Rating: 
Summary: An incredible Soldier, an incredible man and story...
Review: Ten years ago I first read this book and was literally knocked for a loop. I immediately read Neil Sheehan's A BRIGHT SHINING LIE afterward and felt exhausted. Not because these books were written at a breakneck pace, but that the truth was being spoken to me about one of the most controversial and cathartic pieces of our American 20th Century - and no one in the media or politics seemed to care. Hack's and Sheehan's books were both best-sellers, but has anyone in the media read and understood them? Are we still afraid to hurt the feelings of some of the men whose actions, conceits and flawed thinking resulted in over 58,000 American deaths and several hundreds of thousand of Vietnamese deaths? The truth will set you free....I can only hope that both of these books make it as course material requirements at our nation's military academies and colleges...along with William Corson's BETRAYAL and H.R. McMaster's DERELICTION OF DUTY. My most sincere sympathies go out to the Corson family on Bill's passing....Semper Fidelis sir....
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, enlightening and a good lead to introspection
Review: The best lessons are often passed on through stories. Laying the foundation for your point in a good story provides a solid base for understanding and comprehension. Col. Hackworth has got a whole lot of stories, and no end of lessons. About Face remains entertaining through the colorful recollection of "Hack's" sometimes humorous, sometimes humbling, and often horrorific life. In the midst of these life stories, he takes the time to offer the lesson the he has learned - but only realized and fully understood with the experience of years. The book is full of good analyses of men: good men, what makes them respected, and not-so-good men, and why their faults outweigh their good charateristics. Throughout the book, I found myself comparing my own style and personality to that of these men - and wondering where Col. Hackworth would place his assessment of me, in the midst of the men he's encountered.
Rating:
Summary: One Bad Mother
Review: And a lover of the Army. The combat heroics recounted here, told with a fair amount of modesty, would be rejected by Marvel Comics, because even SGT Rock wasn't this good. (Hack is said to have inspired the COL Kilgore character in "Apocalypse Now.")Lying about his age to join at 15, Hack joined because he loved soldiers and wanted to pick up chicks. Along the way, he learned soldiering from pros like Steve Prezenka, the noncon-turned-officer who showed him how it was done, Old Army style, in a backwater posting on the Yugoslav border. Hack learned well. In Korea, he was battlefield commissioned at age 18, and started collecting the first of his record 123 medals, including 2 DSCs, 8 Silver Stars, and 8 Purple Hearts. More impressive than the mere retelling of battlefield heroics, however, is his commentary on what was going wrong with his Army. Having learned from Old Army noncoms about duty, honor and country, Hack became progressively alienated from Army leadership, which was filled with careerists, who valued their retirements, perks, and future defense contractor contacts more than they did the lives of the grunts who did the fighting and dying. Hack's uncanny ability to sniff out danger and opportunity, which led GEN Abrahms to call him the finest combat officer since Patton, coupled with the mentoring of some of the few real warriors to make rank, like COL Glover Johns and GEN Hank, "THe Gunfighter" Emerson, saved a career that his outspokenness (and GI tastes in entertainment) saved a career that would otherwise have been snuffed out. Hack's call for an Army trained, led, and dedicated to winning, and then only when America needs to fight, is an eloquent perscription for reform in the Armed Forces, and one hell of a good story. -Lloyd A. Conway
Rating:
Summary: About Face/the Odyssey of an American Warrior
Review: Buy it, read it, love it. I've owned this book for many years and still find myself picking it up from time to time and re-reading it. It's just that good!
Rating:
Summary: What Every Leader Ought to Know
Review: As a former infantry soldier, Col. Hackworth is the embodyment of what every grunt leader should aspire to be. From his early days in 1946 to Vietnam, he did what he thought was best for his command. The means may be questionable, but the ends are fully justified.
Rating:
Summary: Read it. Think about it.
Review: If you are in the military, and especially if you are an officer or aspire to be an officer, you should read this book. After all your classes on professional conduct, ethics and philosophy of just war, read it again. Would you do the same things Lt.Col.Hackworth did? After you've been in the service for five years, read it again. Do you still think the same thing? You may not agree with everything he did, but Hackworth's book has all the value of any truthful retelling of the battlefield. What Rommel's Attacks is to military tactics, Hackworth's About Face is to military politics. Read it. Learn from it. Don't make the same mistakes.
Rating:
Summary: The anger of an American Hero
Review: Lt. Colonel David Hackworth has truly EARNED the right to be critical of his government and the American military establishment. He fought in two unpopular foreign wars, won the highest military honors, and became so disillusioned that he became an expatriot for many years. How lucky we are that he is back. This book is part a recounting of his war experiences, and part an indictment of the modern United States military in which careerism and politics have destroyed effective leadership. Were Hackworth not an accomplished product of the system, his critique would not carry nearly as much weight. This is a vital book for both veterans and non-veterans alike and a wake up call for us not to get too complacent with our security.
Rating:
Summary: Attention Military Buffs: Fasten Your Seat Belts!
Review: What words apply here? How about awesome? Fascinating? From his enlistment at the age of fifteen (1946) to his service during the Vietnam war, Hack's gripping account of his personal experiences on and off the battlefield is a geniune page turner. It's also a shocking behind-the-scenes expose of the incompetence of higher command. Out of a possible five stars, I give it a ten! It's that good.
Rating:
Summary: ALL THE WAY!
Review: Having just finished reading ABOUT FACE, I cannot overstate how impressed I am with Col. Hackworth's ability to describe the world of a professional soldier. His detail is at times a little too much (a lot of names,unit numbers,etc.), but his description of life in the ARMY and of his experiences in war are brutally on target. Also, I've found his views on the Vietnam War to be the easiest to understand, and the most accurate from what we now know. His hatred of those who chose "ticket punching" over true leadership, anger me as I write this. I would like to commend Col. Hackworth on a great book, and thank him for his service to America.
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Summary: U.S. Military Reality; it is what is taught and what is not.
Review: Mr. Hackworth, like so many before him, learned and through his book has tried to teach the most valuable lessons a military member can possess; LEADERSHIP and ORGANIZATIONAL REALITY. The Army is like an alcoholic trying to teach his/her child no to drink; all the while holding a beer in his/her hand. Many lessons for life can be found reading this work. The politicians are unfortunately finding their way into every sector of our lives and in Hackworth's account, this unfortunate reality has only resulted in the deaths and ruin of many fine soldiers. I commend both the book and the man; a must read for anyone interested in joining or learning about the military.
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