Level Zero Heroes
The Story of U.S. Marine Special Operations in Bala Murghab, Afghanistan
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4.6 • 414 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
An elite Marine special operations team, a battle to save downed soldiers in Afghanistan, a fight for survival—an incredible true story of war that became a New York Times bestseller.
In Level Zero Heroes, Michael Golembesky follows the members of U.S. Marine Special Operations Team 8222 on their assignment to the remote and isolated Taliban stronghold known as Bala Murghab as they conduct special operations in an effort to break the Taliban's grip on the Valley. What started out as a routine mission changed when two 82nd Airborne Paratroopers tragically drowned in the Bala Murghab River while trying to retrieve vital supplies from an air drop that had gone terribly wrong. In this one moment, the focus and purpose of the friendly forces at Forward Operating Base Todd, where Team 8222 was assigned, was forever altered as a massive clearing operation was initiated to break the Taliban's stranglehold on the valley and recover the bodies.
From close-quarters firefights in Afghan villages to capturing key-terrain from the Taliban in the unforgiving Afghan winter, this intense and personal story depicts the brave actions and sacrifices of MSOT 8222. Readers will understand the hopelessness of being pinned down under a hail of enemy gunfire and the quake of the earth as a 2000 lb. guided bomb levels a fortified Taliban fighting position.
A powerful and moving story of Marine Operators doing what they do best, Level Zero Heroes brings to life the mission of these selected few that fought side-by-side in Afghanistan, in a narrative as action-packed and emotional as anything to emerge from the Special Operations community contribution to the Afghan War.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Former U.S. Marine Michael "Ski" Golembesky tells the engaging story of his unit, Special Operations Team 8222, in action on the ground in Afghanistan from October to December of 2009 and while it's not quite military propaganda, it certainly paints an overwhelmingly positive portrait of the U.S. Marines. Golembesky kept a journal in Afghanistan and he wrote this book "as a sort of catharsis." But his project soon evolved into a mission to showcase the wartime service of his fellow Marines in Afghanistan. To do so, he focuses on a mission in which his 23-member special-ops team (call sign Dagger 22), operating out of Forward Operating Base Todd in the mountainous Bala Murghab River Valley in northwest Afghanistan, went after an entrenched Taliban stronghold. Golembesky vividly depicts the engagement, which became known as Operation Hero Recovery and involved vicious ground combat. There are military acronyms galore and plenty of reconstructed dialogue in this paean to the Marines on the ground doing the grunt work in America's longest armed conflict. But Golembesky's condemnation of the "rules with which our nation's leaders have decided to fight the war in Afghanistan" will prove controversial.
Customer Reviews
Awesome!
Awesome, makes vets feel like their back in the field.
Level Zero Heroes
This is an excellent book that brings the reader right into the presence of our Marine special operators, as they put themselves in harms way against veteran Taliban fighters. It just reinforces the fact that America has the finest ,and most ethical fighting forces the world has ever known.
Book
Absolutely fantastic