Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War Reviews

• Bowden Captures the Horror of Modern Urban Warfare

  
  By AVQHCNHTML8W6 on 1999-04-16
  So you've never been in combat. Come to Mogadishu. Maybe you're the rear detachment company clerk who was called forward due to an injury. Join the D-Boys and Rangers on a quick raid gone wrong. Fast-rope into a crowded African city on a Sunday afternoon and smell, taste, hear, and touch the reality of true combat. Test your soul; what would you do if you were surrounded by thousands of deadly Somalis only miles from safety in the heart of their territory and there is a BLACK HAWK DOWN? Mark Bowden has taken his award winning series of newspaper articles written for the Philadelphia Inquirer and turned them into a must-read classic for all military professionals. He definitely took a modest assignment and overachieved; we are the beneficiaries. His detailed account of the Battle of the Black Sea (Mogadishu: 3-4 October 1993) is destined to occupy the bookshelves of every military professional or would-be warrior. Devour and enjoy Black Hawk Down. This book is not about your Grandfather or Father's war. This is about modern war involving many soldiers still on active duty. It's not about destroying tanks from 3,000 meters away. It's about close combat when the rules of engagement cease to have relevance and survival requires immediate instinctive response. This book is a crystal ball on future urban warfare and a cautionary note for contentious peacekeeping operations. The devil is in the details and you will not want for details. The gore, frustrations, disagreements, mistrusts, illusions, misconceptions, ramifications, difficulties, cowardice, and heroics are displayed for all to see. Sure there is some hype and inaccuracy, but no interesting microscopic analysis can exist without such blemishes. Seldom has such a discreet tactical operation had such far-reaching strategic consequences. U.S forces in Bosnia can attribute restrictive force protection measures to this battle's legacy. Future strategic, operational, and tactical leaders who do not assimilate the lessons of Mogadishu are in danger of repeating this tragic history. I strongly recommend this book. Learn what Delta Sergeants Randy Shughart and Gary Gordon did to earn the only Medals of Honor awarded for actions during the past quarter-century. Set aside a Sunday afternoon or a long night for continuous consumption. You will not want to put this book down once you start reading it.
  
  

• An American Isandlwana

  
  By A2ZPB888E9YZPG on 2000-04-14
  First of all, it is important to understand what this book is, and what it is not. It is a good oral history of what the soldiers of TF Ranger felt like during what was for most of them, their first taste of combat. It is a very accurate portrayal of young men at war which, is why I gave it three stars. However, I was looking for a little more than that from this book. I was hoping for an accurate military history of the firefight of Oct. 3rd and 4th which, it is not. 99% of this book is about the pinned down SOF which, was really only half the battle. The other half was the rescue attempt by the QRF and UN allies which, is totally ignored in this book. The Malaysian soldier who died was no less brave than any American soldier who died. In fact, he should be eulogized more, because he died trying to save the soldiers of another country whom he had no obligation to. I realize the soldiers who fought in Mogadishu consider this book to be their "monument," but that shouldn't blind us to the inescapable truth of what really happened that day. Although the veterans claim that they were up against "thousands of Somalis," this statement has to be qualified. In a Congressional Review, US Army officers have said that there were only 300 trained SNA soldiers in that part of the city. The rest of the Somalis were an untrained and undisciplined mob of men, women and children. This mob was largely unarmed and had to wait for one of their own to get killed, so they could then pick up the weapon and fire wildly in the direction of US soldiers. Their lack of accuracy can be imagined, as the low death toll of US soldiers attests to. If the Somalis had been in any way tactically competent, they would have caused many more casualties then they did. Let's face it, the US Army wasn't exactly up against the quality of the Waffen SS here. Obviously, the firefight was not as one sided as it has been claimed. Although the Spec Ops were a little outnumbered in men, that was made up for in air power. TF 160 and QRF gun-ships simply hosed down all moving targets in the city. If it wasn't American, it was dead. The majority of the killing was done by the gun-ships. This book tries to make Oct. 3rd sound like it wasn't a total US defeat by using the "Vietnam yard-stick of victory" which, is the body count. Playing the numbers game does not make this a victory. The truth is that a few hundred pathetic Somalis managed to shoot down five helicopters from our best aviation unit, kill 19 soldiers from our best combat units and wound almost a hundred more. In 15 hours, the Somalis rendered TF Ranger and the QRF "combat ineffective." Immediate replacements for TF 160, Delta, Rangers and 10th Mtn. were brought in-country to make up for the loss. This battle was a tactical and strategic defeat for America, as we had to depart from Somalia with our tail between our legs just like we did in a similar situation in Beirut ten years before. I got the impression that the author was trying to turn this humiliating defeat into an American Dunkirk, when in fact, it as more of an American Isandlwana. And of course, whenever the US Army fails, it starts throwing medals around like they were going out of style. Napoleon was right about baubles. My critique of this book was meant in no way to take anything away from the individual soldiers who saw action that day. You guys are the real thing. Although, I wasn't in Mogadishu myself on October 3rd, I did spend a few months on QRF in that hellhole and so have an inkling of what it was like. Overall, a good book...but the truth of Oct 3rd has still yet to be written.
  
