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One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer, by Nathaniel C. Fick
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If the Marines are “the few, the proud,” Recon Marines are the fewest and the proudest. Nathaniel Fick’s career begins with a hellish summer at Quantico, after his junior year at Dartmouth. He leads a platoon in Afghanistan just after 9/11 and advances to the pinnacle—Recon— two years later, on the eve of war with Iraq. His vast skill set puts him in front of the front lines, leading twenty-two Marines into the deadliest conflict since Vietnam. He vows to bring all his men home safely, and to do so he’ll need more than his top-flight education. Fick unveils the process that makes Marine officers such legendary leaders and shares his hard-won insights into the differences between military ideals and military practice, which can mock those ideals.
In this deeply thoughtful account of what it’s like to fight on today’s front lines, Fick reveals the crushing pressure on young leaders in combat. Split-second decisions might have national consequences or horrible immediate repercussions, but hesitation isn’t an option. One Bullet Away never shrinks from blunt truths, but ultimately it is an inspiring account of mastering the art of war.
- Sales Rank: #14767 in Books
- Brand: Fick, Nathaniel
- Published on: 2006-09-07
- Released on: 2006-09-07
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 8.25" h x .98" w x 5.50" l, .91 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 400 pages
- Mariner Books
From Publishers Weekly
The global war on terrorism has spawned some excellent combat narratives—mostly by journalists. Warriors, like Marine Corps officer Fick, bring a different and essential perspective to the story. A classics major at Dartmouth, Fick joined the Marines in 1998 because he "wanted to go on a great adventure... to do something so hard that no one could ever talk shit to me." Thus begins his odyssey through the grueling regimen of Marine training and wartime deployments—an odyssey that he recounts in vivid detail in this candid and fast-paced memoir. Fick was first deployed to Afghanistan, where he saw little combat, but his Operation [Iraqi] Freedom unit, the elite 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, helped spearhead the invasion of Iraq and "battled through every town on Highway 7" from Nasiriyah to al Kut. (Rolling Stone writer Evan Wright's provocative Generation Kill is based on his travels with Fick's unit.) Like the best combat memoirs, Fick's focuses on the men doing the fighting and avoids hyperbole and sensationalism. He does not shrink from the truth—however personal or unpleasant. "I was aware enough," he admits after a firefight, "to be concerned that I was starting to enjoy it."
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Fick signed up for the Marine Corps Officer Candidates School after receiving a B.A. from Dartmouth in 1999 because he wanted a challenge. He got one. He made it through the school and eventually into the First Recon Battalion (the elite of the elite), and he served in Afghanistan and Iraq before leaving the corps as a captain. The classics major proceeds in classic form, covering his training succinctly but thoroughly and his field experience in well-narrated detail, and concluding with a short epilogue. One of the corps' attractions for him was the chance for leadership in fighting. He quickly learned that the trust between platoon and leader can make the difference between life and death for both, and he builds his combat descriptions around that principle. One Bullet Away can be recommended to anyone wanting a frontline description of this country's recent combat theaters and to anyone seeking a personal account of the contemporary Marine Corps. Marines are people, and Captain Fick puts proof of it on paper. Frieda Murray
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
"Fick's writing style sets this book apart from other accounts of recent conflicts and guarantees One Bullet Away a place in the war memorial hall of fame." USA Today
"Harrowing . . . deserves close reading and serious discussion." The Washington Post
"What One Bullet Away accomplishes, in a way all the blather on cable TV never will, is to give readers real insights into the modern war and its warriors." --Rocky Mountain News
"Fick makes a fascinating contribution to the growing shelf of soldiers' tales with his insight into the minds of today's young officers." Boston Magazine
"The best sign of military intelligence." Gentleman's Quarterly
"Provides a close-up and often harrowing look at [his] service both in Iraq and Afghanistan." U.S. News & World Report
"Much more than a simple dispatch from the fronts of Afghanistan and Iraq, One Bullet Away finds Nathaniel Fick reaching deep within his heart and soul. culling up the irony, frustration, humor, tragedy, and -- more than anything else -- the pathos that informs the enterprise of war." --Military.com
"Fick sounds like precisely the kind of thoughtful, mature commander any soldier would revere." Cleveland Plain Dealer
"Ponders the nature of leadership and war . . . A tough-minded, beautifully written account." Men's Journal
"Rapid-fire, vertiginous . . . Fick brilliantly evokes the split second before the first muzzle flashes of an ambush...His story is truly -- as one Marine motto has it -- leadership by example." --National Review
"A compelling and exciting memoir of military service, swift in its pacing and sure in its details. The courage, selflessness, and skill of Marines are intensely portrayed here and are -- in the highest and rarest praise for a military memoir -- unmistakably authentic." --Senator John McCain
