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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
If you can ignore the right-wing rants and the (at times) sub-par writing, this is a great book for all Americans to read. The struggle for men to even become Navy SEALs, and then what they do to fight for our freedom, is inspiring. A fast paced read.
Very moving story of courage and bravery that brought me to tears on multiple occasions. Only thing I disliked was the authors distinctly biased political views that were communicated as fact, and were actually only his opinion. The Laws of Armed Conflict and Geneva Convention were thought up by individuals of many backgrounds and political views.
As a blood and guts, one man against the impossible odds type of story, this book was great. This guy is tough as nails and proves it. SEAL training sounds like hell on wheels. The sacrifices he and his comrades made are real, admirable and deserving of respect from the country.
The right-wing, kill 'em all and let God sort them out aspects were ridiculous. The central decision of the book (and I won't spoil it) is blamed upon the liberals.
I have read enough about Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam to recognize the difficulties in wars of this type - lack of clear directive, the inability to distinguish friend from foe, civilian from combatants. BUT, blaming the "liberal media" and "left-wing politicians" for these difficulties is clearly ignorant, given the deeply misguided policies of the Bush (version 2.0) administration put these soldiers in the situation to begin with.
Luttrell even goes as far as to praise Bush (the younger) for putting us in Iraq and Afghanistan. I know Luttrell is trained for war, and perhaps having any question as to the validity of his mission(s) is asking for injury or death, but having a total and complete lack of perspective is deeply strange to me. It's obvious the lack of questioning is necessary for these guys, but this book is written retrospectively, and so to continue to have this lack of hindsight makes it even more bizarre.
The book definitely felt alien to me, given my own political leanings, living in the liberal bastion of NYC, but I am glad I read it.
The right-wing, kill 'em all and let God sort them out aspects were ridiculous. The central decision of the book (and I won't spoil it) is blamed upon the liberals.
I have read enough about Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam to recognize the difficulties in wars of this type - lack of clear directive, the inability to distinguish friend from foe, civilian from combatants. BUT, blaming the "liberal media" and "left-wing politicians" for these difficulties is clearly ignorant, given the deeply misguided policies of the Bush (version 2.0) administration put these soldiers in the situation to begin with.
Luttrell even goes as far as to praise Bush (the younger) for putting us in Iraq and Afghanistan. I know Luttrell is trained for war, and perhaps having any question as to the validity of his mission(s) is asking for injury or death, but having a total and complete lack of perspective is deeply strange to me. It's obvious the lack of questioning is necessary for these guys, but this book is written retrospectively, and so to continue to have this lack of hindsight makes it even more bizarre.
The book definitely felt alien to me, given my own political leanings, living in the liberal bastion of NYC, but I am glad I read it.
A rivetting story about a group of individuals who fought against phenomenal odds. This is a story about the strength of a group of people who chose the difficult path within the U.S. military to become U.S. Navy SEALS and were willing to sacrifice their lives for their country, their friends, and their beliefs. I'm amazed by their strength and by their courage as told by the sole survivor. Must read for so many reasons.
Fantastic novel. Although the writing is muddled in places the emotion is clear. These men are warriors and they love this country.
Lone Survivor tells the story of Marcus Luttrell's early beginnings in the Navy and the elite SEALs and recounts in detail the events of Operation Redwing. Luttrell's name became fairly household after this went down and especially after the Peter Berg film starring Mark Wahlberg.
Everyone has their own political beliefs, and those beliefs are typically formed based on life experiences. Marcus Luttrell is no different. He is a bit outspoken in this book about his political beliefs, and he gives life experiences that explain why he believes them. For instance, he complains about the military Rules of Engagement that prevents American troops from being more aggressive in ground engagements in enemy territory. This particular policy cost the lives of his three buddies during Operation Redwing. I did not read this as any sort of propaganda or crazy raving, but the natural response from someone who routinely puts his life on the line and must abide by rules that make it much more likely that he will be killed in the line of duty.
In a similar fashion, I can't stand it when we have staff meetings after work. No one judges me for hating staff meetings, but Luttrell is judged for his beliefs rather than his accomplishments. It seems that no one can review Luttrell's book without telling whether they agree or disagree with his politics. As if anyone cares.
