One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780618773435)

The New York Times bestseller that "provides a close-up and often harrowing look at Fick's service both in Iraq and Afghanistan" (US News & World Report).

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.

"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

Author: Nathaniel C. Fick
ISBN-10: 0618773436
ISBN-13: 9780618773435
Publisher: Mariner Books
Language: English
Published: 09/01/2006
Pages: 400
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.91lbs
Size: 8.24h x 5.55w x 0.98d

Review Citation(s):
Kliatt 01/01/2007 pg. 37
New York Review of Books 12/20/2007 pg. 82