Book Review: Outlaw Platoon by Sean Parnell & John Bruning

March 11, 2013
Article first published as Book Review: Outlaw Platoon by Sean Parnell & John Bruning on Blogcritics.

About:
Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistanby Sean Parnell and John Bruning is a non-fiction book about Mr. Parnell’s experience as a platoon leader (nicknamed Outlaw Platoon) for the U.S. Army Airborne Rangers in Afghanistan. Service for six years, Mr. Parnell retired with two Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart.

The pub­lisher is giv­ing away one copy of this book –to enter fill out the Raf­fle­copt­ter form at the end of the post.

Book Review Outlaw Platoon by Sean Parnell and John BruningMy rating forOutlaw Platoon5
Buy this book in paper or electronic format*

Thoughts:
Outlaw Platoon by Sean Parnell & John Bruning does not hold any punches. The descriptions of the horrors as well as the elation of battle are vivid and evocative. However, this is not only the story of Parnell, but the story of a platoon working and living together in a dangerous, inhospitable place.

This is a gritty book, not only with the vibrant descriptions of what the author has been through, but also of the enemy we are fighting. An enemy who’s goal was to decapitate the soldiers with dull knives and stick their heads on polls as warnings, or who seems to get their kicks kidnapping a six-year-old boy, gauging his eyes out, pulling his teeth and using him as their sexual plaything.

Mr. Parnell writes with honesty and clarity, eager to prove himself in battle, he soon gets plenty of opportunities to do so during his tour. The book revolves around several battles in which Parnell’s platoon came out victorious but not unhurt.

One of the aspects which I really appreciated in the book is that the author does not underestimate the enemy. While the propaganda we often hear about the “cave dwelling towel heads”, this misinformation is far from the truth. The enemy the Rangers encountered is a disciplined, well equipped, well trained, organized and experienced military force.

Unfortunately I have encountered the same attitude (usually from officers) during my military service. I remember telling my father about this issue when I was a 20 year old sergeant, how the misinformation is doing moral damage to the families at home, hurting the soldiers training (by being unprepared for what lays ahead) and, of course, underestimating the enemy has caused many superior forces to lost battles and wars. Twenty years later he remembered my words when that same group was stirring troubles again and everyone were surprised at the organization and ferocity… except those who faced them before.

The book also raises some disturbing issues which young officers on the front-lines have to deal with. These issues such as local, national and international politics, the complexities of the societies which they have to operate in, the complexities of combat, frustrations of front-lines soldiers with back-lines support personnel and more.

Outlaw Platoon raises some important questions which needed to be asked (preparedness, effectiveness, professionalism) but that are difficult to face. The book is a must-read for anyone interested in the current war, combat or military life.

Related Reads:
Black Hawk Down by Mark Bowden
The Most Dangerous Place: Pakistan’s Lawless Frontier by Imtiaz Gul

Buy this book inpaperorelectronicformat*

Give­away

  • Give­away ends: March 18, 2013

  • US/Canada Ship­ping Addresses Only

  • No PO Boxes

  • Win­ners will have 24 hours to write back with their address, oth­er­wise an alter­nate win­ner will be picked

Congratulatons: zoocrew2@

TLC Book Tour forOutlaw Platoon by Sean Parnell & John Bruning :

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer:I got this book for free fromTLC Book Tours.
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account

--- Please like and follow ManOfLaBook.com ---

5 Comments

  • LizMarch 11, 2013 at 4:36 pm

    Zohar,

    Although you state the giveaway ends 3/18, rafflecopter says closed.

  • Sharon HenningMarch 11, 2013 at 8:37 pm

    This sounds like a riveting book. Very disturbing that people could be so sadistic.

  • Heather J. @ TLCMarch 16, 2013 at 3:23 pm

    I’m planning to get this book for my husband – he loves these kinds of books, and this one has gotten such great reviews.

    Thanks for being on the tour! I’m featuring your review on TLC’s Facebook page today.

Leave a Reply to Liz Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

− 2 = 7

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Social media & sharing icons powered by UltimatelySocial
RSS
Twitter
Visit Us
Follow Me
Post on X
Pinterest
Pinterest
fb-share-icon