I know that the reason I get on the internet is to find out whether book reviewers agree with Marcus Luttrell's politics. Don't you?
Anyway, I am going to simple point out that Marcus believes things based on what he has experienced, much like me. I hate staff meetings because I have been to them before and they are a complete and utter waste of time. "I survived another meeting that should have been an email."
But I digress.
He isn't really that over-the-top with his politics, all things considered. He mentions the ROE, and he rips the media that incorrectly reported that he was dead because of the effect it had on his family back home. I suppose I don't mind hearing the political beliefs of a guy who has done the types of sacrificial things that essentially no one else I know or have heard of have done. I guess he has earned that right. Especially when it is my choice to read the book. If it hurts my feelings, I would just put the book down. But his opinions didn't hurt my feelings, and I can see his point, as I often try to do when I'm NOT reading a really good book but people still decide to rain their political beliefs on me. So that's it on the politics. They really aren't that offensive. The guy is, without a doubt, an American military hero. He makes a good argument that most of us can't really say we have experienced first hand.
I am a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I joined the army in 2005 and spent 15 months in sunny Baghdad a couple years after the events described in this book. I have never been to Afghanistan. But I find it interesting that in my experience, going to war with my regular Army unit essentially made me a pacifist. Marcus is more man that I am. He took everything that he went through (and it is described in extreme detail) and still turned it into a love of country and a desire to go back and serve in combat again. That is admirable, regardless of your politics.
The real shame of the politicizing is that this is a SPECTACULAR book. I just picked it up on a whim at the used bookstore, not even really eager to read it, but once I started I was riveted. His experiences are extremely interesting. No wonder they made a movie about them! I was actually just as interested in the insanity of SEAL training as I was in the happenings during Operation Redwing. I understand the Band of Brothers connection he describes. And I am sure it is magnified with the SEALs because of the insane amount of training, discipline, and danger they go through.
The portion of the book that tells about the kindness that Mohammed Gulab and the villagers (especially the children) showed toward Marcus after his engagement with the Taliban is essentially "unputdownable." It has been awhile, but the film didn't seem to do that part of the story justice. Or maybe i just don't remember because it has been quite a while since I saw the movie.
Bottom line: If you are not hung up on only reading books that reaffirm your own closely guarded political leanings, and can hear another viewpoint from a guy who has personal reasons for what he believes, Lone Survivor is an excellent read. Set your politics aside and read about a real hero.
Everyone has their own political beliefs, and those beliefs are typically formed based on life experiences. Marcus Luttrell is no different. He is a bit outspoken in this book about his political beliefs, and he gives life experiences that explain why he believes them. For instance, he complains about the military Rules of Engagement that prevents American troops from being more aggressive in ground engagements in enemy territory. This particular policy cost the lives of his three buddies during Operation Redwing. I did not read this as any sort of propaganda or crazy raving, but the natural response from someone who routinely puts his life on the line and must abide by rules that make it much more likely that he will be killed in the line of duty.
In a similar fashion, I can't stand it when we have staff meetings after work. No one judges me for hating staff meetings, but Luttrell is judged for his beliefs rather than his accomplishments. It seems that no one can review Luttrell's book without telling whether they agree or disagree with his politics. As if anyone cares.
I know that the reason I get on the internet is to find out whether book reviewers agree with Marcus Luttrell's politics. Don't you?
Anyway, I am going to simple point out that Marcus believes things based on what he has experienced, much like me. I hate staff meetings because I have been to them before and they are a complete and utter waste of time. "I survived another meeting that should have been an email."
But I digress.
He isn't really that over-the-top with his politics, all things considered. He mentions the ROE, and he rips the media that incorrectly reported that he was dead because of the effect it had on his family back home. I suppose I don't mind hearing the political beliefs of a guy who has done the types of sacrificial things that essentially no one else I know or have heard of have done. I guess he has earned that right. Especially when it is my choice to read the book. If it hurts my feelings, I would just put the book down. But his opinions didn't hurt my feelings, and I can see his point, as I often try to do when I'm NOT reading a really good book but people still decide to rain their political beliefs on me. So that's it on the politics. They really aren't that offensive. The guy is, without a doubt, an American military hero. He makes a good argument that most of us can't really say we have experienced first hand.