  

• Armageddon at Meggido

  
  By A32K3KOSJR7TC4 on 2001-12-24
  I am in the Navy in Mexico, being a avid researcher of American military policy, I can say this book is very unbiased and accurate. For example here in Mexico the news reports we get in comparison to CNN are almost the opposite in cases. Especially the Somolia case. Bowden tells it like it is through the entire book. Another book that is quite popular in Mexico as the author lives here described the Desert Storm conflict before it occured and now predicts Armageddon in The Plains of Jezreel, describes new weapons that the allied forces use against Chinese forces, a type of wave pulse that stops the heart beat of invading forces. Also predicted the F 35 Joint Strike Fighter ten years ago. SB 1 or God By Karl Mark Maddox
  
  

• An Object Lesson About the Profession of Arms and Politics

  
  By ALR35EFI69S5R on 2000-05-25
  This is an interesting, disturbing, and captivating book, and one every American interested in how contemporary foreign policy often injects our armed forces into hostile and violent political situations should read. As someone formally involved with the support of military operations, I found the situation alarming from the beginning, when these men were sent into an enemy stronghold without proper support and back up. But then, again, when the American media's approach to the seriousness of the military campaign is to be out on the beach filming the landing of American amphibious troops, one recognizes the absurdity of the situation. From the outset, this was hardly a straightforward military operation.

  Once the troops are in place and ready to `rock& roll' in the local environment, however, the multiple mistakes involved both in military assessment and then in military reaction slowly suck our troops into an increasingly unpredictable, dangerous and untenable situation. Of course, with hindsight, it is easy to second-guess the series of experiences and decisions made that led to sending 100 troopers into the heavily armed urban morass they became entwined in, but no one could have guessed how hostile, energetic, or persistent the heavily armed local thugs would be in prosecuting the battle. Yet it is precisely this possibility that senior military officers on the scene must anticipate and appreciate, and it is to their blood-stained hands (and the hands of civilian policy-makers) that we must look for the deaths of these fine young men.

  On the other hand, given the mistakes made in establishing the rules of engagement, the single most striking aspect of this tale is that fact that it has been painted as a military defeat. Yet in more modest and realistic terms, any military engagement, which results in 18 dead and dozens, wounded counter-posed with literally hundreds of dead and wounded Somalis hardly constitutes an unalloyed defeat. Ambushed, surrounded, and attacked with a level of unsuspected ferocity, these men fought bravely and well, and inflicted almost unbelievable damage on an opposing force of overwhelming numbers and firepower.

  One chief lesson here is that it was the manner in which the media portrayed the event that led to the subsequent events, up to and including the decision to pull American troops out of the region. Yet, anyone familiar with the nature of war understands it is patently ridiculous to suppose one can conduct serious military operations involving the outright use of deadly force without suffering loss of life. Pointing to situations both before and since only demonstrates our luck, the degree of caution employed, and the likely enforced timidity of our activities. Certainly the laughable operations recently conducted in the Balkans provides proof of this absurd idea. Until we once again have people experienced in the profession of arms manning decision-making positions in the Executive branch, people who understand the requirements for successful military operations, until then we will continue to suffer the slings and arrows of such outrageous fortune.
  
  

• A Classic on Battle History and Do-Gooder Intervention

  
  By on 1999-07-10
  I read this powerful book over the 4th of July and could not put it down. It reads like a true-life Saving Private Ryan and brought tears to my eyes. All of the extremeness of war is here-horror, bravery, honor, confusion, sacrifice, camaraderie and even humor. The coffee clerk becomes a fighting machine! It is meticulously researched and reminds the reader what our men and women in the armed services do for us with too often little appreciation. I would make this book required reading for political do-gooders who are eager to have American soldiers lead third world countries into democratic prosperity.

  There are few books that go into the actual workings of the Delta Force and this book can now be added to their mystique. Delta Force by Charlie Beckwith and The Commandos: The Inside Story of America's Secret Soldiers by Douglas C. Waller are other books that readers might enjoy. The "D-boys" come across as everything we would hope and expect from our elite soldiers-cocky, able, and willing to do whatever it takes to get the mission accomplished while taking care of every man on the field. The fact that one of the wifes' of a dead "operator" believed that her husband was in telecommunications demonstrates the level of integrity (and yes, even humility in civilian life) of these men.

  Since the ending is probably known to most readers who follow world events, I would suggest that they start with the epilogue first to get the political history and background. The book sadly shows that President Clinton does not know the meaning of the word "honor" and had no concept of what the soldiers died for in Somalia when he immediately cancelled their mission after this battle. The book reiterates that the objective of the mission was successfully accomplished. President Clinton dishonored the men who fought and died in this battle by removing all forces soon afterwards and returning all prisoners within several months making their victory and deaths sadly in vain. (The father of a dead soldier tells Clinton that he is not fit to be Commander in Chief, long before Monica). The Somalia of today is due to Clinton withdrawing after the first touch of heat.

  My only criticism-the pictures and maps are in different places in the book. When this is printed in paperback I would hope that all the maps are in the front and all the pictures in the middle.
  
  

• You can't put "Black Hawk Down."
  By on 2002-01-15
  I served 12 years in the Air Force as a Combat Controller (AF Special Forces) and was last assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadrons at Hurlburt Field in Florida. Are motto, "First There, Last Out", pretty much sums up what we did. I have never read a book that more accurately captures the sentiment that a soldier never leaves a man (generic for person) behind...NEVER. It cost the Army 15 additional men, good men, attempting to save the soldiers in the bird that fell that day, but it was worth it. After all, try getting soldiers to fight for their country if they don't believe that their country will risk this much to save them if indeed they fall in combat. Although it has been said many times that we fight for God and country, those of us who have been in combat know that it is God and country that motivate us into battle but it is the man next to us that keeps us there, and keeps us going back in...until no one is left behind. It is for them that these brave soldiers fought and died, not for ideology or a blind sense of duty.

