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| Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10 | 
 enlarge | Author: Marcus Luttrell
Creator: Patrick Robinson
Publisher: Back Bay Books
Category: Book
List Price: $15.99
Buy New: $8.04
You Save: $7.95 (50%)
New (45) Used (12) from $8.04
Avg. Customer Rating:  770 reviews
Sales Rank: 389
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 416
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.4 x 1.2
ISBN: 0316067601
Dewey Decimal Number: 958.1047
EAN: 9780316067607
ASIN: 0316067601
Publication Date: May 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand new item. Over 4 million customers served. Order now. Selling online since 1995. Few left in stock - order soon. Code: H20081010205928T
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Product Description
Four US Navy SEALS departed one clear night in early July, 2005 for the mountainous Afghanistan-Pakistan border for a reconnaissance mission. Their task was to document the activity of an al Qaeda leader rumored to be very close to Bin Laden with a small army in a Taliban stronghold. Five days later, only one of those Navy SEALS made it out alive.
This is the story of the only survivor of Operation Redwing, SEAL fire team leader Marcus Luttrell, and the extraordinary firefight that led to the largest loss of life in American Navy SEAL history. His squadmates fought valiantly beside him until he was the only one left alive, blasted by an RPG into a place where his pursuers could not find him. Over the next four days, terribly injured and presumed dead, Luttrell crawled for miles through the mountains and was taken in by sympathetic villagers who risked their lives to keep him safe from surrounding Taliban warriors.
A born and raised Texan, Marcus Luttrell takes us from the rigors of SEAL training, where he and his fellow SEALs discovered what it took to join the most elite of the American special forces, to a fight in the desolate hills of Afghanistan for which they never could have been prepared. His account of his squadmates' heroism and mutual support renders an experience that is both heartrending and life-affirming. In this rich chronicle of courage and sacrifice, honor and patriotism, Marcus Luttrell delivers a powerful narrative of modern war.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 765 more reviews...
 ROE costs American Lives June 23, 2007
325 out of 470 found this review helpful
Let me start by saying, even though I'm well past my prime, I'm a big, tough guy. I've been in more than my share of rough situations. What I'm trying to say here is, it's not easy to get me to water up. But this book had me sobbing before I even finished the introduction. Unless you're just absolute pond scum that has no compassion whatsoever for our military, be forewarned this book will definitely have you wiping your eyes more than a few times.
Author Patrick Robinson conveys Petty Officer Luttrell's story magnificently. He is to be commended. You will flip through these pages in a day or two and be unable to put this one down.
I'm not going to spend much time on the story itself. Just read the book. You'll not find many more graphic descriptions of such things as an almost incomprehensible training regimen, the unique brotherhood that develops among men who have trained and fought together (particularly special forces), courage under fire and an incredible network of support for a fallen loved one.
You will have a plethora of personal emotions exposed. For me, I think what drove hardest upon my psyche is the intense hatred I feel after reading this book, not of the Taliban and Al Queda (although they rank right up there in the I freakin' hate your guts department), but rather of two entities right here in America; the National media and the U.S. Congress. This mission cost us twenty-three of our very finest, and those two entities are directly responsible for their deaths and countless others. They should all have their ROE shoved right up their backsides.
Not since our government disbanded the great American military fighting force of WWII in 1945 have they given the military the support needed to win wars. Sure they've provided the proper equipment and training, but then they have sent our troops into battle time after time with their hands tied behind their backs. The guys in Korea got a taste of it. We damned sure got plenty of it in Nam. They sort of allowed the guys in Gulf War I to do their job, but now, it's just over the top.
And then you've got the piece of [...] news media. 98% of those pukes ought to be ,.... Well, okay, I'm ranting now and not reviewing, so let me get a grip. In war there is always an army defending freedom and an army seeking to destroy freedom. Whichever army wins will determine the difference between freedom and slavery for that nation. It's obvious which side many in the news media and in Washington D.C. are pulling for.
Marcus Luttrell is a true American hero. As are his fallen team members. I am thankful Marcus is a U.S. Navy Seal. I am thankful he decided to make this story known. I am thankful to my grandchildren for giving me this book for Father's Day. I have several new names and families to hold in my prayers.