"Nathaniel Fick shares a powerful account of the bravery of the Marines and the simple truth every soldier shares: that war is hell. Our troops on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan are heroes who have sacrificed to serve our country, and in these pages we are reminded of their courage under fire. Fick's story is testimony to their struggle." --Senator John Kerry
"A gripping account of twenty-first-century war by a twenty-first-century warrior. Perhaps most astounding is Nathaniel Fick's candor concerning his own emotions, fears, and moral quandries as he rises to the challenge of leadership. Fick has written the story of our times." --Evan Wright, author of Generation Kill
"A splendid story of a young Marine officer's journey from a promising begining to the truth and horror of combat. He pulls no punches in a book that is hard to put down." --Joseph L. Galloway, coauthor of We Were Soldiers Once . . . and Young
"This is the war on terrorism at the working level, where it's very cold or very hot, where you're dirty and you don't get much sleep, and your life can be over in the next breath. Washington poobahs do grand strategy; people like Fick do the work. This is their story of the fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq. Fick's book makes those wars become real, with all the heroism and the mistakes that still come with ground combat." --Richard A. Clarke, author of Against All Enemies
"A superb account of the challenges that confront a young officer in today's conflicts. Fick offers exceptionally vivid descriptions of leadership, duty, and brotherhood under fire. One Bullet Away is brilliant, a must-read for anyone who wants to truly understand what our troops face." --General Anthony C. Zinni, USMC (ret.), former commander in chief, U.S. Central Command, and coauthor of Battle Ready
"A brilliant, no-bullshit piece of under-the-helmet reporting. One Bullet Away is much more than a chronicle of war. It illuminates a man's mind and heart as he is thoroughly transformed by training and combat." --Steven Pressfield, author of Gates of Fire
"This is one of the best books on the Marine Corps in a long time. If you want to understand what it takes to become a Marine today, read this. Then, if you want to really understand what it takes to serve in today's wars, read it again. One Bullet Away is a terrific book by a natural writer." --Tom Ricks, military correspondent, Washington Post, and author of Making the Corps
"A remarkable book that will give today's readers a much fuller picture of the realities of their military, and that will be read for many years to come because of its vivid, humane, unsparing but also humorous portrayal of the making of a warrior." --James Fallows, national correspondent, Atlantic Monthly
"Far more than a glory-soaked collection of war stories, this memoir proves the ideal of the scholar-soldier is alive and well. One can hardly imagine a finer boots-on-the-ground chronicle of this open-ended conflict, no matter how long it may last." Kirrkus Reviews, Starred
"Essential . . . candid and fast-paced . . . Like the best combat memoirs, Fick's focuses on the men doing the fighttting and avoids hyperbole and sensationalism. He does not shrink from the truth, however personal or unpleasant." Publishers Weekly
"The psychological distance between those who serve and fight and those who publish and pontificate is vast. Nathaniel Fick has closed the gap considerably with this fine book." --Robert D. Kaplan, author of Imperial Grunts: The American Military on the Ground
"The Marines develop leaders who are not only skilled, courageous, and tough, but also humane. Join one of them as he leads a Recon platoon to Baghdad and beyond. One Bullet Away is a riveting and highly charged account of modern war as seen through the eyes of a young lieutenant." --Lieutenant General Bernard E. Trainor, USMC (ret.), author of Cobra II
"One Bullet Away is much more than a war story. It recounts a young officer's daily duty to lead, to make ethical decisions, and to balance the immense responsibilities of accomplishing missions and saving lives. These lessons are as useful in the boardroom as on the battlefield." --Marshall N. Carter, retired Fortun 500 CEO and two-tour Marine infantry officer in Vietnam
"Distinguished by its intelligence and candor . . . a rare perspective on modern warfare -- and on the culture of America's warriors." People Magazine
"Makes a compelling argument for an oft-overlooked military virture: competence." The New York Times
"Fick and his men come across as America's dream fighting force: hypercapable, ever vigilant, wire-tough, and loyal to the end." Outside
Most helpful customer reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
A great officer account of modern warfare!
By Joe Creason
I listened to the 16.5 hour long unabridged edition of this book narrated by Andy Paris. The last paragraph of this review focuses on that production specifically.
4 stars: A straight-forward account of Marine combat in Afghanistan and Iraq from the POV of a Jr Officer.
Nate Fick was a main character portrayed in HBO’s 2008 miniseries GENERATION KILL (based on Evan Wright’s 2004 memoir of the same name). This memoir was written before the miniseries but after Wright's account, in 2005. It covers his introduction into the Marine Corps, deployment to Afghanistan, subsequent training as a Recon Marine and then his role as an Lt in the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Fick is a capable writer and his story doesn’t simply cover the same ground covered in GK. You learn that he scored expert on the rifle range, was a weapons platoon commander, underwent varying rigorous courses of special forces-esque training and you also get a lot more information on lesser known members of the Recon Platoon he leads into Iraq. For example, Gunny Wynn is a much more significant character in the last half of Fick’s account due to his role in the unit organization.