  What had been portrayed as a series of screw-ups in the media was in actuality nothing of the sort. This book eloquently demonstrates that these soldiers accomplished every bit of their intended mission that day. The only screw-up occurred long before that day, when President Clinton, not unlike President Reagan before him, put our soldiers in harm's way without adequate support and with an untenable mission. This story shows that we can no longer afford to put our people in the middle of a target-rich environment and then shackle them to a rule of engagement that says only shoot when shot at. If a battle is waging and there are people on the rooftops, for instance, you can bet they are not there for shelter...those people are by definition combatants. One need not wait for them to take careful aim and pip off a surface-to-air rocket as they did here. An A-130 gunship would have saved 19 lives that day. It was in the futile attempt to spare innocent lives that these soldiers were sacrificed. Some day the politicians will learn that the military is designed to kill people and break things, not to surgically extract dictators or to carefully glean the subtle nuances between combatant and "casually-dressed woman pulling an AR-15 from a basket." By the time you recognize her as a combatant, you've lost three men.

  Based on a recommendation, I recently read a book called Operation Pseudo Miranda and was mortified to see another example of politicians placing soldiers (in the war on drugs) in harms way without sufficient support or proper training. Not unlike Black Hawk Down, most of them got dead for their troubles. And not unlike Black Hawk Down, you feel as though you are there and are glad you are not. Read both.
  
  

• Accurate Depiction, Somewhat biased.
  By on 1999-11-17
  The book provides incredible detail; however I think the book lacks in two key areas:

  First, a lop-sided opinion of the soldiers involved. Specifically Paul Howe's assessment of the Ranger's abilities. The prevading theme I got was the Rangers were lucky to be alive, much less able to accomplish the mission. It seemed that parts of the book became a platform to bash the Rangers.

  Second, I think he (Bowden) slighted the efforts of the 10th Mountain Division QRF Relief Column. 2-14 Infantry did an OUTSTANDING job getting a multi-national relief column moving on such short notice. Again, the tone of the book suggests that 2-14 Infantry were a bunch of stooges not worthy of such operations.

  Due to the budget cuts, every combat arms unit in the Army is an 'elite' unit. What I mean is we don't have excess resources; therefore every unit has a specific task to perform without any overhead. The National leadership made a bad call by not allowing armor into Somalia; instead the UNOSOM forces got a Light Infantry Batallion with a good commander at its helm.

  I served in Somalia for 9 months with an Army Special Forces unit attached to UNOSOM; so if I'm arm-chair quarterbacking, it's from the front edge of the chair.
  
  

• Objective History of Soldiers who were Down but not Out
  By A2M2KMPJBQ9R4B on 2001-08-19
  If Black Hawk Down was not nonfiction, I wouldn't have believed it. The heroic tale of a group of just over 100 U.S. Rangers, DELTA operators, and SEALs in the 15+ hour non-stop battle of their lives to survive against thousands of agressive,armed Somali militia should be near impossible for anyone to put down who has an interest in military history. However, the main strength of the book is delivered by the author Mark Bowden himself. As an investigative reporter, he takes pains not to play the role of a monday morning armchair quarterback, and as a result simply reports the facts surrounding the October 3-4, 1993 "Battle of the Black Sea" in Mogadishu. Throughout the book, I began seeking the military commanders or politicians who should be "blamed" for this mission gone so bad. Bowden doesn't provide the answers, but instead lets the reader come to his or her own conclusions. His research of first hand source material, documentation of his sources, and reliance on only first hand interviews is first rate and qualifies this book as an excellent work of History, not merely a piece of investigative journalism.
  
  
• Will be considered a classic of American literature
  By A1CDZM5YMB61PD on 2004-05-10
  On October 4, 1993, America was rocked by the news that American Special Forces were ambushed in the Somali city of Mogadishu. And, as the television filled with images of dead American soldiers being dragged through the streets, people began to demand to know what happened. The administration of Bill Clinton was rocked, and reacted by quickly announcing that American forces would be pulled out of Somalia as quickly as possible. But, more than most, reporter Mark Bowden wanted to know what really happened in Mogadishu. This is the story of what happened.

  On the afternoon of October 3, 1993, in a desperate attempt to capture two top aides of warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid, a small force of Rangers and Delta Force commandoes stormed into a house in Aidid's stronghold. However, very quickly things began to go wrong. When two of the Black Hawk helicopters (their pilots specially trained and equipped for night operations) were unexpectedly shot down, the American soldiers quickly found themselves surrounded by armed Somalis who were determined to bring the soldiers to battle and destroy them. As the American commander tried to round up support from Pakistani and Malaysian armored units, the American soldiers fought through the afternoon and through the night. When the fight was finally over, there were 18 Americans dead and 73 wounded, plus some 1,000 Somalis dead or wounded.

  In this story, author Mark Bowden does an excellent job of taking the reader right into the firefight. This is not a modern Zulu (a 1964 movie of British soldiers fighting against Zulu warriors during the 19th century); this is not a story of heroes and villains. Instead, the author tells the story from both sides, showing the feelings and motivations of both sides, and showing modern combat with all of its horrors and uncertainties. Indeed, what surprised me the most was the profound contempt that the Delta Force "D-Boys" expressed for their Ranger comrades.

  No, this is quite a story, one that has to be read to be understood. If you are interested in modern warfare, then I would say that you must read this book. Indeed, I would go as far as to say that this book will probably be long considered a classic of modern American literature.
  
  

• A very disturbing book
  By A31O7B59DW7OHR on 2000-01-22
  Every year the United States spends hundreds of billions of dollars on defense, money that is spent to ensure that books like "Black Hawk Down" never have to be written. This book tells about the Battle of Mogadishu, a battle that degenerated into a fight for survival for a small group of American soldiers sent on a fools errand. All the advantages our military typically enjoys-- overwhelming firepower, technological supremacy, superior training and leadership-- were made moot by thousands of Somalis carrying easily obtained automatic weapons and RPG's.

