Book Review - American Soldier by General Tommy Franks
May 26th 2007 05:25
The Commander in Chief of the United States Central Command from July 2000 through July 2003, General Tommy Franks made history by leading American and Coalition forces to victory in Afghanistan and Iraq -- the decisive battles that launched the war on terrorism.
Now, drawing on his own recollections and military records declassified for this book, Franks offers the first true insider's account of the war on terrorism that has changed the world since September 11, 2001. He puts you in the Operations Center for the launch of Operation Enduring Freedom just weeks after 9/11, capturing its uncertain early days and the historic victory that followed. He traces his relationship with the demanding Donald Rumsfeld, as early tensions over the pace of the campaign gave way to a strong and friendly collaboration.
When President Bush focused world attention on the threat of Iraq, Franks seized the moment to implement a bold new vision of joint warfare in planning Operation Iraqi Freedom. Rejecting Desert Storm–style massive troop deployment in favor of flexibility and speed, Franks was questioned by the defense establishment -- including Secretary of State Colin Powell. Yet his vision was proven on the ground: Within three weeks, Baghdad had fallen.
American Soldier is filled with revelation. Franks describes the covert diplomacy that helped him secure international cooperation for the war, and reveals the role of foreign leaders -- and a critical double agent code-named "April Fool" -- in the most successful military deception since D-Day in 1944. He speaks frankly of intelligence shortcomings that endangered our troops, and of the credible WMD threats -- including eleventh-hour warnings from Arab leaders -- that influenced every planning decision. He offers an unvarnished portrait of the "disruptive and divisive" Washington bureaucracy, and a candid assessment of the war's aftermath. Yet in the end, as American Soldier demonstrates, the battles in Afghanistan and Iraq remain heroic victories -- wars of liberation won by troops whose valor was "unequalled," Franks writes, "by anything in the annals of war."
Few individuals have the chance to contribute so much of themselves to the American story as General Tommy Franks. In American Soldier, he captures it all.
(net sourced Haper Collins.com)
I had heard of General Tommy Franks a while ago whilst reading an article in Time, so when I saw his book on a remainder table, thought it might be a good read? I tend to have a neutral stance on the US and the whole Iraq business, as whats done is done, so no amount of finger pointing etc will change that. From the article I read, he was descibed as a soldiers general, someone who understands his troops, almost one of them if you like, so he doesn't sound like your typical general.
The book decribes his early childhood and up bringing and from an early age, he describes how his father taught him right from wrong and cause and effect. As he continues through his early teens to when he went to university, he comes over as a little indulged in reagrds to his cars that his father helped him with, although this sort of thing might have been common in that time.
But it was after flunking out of uni and enrolling in the US Army and specialising as an artillery officer, that was the begining of Frank's long career with the military. This book doesn't try to glorify war, more the case of trying show just how things actually were. I enjoyed the little words of wisdom that Franks included from time to time and was fascinated by the quotes from Sun Tzu who was a military genuis 2,500 years ago.
Overall I found this book well written and informative, lots of interesting information ranging from military jargon, to strategy etc. Pretty easy to read and doesn't bog you down with too much info, jargon, details. For anyone interested in military history, current/world events then this is well worth a read.
kiwiauthor 8/10
Hal
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