An unprecedented view of Green Beret training, drawn from the year Dick Couch spent at Special Forces training facilities with the Army’s most elite soldiers. In combating terror, America can no longer depend on its conventional military superiority and the use of sophisticated technology. More than ever, we need men like those of the Army Special Forces–the legendary Green Berets. Following the experiences of one class of soldiers as they endure this physically and mentally exhausting ordeal, Couch spells out in fascinating detail 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 SF candidates gather operational intelligence to their skills at negotiating with volatile, often hostile, local leaders. Chosen Soldier paints a vivid portrait of an elite group, and a process that forges America’s smartest, most versatile, and most valuable fighting force.

Description: Soldier with his arm and head visible over canvas covered item. Probably Morotai, Maluku Islands, Indonesia.

" ... the story of the all-volunteer force, from the draft protests and policy proposals of the 1960s through the Iraq War"--Jacket.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The definitive biography of Colin Powell, from his Bronx childhood to his military career to his controversial tenure as secretary of state, with an updated afterword detailing his life after the Bush White House. Over the course of a lifetime of service to his country, Colin Powell became a national hero, a beacon of wise leadership and one of the most trusted political figures in America. In Soldier, the award-winning Washington Post editor Karen DeYoung takes us from Powell’s humble roots as the son of Jamaican immigrants to his meteoric rise through the military ranks during the Cold War and Desert Storm to his agonizing deliberations over whether to run for president. Culminating in his stint as Secretary of State in the Bush Administration and his role in making the case for war with Iraq, this is a sympathetic but objective portrait of a great but fallible man.

"Making John a Soldier A Nebraskan Goes to War" describes the life and trials of some of the 16,000,000 Americans who fought freedom's battle in World War II- the group Tom Brocaw dubbed " The Greatest Generation." The book describes how World War II engulfed the author's life from his enlistment in 1942 until his discharge three years later. It includes highlights of life changing experiences the author encountered as an infantry rookie training in California's desert in 1943 to the role he later played helping crush Hitler's minions. The book is more than a history of one person or one infantry division. Rather it describes key battle actions of Army units in both the Pacific and European theaters, as well as pivotal Marine and Naval engagements in the Pacific. It examines the titanic Russian and German struggles from Germany's invasion of Russia in June 1941 to the Soviet's final conquest of Berlin in 1945. Thirty maps depict settings where crucial battles were fought in both the European and Pacific theaters. The book often focuses on the individual warrior who fought alone against a determined and brutal enemy. The book delineates strategy dictated by the most senior command, guiding battle action of friend and foe alike. "Making John A Soldier" provides a view of the uncelebrated sacrifices and bravery of the ordinary American GI during World War II. It recounts the heroic exploits of a special group-seven Nebraskans awarded the Medal of Honor. For more information go to: www.makingjohnasoldier.com