  The descriptions of the battle are terrifying and almost beyond comprehension. In one scene, an American soldier sees a man shooting a rifle at him through the legs of a woman sitting in front of him. Small children sat on the shooter's back, giving him added protection. At first the Americans only fire at Somalis carrying guns, but as the situation deteriorates and casualties mount, anything that moves is fair game. It is difficult hearing American soldiers admit that they killed women and children, and Bowden does an excellent job showing how, under the circumstances, this was the only "sane" course of action. Surrounded, under constant fire, and faced with an enemy using unarmed civilians as guides, scouts, and shields, the only chance the American soldiers had was to shoot at everyone and everything. Confusion reigned and the most powerful military force in the world was unable to help their comrades in need.

  If I recall correctly 18 U.S. soldiers were killed and 73 wounded. An estimated 500 Somalis were killed and perhaps twice that many wounded. These appalling losses came as the result of an operation that was pointless from the start and poorly thought out and executed. This book shows that, for all our firepower and advanced technology, a small group of irregular fighters can inflict unacceptable casualties on American forces. Automatic rifles are easier to buy than Levis and U.S. soldiers are not immune from bullets. The battle of Mogadishu no doubt affected the decision not to use ground forces in Kosovo, and will probably be a deterrent from using ground forces in the years to come. The question as the 21st century dawns is, can the American public accept casualties in ground combat? Will there be any lessons learned from the terrible fighting in Somalia, and will that lesson be "keep the soldiers out of the firing line"? I hope that the U.S. military learns more from the suffering of the soldiers in "Black Hawk Down" than future despots and warlords looking to skirmish with the U.S. Army.
  
  

• Brief Factual Account of Brief Tragic Mission
  By A2PNTEDGMOLMOY on 2000-07-10
  I enjoyed Black Hawk thoroughly, but the structure of the work interfered with the flow of the action. The author's account captures several minute details that help bring the men and the mission to life (such as the soldiers' memories of donkeys wandering around in the middle of a firefight), and the reader is often swept away by the fury of combat. But the author repeatedly stops his tale to introduce new soldiers who have appeared in the action for the first time. This interrupts the flow of action, and it also makes it difficult to develop an understanding of the overall mission. It's understandable why the author does so -- there are many soldiers to introduce, and no single soldier is in every part of the battle. Rather, the battle in Mogadishu reads like a series of smaller episodes forming the larger whole, rather than a linear progression. It's difficult to keep breaking with your story to provide background, particularly when the event described is so brief -- we're not talking about the Battle of the Bulge, here.

  Still, the book is moving. You can't help read about the selfless acts of heroism by these young, highly trained men and help yourself getting emotionally involved. The author's extensive interviews with the soldiers are a real treat, and there is an interesting twist to them. Most of his interviews were apparently with members of the Rangers, and we learn a great deal about the unit. The author was not able to obtain the same access to the Delta Force members present in the mission, so all we learn about them is what the Rangers saw. It's wonderful to read about the Rangers, one of the tougher units in the military, speaking of the Delta Boys in awe. The elite of the elite get their due in the book, as their acts are described in almost clinical detail. But their lack of a voice in the book gives them an otherworldly air that is actually very appropriate, given their training and purpose.

  All in all, Black Hawk is an excellent "light-weight" history. You will learn little about the overall U.S. presence in Africa, and there are few "big picture" themes to discuss. But that was not the author's intention. Instead, Black Hawk gives a wonderful insight into the men who fight for our country and the real conditions under which they operate, not the sanitized CNN version. You'll plow through it in a couple of days, and it will go on your shelf next to the Grisham and Koontz.
  
  

• Exhausting, informative, thorough, demanding.
  By A2ZR3YTMEEIIZ4 on 2002-03-15
  I read a fair amount of historical non-fiction and was taught throughout high school to think critically when reading. Check sources, check author's tone, point of the writing, points of view being used, context, and so forth. Apparently Mark Bowden, the author, comes from the same school of thought. He writes a thorough and genuine account of a sadly-ignored incident in US history.

  I can recall the newspaper accounts of the time, wondering what we were doing there and why, after taking such incredible beatings, we were leaving. Rather than do the research to find out why, Mr. Bowden has compiled this book, which rightfully deserves its place on any historian's bookshelf.

  Bowden's accounting of the events and context are flawless. His research is uncommonly thorough, and given the opportunity to write the first really comprehensive accounting of the events, he makes the most of it. His attention to detail, his recreation of the timeline, and his notes are worthy of emulation by future students of history.

  All that is nothing without good writing, and Bowden keeps a reader locked into the story. As hard as some of it is to read because of the imagery and concomitant emotional responses, Bowden leads you through the battles at ground level, at eye level from helicopter platforms, at screen level from command centers. At the end of the book one wonders how you survive the reading; how much worse to have been there in it? I was exhausted mentally, and therein lies the demanding aspect of the book.

  So much goes on, so many players become involved, that a cheet sheet and glossary of some terms would've helped immensely. Even a cast of characters would've been of some utility, but eventually, I just bore down and focused. Some questions were answered in the notes, others reveal their answers upon later reflection.

  In all, I daresay adding my review to the nearly 400 others won't make someone any more inclined to buy a 5-star book if they've ignored the other 399 reviewers, but this is my review and I'm sticking to it.
  
  

• a good book, but not the complete story
  By on 1999-12-13
  It was incredible book but Mr. Bowden completely ignored and downplayed the role of the QRF (2-14 Infantry and its attachments.) I realize that Mark was telling the story of the rangers but it seemed like he didn't want to acknowledge the QRF except were he had no choice. readers please keep in mind that the QRF suffered 2 KIA and 28 WIA and yet there was barely a mention of it. consider the consequences had they failed (much more than 18 dead, I assure you) Mark interviewed many, many rangers yet only 4 or 5 of the 300 QRF soldiers involved. Certainly not a "complete" account of the battle. He also could have interviewed some of the Malaysians and Pakastani soldiers, who probably saved ALL our lives with their tanks and APC's Other than my complaining, it was an extremely well detailed book that brought back tons of memories and insights into a bizarre chapter of my life. I just don't understand Mark's ignorance of the QRF. They were the most disciplined and hard-core unit I ever saw, far from the "incompetent, civilian-like schmoes" he described us as!
  
