Seven Troop - Andy McNab
By Anthony | April 7, 2009
I suppose I should really of written my review of Andy McNabs first special forces book Bravo Two Zero before reviewing Seven Troop but I think there are enough reviews out there already for you to decide if its a good book or not so Im just going to dig straight into Seven Troop.
For those of you looking for all out action and first hand accounts of special forces operations, this is not the book for you. Seven Troop tells the the story of Andy McNabs build up to the bravo two zero operation and what happened in the aftermath when he returned.
He spends much of the book talking about his SAS Regiment friends and their backgrounds and what became of them in his life. This book looks behind the scenes at what life is really like for a special forces soldier and the things and emotions they encounter as part of their every day lives.
Of course, as you would expect the book is very well written by Andy McNab and I thouroughly enjoyed reading it. Its not one of those books that you cant put down because, as I said, there is no actual operations action in the book. What the book does provide is some good insights into some of the SAS operations that you may not of heared of before and also some information that you may not be aware of. For example did you know that the british SAS trained Osama Bin Laden.
If you are interested in special forces then this is definately a book you should read. Its not all out action but its a very interesting read.
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Operation Certain Death Damien Lewis
By Anthony | March 9, 2009
After reading the Bloody Heroes special forces book by Damien Lewis and thoroughly enjoying it, I decided to give another one of his books a try.
Operation Certain Death tells the story of one of the most daring and dangerous operation the british special forces have ever undertaken. Operation Barras. In 1999, an army of around 1000 rebels known as the west side boys took hostage 11 british army personel in the jungles of Sierra Leone. After intense hostage negotiations failed it fell to a joint taskforce of 200 SBS and SAS special forces soldiers to assault the rebel stronghold and end the hostage crisis by force.
This book is a fantastic read… Once I started reading it I just didnt want to put it down, I completed the book in two days which is pretty impressive for what is quite a large book.
There is alot of detail in this book about the political situation at the time in Sierra Leone which I found quite interesting along with the additional information provided in the prologue, Authors Notes, Postscript and afterword. There is absolutely no doubt that the author spent alot of time researching this book and it shows in his writing. As in his other book I have also reviewed the writing is very well put together and sets the scene perfectly and without going into too much detail.
There are many horrifying accounts of the west side boys actions against the people of Sierra Leone which I found quite disturbing but they do add an extra dimension to the flow of the book, They also go some way to describing the type of enemy the special forces were facing when assaulting the rebel base outnumbered by a scale of 5-1.
Its absolutely true that truth is stranger than fiction and if this story wasnt true it would be very difficult to believe. Its a story of bravity, heroism, suffering, endurance and human sacrifice all rolled up into a fantastic account that I am glad I took the time to read.
Related News Stories
British soldier killed in Sierra Leone - Independant
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Unscathed - Major Phil Ashby
By Anthony | February 27, 2009
Unscathed tells the story of Major Phil Ashby and 3 other UN peacekeepers as they escape from the notorious RUF (Revolutionary United Front) soldiers in Sierra Leone.
Because I wasnt really sure of the political situation in Sierra Leone, I was a bit apprehensive about reading this book but thought I would give it a go anyway, in the hope that it would suprise me. It didnt!
Because the book is obviously written from the first person perspective by Major Phil Ashby, (which I usually do enjoy in a book) I think it spends too much time explaining his history, upbringing and background in the book and not enough time on the actual escape.
Around half the book is taken up by stories of rock climbing expeditions, previous trips and building characters that really have nothing to do with the actual escape. Athough the book is well written I feel alot of the “going into detail” is misplaced and would of been better directed toward parts of the book that simply dont go into detail enough.
The story of the escape is an excellent story and must of been a huge ordeal for the four men involved, I didnt really feel it when reading this book. The story of the escape seemed rushed and incomplete at the best of times and I never really got a sense of the fear the four men must have been feeling being in hostile territory “unarmed, outnumbered, surrounded and under attack” which the book claims on the cover.
There are parts of this book which explain the terrible atrocities the RUF commited on the people of Sierra Leone which I found quite disturbing. Im guessing this was an attempt by the author to try to explain what the four peacekeepers were up against and in many ways it succeeds in doing so, It also brings home the brutality of the RUF and the failure of the world to act quickly enough to save thousands of lives.
The political situation in Sierra Leone was very complicated at the time of the escape, Not only were there many factions of the RUF and other rebel groups, but because of the involvement of the UN, there were many different military peacekeeping forces there also. This resulted in too many acronyms being inserted into the text which I found very confusing and highly frustrating at times and often found myself wondering who or which force the author was refering to resulting in alot of rereading and trips to the rear of the book to look up the acronyms meaning.
