American Soldier

By: General Tommy R. Franks, Malcolm McConnell

Narrated by: Eric Conger

Length: 19 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

Few individuals have the chance to contribute so much of themselves to the American story as General Tommy Franks. In American Soldier, he captures it all.

The Commander in Chief of the United States Central Command from July 2000 through July 2003, General Tommy Franks made history leading American and Coalition forces to victory in Afghanistan and Iraq, the decisive battles that launched the war on terrorism.

General Franks retraces his journey from a small-town boyhood through a lifetime of military service, including his heroic tour as an Artillery officer in Vietnam, where he was wounded three times.

Drawing on military records declassified for this book, Franks offers the first true insider's account of the war on terrorism. He puts you in the Operations Center for the launch of Operation Enduring Freedom just weeks after 9/11, capturing its uncertain early days and the historic victory that followed.

When President Bush focused world attention on the threat of Iraq, Franks seized the moment to implement a bold new vision of joint warfare in planning Operation Iraqi Freedom. Rejecting Desert Storm-style massive troop deployment in favor of flexibility and speed, Franks was questioned by the defense establishment, including Secretary of State Colin Powell. Yet his vision was proven on the ground: Within three weeks, Baghdad had fallen.

Franks describes the covert diplomacy that helped secure international cooperation for the war, and speaks frankly of intelligence shortcomings that endangered our troops, and of the credible WMD threats that influenced every planning decision. He offers an unvarnished portrait of the "disruptive and divisive" Washington bureaucracy, and a candid assessment of the war's aftermath. Yet in the end, as American Soldier demonstrates, the battles in Afghanistan and Iraq remain heroic victories, wars of liberation won by troops whose valor was "unequalled by anything in the annals of war".

©2004 Tommy R. Franks (P)2004 HarperCollins Publishers

Well thought out, and well delivered

Brevity and Clarity. Two points that re-appear as themes throughout the Generals book. Given the extremely top secret world of General Franks in the twilight of his career - this book is a wonderful broad brush look at a backwoods boy turned brilliant commander. There is so much that can not be revealed, nor would the general public benefit from the information. General Franks' "boots on the ground" perspective is a welcome view from one of the top military leaders of the past decade.

A true insider's perspective on Iraq

There is certainly a wide range of facts and opinions circulating regarding the USA's current engagement in Iraq. If this is a jugular issue for you this election, you owe it to yourself to listen to this book and get the perspective of someone who was actually there, as well as at the Pentagon, White House, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Pakistan. And the guy worked in the region for years, not just after 9/11. For instance, he was a commander during Desert Storm.

It's also an excellent book on leadership - I think he will be able to make a good living consulting to corporations on subjects such motivating employees to get results.

Excellent! Revealing! A Must Read/Listen!

From the opening paragraphs to the final conclusions "American Soldier" presents an enlightening expose into the life of General Thomas R. Franks, and into the US Army mentality of the last third of the 20th century. As a former soldier and a Vietnam Era Veteran I found his characterizations completely honest and authentic. There was never a dull moment from his innner most thoughts dealing with his personal life to the command decisions that led the United States into a very controversial war (Iraq). His experiences in one controverial war (Vietnam) set the foundations for his leadership in Iraq even though the two wars were as different as day and night. Regardless of one's political persuasions General Franks communicates his feelings beliefs, ideals, in a way that is neither offensive to the liberal anti-opposition, nor in a manner designed to be used as a club by the pro-war conservative elite. This book is not only great as a biography, it excellent for a historical perception on the Iraq War.

Gen. Franks is an officer and a gentleman

Any additional comments?

I'm a 62 yr old former Infantry captain who served between Vietnam and Desert Storm. I am a liberal democrat who was very opposed to the war in Iraq, although I thought Afghanistan was necessary. I read everything I can about those wars and the lead up to them. So, I suppose that I should not like Gen. Franks. But if there is any military or political person involved in those years that I would like to sit down with and eat some barbeque and drink a beer, it is "Tommy." He has been criticized in other books by journalists. But to listen to his take on the events of 2001-2003 is an enjoyable eye opener. He's honest about his upbringing, flunking out of college and coming into manhood in the Army. He admits that mistakes were made leading up to the wars, but has no apologies for the patriotism that drove him and others. He is honest about those that he could work closely with and about those he found to be sometimes difficult. But he is gracious to all. Having lived in Texas for 20 years I can attest that he represents a true flavor of the best of Texas. So, listen with an open mind. General Franks is an officer and a gentleman.

A new twist on military novels

For the first 30 minutes, I wondered where this was going. After that, a real story began to develop and I learned things about the war on terror and Iraq that I simply never knew. Franks reveals himself as a human being who was pushed by the events of 9/11 to defend our country in the only way he knew how. It makes no difference if you supprt or object to the war one terror, this book will make you think again.

A great hero and American

I knew of Tommy Franks a General responsible for the quick removal of the Taliban in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein in Irak, but had no idea the outstanding leader he is. The book was an eye opener regarding the strategy and cleverness of his team and even Donald Rumsfeld during the beginning of the Irak war. General Franks does a great account of the events that led to the invasion and defeat of Saddam’s forces.

Outstanding story of an outstanding man!

I absolutely loved listening to the story of Gen. Franks. What a great American. Narration was extremely well done and story wrote very well. I highly recommend this book!

Honest and forthcoming

This book gave one of the most forthright accountings of the events after 9/11 and leading up to and through Phase IV operations in Iraq.
While I could see the military acronyms being a distraction to some not familiar with the military in any capacity, I found the account to be refreshing and honest...and another nail in the coffin of our so-called "unbiased" press corps with all of their media parlor tricks to gain readership and support of their viewpoints.

No for women...

Provide some old information and background about the war. Vietnam stories are very interesting and also his love for his wife that survive over the years and the distance. Overrall is good.

review

I am very surprised to read some of the reviews given my impression from the book. Clearly the general went into great detail on a number of different facets affecting the campaigns, but he also avoided a number of salient points that occurred during the Afghanistan and Iraq campaigns that he oversaw. For example, while I learned much about his meetings with the various leaders in the region, I learned nothing of Toro Bora, a critical facet of the Afghanistan campaign. This omission is not the only one of that indicates great selectivity, and as time would point out many of the facets left out would prove to have serious repercussions in the next few years. Regardless of one’s view of the Iraq war, the omissions and views of such individuals as Secretary Rumsfeld look oddly out of place given our experiences that grew out of this campaign.