Absolutely Unimaginable June 12, 2007
231 out of 262 found this review helpful
This book takes you inside the Navy SEALs training program in Coronado. You are with Marcus Luttrell throughout BUD/S and Hell Week. You fly with him and his teammates in a C-130 to the Hindu Kush, where the hunt begins for bin Laden's right-hand man. But then it all goes terribly wrong, up there in the mountains of Afghanistan.
This book, written by Patrick Robinson, reads like a fast-paced thriller, told in Marcus's understated voice. It is a rivetting, important, sad story of lost friends, valor, courage and the intricacies of modern war. It is an important book, destined to become an American classic.
Just Amazing June 20, 2007
146 out of 202 found this review helpful
I remember when this incident happened back in 05 and I had no idea of the amazing story of this Texan, and his involvement in the great crusade of our time. As an Australian, it did not get much newstime over here. Thank you PO Luttrell for your service in the GWOT, and God Bless Australia and the USA, the two greatest nations on Earth, and Texas and Queensland, the two best states to come from.
 Pure garbage August 9, 2007
90 out of 169 found this review helpful
I am an active duty member of the Army, and I am a special operations soldier, so I feel that maybe, just maybe I have a tiny bit of credibility when I talk about things of this nature. I felt this book was pure trash, I would read passages out loud to my team mates and we would all laugh. Mind you, it breaks my heart to hear about Americans dying, I'm not talking about that. What I am talking about is this guy's apparent blame that liberals killed his friends. I was in aw that the officer in charge even suggested killing those goat herders! That IS MURDER! Not because liberals have tied our hands with useless rules, but because they were unarmed civilians! He would have been (and should have been) tried as a murderer, because that's what he would have been. No officer in his right mind would give that command, and most soldiers would recognize that as not being a lawful order. There are about 10 different ways to handle that situation. They made a mistake...that's how it goes sometimes. I'm not even going to get into the absurdity of putting it to a vote; I have no idea when the military became a democracy.
I have been privy to some other issues involving this operation, and it is general opinion that these guys really messed up big time.
I hated this book, it gives special ops a bad name, and I don't suggest it to anyone, god forbid some civilian actually believe the authors load of nonsense.
So go ahead, now post your silly little comments about how un-American I am, or whatever. I'm not impressed, especially if you have never done anything for your country besides keep the T.V. and couch industries in business. I have been serving for quite a while now, and I am confident that my patriotism is in tact. A goat rope operation is a goat rope operation, and poor planning will always produce poor results. And a garbage book is a garbage book.
 Frustrating... July 8, 2007
85 out of 147 found this review helpful
The title of the book creates lofty expectations. "Lone Survivor"...SEAL teams...Afghanistan. It should be hard-hitting and packed to the gills with action, right? Well, sort of. The book takes a good four chapters to get started. We hear about the author's childhood, his SEAL training days, and how everybody and everything involved with SEALs are amazing -- all before we even get to Afghanistan. Over half the book is spent here.
Toss in frequent complaints about 'liberal media" and repeated and tiresome complaints about rules of engagement and the book isn't starting off to well.
When the team lands in Afghanistan, the tempo picks up. They embark on missions into the mountains, encounter bad guys, and do what SEAL teams do. The story becomes more involved and even a bit suspenseful. When they are tasked with finding and killing a certain bad guy, the book becomes gripping. I couldn't put it down when the SEAL team engaged with the bad guys. The entire firefight section of the book -- which spans multiple chapters -- had me hooked.
The book takes a surprising twist in the later chapters of the book -- after the primary firefight. I won't describe the twist but it kept the suspense levels high throughout the remainder of the book.
Sadly, the author's writing style wasn't up to the job. While the plot itself was compelling, the author's incessant need to make everything "super", "great", "amazing" or some other synonym was maddening. It sounded like the author was trying to hype up everything and everybody. If there is any organization that does NOT need to be hyped, it is the SEAL teams.
Finally, this book has portions that almost sound like propaganda. The author frequent complains about liberal media and how they are on a crusade to "get" members of the U.S. Military. He complains about media coverage of Abu Gharab (sp) and how the U.S. Military is being forced to fight with one arm tied behind their backs. These types of complaints are sprinkled throughout the book -- which makes them hard to avoid. While the author might have a point, I didn't buy this book to hear his complaints about liberal media -- I wanted to hear about SEAL team firefights in Afghanistan.
Overall, the plot was great. The writing style and frequent complaints weren't. Would suggest waiting until the paperback as this story isn't worth the $13-$24.95 hardcover price.
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