Where Men Win Glory

I have a friend that went to the Sundance Film Festival this past week and while she was there she made a facebook update about seeing a movie on Pat Tillman. For those that don't know, Pat Tillman was a Pro Football player, who after Sept. 11th, decided to join the Army. Her comments about the movie have prompted me to review the book about Pat Tillman. "Where Men Win Glory" "The Odyssey of Pat Tillman" by Jon Krakauer.

The book is basically a biography of Tillman's life. It is well written and so thoroughly researched that Krakauer even went to Afghanistan. He obviously conducted extensive interviews with Tillman's friends, family, and brothers in arms. Krakauers writing exposed Pat Tillman's true patriotism, and passion to do what he thought was right. Pat had an unfaltering drive to be the best at every thing that he did. He also had such a tight bond with his brother, that they joined the Army together and both became Rangers. They were later assigned to the same unit and were both involved in the firefight that resulted in Pat Tillman's death via friendly fire. Krakauer details the events as they occur with the best possible detail. This was surely difficult due to the Army's attempts to keep the information from the public eye. Krakauer goes on to discuss the difficulties that Tillman's family has faced trying to get solid answers out of the various government entities involved. Krakauer also discusses the challenges that Tillman faced, by being a Pro Football player in the Army, from constantly having to prove himself to other soldiers to the Bush administration using him as sort of a poster boy to help improve the "look" of the war. All in all, this is a fantastic read, well written in Krakauer's usual style with highly detailed and thorough research. It truly shows the kind of person Pat Tillman was. I highly recommend this book as well as Krakauer's other books that I have read. "Into Thin Air" and "Into the Wild" are both great reads.