Without Remorse by Tom Clancy

We all know Clancy's work.  For the most part, it's pretty good.  This, however, is his grand opus (my favorite cartoon penguin, by the way).  In Without Remorse we get the back story of Clancy's über badass, Mr. Clark.  Every two bit hack (I only aspire to make it all the way to 25₵ someday. On the hack scale, I'm currently about a peso...) who writes espionage fiction has a main character who is a former Navy Seal Green Beret Royal Marine who can sever your head with a pipe cleaner while simultaneously banging the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders.  While they are festive, they frequently require a little suspended disbelief.  Clark, while being a seriously bad man, is more of the social misfit you would expect a professional killer to be.  He has normal human failings, makes mistakes, actually gets shot from time to time (unlike the above referenced NSGBRM who can shoot the nuts off a fly at 1,000 yards while the bad guys couldn't hit him if they pulled the trigger with the barrel of their weapons firmly planted up his ass).

We go back in time from Clancy's other works to find out what happened in Clark's past to turn him into the sociopath for the good guys that he became.  Once again, knowing how he ended up, it is not surprising to see how life repeatedly kicked him in the 'ol coin purse along the way.  After the worst of the bunch, our boy decided to get even and killed pretty much everyone who was even vaguely involved in a dizzying array of creative ways.  Good times... good times.

At 639 pages, this is a looooong read.  It is filled with enough action, suspense, heartbreak, and mayhem, however, to make it worthwhile.  Enjoy......

Nats

The Only Thing Worth Dying For: How Eleven Green Berets Forged a New Afghanistan by Eric Blehm

I had read accounts of our successes in Northern Afghanistan with the Northern Alliance but knew nothing about how we operated in Southern Afghanistan. This book tells the story of an Army Green Beret A-Team and how they helped overthrow the Taliban in the south.


The first thing that you are struck by is the selfless bravery of these young men. They relish embracing hardships that we (the average beer guzzling American male) blanch at the mere idea of having to endure. Now they are, as is every Special Forces type I have ever met, a little bit crazy. I guess you have to be to do the job they do.....

OK, I have to tell you, I'm having a really hard time writing this one. Don't get me wrong, this is an excellent work on the operations of a Green Beret A-Team. I learned a lot about how they operate and the missions for which they were designed. The problem I am having is with the ending. Be prepared, it is a kick straight to the nuts that you don't see coming. The problem is, it is real. I read a lot of military history and there are always stories of personal tragedy and sacrifice. I just wasn't prepared for this one.

By all means, buy and read this book. When you are done, and for the rest of your life, take every opportunity you get to thank the service men and women you meet for everything they do for us.

Nats