In conclusion, I am happy that I read this book because it enabled me to learn more about what the political and humanitarian situation was like in Sierra Leone at the time. The story of the escape is a story that is justified in being told and Im glad I read it but I feel the author could of made it harder for me to put the book down by spending more time on the escape and less about his past life.
Related News
Jungle escape for British soldiers - BBC News
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Watching Men Burn - Tony McNally
By Anthony | February 25, 2009
Watching Men Burn by Tony McNally is a very good read. This is not the usual kind of special forces book I go for but because Tony McNally was a Rapier missile operator and the book focuses on the Falklands war I thought I would give it a read. I guess I class Rapier missile operators as a special force.
This is a very emotional book. It tells the story of Tony McNally. It takes you through his upbringing, his training, the various operations he was involved in and mainly focuses on his role in the Falklands war.
The book really focuses on explaining the character and personality of Tony McNally which I suspect is motivated by the guilt the he went through after the falklands war, possibly still seeking forgiveness for an incident during the falklands war that simply wasnt his fault.
The Sir Galahad was attacked by five Argentine air Force A-4 Skyhawks on 8th June during the falklands campaign and resulted in the loss of 50 soldiers and wounding many more… Whilst assigned to protect the Sir Galahad and surrounding ships, the Rapier missile launcher he was operating failed, meaning there was nothing he could do to protect the soldiers on board from the argentinian airforce.
PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) is a state of mind that only those who have suffered from it or been witness to it can explain. Tony McNally really gives you an idea of what it must be like to suffer from PTSD in an often heart wrenching manner which is something you dont normally find in a book written my an ex soldier.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Its well set out, its very well written and kind of kicks you in the teeth with a huge hammer of emotion towards the end. Its a true soldiers story and brings home the fact that soldiers never leave their emotions on the battlefield when they come home.
Related News Stories
1982: Fifty die in Argentine air attack - BBC News
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Bloody Heroes Damien Lewis
By Anthony | February 11, 2009
Bloody Heroes by Damien Lewis is one of the best special forces books I have read in a very long time. The book is excellently written and follows the story of three missions carried out by the British SBS (Special Boat Service).
The first Mission is to assault an old container ship called the MV Nisha. Its post 911, The Nisha is approaching british waters and is bound for the Thames river in London. Intelligence has been recieved that the ship may be carrying an improvised chemical bomb and must be stopped at all costs. The SBS assault the ship in four ribs boats and by fast roping from two Chinook MH47 helicopters. Damien Lewis really captures the atmosphere of the mission in this book and I found it very hard to put the book down in the midst of the action. You can just imagine how terrified the people on the ship must have been as the huge black assault team wearing respirators and carrying deadly weapons assaulted the ship from every possible angle. Needless to say that the MV Nisha never reached its intended destination.
The book then moves on to a joint CIA, SEAL, SBS covert observation mission in afghanistan. Two SBS soldiers, one navy Seal and CIA Bob have to covertly observe a valley in afghanistan suspected to be “the mother of all terrorist training camps” I wont spoil the book for you and tell you the outcome of this mission, you will have to read it yourself.
Next the book moves onto the now famous battle for Qala-I-Janghi. This mission takes up a large amount of this book and is one of the best stories of special forces soldiers battling against overwhelming odds I have ever read. Take eight of our Special Forces soldiers and pit them against 600 of the worlds most hardened terrorists. The result is a siege lasting 8 days and inevitably many terrorist casualties. Its an absolute rivitting read and the author explains the scene very well. There are also parts of this operation written from the terrorists perspective of the seige which I thought was a nice touch by the author.
There are many news stories covering the famous battle, some of them state that the special forces used unnessesary force but after reading the accounts in this book I feel the soldiers where justified in the actions they took and should be awarded a medal for the bravery under terrifying odds.
The book is obviously well researched and the author really goes into great detail about many aspects of the three operations. Like I said Bloody Heroes is one of the best special forces books I have had the pleasure to read in a very long time and is worth every penny you spend to purchase it. Its certainly a book that I will read in the future and probably enjoy it even more.
Related News Stories
MV Nisha
Anti-terror squad searches ship - BBC News
Cargo ship searched for ‘terrorist material’ - UK Guardian
Battle of Qala-i-Jangi
Inside the Battle at Qala-I-Jangi - Time Magazine
UK forces help end fort uprising - BBC News report
British SBS commando to get ‘American VC’ UK Telegraph
SAS role in fort deaths questioned - UK Guardian
Related Movies
Qala-i-jangi Battle Documentary
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