Two Wars: One Hero's Fight on Two Fronts--Abroad and Within Paperback – May 1, 2009

(Several pictures of the mountain top to include the tree NS mentions several times. The donkey noted in the picture was tied to the tree and out of sight to the Rangers. The 3rd pic is (perhaps) SEAL/Roberts personal affects.)Two Wars by Nate Self is good reading, especially for those who have deployed to Afghanistan or Iraq. Tragic combat events leading to the deaths or severe injuries of comrades in arms is a life changing experience. In some cases, the question of "why them and not me" becomes the enduring.The book reflects this... of lost brothers in arms on that fateful day atop Takur Ghar, Paktia Province, Afghanistan, March of 2002.Having moved in and around Gardez some months after Operation Anaconda, the historical vibrations of Operation Anaconda were still very prevalent and on our collective minds. Driving down the road from Gardez into Zermat and looking up at those 10,000 to 12,000 foot mountains and knowing then the daunting challenge of working those mountains gave all of us pause.Having read (several times) Sean Naylor's book about of Operation Anaconda from the planning stages to execution..and Pete Blaber's (acting commander, Gardez-LTC/Delta) excellent book recently published provides another dimension to fully understand the operational planning and the tactical implications of what happened in the Shahikhot Valley during Operation Anaconda. I was most anxious to read Self's book as he and the Rangers, Air Force controllers/PJ's-Medics and the Night Stalker crew were on the ground during what was nearly 12 hours of sustained combat. The book provides in great detail the events on the ground... .and gives tribute to those who died on top of that mountain.With the combined readings, one cannot fully understand how several key and mission essential command planning/execution tasks were overlooked. For whatever reason, unity of effort, communication and command/control influence were components of the causation of events atop Takur Ghar.Specifically:1. After several days of units in contact in the valley; with knowledge the enemy had secured the high ground with full intent to engage, why did the command element at Bagram AB allow Razor A/C units to land on the top of Takur Ghar? By some accounts, the intelligence people at Bagram specifically stated the enemy would probably on top of Takur Ghar since that mountain top was key terrain. Historically, those who fought against the Russians always took the high ground and the battle against the Russians in this same valley was well documented.2. Command and control from Gardez (location of Delta & SF teams, CIA) was transferred to either Bagram or Masirah Island off the coast of Oman; frequencies were changed without knowledge of some of those critical to the mission downrange.3. And perhaps, the most revealing was the top of Takur Ghar was the enemy in full sight with built up fighting positions/bunkers, but also a 1000 lb donkey (check the photo portion reference this book). The donkey was used for hauling the enemy's gear up the mountain tied to the tree in front of the trench line about 70 meters from where MH-47 went down atop Takur Ghar . With all the technical and sophistical electronic gear, it would seem someone in command would have ordered the Predator for a close in "look" to validate what the AC-130 crew had indicated previously stated-NO ENEMY ATOP TAKUR GHAR.Those who ask.."why them and not me" is also the endearing question of those who took Omaha and Utah beaches of June 6th... or the Rangers who climbed and fought at Pointe Du Hoc that same day, or at Bastogne with the 101st....or perhaps the faceless souls lost in the Ashau or Ira Drang Valley....those who fought in Fallujah..or those of the 173rd at Wanat. Simply said, there is no answer-it is just war.Those who survived owe it to those who did not... to look forward. Let the tragedy of it all fade into history.And for those who gave so much, we shall never forget for they all are in warrior heaven.Haiti/Bosnia/HOA/Afghanistan/Iraq/HOA

I downloaded this when it was free for the Kindle, and it was much more than I bargained for. It was like a peanut M&M, sweet chocolate on the outside and something healthy to chew on inside. I sat down for a good read about army life in Afghanistan, for which I was richly rewarded, but after the story of his involvement in the day long firefight in Afghanistan with ambushing Al Queda on Robert's Ridge, I bit into a the more intense story of his PTSD upon return to civilian life.I really enjoyed reading about his training as an Army Officer at West Point. I really enjoyed learning about his Ranger training. I learned about military life in Bosnia and Afghanistan. His descriptions of the battle on the mountain top known as Takur Ghar brought me on the ground with him and his squad. He served in Iraq also, but that was when PTSD started it's depressing effects on him. He retired from military life but couldn't adjust to civilian life. He knew he was destroying his marriage and family but he couldn't stop himself. Recovery did not come quick or easy, but his wife didn't give up on him, the smoldering wick of faith he had slowly came back to flame. He is still adjusting and recovering, but now he is in a place where he wants to help his brothers and sisters in arms recover as well, and recover better than he did. It's an intense story of one man's life. It's worth a read this Memorial Day as well. Thank you to all those who are serving, or have served our country in harm's way. To those who have lost sons, brothers, daughters, sisters, mothers, and fathers for the protection of our country, thank you.

