This book gives us a sense of the dedication, the work ethic and the extraordinary skills required to become a Seal Team member, it also highlights the constant struggle to remain an intricate part of an Elite group. It starts with Mr. Wasdin story on how he grew up to become the top sniper in the military's most elite and respected group. His father was a disciplinarian who was especially hard on him and demanded perfection. This tough sometime cruel upbringing laid the ground work for the extreme tests the rest of his life had in store for him. In his military training he describes the grueling selection process, Hell Week, boot camp and later on Sniper School where he was thought that the more you train, the less chance you will bleed in war. All through the pages he often describes his childhood memories and the lessons he has learned. In retrospect he has become a well discipline perfectionist who embraces his vocation extremely seriously. As a Team Six member he took part in Operation Desert Strom and on another mission the team took on a rebellious and out of control village, their objective was to capture or kill Somalia warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid. It is during this mission we learn how important intense training can affect results. When taken by surprise they still preformed a heroic rescue of downed pilots even though some including Mr. Wasdin received life threatening wounds. He was later awarded the Silver Star for his actions. Skilled surgeons saved his leg and with extensive rehabilitation he returned to active duty but it soon became clear to him his performance was compromised so he eventually took medical retirement and went back to school to become a Chiropractic Doctor. This is an exciting book that kept my attention to the last page. Mr. Wasdin tells his memoirs with a deeply poignant perspective and an honest point of view from his painful troubled childhood, his demanding career in the navy right up to his present day life as a Doctor. I read this book after watching TV programs relating to Seal Team training and exploits, the background helped me visualise and understand the black and white text in a more intense manner. I was pumped reading the words of Mr. Wasdin and I can only imagine what it is like for these Elite Groups: endless training and living life on the edge….

I read this book after reading Lone Survivor, thinking it would be just as good. It was something of a disappointment however. While I liked it and it was good, it wasn't great. It didn't grab and hold my attention as Lone Survivor did. We learn of Howard Wasdin's early life and the brutality he experienced at the hands of his step-father, his early and ultimately doomed marriage, enlistment in the Navy and becoming a SEAL, fighting in the Battle of Mogadishu ("Black Hawk Down"), and eventually a medical discharge from the Navy because of serious wounds suffered during the Battle, but we never really connect with him. The story comes across as superficial, covering material in too little depth. We're left with the feeling there is much more that could have been said.