  
• Politically biased report of an important historical event
  By on 2002-01-15
  I bought this book looking forward to learning about the Somalian
  incident and began reading it with great anticipation. I am so
  disappointed in the writer, both his "jump-around" reporting
  and his redundant and poor writing that I could not force myself past
  page 50. By that page he has told the reader no less than four times
  that the dust is ochre colored and the trees in the courtyards are
  small. He has also judged the Somalian adults as being lazy because
  they don't have jobs, this from a reporter whose own account describes
  a country who's infrastructure had been destroyed. Who, exactly was
  looking to hire anyone? He dismisses those who question military
  actions as "liberal do-gooders" and describes the troops as
  men who couldn't even "write a high school report about
  Somalia," an ignorance that is truly frightening and explains why
  this country finds it so easy to "bomb the brown people". At
  one point he states that the more than 100 military personnel involed
  includes only 2 people of color, which he says is revealing, but does
  not explain what it reveals or explain in any way what he meant by the
  statement. I surmise Mr. Bowden (...), and his
  treatment of the event is fragmented and superficial. As a high-school
  report, this book would get high marks for quantity of factual (?)
  information and flunk on writing skill.
  The book angers me because
  I feel duped by all the hype about it.
  
  
  
  
  
• Laying down their lives...
  By A26T16EHVHIJ8O on 2000-09-09
  Black Hawk Down is the most detailed, finely authored account of troops in combat that I have ever read. Author Mark Bowden obviously went to great pains to recreate the events of Oct. 3-4, 1993, when a company-sized unit of mixed Delta Force operators and Airborne Rangers went into the dangerous territory of downtown Mogadishu to extract two lieutenants of the insidious Somalian warlord Aidid.

  The struggles of our troops to battle seemingly the entire city follows. It's an amazing testament to the training, determination and pride of the U.S. armed forces. It's a shame that the U.S. mission to Somalia was not successful, but you can't fault our troops. They carried out their orders with skill and precision. The failure goes to the politicians who failed to recognize and fully analyze the intransigence of a people gripped by anarchy and the anachronistic clan hierarchy of their society.

  The American mission to Somalia occurred shortly after our success in the Gulf War, when America was riding high on its military might and we deemed ourselves the world "police force." While there is little doubt that the United States is the world's only remaining super power, even we must know ahead of time that whenever U.S. troops are called upon to defend democracy, we must be prepared for casualties of war. The grisly footage of Somalian mobs defiling the corpses of U.S. troops haunts me to this day. But I'm sad that we did not attempt to complete the mission in Somalia to honor the sacrifices made by these and the other troops who fought and died there.

  Bowden's account shows both sides of the conflict, but I can't help feeling angry and saddened after reading this book. But I also feel overwhelming pride and respect for the men who fought and died for our country in this conflict.
  
  

• Gritty look at modern warfare
  By A1ZO4NG9OVM7KO on 2000-08-10
  Mark Bowden's "Black Hawk Down" is described as "A story of modern war". It tells us about the Battle of the Black Sea in Somalia on Oct 3-4, 1993. The Somalis refer to it as Ma-alinti Rangers (The Day of the Rangers). All Most Americans remember are the images of dead U.S. soldiers being dragged through the streets by mobs of Somalis. That is an image that stays with most Americans.Mark Bowden describes in incredible detail the operation to capture top players in the Aidid clan, who the UN felt was responsible for much of the turmoil in Mogadishu. Minute by minute narratives take the reader along with the men of Task Force Ranger, Delta Force, and the Night Stalker crews. This book takes any glamour out of war some people may see. While wars are sometimes necessary, they should be a last resort. War is messy and people die grotesque deaths. But when war is necessary it comforting to know there are soldiers ready to go anywhere, anytime into harm's way.This book goes into some of the fingerpointing you'd expect, but Bowden keeps the story on tract. This is a story about the men at ground zero, not what was happening in Washington. He is diligent in covering the Somali point of view even though there have been criticisms to the contrary. There are lessons no doubt, to be learned from America's involvement in post cold war conflicts such as Somalia. Books like "Black Hawk Down" create healthy discussions that may not answer all the questions, but at least ask them. The Battle of the Black Sea was a tactical success but is perceived as a failure. Even though 18 Americans died the mission was a success. Read this book to honor those 18.
  
  
• See The Movie, But Be Sure To Read The Book
  By A3NIQQRS5GMY55 on 2002-01-27
  This is the story of Army Rangers. I went through Ranger Training. It was gruelling and character building. If not for that training, probably NO ONE would have made it that day in Somalia. That's why I have a problem with liberals who kind of pooh-pooh our training, from a distance, naturally. "Why should the USA be involved with anything that would require grunts with that kind of training", they ask? They just don't get it. I don't bother explaining. I just tell them to read the book, "West Point" by Norman Remick to get all the philosophical explanations on why our founding fathers decided America needed schools (thus, the name of the book) to train the military in courage, character, and leadership, the ultimate of which is Ranger School...
  