I have been volunteering with a group trying to help soldiers return from the battlefield to civilian life (warrior2citizen) and grown in my sensitivity to this topic. What is happening to our soldiers is tragic. The army lost more guys to suicide in 2009 and 2010 than to enemy combat. The divorce rate is higher than it has been in generations. High risk behavior is off the map. Unemployment and underemployment is almost twice the national average in war veterans. Substance abuse is skyrocketing. All of these impacts can be directly linked to the ratio of time deployed in combat zones vs. dwell time.Nate Self does the civilian community a great service by writing this book. He sheds a light on many of these issues can be seen through the lens of single life. It is helpful because when a problem is this big it's easy to see it as one monolithic issue, when in reality is the the individual story of one million men, women and children trying to transition from military life to civilian life every year (370,000 vets and the rest dependents).The book is transparent and gripping. It is a book that should be read by every citizen. To those who are quick to go to war it is a warning that having the most powerful and dedicated military in the world does not make us immune to the effects of our "victories". To those who routinely denigrate our military, it shows a human side to the individual soldier and his family that should build compassion at the same time as it amazes them at the character and commitment of today's war fighter.Thank you Nate. Thank you Julie.

Interesting autobiography of a young man from Texas who joins the US army, training at West Point to be an officer. He spends time in Kosovo and Germany and then in Afghanistan.He does well in the Army and is a good leader of men. His talents are recognised and he is encouraged to join an elite unit. In the Afghanistan mountains his helicopter is shot-down and he and his men, and the helicopter crew, fight a desperate battle for survival as casualties mount.Afterwards, after four years training and just six years in post he resigns the army. I couldn't help but think what a waste: the army had invested all that time in training this soldier and with his leadership skills, experience of peace-keeping and ferocious battle he was at a point where he could deliver value back to the military and be an effective future commander. Unfortunately he wasn't able to get a good civilian job and went to pieces with post-traumatic stress disorder.Why did he leave? God told him it was the right thing to do. To be fair, god had also told him ten years previously that it was the right thing to join the army. And in fact god plays a big part in this book. I dived into the book and was rather surprised how much religion is in it. One chapter is about when a soldier in his command alleges he said `Jesus Christ' during the desperate fire-fight and he agonises at length about whether he had taken the name in vain. I couldn't press the Kindle page turner fast enough to get through this guff.So perhaps I wasn't too surprised after I finished the book to see at the very front that the book is published by a Christian organisation.I found the religious aspect irritating and mawkish and I skipped as much of it as I could. I noted that god received the credit for all the good things that occurred and wasn't blamed for the bad things, and the protagonist was certain that he was doing god's work when he shot at Afghans in their own country. But I suspect those Afghans shooting back were just as certain they were doing god's work.Hard to score this fairly - as a work of inspiring Christian propaganda it wasn't for me, but it'd be unfair to mark it down for that because it's made clear at the beginning (which I missed), so I'm giving it 5 stars. The military elements were very interesting and well written and it's a shame more space wasn't given to them.

Although there was no synopsis of the story on Amazon I thought it was worth a try as it was free for Kindle, so I downloaded it with the idea that it might be a war story - well it was but told from the angle of a soldier who was so Christian that, quite honestly, he was in the wrong job. The story was fairly interesting to start with - plenty of references to Omaha Beach- his grandfather had landed there - presumably where the Two Wars of the title sprang from, and reading about the young man's training and acceptance into the elite U.S. Rangers (although he seemed to achieve that with very little effort) but when he went to war in Afghanistan it was downhill all the way, for me at least. The bible references and praying started in earnest and sentiments such as it was wrong to hate Bin Laden etc. ( God wouldn't want that). At that point I thought enough was enough and deleted it from my Kindle.Thank goodness it was free!!

Really enjoyed this book - downloaded as a freebie. The story covers a US Ranger caught in a gunfight in Afghanistan, together with his life and training before and after, and his coming to terms with the loss of colleagues under his command. He is obviously religious and finds it a comfort and something to give him answers when life becomes unfathomable for him. I am not religious and thought from other reviews that it might be a heavy book to get through, but not at all.The author appears ethical and vulnerable. He tries to conduct his life with honour, though in his eyes not always succeeding. I liked his honesty and the description of trying to reconcile being in active service with serving God.Having started a fair few free Kindle books and giving up through trite plots, bad writing or waffle, I found this one an easy and engagin read. Recommended.

Pictures of war are so common place through the power of the media, whether we're seeing a tank battle or someone on foot patrol with a camera on their helmet. We typically just watch and don't think about the soldiers as people and what they might be going through. This book was a very deep and meaningful account of Nate's experience as a Ranger and the inner conflict he experienced as a person/husband/father/christian. One hell of a read.

This is a decent read, It was as engaging as other war biographies that I've read but was still pretty good. I got it for free so can't really complain.