I am a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I joined the army in 2005 and spent 15 months in sunny Baghdad a couple years after the events described in this book. I have never been to Afghanistan. But I find it interesting that in my experience, going to war with my regular Army unit essentially made me a pacifist. Marcus is more man that I am. He took everything that he went through (and it is described in extreme detail) and still turned it into a love of country and a desire to go back and serve in combat again. That is admirable, regardless of your politics.
The real shame of the politicizing is that this is a SPECTACULAR book. I just picked it up on a whim at the used bookstore, not even really eager to read it, but once I started I was riveted. His experiences are extremely interesting. No wonder they made a movie about them! I was actually just as interested in the insanity of SEAL training as I was in the happenings during Operation Redwing. I understand the Band of Brothers connection he describes. And I am sure it is magnified with the SEALs because of the insane amount of training, discipline, and danger they go through.
The portion of the book that tells about the kindness that Mohammed Gulab and the villagers (especially the children) showed toward Marcus after his engagement with the Taliban is essentially "unputdownable." It has been awhile, but the film didn't seem to do that part of the story justice. Or maybe i just don't remember because it has been quite a while since I saw the movie.
Bottom line: If you are not hung up on only reading books that reaffirm your own closely guarded political leanings, and can hear another viewpoint from a guy who has personal reasons for what he believes, Lone Survivor is an excellent read. Set your politics aside and read about a real hero.
Marcus Luttrell is a self centered pompous asswipe.
I really wanted to love this book, I admire the SEALS and have read a lot of books based around the sacrifices they have made, Marcus however, is so hard to like. He’s such a hateful, awful, fucking person and brags about how awesome he is CONSTANTLY when he never once did anything to warrant the praise he gives himself.
Fuck this dude.
I really wanted to love this book, I admire the SEALS and have read a lot of books based around the sacrifices they have made, Marcus however, is so hard to like. He’s such a hateful, awful, fucking person and brags about how awesome he is CONSTANTLY when he never once did anything to warrant the praise he gives himself.
Fuck this dude.
I have never cried so much, due to sorrow and happiness, from reading any book in my entire life. It is incredibly written. You will be crying one second and laughing at his quirky statements the next. It will also open your eyes to the complete stupidity of certain laws of war and the ignorance of the liberal media. Thank you to every soldier out there for doing something I could never even imagine being remotely able to do. If it wasn't for all of you I would not be able to enjoy my own life the way I do. Thank you all!
If you can get past the macho posturing of the first half of the book the second half is very intense. However, this will be the last book I will read from a Navy Seal in the recent war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Like the last Seal book I read, American Sniper, I don't need it drummed into my head every page how you are a Navy SEAL and the best fighter on the planet defending the best country, the Iraqis are savage idiots and and God defend America and god gave me this rifle to massacre "liberate" these people and down with liberal media and the Geneva Convention etc.
I almost put the book down in the first half thinking it would be the same macho shit that came from American Sniper. Thankfully I did not as the last half of the book is superbly written. I almost thought the writer did this on purpose, luring me into disgust from his redneck "America is the greatest" rhetoric before he at last showed some humanity in the village and a somewhat subdued warmth of emotion towards his rescuers and protectors.
I wonder why books written from WWII and Vietnam have much more humility and substance from the writer compared to these last two robotic warriors SEAL books?
Last half was 5 stars, easy. Skip the first half of you've read American Sniper.
I almost put the book down in the first half thinking it would be the same macho shit that came from American Sniper. Thankfully I did not as the last half of the book is superbly written. I almost thought the writer did this on purpose, luring me into disgust from his redneck "America is the greatest" rhetoric before he at last showed some humanity in the village and a somewhat subdued warmth of emotion towards his rescuers and protectors.
I wonder why books written from WWII and Vietnam have much more humility and substance from the writer compared to these last two robotic warriors SEAL books?
Last half was 5 stars, easy. Skip the first half of you've read American Sniper.