Fick is able to portray the demand and stress associated with small unit leadership and his boot camp and advanced training segments are more interesting than other accounts I’ve read, but this account is a more straight-forward, almost sterile one. It isn’t devoid of opinions or personal reflection, but that’s not the focus of his account. This is not necessarily a drawback, but it makes for a less riveting combat account when Fick finds himself in the thick of the fighting.
Instead of a blow-by-blow combat account, we’re given one about leading competent men into modern warfare which, despite the subpar decision making skills of some of his superiors, sees him and his men through two different stints in combat without any KIAs.
However this does make the book less compelling ultimately, and I also felt that his training portion of the memoir, though better than others was still a bit bloated and could have been a bit shorter.
But these cons are drastically outweighed by the pros of Fick’s account, making it stand on it’s own as a story of the Wars on Terror, apart from Wright’s and later the miniseries. I also feel it is one of the best officer accounts published about this conflict, hence my scoring it 4/5 stars.
In terms of recommendations I'd say check out Wright’s book, though it is from the perspective of an embedded journalist. Also check out the miniseries because it is brilliantly made, acted and produced by the people behind THE WIRE, too.
Concerning modern combat memoir recommendations: the best one so far is still HOUSE TO HOUSE by David Bellavia and the best officer account is LIONS OF KANDAHAR. There are many accounts out there and I have a listmania ranking them if you’re interested.
As for the audiobook: I got a copy of the unabridged audiobook on tape read by Andy Paris. Paris reads the book well, if a bit dry but he changes up his voice acting for different characters though he sticks to the same tempo throughout all the different settings. The abridged version is read by Fick himself but I haven’t listened to it and read somewhere that Fick himself wasn’t happy with how the abridged book was edited.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
One Bullet Away
By firemnmike
This is an amazing book highlighting the difficult road of going from ordinary college graduate to the super ordinary life of a marine officer, and then to war. This book was suggested to me by my son who has completed college, Officer Candidate School, The Basic School and is currently in MOS tank school for United States Marines. His statement to me was "this is remarkably accurate ". I found the book interesting, scary, and enhancing my already high regard for the marines and especially those that choose to lead as officers. This book also serves to help us focus on a difficult part of our country history, specifically Iraq and Afghanistan invasions. And the reintroduction of our soldiers into society. I recommend this book and say to captain Fick, Semper Fidelis.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful.
Fascinating insight into both the achievements and limits of military training.
By WiltDurkey
One thing that has always intrigued me is the US/British/Western(?) hierarchy between grunts, noncoms and officers. This has been the key to successful small unit tactics and flexibility. Many, many, armies have never quite gotten the hang of it and operate with essentially troopers and officers. The Soviet-derived model is officer heavy with not much importance attached to noncoms. Yet, in practice, a truly flexible and adaptable military, capable of tactical innovation, needs all 3.
Noncoms (sergeants and up, pardon me if I mess this up) are extremely key to making things work. But their "making", to echo the books' title is pretty clear. They come up from the ranks and although they command the regular soldiers they come from the same background, only they have years of experience and they are the cream of the crop. Their role is key, but this book does not cover it much.
Every army also needs officers, but the difference is that lieutenants are expected to make life and death decisions for troopers who are barely any younger than they are and who often have more combat experience. Often, their primary qualification is being more educated, which is not necessarily relevant on the battlefield. As they get older and more experienced, they, hopefully (but not always as this book also shows) become more qualified to lead troops.
Mr. Fick's book is an extremely interesting look at how the USMC trains these junior officers. In his case, due to his dedication and humility he comes out ready to take on this important responsibility. If you read through the lines, some of his fellow officers are not as good, even if the majority of officers perform admirably. Incompetent and glory seeking leaders have been the bane of the military for millennia, especially when wars are preceded by long periods of peace. Still, the overall impression I got was that the USMC is trying (no, I did not say "doing its best") to weed out the useless. Perhaps more in training than once they have graduated, which is similar to what we see in other professions, like doctors.
He mentions in passing a reason why his First Recon unit in Iraq had _some_ less than stellar leaders. Recon marines were expected to operate at the noncom/trooper level in the field. As a result, most of the officers were desk bound and might have found themselves out of their depth in the front lines.
If you are interested by the military give it a read. It is most definitely nuanced and does not "rah rah" the problems raised by the use of deadly force. Despite a deep respect for the military way of life.
One caveat: those solely interested in Iraq/Afghanistan coverage will find that it is not the main subject here. Lt. Fick only covers two fairly short deployments. On the other hand, it dovetails nicely and covers the same unit and mission as Generation Kill, albeit in a less critical fashion.
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