Warrior: An Autobiography

Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary - Must read !
Review: This aurobiography is the best I have ever read.
I simply have no words to say than 'Thank God he is Israel's
Prime Minister'.
(I just hope his old age won't affect his strategic thoughts and his creative mind regarding Israel's security and economic problems)

Rating:
Summary: A true warrior
Review: This book tells the story of a true Israeli hero. You will read about his life, his love and his battles...Where would Israel be today without Ariel Sharon...Although out of print, I managed to find a copy and I am happy I did!

Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE GREATEST LEAEDERS OF OUR TIME
Review: This great soldier/leader outlines his fascinating life and his struggle for all that is good He starts with his childhood on a pioneer Moshav farm and explains how when ever he got tired his father would remind him 'Look how far we've come'and that would encourage him to go on This wisdom has guided him through his life and ensured that he has always triumphed over those mean spirits that have and (continue) to malign him

Rating:
Summary: Autobiography of a leader
Review: This is a fascinating book.

Ariel Sharon, the Prime Minister of Israel, traces his steps from his childhood through the Israeli War of Independence and all of Israel's later wars. Through the development of the country, and all the politics. It's wild.

At the age of 16, Sharon enrolled in a special course to train squad leaders for the Haganah. He did not do very well in it, and became only a "probationary corporal." Still, he did a superb job in the 1948 War of Independence and in 1953, he gained fame as the leader of a commando unit. He explains how he trained the soldiers physically and made them learn the terrain extremely well.

One thing that made a big impression on me was his discussion of a big mistake. In 1973, he was ordered to attack a strong Egyptian position. The order turned out to be an error, based on a misreading of a battle map. But Sharon was not able to get the order rescinded, so he obeyed it. Plenty of people died needlessly as a result. It was a very serious error. As we readers can see, Sharon ought to have asked Moshe Dayan to get the order rescinded, but didn't do that until he was ordered to repeat the attack later.

As Sharon explains, warfare commanders need to be on the battlefield to see what is happening. He saw "a company of tanks disappear in a minute," and "an entire battalion was engulfed and destroyed before they had time to report that they were being hit." I realized upon reading all this how tough it is to keep track of what is happening during a battle.

Of course, there are daring and brilliant actions in the book, not just mistakes, such as the crossing of the Suez Canal in the 1973 war. And it was a brilliant political decision not to allow a multinational force to step between Arafat's thugs and Israeli forces in Lebanon. Such a force would probably have allowed Arafat to stay in Lebanon and use it as a terrorist base. But when Israel turned down this idea, Arafat was forced to leave Lebanon or die. He chose to leave.

There is some discussion of the development of towns in the disputed West Bank. It shows a practical attitude towards them. Still, I couldn't help but notice that allowing both Arabs and Jews to live on this disputed land is highly moral. It is not unusual for the moral choice to be a good tactical and strategic choice as well. A further example is given by Israel's plans to invade Lebanon in the first place. That invasion accomplished plenty, but not nearly as much as it would have had Gemayel not been assassinated. When Israel was contemplating the invasion in response to attacks from there, US Secretary of State sent Prime Minister Begin a letter "urging Israel to exercise 'complete restraint.'" Sharon reports Begin's answer: "Mr. Secretary, the man has not been born who will ever obtain from me consent to let Jews be killed by a bloodthirsty enemy."

There is a discussion of the massacres at Sabra and Shatilla, and the Kahan commission, which found that while Sharon was not complicit, he bore "indirect responsibility" for what had happened. Sharon feels that this ruling was absurd and harmful. I'm not so sure it was absurd (although probably incorrect). But it certainly was harmful. It is proper to hold armies to high standards, but catastrophic to try to go beyond that. Armies that are not allowed to do their job of defending people and property will soon be replaced by military forces that at least try to do that job.

I can see many aspects of the damage. The Israeli army was left without a lesson, having quite properly done its best to stay out of an area just to avoid getting in trouble. Even today, many opponents of human rights point proudly to the Kahan commission to pretend that the Israeli Prime Minister is a war criminal (after all, it did say something about Sharon being responsible)! Time Magazine became emboldened into printing a silly libel about Sharon having planned the slaughter with the Lebanese (Sharon sued Time and won).

When Sharon ran for Prime Minister, I was one of many people who thought he might fare poorly in a primary election. I had a hunch that accusations of war crimes, although bogus and foreign, would be a bad thing to have on one's resume, even if one were a politician. My hunch was wrong, and I now realize that the Israeli electorate showed what it thought of these accusations.

I recommend this captivating book.

Rating:
Summary: What a remarkable man
Review: This is an interesting book about a man who has led a truly varied and remarkable life. I am impressed with his memory for detail and his ability to explain events in his life with a sense of humor and with the maturity and professionalism most autobiographies lack. For a man so vilified in the press, he is remarkably human and sweet. If only all political autobiographies were this entertaining and detailed.

Rating:
Summary: A great read for a great man
Review: This was a marvoulous book. Sharon details his long career in and out of Isreali politics. He is straighforward about many of the controversial issues sourounding himself and Isreal today. Although vilified by the arab press for his role in the massacres in Lebanon Sharon's autobiography defelects much of the criticism that has been leveled at this amazing leader. For anyone interested in the enigmatic leader of Isreal in 21st century this is a worthwhile read, you will not be disappointed for it is full of colorful events and does not bore.

Rating:
Summary: A great read for a great man
Review: This was a marvoulous book. Sharon details his long career in and out of Isreali politics. He is straighforward about many of the controversial issues sourounding himself and Isreal today. Although vilified by the arab press for his role in the massacres in Lebanon Sharon's autobiography defelects much of the criticism that has been leveled at this amazing leader. For anyone interested in the enigmatic leader of Isreal in 21st century this is a worthwhile read, you will not be disappointed for it is full of colorful events and does not bore.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book!
Review: This was an amazing book....for anyone that would like to learn more about Ariel Sharon and the history of Israel!! Excellent details on the wars he fought and the Politics in Israel! What a truly amazing man!!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book!
Review: This was an amazing book....for anyone that would like to learn more about Ariel Sharon and the history of Israel!! Excellent details on the wars he fought and the Politics in Israel! What a truly amazing man!!

Rating:
Summary: A True Warrior and A Great Biography
Review: Warrior is one of the best biographies I ever read. Often, biographies bore me. Not Warrior. It is an incredible story of most certainly the most experienced terrorist fighter alive.

Sharon had a major role in all of Israel's wars and his insight is fascinating. His attention to detail is eerie, and this attention is what makes the book such a great read. Buy it, read it, and treasure it. I am.