  
• A harrowing yet compelling book about a battle no one won...
  By A1A87TUBBDPMF0 on 2004-02-22
  On October 3, 1993, less than a year after President Clinton began his first term as President of the United States and almost eight years before Sept. 11, 2001, a small force of U.S. Army Rangers and members of the elite Delta Force were helicoptered into the heart of Mogadishu, Somalia's war-torn capital, in a daring daylight raid to capture two of Somali clan leader Mohamed Farrah Aidid's top lieutenants. The plan was simple -- drop four "chalks" of Rangers to secure a perimeter around the target building (near the Olympic Hotel) while the Delta commandos -- the D-Boys, as the Rangers referred to them -- gathered the prisoners. Then they'd be exfiltrated by a convoy of armed humvees and trucks and whisked back to the U.S. Army base in Mogadishu International Airport.

  But, as General of the Army (and later President) Dwight Eisenhower once said, no military plan ever survives intact once the first shots are fired, so instead of a quick in-and-out raid, the 100 men of Task Force Ranger found themselves in the middle of a hostile and anarchic sector of Mogadishu known as the Bukara Market (and also as "the Black Sea"), engaged in what was, until the recent war in Iraq, the most sustained and deadly firefight in American military annals since Vietnam.

  Mark Bowden, a long-time reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer, chronicles the harrowing "Battle of the Black Sea" in his bestselling book Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War with a fine eye for detail, a crisp and gripping narrative, and without bias toward either the Somalis or the Americans involved in the 18-hour firefight that left 18 American soldiers dead, over 70 wounded, and hundreds of Somali casualties. Despite having had no prior military experience or even any expertise on defense issues, Bowden has written a non-fiction work that joins such works as Cornelius Ryan's A Bridge Too Far and Lt. Gen. Hal Moore's We Were Soldiers Once...and Young as a true classic of military history.
  
  

• A Compelling & Disturbing Read
  By A18AKOX75ZNQ16 on 2001-03-30
  Mark Bowden's tale of the United State's involvement in Somalia, in particular the long firefight in Mogadishu that caused the US so much embarrassment, is a truly gripping account of contemporary warfare. Bowden gets inside the soldiers' heads, explains the mindset of the commanding officers, and shows in excruciating detail just how things fell apart. At times it reads like hilarious black comedy, at other times it is painfully tragic. "Black Hawk Down" demonstrates just how difficult it was for the US military to carry out its ambiguous and ultimately impossible mission.

  My only complaint about the book is that Bowden's technique, giving a minute-by-minute description of the battle, gets a bit overwhelming after a while. You may read a hundred pages in which we follow the actions of a dozen or more different soldiers, and all of an hour has passed in the battle. Many of the individual stories are riveting and kept me turning the pages furiously, but too many were interchangeable and by the time I was two thirds of the way through, I felt as though I'd already read a lot of what was going on.

  Ultimately this is a minor complain, and readers who find too much detail tedious can skim a little and still come away from this book feeling the profound sadness of this colossal military misstep.
  
  

• The best reporting of a military action I've ever enountered
  By APRU373UYVK2Y on 2001-03-05
  This book captures the horror and bravery of combat with a thorougness, and eloquence, that is worthy of the highest praise. I have never been in combat, I've never even been in the military, but after reading "Black Hawk Down" I feel I have gained some small appreciation of the astonishing bravery our troops call upon every day.

  This is not an easy book to read. Almost from the start, the reader encounters American soldiers fighting for their lives in an immensely hostile city. Through a host of first hand accounts and thorough research, Bowden throws the reader into this maelstrom of lead and blood.

  Furthermore, Bowden did not give short shrift to tactics and military reality in the pursuit of personal drama. In a step by step manner he walks the reader through the battle from start to finish. He pays great attention to the tactical decisions, both good and bad, that impacted the battle. At the same time, he considers the strategic environment these decisions were being made in, and evaluates the decision making from President Clinton on down.

  "Black Hawk Down" is a superb tale of courage under fire, but more than that, it is an outstanding tactical history of a military engagement that will undoubtably loom large in any decision to commit US troops to foreign soil in the future. It is a must have for an student of military history and foreign policy.
  
  

• Black Hawk Down worthy of all praise
  By on 2001-09-10
  Mark Bowden delivered an excellent novel destined to be a classic in the non-fiction community. The level of journalism and reasearch involved in writing this book must have been amazing, as was described in the back. Finally, an accurate account on modern war and a look at what a soldier truly is. A person who well trained, is still a human with a past, with a mother, and a life. Bowden shows that the American military in the modern world is capable of winning a battle and losing the war as it did in Vietnam. Bowden also delivers a phenomenal look at what it means to be an elite soldier, and the fear and bravery that flows through the veigns of those called to do America's worst.
  The book is an honest and detailed look at the Battle of the Black Sea, which erupted in Mogadishu, Somalia when the United States sent the elite Army Rangers, and almost mythical Delta Force to begin a campaign of bringing down Somali warlords tearing the fragile African nation apart.
  A must read for anybody who is, was, or plans to be apart of the greatest military in the world.
  
  
• Night Stalkers Don't Quit
  By A2QQJ1W9820UR5 on 2002-06-06
  Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War, by Mark Bowden, is an in-the-streets account of the now infamous seventh mission of Task Force Ranger and Delta Force in Mogadishu, Somalia. Militarily, the mission was a success; politically, it was a disaster.

  Black Hawk Down was recently released as a major motion picture. I haven't (yet) seen the film, but even to those who have I strongly suggest reading this book. In addition to being made as a movie, an even earlier version of this book appeared as a series of articles in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Additionally, there is a "companion documentary" (Somalia: Good Intentions, Deadly Results), a shorter version of which has appeared on CNN. Of course, the most famous media related to this story is the news footage of the dead American soldiers being dragged through the streets by angry mobs; second to that would be the image of Black Hawk pilot Mike Durant's smashed face in the video made of him by his captors. Both of these are around; if you really need a reminder, try Google.

