Black Hawk Down Essay
Independent Book Review Black Hawk Down is a book by Mark Bowden, who is a journalist that documented the Battle of Mogadishu in his book. It is less of a story, and more of a collection of different accounts and recollections of people that were fighting in that battle. It is written as though the reader is a 3rd party, but they are also right there within the action. The book starts with the explanation of many of the people's backgrounds that will become a major part in the book to follow. During these introductions, the author explains what each other thinks about themselves, their comrades, and the war they are fighting in, as well as their thoughts for the battle to come. Many of the people were actually excited for the battle that
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Perhaps the most powerful quote was this one by Jeff Strueker. "The difference between being a coward and hero is not whether you're scared, it's what you do while you're scared" (Bowden, Black Hawk Down, 160). This quote is essential to one person's life because it's what this man says that convinces him to get onto the helicopter going into battle. It is very important because it tells people that anybody can be a hero. It tells them that everybody is scared. Another extremely powerful quote is "When war starts, a soldier wants like hell to be there, but once he's there, he wants like hell to come home" (Bowden, Black Hawk Down, 215). This quote shows that the young men fighting in this war originally wanted to come, to come fight for their country and gain honor, but when they finally get there, they realize just how bad it is and they no longer would wish this upon anybody. Overall, Black Hawk Down was an amazing read. The message that most people will take away from it is that nothing should be taken for granted. It was supposed to be an hour long battle that turned into many casualties and fighting overnight. This book was an accurate representation of the war in Somalia and Mogadishu, and anybody who is looking for a good, action filled, heart wrenching book should read
Perhaps the most powerful quote was this one by Jeff Strueker. "The difference between being a coward and hero is not whether you're scared, it's what you do while you're scared" (Bowden, Black Hawk Down, 160). This quote is essential to one person's life because it's what this man says that convinces him to get onto the helicopter going into battle. It is very important because it tells people that anybody can be a hero. It tells them that everybody is scared. Another extremely powerful quote is "When war starts, a soldier wants like hell to be there, but once he's there, he wants like hell to come home" (Bowden, Black Hawk Down, 215). This quote shows that the young men fighting in this war originally wanted to come, to come fight for their country and gain honor, but when they finally get there, they realize just how bad it is and they no longer would wish this upon anybody. Overall, Black Hawk Down was an amazing read. The message that most people will take away from it is that nothing should be taken for granted. It was supposed to be an hour long battle that turned into many casualties and fighting overnight. This book was an accurate representation of the war in Somalia and Mogadishu, and anybody who is looking for a good, action filled, heart wrenching book should read