Monday, July 21, 2014

Into the Fire: A Firsthand Account of the Most Extraordinary Battle in the Afghan War / Dakota Meyer / 256 pages

Into the Fire chronicles the events that happened in 2009 to Dakota Meyer (recipient of the Medal of Honor in 2011) while deployed in Afghanistan.  The one thing I liked about this book is that it gives you a personal experience of the soldier by telling about his life growing up and how he came around to joining the Marines.  If you want to get a boy to sign up, tell him he can't handle it.  Fast forward to the battle of Ganjigal -- Meyer is outside the front lines waiting to receive orders but the only order that comes is that he must remain in position and not advance.  Imagine how difficult this is when you have close to a hundred men making calls on the radio for air/artillery support and it doesn't come despite the fact they are being told multiple times that it will be "15 mikes" (15 minutes) from now.  Meyer, of course, disregards the orders to stay put and charges into the fight with machine guns, grenade launchers, and Afghan soldiers.  The battle that follows is intense and leaves one biting his or her nails (especially if you are listening to it like myself) -- it is raw and real.  The story continues after the battle and how he handled the MOH nomination, his struggle with PTSD, and life as a civilian.  I was not a fan of the narrator, but other than that, I thought it was interesting getting the perspective of a Medal of Honor recipient.

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