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One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer | 
 enlarge | Creator: Nathaniel Fick
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
Buy New: $3.42
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Rating:  156 reviews
Sales Rank: 270735
Format: Abridged, Audiobook
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Abridged
Number Of Items: 5
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.8 x 5.1 x 1.1
ISBN: 0743551877
Dewey Decimal Number: 359.96092
EAN: 9780743551878
ASIN: 0743551877
Publication Date: October 3, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: New, Overstock copy. Still in Plastic. Light Shelfwear. Like New.
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Product Description
If the Marines are "the few, the proud," Recon Marines are the fewest and the proudest. Only one Marine in a hundred qualifies for the Reconnaissance Battalion, charged with working clandestinely, often behind enemy lines. Fick s training begins with a hellish summer at Quantico, after his junior year at Dartmouth, and advances to the pinnacle Recon four years later, on the eve of war with Iraq. Along the way, he learns to shoot a man a mile away, stays awake for seventy-two hours straight, endures interrogation and torture at the secretive SERE course, learns to swim with Navy SEALs, masters the Eleven Principles of Leadership, and much more. His vast skill set puts him in front of the front lines, leading twenty-two Marines into the deadlist conflict since Vietnam. He vows he will bring all his men home safely, and to do so he ll need more than his top-flight education. He ll need luck and an increasingly clear vision of the limitations of his superiors and the missions they assign him. Fick unveils the process that makes Marine officers such legendary leaders and shares his hard-won insights into the differences between the military ideals he learned and military practice, which can mock those ideals. One Bullet Away never shrinks from blunt truths, but it is an ultimately inspiring account of mastering the art of war.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 25 more reviews...
 The reality of war October 21, 2008
Johnny (Boston, MA USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
'One Bullet Away' by Nathaniel Fick
Nathaniel Fick's literary debut does not disappoint. The author's engaging narrative recounts his decision to join the US Marine Corps in 1998, through Officer Candidate School, Recon Training and eventually tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, respectively.
'One Bullet Away' is a solid boots on the ground portrait which reveals the good, the bad and insane of war: from incompetent commanders to maddening postwar planning tactics to unparalleled bravery displayed daily by the grunts to the soul wrenching effects of battle. Fick's idealism is challenged by the realities of battle, however, his solid decision making and focus on keeping his Marines alive and safe while still accomplishing his missions makes for an interesting study.
Anyone looking for an excellent war memoir from someone who was in the "bang bang" or wants to get a better feel for what makes a US Marine should definitely pick up this book. Moreover, this book clearly illustrates the importance of smart decision making and being disciplined enough to always consider the consequences of ones actions. It's a smart and informative read that is as captivating as it is poignant. Mr. Fick, along with many other brave military men and women, has a fairly amazing story to tell and told it well.
Outstanding read for warriors and civilians alike October 11, 2008
Miikka Lehtonen (Turku, Finland)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
In a time when many people already consider the war in Iraq pure hubris and stretching of muscles by a superpower gone mad, it is refreshing indeed to read true, honest stories from the men who fought the war.
The good intentions, the fears, the disappointments and triumphs all paint a picture that is very different from the cynical jeering presented to us from almost all media outlets.
While Nate Fick's "One Bullet Away" dedicates a lot of its 369 pages to events that occurred before the war and made Captain Fick the man he is today, the book really earns its keep during the section dedicated to Fick's combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The action is frenetic, the musings are deep and the humor is warm. A very well written book that is a pleasure to read and kept me powering through in three mammoth sittings. Deserves to be held up there with other legendary chronicles of a modern warrior's life.
For any possible purchasers, also consider Evan Wright's "Generation Kill" as a companion piece. Both books deal with the same unit, giving you two separate views on the same events and thus a better overall picture.
Outstanding piece of truth! September 30, 2008
D. J. Montemayor (USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Amazingly written by "one of the few and the proud" to inform the readers of the honor, courage and commitment that it takes to be a leader of one of the finest fighting force on the planet.
Well written book that goes the extra mile. September 28, 2008
dirtymc (new jersey)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The stories that get someone to a particular point or event in their lives are many times as important as the moment itself. Here is where Mr. Fick excels brilliantly, as he recounts to us the set of events that led him to this odd choice of work. Think about it he not only chose to become an infantry officer but rather went a step further and joined Marine Recon. Decisions like this aren't made lightly and are in essence a reflection of the complexity of the person who makes them. He shows this complexity in motion when he recounts the painful decisions that he had to make. He made the tough calls and put himself out on the ledge and I for one am glad that he was able to show how as Marines, we are not mindless imbeciles. We feel pain for all the others that suffer in this world needlessly as well. I am also in closing impressed by his depiction of his struggles with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Blessings be onto all those that go through such tribulations and hopefully they in the end make the world a bit better for all of us.
 A sandwich with great bread and bland meat September 26, 2008
James D. Alves Jr. (Incirlik AB)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Bottomline up Front: Author held back making this a disappointing book that had the potential to be great!
I had a lot of hope for this book, me being of somewhat a similar background, same age, same upper-middle class back ground, while also a military officer, however this book did'nt deliever and infact at the end I found it very disappointing.
The beginning of the book was great, i would give it a solid 4-5 stars, when he is talking about going through the Marine Corps OCS and how his view on life changed after going through that. That should be a required read for anyone thinking of trying to become an officer, having been through combat I found much of his commentary on being an officer and what it takes to be an officer, resoundingly true and accurate.
The book started going downhill on his commentary about War. I don't need to get into it too much other than to say it was bland and boring, his views of Afganistan were okay, but when it came to Iraq, I found I was longing more.
One of the reasons I picked up this book was that I had read Generation Kill a few times, and though I loved that book I figured some of the commentary provided by Evan Wright was skewed because he was with the younger NCOs/PFCs and did'nt have all the facts surrounding the orders that were given. Though Fick says in both books that the heart of the Marines is the NCO corps I was longing to understand better some of the overall rational behind the orders that were given.
Instead, Fick glosses over many of the major mistakes that Wright points out, I'm assuming since this came out after Generation Kill that Fick was somehow trying to protect those officers that made the mistakes. I was getting to a point where I thought that Wright perceptions were wrong, then in the final part of the book where it talks about the CO leading PT and the Company's response, it was clear that Fick had covered alot of what happened up to "protect the innocent."
Let me be clear, the book was an good read, I just found myself thinking that Fick did a dis-service to any young person/enlisted troop that wants to be an officer someday. Instead of pointing out some of the flaws in the decision making of the supierior officers he instead glosses over those facts and makes it seem like it's a big deal. You could tell at times that Fick was holding back on what happened during a particular sitation. This could have been a book that would be required reading for any of my young Lts or Cadets that I meet in stead I'm going to tell them to read the first back and be done with it.
The final 15-20 pages or so were a good overall commentary on the war and why he got out. Once again, i felt he was holding back, but it at least ends on a plus note.
Final thought, if your interested in this book/time period in Iraq, I would first read this book and then Generation Kill, it will shed light on alot of the issues Fick just touches on.
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