicated liberals - and have
ultra-conservatives yell ooh-raa! (sp?)
But... But, this is authentically who this man
is. What after all would you expect from a SEAL? What more could you want from a SEAL sent to do
things none of the rest of us would want to do (or for some, at least would refuse to do).
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And underneath all of that hyperbole - is really a psychological story of a man whose
identity is patriotism, discipline and obeying his leader and is now burdened with unimaginable
guilt of choices. Whether he's a hero or not - is best left to each reader. But, this is a riveting
story of survival, heart breaking circumstances, ingenuity, dedication and the pain and
disillusionment even the most dedicated military folks that serve us can face.
I
challenge every other woman and "non-war story" person to read it - and look beyond the war story -
to the true story that lies beneath, and not be touched or at least experience a new perspective.
Along the way, you won't be dissappointed by what a fast-paced thriller this ultimately becomes - or
what you learn about the true trenches of Afghanistan.