  In the 1990's, the United States found itself in three separate conflicts in (at least partially) Muslim lands. The Gulf War was a conventional military venture, the UN missions in the former Yugoslavia represented a basic-albeit convoluted-peace-keeping venture. The nation-building force in Somalia after the initial famine-busting mission heavily involved special operations. The first sent ripples among the military theorists of nations across the world; the second involved the civilizationally odd American preference to support the Muslim community over that of Orthodox and Western forces; the third was seen as a victory of sorts by Third Worlders and Islamists who drew from it the lesson that America could be shocked into backing out of a conflict. Understanding each of these conflicts-militarily, politically, and culturally-is important to understanding this greater conflict we are now in. Black Hawk Down does much to shed light on the personal and tactical elements in the Somlian campaign's bloodiest battle.

  While Mark Bowden is a journalist and is quite clear about saying he has no background or experience in combat tactics, covert operations, military strategy, etc., this book is very illuminating. Since the book's publication, Bowden has been invited to address the Military Operations Research Society, the U.S. Military Academy (West Point) the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (Ft. Leavenworth), and the Central Intelligence Agency. The book been personally recommended by the U.S. Marine Corps commandant and is part of the mandatory reading curriculum at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.

  So how did this journalist write something that garnered so much respect among military professionals? Quite simply, he tells the soldiers' tales and he tells them straight. The political backdrop, the larger strategic military picture, the command decisions made outside of Mog-these he treats lightly and only as much as needed to provide context for the first-hand accounts of the Americans and Somalis that were actually there. This is a street-level, blow-by-blow narrative of some of the most intense combat American forces have faced since the Vietnam War, and nearly every word of it is drawn either from interviews with combatants, from transcripts of radio traffic, or from video footage shot by U.S. military personnel.

  I read this book over Memorial Day weekend this year. It was extremely appropriate. Overall I really enjoyed this book and feel I've learned quite a bit from the experience. I had already read a shorter account of overlapping events-from the CIA perspective-written by Vernon Loeb for the Washington Post, titled "After Action Report", but this book fills in details that the other perspective lacked. (At the same time, I strongly recommend you read "After Action Report" as well.) I've heard criticisms of the film that said it was often hard to tell one character from another; I could say the same for the book. At the same time, the sense of confusion that sometimes creeps into the narrative is, in fact, a natural consequence of the fact that this is combat, as experienced by modern soldiers. By the time you complete the book, you'll have enough information to get a remarkably complete picture of the "Battle of the Black Sea"; while in the midst of it, though, you may well find yourself flipping back through the book to remind yourself which unit and which part of the city you are currently reading about.

  All in all, this is a book well worth reading, and have added it to my Warblogger's Bookshelf. It is an insight into the terrible human experience of modern warfare, set within a significant series of events whose importance were not fully understood in their own time. If it were fiction, I'd say it was a brilliant, thrilling "page turner"; it, however, is not. It is the story of a handful of American soldiers who really lived and (some of them) died, often in stunningly heroic ways. To understand a part of what emboldened enemies such as Al Qaeda, to learn what modern unconventional combat can be like, to renew your faith in the courage and skill of the folks in America's armed forces, read this book.
  
  

• The Day of The Rangers: An American Defeat
  By on 2000-09-19
  Blackhawk down, is typical of the ethnocentric junk parlayed by authors who pretend to be unbiased historians.

  Flush from a the Gulf War and prodded by the American television media, the pompous and arrogant U.S. military went into Somalia supposedly for "humanitarian" and "nation building" objectives.

  Those objectives quickly disintegrated into the mass killings of Somali nationals by helicopter gunship, soldiers and armored vehicles using high velocity weapons; in the pursuit of Mohammed Farrah Aidid. Our military killed a lot of innocents and we have nothing to be proud about. The American Media hardly reported any of this! It was no surprise, that the whole of Mogadishu, the Somali capital, turned against the US and it's UN allies.

  The Rangers and its Delta force component repeatedly went into Mogadishu hunting for Aidid using helicopters and fast-rappelling techniques. Once great, twice maybe, three and four times, what were they thinking? Do these so called "elite troops" lack the most basic of good military judgment? What happened to speed and surprise? What happened to varying your approach to the enemy! The Rangers had TWO THIRDS of their men wounded in action, many of them seriously.

  They came within hours of being wiped out. They were in fact saved by the courage of Malaysians who using their armored vehicles saved them. The response of American military and political officials was to blame the Malaysians saying they had not been quick enough to respond.

  The American media was quick to show some of the 18 Rangers and Delta Force men, being dragged around and urinated on. They did not show the hundreds possibly thousands of Somalis who died or suffered grievous wounds.

  Somalis refer to this as the day of the Rangers. Like Yorktown and Gettysburg for Americans, they will forever remember in their nation's history, this victory. The Rangers and most Americans too, will remember this unfortunately not for the shame our military inflicted on our nation, but because they left wounded and dead men on the battlefield, something they have vowed they would never do.
  
  

• Brilliant - Sobering - Vivid
  By A27WFYW9ZJ5DN1 on 2000-04-13
  This is simply a brilliant study of the downing of two American Blackhawk Helicopters in Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993 and the fight between the American rescuing forces and the Somalian militia.

  Bowden did a stunning job of gathering personal stories from both sides, rebuilding the fight on a minute by minute basis and writing it with a vividness worthy of a best selling novel. It is a very sobering and very realistic reminder of how dangerous war can be, how easy it is to become overconfident with disastrous results, and how different standards and experiences can be in other countries. Anyone who would like to better understand the modern world and the role of violence in our times would learn by reading this book. Every serious citizen of American survival should read it.
  
