As close as you can get to being there

books:


	• Chosen Soldier: The Making of a Special Forces Warrior Dick Couch Crown, 2007 - 416 pages average customer review:based on 32 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Great insight

Dick Couch has provided great insight into the selection and training of one or our premier units.
He has a great blend of personal and training highlights that give a great feel for the making of a SF soldier.
Highly recommended for those wanting to know more about the making of the next greatest generation.

Inside the SF

My son is a Green Beret, and I had only heard a few of his stories about the intensive training that he went through. This was a real eye-opener for me to see exactly what went on. He was able to identify some of the cadre who had fictitious names assigned by the author.

If anyone is interested is signing up for SF, they need to read this book to get the real inside story.

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As close as you can get to being there

This is an excellent, no b.s. account by Dick Couch, himself a SEAL and fmr CIA Operative who writes without any ego driven agenda. He has been given excellent access by the Army. This clearly isn't written from a warm, dry desk. He goes into the cold, heat, and rain to get it right. Starting before training, Couch follows (runs alongside) the Special Forces "training process", which is more accurately an art, not a science. With attention to ample personalities, Couch brings the reader close to the fire. You sense "the big picture", but Couch keeps you close to the guys who are sweating and bleeding to succeed. This isn't a book only for those with a military interest. In fact, it's probably a far more educational and IMPORTANT read for people who have absolutely no clue about Special Forces. These elite professionals are our Nations ambassadors in places many Americans can't even find on a map. Their objectives and how they fulfill their missions have potentially deep impact not merely on military affairs, but on US Foreign Policy itself.

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Great book for future SF

Great book a must read if your looking into a future in SF or just interested in what they go through.

A Professionals Eye

This book is very focused, and is made all the better because of that. The authors choice of focusing solely on the training of Green Berets, except for the first chapter, rather then on the whole history of the outfit and it's long list of achievements.

As a former SEAL, he clearly knows about special forces, and is able to translate that into detailed explanation. He gives enough background detail of the people he is talking to to be interesting without giving us page after page of soldiers that come and go (a problem with some history books).

He clearly recounts conversations, but only the parts that are applicaple to what he is discussing. Throughout the book, while you meet the soldiers in training, the only character you really feel like you get to know is the training itself.

The pace of the book is also noteworthy. Many history books are a little tough to read. Having to record so much information and so many facts can leave a book a little dry. Couch has a great writing style and the book really flows.

There are a few problems, such as going into detail about the same thing nearly verbatim in two different chapters. Not to often, but it was distracting. Also his insistence on calling the Green Berets special forces and naming all the other SFOR by name. In the beginning he even indicates that the Green Berets are the only real special forces. Something surprising coming from a former SEAL.

None of this detracts from the book. It is a well paced, informative read that anyone with interest in the military or history would be glad to read.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

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.

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