Chosen Soldier: The Making of a Special Forces Warrior
by Dick Couch
List Price:
Our Price: $9.44
You Save: $16.51 (64%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $6.08 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Dick CouchEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-03-06
ISBN: 0307339386
Number of pages: 416
Publisher: Crown
Book Reviews of Chosen Soldier: The Making of a Special Forces Warrior
Book Review: Fascinating look at what it takes to earn the Green Beret
Summary: 4 Stars
I believe this is the first comprehensive look at the entire U.S. Army Special Forces selection, qualification and training process; certainly the most updated (as of around 2004-5). Couch, a former Navy SEAL, is full of praise for the abilities and character of those young sergeants and junior officers who earn their Green Beret. And while the prose at times lags with over emphasis on procedure, it is still a fascinating look at a world very few of us will ever experience.
The main strength of the book is that it's more than an anecdotal telling of what these candidates had to go through. Couch also explores what the SF cadre instructors and trainers bring to the process as well. For instance, I was surprised to learn that there was little of the shouting and hazing that I suppose I'd expect to read about. Instead, Couch shows that throughout all four Phases, the cadre sergeants and officers are extremely considerate AND dedicated military professionals.
Although this kind of experience is no longer for me, I believe this is an excellent book for those contemplating a military career in Special Forces. Couch spends a lot of time on each Phase, as well as each Special Forces specialty (communications, engineering, weapons, medical, etc.).
There's also a section devoted to the preparation officers undergo to become ODA leaders, although I felt this was where Couch was at his most dryly procedural, whereas I wanted to read more about their field exercises. Finally, the book concludes with a satisfying overview of Robin Sage, the final Phase IV unconventional wargame exercise.
Strongly recommended.
Summary of Chosen Soldier: The Making of a Special Forces Warrior
IN combating terror, America can no longer depend on its conventional military superiority and the use of sophisticated technology. We are fighting guerrilla wars, against insurgents hidden in remote regions, often deep among the local population. In battles such as these, squadrons of billion-dollar bombers and naval fleets mean much less than on-the-ground intelligence and the ability to organize local forces. That?s why, more than ever before, we need men like those of the Army Special Forces?the legendary Green Berets.In Chosen Soldier, Dick Couch?a former Navy SEAL widely admired for his books about SEAL training and operations?offers an unprecedented view of the training of the Army Special Forces warrior. Each year, several thousand enlisted men and several hundred officers volunteer for Special Forces training; less than a quarter of those who apply will complete the course. Chosen Soldier spells out in fascinating detail the arduous regimen these men undergo?the demanding selection process and grueling field exercises, the high-level technical training and intensive language courses, and the simulated battle problems that test everything from how well they gather operational intelligence to their skills at negotiating with volatile, often hostile, local leaders.
Green Berets are expected to be deadly in combat, yes, but their responsibilities go far beyond those of other Special Operations fighters; they?re taught to operate in foreign cultures, often behind enemy lines; to recruit, train, and lead local forces; to gather intelligence in hostile territory; to forge bonds across languages and cultures. They must not only be experts in such fields as explosives, communications, engineering, and field medicine, but also be able to teach those skills to others. Each and every Green Beret must function as tactical combat leader, negotiator, teacher, drill sergeant, and diplomat.
These tasks require more than just physical prowess; they require a unique mix of character, intelligence, language skills, and?most of all?adaptability. It?s no wonder that the Green Berets? training regimen is known as the hardest in the world. Drawing on his unprecedented access to the closed world of Army Special Forces training, Dick Couch paints a vivid, intimate portrait of these extraordinary men and the process that forges America?s smartest, most versatile, and most valuable fighting force.
Intelligence & Espionage Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Intelligence & Espionage Books
Delta Force: The Army's Elite Counterterrorist Unitby Charlie A. Beckwith, Donald Knox
Avon; Published: 2000-05-18; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.61
Price in other shops:
Stalking the Vietcong: Inside Operation Phoenix: A Personal Accountby Stuart Herrington
Presidio Press; Published: 2004-11-23; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.00
Price in other shops:
The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGBby Milton Bearden, James Risen
Presidio Press; Published: 2004-08-31; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.45
Price in other shops:
Brainwash: The Secret History of Mind Controlby Dominic Streatfeild
Picador; Published: 2008-05-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.65
Price in other shops:
Turncoats, Traitors And Heroesby John Bakeless
Da Capo Press; Published: 1998-03-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.42
Price in other shops:
Spy Wars: Moles, Mysteries, and Deadly Gamesby Tennent H. Bagley
Yale University Press; Published: 2008-05-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.32
Price in other shops:
Between Silk and Cyanide: A Codemaker's War 1941 - 1945by Leo Marks
HarperCollins Publishers; Published: 1999; Paperback; Book
Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIA's Spytechs, from Communism to al-Qaedaby Robert Wallace, H. Keith Melton, Henry R. Schlesinger
Dutton Adult; Published: 2008-05-29; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $9.98
Price in other shops:
Stargate Conspiracyby Lyn Picknett
Little Brown & Co; Published: 1999-06-03; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $133.76
Brotherhood of Warriors: Behind Enemy Lines with a Commando in One of the World's Most Elite Counterterrorism Unitsby Aaron Cohen, Douglas Century
Harper Perennial; Published: 2009-04-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.46
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10by Marcus Luttrell
Little, Brown and Company; Published: 2007-06-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.00
Price in other shops:
Masters of Chaos: The Secret History of the Special Forcesby Linda Robinson
PublicAffairs; Published: 2004-10-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.94
Price in other shops:
The Finishing School: Earning the Navy SEAL Tridentby Dick Couch
Three Rivers Press; Published: 2005-05-31; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.80
Price in other shops:
Warrior Soul: The Memoir of a Navy Sealby Chuck Pfarrer
Presidio Press; Published: 2004-12-28; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.39
Price in other shops:
The Warrior Elite : The Forging of Seal Class 228by Dick Couch, Cliff Hollenbeck
Crown; Published: 2001-10-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $105.95
Inside Delta Force: The Story of America's Elite Counterterrorist Unitby Eric Haney;
Delta; Published: 2005-08-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.72
Price in other shops:
The Only Thing Worth Dying For: How Eleven Green Berets Forged a New Afghanistanby Eric Blehm
Harper; Published: 2010-01-19; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.99
Price in other shops:
The Finishing School: Earning the Navy SEAL Tridentby Dick Couch
Crown; Published: 2004-03-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.95
Price in other shops:
Get Selected! for Special Forces: How to Successfully Train for and Complete Special Forces Assessment & Selectionby Major Joseph J. Martin
Warrior Mentor LLC; Published: 2005-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $24.95
Price in other shops:
The Warrior Elite: The Forging of SEAL Class 228by Dick Couch
Three Rivers Press; Published: 2003-01-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.07
Price in other shops: