Inside: Delta Force Review

Inside: Delta Force by Eric L Haney

One of my favorite shows in the last decade was the Unit. It was one scene in the first episode that really hooked me. A plane hijacking. I've seen alot of movies try there hand at this scene, and more or less found them boring. The one thing that stuck out about this scene was the intensity of it. You could see the emotions being relayed on the persons face. The thoughts going through his head were easy to read. Most of the time when you see that scene there is just something missing. Like the actor, or director didn't understand. This time they nailed it on a level that I actually cared about what was going on. The tension was in the right place. There was no damsel in distress that her hunky boyfriend was coming to the rescue of. It was just a man doing a job that needed doing, and if he screwed up a whole plane full of people were going to die. Himself included. That pretty much summed up all I needed to know about the show. Then of course I got to the credits, and there was a book credit in there. Non-fiction at that. I usually read the books on stuff I really like, but I can't even remember the last non-fiction book I've read, and considering my affinity for history that's bad. Yeah this was along time coming.

The last fifty years in regards to history are a blur for me. I know very little about what the United States has been doing outside our own boarders. I found this book very informative. Even if it's written from the point of view of one soldier, and the stories he heard while he was in Delta Force. His writing style is mostly straight to the point, and didn't stop to explain what these places looked like. He focused more on the soldiers, and how things were done. Which I really liked.

I've heard of some detractions from the book. A former squad mate chimed in elsewhere to say that the book blemishes stuff.  Two things I remember offhand are alot of members of Delta Force consider Colonel Charles Beckwith as the sole founder of Delta Force, and that he wasn't punched in the nose. Had he been, the man responsible would've been shot without a thought. The Department of Defense also released a statement saying they weren't consulted on the book, and the book is full of half truths. What's real, and what's not they for the sake of national security have chosen to remain silent on. Just some food for thought.

So is the book worth reading? If you liked the Unit, military buff, or just want a perspective on history it's very good.

Beckwith himself did write a book on his unit, Delta Force: The Army's Elite. Which may appear in a later review.

I would also like to personally thank Delta Force for doing a thankless job in world that often times find ways to make it a hell of a lot harder then it needs to be. So cheers.

Next review: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sleep by Phillip K. Dick