 | Price Comparisons: Rental | | Sorry, the textbook you were looking for is not available as Rental, at any of the stores we searched. | Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com | Journalist Mark Bowden delivers a strikingly detailed account of the 1993 nightmare operation in Mogadishu that left 18 American soldiers dead and many more wounded. This early foreign-policy disaster for the Clinton administration led to the resignation of Secretary of Defense Les Aspin and a total troop withdrawal from Somalia. Bowden does not spend much time considering the context; instead he provides a moment-by-moment chronicle of what happened in the air and on the ground. His gritty narrative tells of how Rangers and elite Delta Force troops embarked on a mission to capture a pair of high-ranking deputies to warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid only to find themselves surrounded in a hostile African city. Their high-tech MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters had been shot down and a number of other miscues left them trapped through the night. Bowden describes Mogadishu as a place of Mad Max-like anarchy--implying strongly that there was never any peace for the supposed peacekeepers to keep. He makes full use of the defense bureaucracy's extensive paper trail--which includes official reports, investigations, and even radio transcripts--to describe the combat with great accuracy, right down to the actual dialogue. He supplements this with hundreds of his own interviews, turning Black Hawk Down into a completely authentic nonfiction novel, a lively page-turner that will make readers feel like they're standing beside the embattled troops. This will quickly be realized as a modern military classic. --John J. Miller |
Average Customer Rating:   NO B.S. This is a good read. I will most likely re-read this book every year or so. Thanks for telling their story. Hits like a freight train As someone who saw the movie before reading the book, I can assure you that, yes, as good as the movie was, the book is even better. I'd been meaning to read this for a while and finally got around to it. I'm glad I did.
Mark Bowden has clearly done his homework on the battle/debacle of Mogadishu down to the minutest detail. He covers dozens of perspectives, from the commanders, diplomats, and politicians down to the individual fighters -- both sides -- and even gives you some vignettes of Somali civilians who had the fight raging all around their homes and businesses. And even moreso than the movie, the book gives you the Somalian perspective and humanizes other side -- especially the civilians, but even some of the Somali fighters. It's sobering to be reminded that, from their perspective, we were the foreign invaders who were coming in, perhaps with good intentions, but bringing trouble and often causing collateral death and destruction.
This is a graphic, no-punches-pulled look at war and warriors, at the chaotic hell that is unleashed in real life when the lead starts flying. I have never experienced battle and hope I never do, but my sense is that this book at least gives you a taste of it in the way that only a handful of other war books do. In addition, many veterans have vouched for the accuracy of Bowden's descriptions. His excellent writing brings it to life in all its nasty detail. I found the audiobook to be superior to the book or the movie This is a great account of modern armed conflict, and at the time it was written we weren't even aware of the international terrorists behind the local Somali warlords. The audiobook was read by Joe Morton, who did a perfect job and was perfectly chosen for this book. Morton makes this audiobook what it is - a masterpiece.
In Black Hawk Down we learn about the hesitancy of the Clinton administration and how easily that administration got played in international conflict. Later, of course, we learned that the backlash was far worse. Namely, our nation elected an inexperienced president who took a far, far more aggressive approach to war. We could only yearn for the days when we had a spineless approach since at least we didn't throw all our national treasure and so many promising lives away without any self-doubt or introspection.
Mogadishu (Mo) is well-described in this book. One feels as if they were there and wishing to get out. That creates suspense that lasts throughout the book. The pickup truck driving gunmen of the warlords were Kat chewing tough guys, a truly fearsome bunch. They were unafraid to put their lives on the line and they would think nothing of putting civilian lives on the line. That made the situation hopeless in terms of getting European support when scenes were captured on the news. This was probably the first time the U.S. had to either go it alone or get out, and we got out very quickly but with a modicum of honor.
Now we know that the Mogadishu days were the good `ol days and we had the opportunity then to study the enemy and take action. Of course, the U.S. government chose the weak path and this is where we can trace the beginning of truly bold plots against U.S. interests. Somehow the U.S. seems to either have no spine or to be cowboy-like in its approach to such matters. Hopefully, our politicians will consult with genuine intelligence analysts next time.
great book Probably one of my favorite books of all time. I could not believe anyone rated this book 1 star so I began looking all those reviews. Every single one had the same thing to say. "i hated this book, it is too straight forward and there is no look into the political and social reason for the fight and no look into Somalian life style." This does not mean the book is a one star book, it means you lacked the ability to read anything about the book before you actually read it. It was not written to tell you about those things, it clearly states that the book was written to get an in depth look at the fight itself and what went on DURING the fight and it does an excellent job at that. War is Hell - nothing more, nothing less Mr. Bowden acknowledges up front that this work is not an assessment of judgments or actions. He is forthright in his statement that he would leave the political and social debates out of the pages of his book and would only offer an intimate, unabashed account of what warfare is like through the eyes (and minds) of the soldiers who fight. Bravo Mr. Bowden for not leaving one scent, one whisper, one fear out of this account. The dogs of war and the peace pipers alike should read this horrific account before they offer their protests for or against the soldiers who are doing little more than following the orders of their political leaders. War is Hell, nothing more, nothing less. Not even Dante' could have survived the battle of Mogadishu without throwing his sanity aside.
John |  |
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