The Community

299 Days, Book 3

By: Glen Tate

Narrated by: Kevin Pierce

Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's Summary

299 Days: The Community, the third book in the 299 Days series, reunites Grant Matson with his family after his wife, children, and in-laws accept that the only way to survive the Collapse is to flee the comfort of their suburban lives and join him at his isolated cabin in the woods. With riots becoming more violent, power outages more widespread, and the military crumbling, Grant and others throughout Washington State realize they must organize if they want to endure. From the secure confines of the relocated state capitol building, to a rural self-sustaining farm, to the developing community of Pierce Point, The Community explores the mental, emotional, and physical changes everyone must make to adapt to a collapsed society. The years of preparing and training position Grant to lead Pierce Point as he begins to navigate complex interpersonal dynamics and unpredictable situations to help build a new community that can withstand the threats closing in on them. Will people join forces or stand alone? Can communities successfully organize themselves in times of chaos? Will what is left of government help those who cannot help themselves? And if so, at what cost?

©2012 Sellerman and Sweeney, LLC (P)2014 Sellerman and Sweeney, LLC

Better than the second book

I am trying to stay with this series because I really like the concept and I liked the first book. But though it was a vast improvement over the second book in the series, there are some things that he can leave out. Please, PLEASE stop comparing the main character and his "group" to military contractors!! It is beyond annoying. I'm so sick of hearing about how great they look. At least twenty minutes of listening time seem total seem to be devoted to just that!!! And how can he say someone is a hero/gunman because they have been to the range and "are wearing cool gear?" Really?? All the guy has done is just that, drive around escorting people, stand duty, and flash his concealed carry permit like it was a badge and show his weapon! It made me rather embarrassed for both the character and the writer. He could do better- I can tell because of the first book. Also, a Marine SNCO would never leave part of his Marines behind like that- not with the excuse of not knowing where their loyalties lay. He would know. We know our Marines. Especially when you work in that type of special duty environment. There were other mistakes as well but overall the concept is sound though again the politics are so one-sided that it makes you want to throw up a little in your mouth every time he goes on a political rant because I wouldn't trust either party with my trash, much less rebuilding the United States. When the country finally does get to this point, they did it together. But I am sure that the political parties will try to take power in each state and start war on each other if they could.

These books sould have been combined.

Good story, but with the author chopping it in to several small books, I feal ripped off.

3rd book got kind of strange

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Posers would love it; people with low self esteem; wannabee police officers... douchebags in general.

What was most disappointing about Glen Tate’s story?

I really enjoyed the first book even though the writing itself is very amateurish. It was still intriguing and the second book came along and was okay but not nearly as good. Then I started the third book and wow. It hit me that the author WANTS a collapse to happen! Not because he's evil or hates the government. No, he wants a collapse to happen so he can live some childish dream about becoming a post apocalyptic special forces superhero. This hit me after about the fourth time the author talked about how "cool" and "badass" he and his team looked in their "511's" and "romeo boots" and how everyone was so floored about how awesome they looked and yada yada yada. I mean I know the author has said this was a semi-autobiography so after the main character spent an entire chapter or two describing how everyone was in absolute awe who saw him and his 'team' of militarized insurance salesman, store clerks, and lawyers dressed up like 'Military Contractors' (he uses that term no less than 30 times to describe how he looks) I immediately discounted the whole series. I pictured a middle aged white fat man wearing all the clothes his main character sports and with an AR-15 slung around his back and sitting in view of a large mirror all while writing the novel (this would be the author).It was way too transparent and it makes real preppers look like idiots. I quit the series after this book. The author is a poser that has a need to be a hero and thinks the apocalypse will give him license to play special forces soldier which is why his assessment of the 'coming partial collapse', true or not, loses credibility.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narrator added to the dismal writing. He sounds like an 80 year old man trying to use the slang and jargon of a twenty-something. The guy sounds like he should be narrating WW1 documentaries or something.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

The author made everyone who he disagreed with politically into some kind of cartoon character. I'm a libertarian and I have no love of the liberal point of view but the way the author decided to portray the liberals was so child like. It was like taking every cliche of the left and multiplying by ten and making all of them like that. It takes brain power to flesh out realistic antagonistic characters in a novel. All it takes to do what this author did with his antagonists is laziness. The author shows his lack of depth by doing this.

