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|  | Author: Doug Stanton
Publisher: Scribner
List Price: $28.00
Buy New: $14.35
as of 11/22/2009 09:44 CST details
You Save: $13.65 (49%)
New (43) Used (29) Collectible (5) from $11.49
Seller: NextstepBK
Rating:  86 reviews
Sales Rank: 1176
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 416
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6 x 1.3
ISBN: 1416580514
Dewey Decimal Number: 958.1047
EAN: 9781416580515
ASIN: 1416580514
Publication Date: May 5, 2009
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back!
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 26-30 of 86
 Fast Paced July 29, 2009
Michael J. Nelson (Vermont USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a fast paced interesting account of the first US combat soldiers to enter Afghanistan after 9/11. It details early special forces operations in Afghanistan and the ability of these exceptional US soldiers to think outside of the box. Mr. Stanton also describes the personal impact that the top secret deployment had on the men and thir families. It is a great tribute to the soldiers and their families. This is an excellent read. I highly recommend it.
A Well -Told True Story of The Special Forces in Afghanistan July 29, 2009
Merlyn (Deep South, USA)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I am a book reviewer for BookPleasures. I am also a Special Forces veteran --Vietnam era. Following is my review of "Horse Soldiers"
The full title of this book on Amazon is "Horse Soldiers: The Extraordinary Story of a Band of US Soldiers Who Rode to Victory in Afghanistan" I will agree with that title and subtitle, but there's more. Horse Soldiers is the story of an extraordinary group of men who went into Afghanistan with little more than their personal equipment, superb training and courage. The U.S. Army Special Forces (Green Berets) soldiers were deployed within weeks of 9/11 as a direct response to the terrorist attack. They were the literal "tip of the spear," the first American soldiers with boots on the ground. In their briefings, just prior to being inserted into Afghanistan, they were warned that they might be captured by the very people they were to advise and be held for ransom, or killed.
Their mission was to contact two of the major warlords of the Northern Alliance; develop a relationship of trust; advise them on tactical matters when necessary and provide overwhelming firepower by calling on U.S. Air Force assets to bomb and destroy Taliban positions and armor.
From this reviewer's point of view, the story told in Horse Soldiers is the first truly doctrinal deployment of the Special Forces, in their primary role, since WW II. True, the Special Forces has been engaged in antiterrorist activities; direct intervention (such as MACV SOG in Vietnam) and countless--highly classified--missions. But the primary mission of the unit has always been: link up with guerilla forces; establish rapport with them; advise and provide logistical support; acting as a "force multiplier" destroy the enemy from behind his own lines.
Special note: The term, special operations has been bandied about--in publications and in public parlance--until many take it to mean many different units. There is only one Special Forces, with capital letters. These are U.S. Army units whose headgear includes the Green Beret.
The two, 12-man, Special Forces "A" Detachments (SFODs) that rode horseback with the Afghan warlords Dostum and Atta in 2001, were from the 5th Special Forces Group, headquartered in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. After these units were on the ground and their mission was well underway, additional command and control personnel were deployed to join them.
Captains Mitch Nelson and Dean Nosorog commanded the SFODs. The book tells their stories compellingly, but also details the activities of the superb Warrant Officers and Noncommissioned Officers (NCOs) who made up their teams.
In order to fulfill the first element of their mission; creating rapport and gaining trust, the teams had several special gifts to give the warlords--including vodka. They also had to eat, sleep and ride with the Afghan troops. Ride. Many of the troops had never ridden a horse. Some had only slight experience. They learned soon, and painfully, how the local troops traveled. The "saddle" was wooden boards, covered with sheepskin. The "stirrups" were iron rings set too high for the large Americans to relax their legs. Some of the troops bled through their trousers after long rides that included navigating trails three feet wide--on one side a sheer rock wall, on the other, a thousand-foot chasm.
Doug Stanton puts his "literary feet" down as carefully as the little horses. He moves through the stories of the men on the mission; the story of the wives who waited for them at home; to the story of the "American Taliban," John Walker Lindh; and the tragic story of the first American killed in Afghanistan, Johnny (Mike) Spann a CIA paramilitary officer.
Stanton's story switches scenes to give the reader an overview of the terrain on the battlefield, in the homes of the deployed soldiers and even in the mind of Lindh, without confusing the stories.
At the beginning of the book, there are listings of the major players in the story. I advise the reader--since a story of this scope necessarily contains so many characters--to mark those pages for reference as you read.
This is a superb book, told with clear language and fresh imagery. The story is even better--because it is true. It is a book that will make Americans proud of the men who call themselves "Quiet Professionals."
 Disappointing July 25, 2009
M. Killiany (Washington, DC)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
After hearing Doug Stanton on a radio show talking about the book I had extremely high hopes. As I read the book it appeared to me that this was an un-edited manuscript. The stories jumped around with virtually no context or explanation. I kept flipping back to see if I missed a page somewhere. Overall, I was incredibly disapppointed with the book.
Clearly a well researched booked with lots of good stories. I just wish someone would have weaved it together a little better.
 All talk , no action July 24, 2009
James F. Driscoll (Hudson,Ma.)
3 out of 11 found this review helpful
This book is a very difficult read.
So many mundane details and so little action.
Horse Soldiers: Heroes on a Mission July 24, 2009
Stephen P. Seniuk
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Horse Soldiers documents the courage and character of our soldiers on the front lines taking the fight to the enemy. Never forget their selfless service.
Showing reviews 26-30 of 86
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