Where Men Win Glory

The Odyssey of Pat Tillman

By: Jon Krakauer

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 13 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

The bestselling author of Into the Wild, Into Thin Air, and Under the Banner of Heaven delivers a stunning, eloquent account of a remarkable young man’s haunting journey.

Like the men whose epic stories Jon Krakauer has told in his previous bestsellers, Pat Tillman was an irrepressible individualist and iconoclast. In May 2002, Tillman walked away from his $3.6 million NFL contract to enlist in the United States Army. He was deeply troubled by 9/11, and he felt a strong moral obligation to join the fight against al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Two years later, he died on a desolate hillside in southeastern Afghanistan.

Though obvious to most of the two dozen soldiers on the scene that a ranger in Tillman’s own platoon had fired the fatal shots, the Army aggressively maneuvered to keep this information from Tillman’s wife, other family members, and the American public for five weeks following his death. During this time, President Bush repeatedly invoked Tillman’s name to promote his administration’ s foreign policy. Long after Tillman’s nationally televised memorial service, the Army grudgingly notified his closest relatives that he had “probably” been killed by friendly fire while it continued to dissemble about the details of his death and who was responsible.

In Where Men Win Glory, Jon Krakauer draws on Tillman’s journals and letters, interviews with his wife and friends, conversations with the soldiers who served alongside him, and extensive research on the ground in Afghanistan to render an intricate mosaic of this driven, complex, and uncommonly compelling figure as well as the definitive account of the events and actions that led to his death. Before he enlisted in the army, Tillman was familiar to sports aficionados as an undersized, overachieving Arizona Cardinals safety whose virtuosity in the defensive backfield was spellbinding. With his shoulder-length hair, outspoken views, and boundless intellectual curiosity, Tillman was considered a maverick. America was fascinated when he traded the bright lights and riches of the NFL for boot camp and a buzz cut. Sent first to Iraq—a war he would openly declare was “illegal as hell” —and eventually to Afghanistan, Tillman was driven by complicated, emotionally charged, sometimes contradictory notions of duty, honor, justice, patriotism, and masculine pride, and he was determined to serve his entire three-year commitment. But on April 22, 2004, his life would end in a barrage of bullets fired by his fellow soldiers.

Krakauer chronicles Tillman’s riveting, tragic odyssey in engrossing detail highlighting his remarkable character and personality while closely examining the murky, heartbreaking circumstances of his death. Infused with the power and authenticity readers have come to expect from Krakauer’s storytelling, Where Men Win Glory exposes shattering truths about men and war.

©2009 Jon Krakauer (P)2009 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Jon Krakauer has done his job well; Where Men Win Glory is a tough read...[He] has tackled a task that required the distillation and organization of volumes of disparate information. That he has fielded a coherent narrative is a victory. that he has made it compelling and passionate is a difficult blessing...In mining Tillman's life and death, Krakauer uncovers a story much more compelling than anything that could be spun." - The Denver Post

"Krakauer -- whose forenseic studies of the Emrsonian Man in books such as Into Thin Air and Into the Wild yield so much insight -- has turned in a beautiful bit of reporting, documenting Tillman's life with journals and interviews with those close to him...Must be counted as the definitive version of events surrounding Tillman's death." --The Los Angeles Times

"In this wrenching account of the life and eath of NFL star Pat Tillman, killed in friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004, Krakauer brilliants turns investigative reporter...Krakauer will break your heart recounting how the military lied about Pat's death to his parents and fellow soldier Kevin." -- People

My favourite audiobook to date!

This is a fantastic book. Krakauer never disappoints, and Tillman's story is fascinating. The story is tight and crisp, and it feels almost like you're right there, watching the action unfold. I highly recommend this book to anyone that has an interest in war, football, athletics, politics and/or action stories.

Another Fantastic Krakauer Book

This one quite simply rocks. I learned about Afghanistan, Pat Tilman, and Character-both outstanding and deplorable.

The story is framed by facts and confirms Krakauer's committment to present the real story! Well done. I never expected to enjoy this as much as I did.

Great story!

Any American would undoubtedly be touched by this story. It tells the story of a young man who willingly gave up so much to fight for his country. The narrator's voice was pleasant to listen to and appropriate for the story.

Powerful and uncomfortable

I’m seeing a lot of negative reviews for the political narrative of the book, and I completely disagree with them.

I don’t think this book is for you if you are very pro-war or pro- War on Terror; if you’re very conservative and don’t think the government would at bare minimum take advantages of narratives to suit their needs; or blindly nationalist American.

I thought the author did a great job in the structure of the story - briefly introducing Tillman’s death, covering the before/during/after-math, and then providing evidence to back up that regardless of who is at fault there are clear missteps and purposeful intent to ignore protocol. The story is tragic and very eye-opening to how the legend of Tillman and the man he actually is stands at the mercy of whoever had hold of his story. Great work.

a veterans point of view....

I was in Iraq in 2003 and 2004 as a Military Police Commander and this book was actually the first book that I have read or listened to regarding the war since my return. This is because of the fact that because of my PTSD in relation to all that I saw and the loss of soldiers that I worked with, I could not read or even think about the events of the war. I was simply not ready to go back in time...but with some help from other soldiers that were there...I have begun the trek to try to heal my wounds by reading and listening to other stories and sharing my own. I came across this title, not because I was looking for an Iraq war novel, but because of my love of the narrator, Scott Brick. This narrator has got me through some hard times through clearing my mind of the past by listening to the books he has narratorated for Robert DeMille and other authors and I have downloaded at least 15 books just because of him so far. It was fitting that he would read this one...which reduced me to tears...and not just because of the story itself, which is heartwrenching, but because of the way he delivers it. I read once..."your time to kill has passed, your time to heal has come" and this book is helping me with that healing...this may be a garbled review, its my first...but i'm saying how i feel....and whats important, is that i am beginning to finally feel again....ashleigh

Excellent book!

it was a great book. Krakauer is a great writer and really knows how to put a story together. He provides details you don't know you need until later in the book. I like his style.

Inspiring and Tragic story

I really enjoyed this book. I'm an avid football fan and I thought I was well aware of Pat Tillman and his story but this book shed a lot of light on things I didn't know. It also sparked my interest into learning more about our history and connection with the middle east. I'm writing this review just days after the mass shooting in Las Vegas. My heart goes out to the families that were impacted and to us as an American people but at the same time aside from my lip service Pat Tillman's actions make me question "What am I really doing to make a difference?".

I thought the author did a great job of telling his story and letting the reader get to know him Pat Tillman's character. I also really enjoyed the history behind what brought about the Iraq War and also figures like Bin Ladin. I'm going to read The Seven Pillars of Wisdom now because of the interest the author sparked.

There is a definite agenda in the writing against the Bush Administration. It is infuriating the circumstances around Pat Tillman's death and the controversy around it. It's tragic but I felt there were also a lot of statements made as fact that weren't actually proven.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed the read and will recommend this book to anyone.

solid summary ...a hero of conviction

pat was a complex man, and krakauer captured his complexity well. strongly recommended. scott brick as usual is the best.

Great book

Tragic and deep. The post script was beyond phenomenal.

Really makes you think what your virtues are

I listened to it three times

I love this book. I have listened to it three times. each time I learn something new about history all the while being fascinated by a remarkable young man's life. this character is flawless and though he died a young man others will strive to be like him for centuries to come. a true role model.