Any additional comments?

The author uses a pseudonym presumably because he works closely with government workers as he states in the intro in book 1 and doesn't want to reveal himself or his opinions to them. There is something about that fact that makes me think he is a coward and seeks to throw a jab at government workers (which he might well be one) through his novel. It just doesn't sit right with me. Man up "Greg".

3rd book, and it doesn't get any better....

I finished book 9 a couple of weeks ago. I've listened to a couple of more books by my favorite author to find a comparison to what I like. This is my complete review of the entire series.

The first book was good, it was about prepping. The detail seemed well thought out and planned. Told a good story and the reader I think was the perfect voice for the main character "Grant Matson".

The book has a very distinct line drawn in the sand between the two political parties. Liberals and Conservatives, and for general purposes that is fine. This is suppose to be about people and the author even says that he wanted to write a book about a true depiction of what a partial collapse would be like. The author did a state that there are more people who tend to just fall in line with what ever is popular in the political sense, but it stops there and puts most people in the dumb and liberal category.

An example of this is gun control. You will always have the hardliners of either side that will probably represent about 20% of the population will be very liberal, and 20% of the population will be very conservative about gun control. Where as 60% of the population will more or less be swayed one way or the other based on their own personal experience with the issue, but are not hard lined based on principles.

The author takes a stance that the majority of the population are under the impression that a gun will just go off by looking at it. Maybe that is the way that it is in the state of Washington, but I've lived in a multitude of states and haven't found that to be the case in the general public.

The first book was good enough that it kept me interested, but that is all it really did. I spend a lot of time traveling across my state and it gives me a lot of time to listen to books. So when I finished the first book it was pretty well written and thought I'll keep listening.

Well, that is about as good as it gets being a prepping book. The story was more about a list of coincidences that really played a bigger roll in his survival more than the prepping he actually did himself, and I found a lot of holes in his prepping. The story was tidy and neat and doesn't represent what a normal person is going to go through in a time of a partial collapse.

The author starts off with a prologue that essentially gives away the whole story, but you don't know that you got the whole basis of the story till you get to the 9th book, and you are left wondering wtf.

The author also starts off saying that a lot of mistakes where made by Grant. Where? I didn't see a single mistake that almost killed him and his family. Like I said this was a neat little tidy story that Grant is given every ounce of possible coincidence to survive that really no one would be that lucky.

Characters like "Special Forces Fred", and terms like the "Rental Team" are names of characters and references of certain industries that really make no sense. No special forces guy that I know would ever want to be called special forces anything. They don't want the recognition like that. Most of them won't even come out and tell that they are special forces, and the people who do know are generally close and would never nick name their friend Special Forces Fred, or Navy Seal Timmy, or Green Beret Scotty, ect. It silly, and so is the name "Rental Team". It is a true reflection of the books 2-9 that show that there is a lack of solid development, and instead I know nothing about this topic and will just throw in a name that sounds cool to me, but really gives the author no credibility on the topic. The term the author should have used was a security team for hire. But the author did use that to describe another group in the book, but why it didn't translate to other parts of the book are beyond me.

The National Guard. The Author really fouled this up. The picture is painted that the National Guard is a bunch of unskilled, pussies that have never seen combat. In truth, most of the wars being fought in the middle east in the last 14 years has been done by...the National Guard. To say that your only good forces are going to come from the real army is yet another indication that the author took no time to really research his idea, and again shows that he wrote his book behind closed doors. This is either because he has no idea how it really works, or because he has some military friends that really don't acknowledged the how big a roll that the National Guard, Army Reserves, and just military reserve forces have played in this war over the last decade and a half. It is baloney.

If you like the word Ah-May-Zing, then you will love this book. The Author must have a very small vocabulary if the only way he can describe something is amazing, or a few "it was perfect" then he had no business writing a book. BUT, he did write a book, and he did a pretty good job in terms or putting a story on paper, but he took no time to find different ways to tell me that it surprised him, it horrified him, it was Ah-May-Zing that the reader didn't throw this job out the window and ask the editor to give him something better to perform.

