Jason Delgado

Jason Delgado has penned an excellent book about his experiences growing up in the Bronx, becoming Marine, a sniper, his experiences in Iraq as a sniper, and about becoming an sniper instructor afterwards. While he leaves no doubt about his alpha male status, he does not shy away from describing many personal experiences, even the ones where he feels he has failed.
Where the book really shines is in his telling of his tours in Iraq. From his gung-ho, supremely driven first days there, to his awakening to the horrors of the war and his part in it. The battle scenes were extremely vivid, fast moving, and made you almost feel you were there. And afterwards, you could really feel his pain.
While sometimes I felt uneasy with his macho take on the world, and how the Marine Corp really promotes this sense of invincibility, I am aware that it is a world I will never understand, and cannot fault it for it's success in creating "supermen" like Delgado. Other times, I really felt bad for him, when he had to face up to the fact that the rest of the world (his relationships, for one) did not subscribe to the same outlook.
All in all, an excellent book. I just cannot get over the horrors he faced in Iraq, in battles that we here at home never were even told about. And I thank him for his service.… (meer)