Up front, I like this book for many reasons. I read mostly nonfiction and even when I like the book and the subject is something I want to learn about; the books have been leaving me with the feeling I'm on a march to get through them lately. Lone Survivor was not like that. I sped through the pages. I like history and this is a bit of that being based upon a true story, and told by someone that was involved. I also had motivation to read quickly because the book was a loaner.
The first third or so of the book is a quick story of Luttrell's background growing up in Texas and his journey through SEAL training, mostly the training. I have never been in the military, nor through special forces training. I've watched a few TV programs and have talked to a child that has been through one branch's special forces training. We've all heard the stories of how one branch or the other has the best special forces. I am sure that each is one of the best fighting force on the planet. The description of the SEAL selection course just to get into the real training, BUD/S, was amazing reading. Then the rest of the "training" was a story of why these are the world's best warriors. For a non-military person, it is a great lesson and warning not to get too confident in your skills after you've shot a few times at the range, or played paintball or a video game. These men are professional warriors that do things we dream about doing. That training is important, especially for what is described later in the book.
A couple of the ideals Luttrell continues to focus on throughout the book are loyalty and service. Loyalty to team and service to country. We may hear these ideal talked about, but this book shows a living example of them in practice. During the training phase and, then in Afghanistan, Luttrell recounts examples of these two traits in a way that drives home their meaning.
In many ways the title gives away the end of the story, but it doesn't give us the details that make this such a good story. During the description of the firefight and subsequent fight for survival, Luttrell mentions that the only time in his life was near to such a physically demanding event was during SEAL training. He thanks his trainers for the brutal things they did to him because it is what brought him through his ordeal. Luttrell does a great job of tying together the multiple stories happening at the same time. As he was being harbored by a Pashtun tribe, at their own risk, we read of what his family was living through in Texas and some of what the military was doing to rescue him. He tells of the interfering rules of engagement that US military personnel have to fight under and how they hinder and ultimately cost lives, both US and native. Luttrell talks of the media that had a part in the creation of the rules of engagement, and how the media presented untruths about his "death" that gave his family untold misery through this time. He doesn't gloss over many of his feelings and thoughts, but does it without the bravado that some stories are told with. I felt I was sitting in someone's living room hearing the story told.
Part of this overall story that isn't told often is the place of the native Afghan tribesmen and their help in this conflict. Luttrell is saved by Gulab, a Pashtun with as great a sense of loyalty and honor as a SEAL. The Taliban threatened Gulab, his family and his village with death if they didn't hand over Luttrell. Gulab never did and has since suffered. To this day Luttrell and Gulab talk on the phone though neither understands the other's language. Loyalty and honor doesn't always come where we expect it will.
In the end this is a story that needs to be told so that truth about life and what the world is like now can be discussed with honestly. We need the frontline voices to help us determine our paths. For me this book and story has made me a better person for pushing the clouds away a bit more showing me what the world is like.
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