As the story continued I felt like I was listening to my Grandpa tell me a story. Kind of watered down, not to violent to make me (his child of a grandson) to have nightmares.

This whole series could have been written in about 4 books, that would give each of the following books after the first a lot more substance, and I wouldn't have to waste money, or credits to finish the series.

There was very few life or death conflicts, there was not a lot of drama. There was not a lot of story that played against the prepping that was so heavily centered on the first book. In fact the main character ate a lot, and never really seemed to have gone hungry at any point, and that wasn't because he prepped, it was because the author tied the whole story in a nice little bow that didn't require him to create too much of a complex story.

The series of books gives me the idea that this was one man's fantasy of being the hero in an impending collapse, doesn't give any kind of a guide of how to prep.

If you want to hear a good story, read "The Grey Man" that is a story that is well thought out, well told, and leave you wanting more. It took that author 15 years to write that book, and it shows with how well it written.

This was garbage, written by an amateur...that had me yelling at the book after the 100th time the word "Ah-May-Zing" was used.

If you find this book to be as good as the stars indicate you are as delusional as the guy who wrote it.

Mr. Tate does not disappoint with Book 3

Would you listen to The Community again? Why?

Yes, the story is riveting enough to keep me interested several times through.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Grant Matson, I can relate to this character as someone who was forced to "closet prep" until the family got on board.

Which character – as performed by Kevin Pierce – was your favorite?

Grant Matson, I enjoyed the inner monologue by Mr. Pierce. It really added a great dimension to the story for me.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

While I have been a prepper for some time before these books came out, it did make me think about a lot of aspects of prepping that had not occurred to me, i.e. dealing with the Libs etc.

Any additional comments?

One of the many things I love about this series, Book 3 especially, is how there are so many "stories in the story". A lot to be learned from Mr. Tate, especially for newcomers to prepping. Its almost a blueprint for getting started, from food storage to fitness. The strong sense of community that will be needed in times such as these can not be overstated. Well done, Mr. Tate.

How to be awesome and look cool when times go bad

Wow - does this author even realize what a jerk his protagonist is? If he has a different opinion than you, watch out - he brags about intimidating a guy who simply asks a question, talks about how "cool" he looks i his macho fake army gear, and rants about everything from lesbians to lattes. I listened to the first book, and got some good info along with the creepy gun freak crap, but there is no real useful info here.

Once again Glen Tate does not disappoint!!

If you could sum up The Community in three words, what would they be?

Give Me More!!!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Grant and Lisa- I love the story of the differences and the love they feel coming together, this book really showed how deeply they love each other. And how much Grant is willing to sacrifice to save their family.

Which scene was your favorite?

Grant ripping the door open to Lisa and hugging her tight. Seems like something a real husband would do.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Cry. And laugh. I cried feeling the love Grant feels for his family and the secure feeling that he feels when they all get there, but I get how pissed Grant is at Lisa too, because I can be totally pissed at my husband for something at yet love him just the same.

Any additional comments?

The series really just keeps getting better, it keep me begging for the next book. I had read it first with the Kindle version but upgraded to Whispersync to listen to the books!!! WOW!!! I was blown away!!! The narrator is so real and can really convey the emotion and intensity I hear in my head when I read it. I am so happy I can now listen and work. Glen is a remarkable author, I read a lot and not many authors can make me feel the emotion Glen makes me feel, maybe it's because this series comes so close to home. I fought my husband for a very long time, but I'm so glad that I've jumped on board so we aren't in the position to have my husband waiting on a gravel road for me to finally arrive. Instead this series has given me an even more in depth look at why I need to be ready.

I MISS AMERICA

Nonsense politics

This could have been a decent storyline if it were not for the obvious political nonsense. The blatant white supremacy and overt misogyny made it difficult to get through.

One of the Best

Hands down one of the best series in this genre. Practical, believable, and extremely enjoyable. I’m on my 4th time through this series since it release a few years ago. I’m sure I’ll listen to it again down the road.

Somewhat Dry

This is a great story with complex characters that I would like to have felt more emotion in the reading experience. Still a great read!