  

• A superb true story of courage and heroics
  By A3PZYF1GLPWU7V on 2000-01-23
  Outstanding! I couldnt put it down and have tried to get everyone I know to read it. This is a book about soldiers, ordinary Americans, who to me this country does not give their just due. This book is an intense account of the human struggle against seemingly insurmountable odds. This a book about REAL American heros (instead of the celebrity heroes that are created on TV and the media, ie. who describe Micheal Jordan as a courageous hero because he played a basketball game when he had the flu!)The story of the American soldiers in this book will make you proud to be an American. The US politician actions during this time will make you ashamed to be an American. Pride, anger and maybe even vengeance is what you will feel after reading this book. I only wish it could have ended with the Americans pulling out of Mogadishu and then 48 hours of nonstop B-52 bombing strikes on the entire city. For me, the book shows that this society didnt deserved to be saved.
  
  
• I Could Not Finish This Book Fast Enough!
  By A1FZN3AHV3LIBM on 2001-11-10
  This is a gripping read! Mark Bowden provides us with a detailed account of the 1993 horrific operation in Mogadishu that resulted in American soldiers dead and wounded. Before reading this book, the only memory or information I had about the event were the images of two American soldiers being dragged through the streets by the Somalians -- courtesy of CNN.

  I read this book at the suggestion of my husband -- and only because he kept after me to do so. I am so glad that I did! This is a story about bravery, honor, and camaraderie. All of which are borne out of utter chaos. Everything that can go wrong during this operation does: two Black Hawk helicopters go down, people are dying, soldiers are going in the wrong direction, and supplies are scarce. The information about the Army Rangers and D-Boys is mind boggling. The next time I hear that our "elite forces" will be sent into battle, I will be hard pressed to forget that though highly skilled and trained, they are probably not much older that nineteen, twenty, or twenty one.

  This book made me a nervous wreck while reading it -- you literally feel everyone's panic. I was constantly scrambling to find the diagrams and sort out where the various convoys and soldiers were located. I found I could not read it fast enough and was grateful for the snappy and easy to follow dialogue.

  Well done Mark Bowden!!
  
  

• Truth is more entertaining than fiction
  By AYZMJYCRIZWIO on 2001-12-29
  I read this book after hearing about the upcoming movie. All reviews I've seen have uniformly raved about this review and I will too. The book is a minute by minute account of raid into inner city Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993. Media reports at the time of the events in the book had left me with the impression that this episode was a disgraceful failure, what with American soldiers being dragged dead though the streets. I had at first been uninterested in this topic because of the aura of failure around the Somalia debacle. This book proves that that was not true. The men involved behaved heroically under unbelievably harrowing circumstances. The author highlights dozens of individual acts of heroism that in total make me admire and respect the men that fought and died there that day. The motives of the officers and politicians who ordered the raid at the Mogadishu apartment building are much more suspect. While Bowden's sympathies are completely with the men on the ground, he has at best neutral opinions of their leaders. Bowden even condones the shooting of hostile women and children as necessary and writes his account of these acts in such a way that the reader agrees. I read this book straight through over two days and a sleepless night; it was that good.
  
  
• What reallly happens when implementing high-minded policy
  By A3LHZQMWBJBSLU on 2001-12-31
  Bowden absolutely nails the chaos and fear and confusion of battle. This book is riveting in its detail of the "fog of war". Not a book about foreign policy, but about what the implementation of the policy entails. America is the greatest nation that ever existed, with distinct and huge technological and military advantage; however it is not invincible. What essentially amounted to a well armed gang, was able to penetrate that military might. We grossely underestimated the Somali people's will and capability and it cost lives. In my view the American military was triumphant against incredible odds, but ultimately the political establishment did not have the stomach for any further losses. This certainly was a lesson learned in light of today's environment. We are far more reluctant to commit our troops to battle or peacekeeping, relying instead on indescriminant bombing, and dissident forces to fight the battles (not necessarily a criticism).

  Bowden does not concentrate on the rationale, nor does he pass judgement on its viability, he concentrates on the men who fought that day. This in itself is laudable, since most journalists would have given in to their own personal biases. Though told primarily from an American point of view (as it should be), it was amazing that he was able to get interviews with Somali fighters, and other foreign nationals present at the time. A very horrifying yet refreshing look at the results of what is happening in the world outside of our immediate view. One hundred and fifty soldiers went to war against a city with a population of a million people and the sleeping giant still slept. Until this book was written, this battle was not even a footnote in American history. America is impacting other countries in ways that people had not ever considered. Bowden makes that strikingly clear. What is also becoming clear as time passes, is that skirmishes such as this one impact foreign policy far more than people think.
  
  

• The Greatest War Documentary Published
  By A37HCSGGRH8UO6 on 2003-02-17
  I am fascinated with the events of Black Hawk Down in 1993 and studying them. This book gives all the information needed! At only 14, I am not a huge fan of war novels, but this one is special. Unlike most war novels, which tend to be too "technical", this novel actually lets you feel a sense of compassion for the characters. Other war books commonly can't do that.

  The book, I think, is very interesting. Not only does it give you complete analysis, but I feel like I am a person there, even more so than I did when watching the film. Mark Bowden keeps the premise simple to understand, which makes it easier and more engaging for people to read and follow. The descriptions are insightful and vivid, and the feelings of the characters are comprehensively described in the book. I would recommend this to anyone who has an interest in the Black Hawk Down incident.
  
  

• Book is about Rangers & Delta Forces plight
  By on 1999-12-28
  Contrary to pro - 10th Mountain reviews, I see the book as excellant and factual account of what happened. It is about real american men, who believed in a cause, and fought with courage and fortitude. The book is NOT about the 10th Mountain storming through the city, with a convoy three miles long, saving the Rangers. The roots of the book surrounds a highly trained light infantry unit being ambushed over the course of the night. Kudo's to the 10th, but the real story is what happened to the Rangers & Delta.
  
  

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