Just by chance, I had been lent a copy of Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell the day before. It is the true story of Operation RedWing, an attempt to capture someone Marcus pseudonymous calls Ben Sharmak. 4 SEALS go into the Afghan mountains. 1 survives.
The book is comprehensive of the experience - he spends 2 chapters on SEAL training, some more time on life in Baghdad and his first month in Afghanistan. Then he dives into Operation RedWing. From the initial insertion to the firefight with Sharmak's army, and then Marcus' final capture by friendly Afghans who save his life and grant him sanctuary.
There are stereotypes a-plenty: the tough, cussing, lovable SEALS, the wimpy liberal media, the evil Taliban. There isn't a lot of gray in Luttrell's world. Maybe he doesn't do nuance. But the man is tough, loves his buddies, and loves his country. He needs this "I am invincible and my cause is right" attitude to do his job well, and it's a job that needs doing. And he doesn't hate all Afghans. He's just so used to interacting with Afghans that he's supposed to fight that it takes him a while to figure out that the friendly people are actually friendly.
The book is really informative, engrossing (although his arrogance bugged me sometimes), and makes you think. Operation RedWing went awry when the SEAL team was surprised by 3 Afghan goatherds and a flock of goats. The unarmed goatherds surrendered and waiting while the SEALs discussed their options. Kill them now and get out to save themselves; let them go and hope the goatherds didn't tell anyone about them and get out. Option 1 meant almost certain trial for murder back home. Option 2 meant that they all might die. Evidently, tying them up was not an option.
If you don't mind constant profanity, this is as good of a first-hand account of a SEAL operation as you're likely to ever read. I came away from it changed.
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