Rating: 
Summary: Amazing - BUT NOT ALL TRUE
Review: I bought this book when it first came out, and I loved it. I read "The One That Got Away" by Chris Ryan, who escaped this mission, and then "Storm Command" by Sir Peter de la Billiere, who commanded the UK forces in Desert Storm and who formerly commanded the SAS.
At the time, "Bravo Two Zero" seemed to confirm my view of the SAS as the world's premier elite unit, up there with the US's Delta Force and Israel's Sayeret Matkal. The tale that Andy McNab tells shows how training, guts and determination could overcome botches like being dropped too close to a hive of Iraqi soldiers with faulty intelligence and poor radio gear. The story of how the unit adapted to adversity was inspirational.
There's only one problem. Much of it is not true and I feel kicked in the teeth by the betrayal. Pick up a copy of "The Real Bravo Two Zero" by Michael Asher, published by Cassell & Co, ISBN 0-304-36436-3 in May 2002. The author is a former SAS trooper who has spent many years travelling in Arab lands. He read Bravo Two Zero and The One That Got Away and felt there was something wrong with them, apart from the fact that they flatly contradicted each other in many places. So he went into Iraq with a film crew and did some detective work.
Amazingly he found the original drop zone and all of the other significant sites in the book. He met the Iraqis who were on the other side and finds artifacts of the mission. The Iraqis (who were ordinary farmers and who, as we see, have no reason to lie) confirm the basic details of what the book says, but they (together with Asher's GPS) show up that many of the really heroic parts were exaggerated or plain made up by McNab!
For example, McNab exaggerated the distances they covered (journeys he says were 70km were actually 2km) and made up whole incidents (most of the combat scenes, the brutality of the Iraqis apart from the interrogators). Far from causing hundreds of Iraqi casualties, the whole patrol appear to have caused none. And, most importantly, Asher clears the soldier who McNab and Ryan blame for much of what went wrong.
Ryan's book, Asher concludes, was much more accurate except for three incidents: what Ryan said the wrongly-blamed soldier did; and the two combat incidents he lists. Ryan's story was epic and amazing, and it is a shame he had to make up some parts unnecessarily to make himself seem more glorious and brave than he was. His treatment of the poor soldier seems to be ex post facto justification of Ryan's own failure. McNab's story, too, would have been great if he kept to the real details, but he appears to have embellished it to sell copies of his book, sure in the knowledge that no-one could ever show him up. Well, Asher has.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing story of survival
Review: The first time I heard about this story was from a History Channel special. Needless to say, I was intrigued. A few months later I saw the movie. I didn't want to do myself an injustice and not read the book that the TV special and movie were based upon.Sergeant Andy McNab, was the commander of an 8-man British SAS (Special Air Service) squad charged with doing reconnaissance of a main supply road and to destroy SCUDs deep behind enemy lines in Iraq during the Gulf War. The SAS is one Britain's elite military groups similar to the US Navy SEALs or Army Delta Force. The mission quickly went sour and the entire squad was compromised. This book details the escape and evasion of the 8-man squad (from McNab's point of view, obviously) and the eventual capture of half of the squad. One man managed to trek over 100 miles to the safety of the Syrian border. Three men did not escape with their lives. The four men that were captured were brutally tortured and beaten. It's amazing that these four weren't killed while held captive. At times throughout the book I found myself wincing from the things that were done to McNab (and his squad members) while a prisoner of war (POW). I've never thought that being a POW would ever be a walk in the park, but I was a little shocked and appalled at some of the things that McNab had to endure. I also laughed at some of the things McNab had to say with his cheeky, British humor. Some of the vocabulary and phrases may be a little difficult to decipher, but there's a glossary in the back of the book and a lot of things can be made clear from the context. There isn't a whole lot of action in the traditional sense of military books (shooting and things blowing up everywhere), but this book is definitely not boring. Read this book, if for no other reason than to get a glimpse of how Allied POWs were treated during the Gulf War. This book is the dog's bollocks; I highly recommend it. :)
Rating:
Summary: The real Bravo Two Zero is 'Bravo Two Zero'
Review: Who do you believe? The author who actually was there and experienced all what occured, or a man who knows nothing about it, but got his information second hand? I know who I believe. Do you really think that this mission would go down in 'regimental history' and part of 'SAS legend' if it was all embelished. I think not. Let's not forget that all of McNab's books are screened by the Ministry Of Defence due to the content of his books. Do you think that they would allow him to include information in a true story that was untrue? The book is a gripping and breathtaking 'true' story of super human strength and endurance! Read it! I would also recommend reading Immediate Action for a greater insight into the Author. After doing so you might realise that he doesn't seem like a man who would stretch the truth.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing - BUT NOT ALL TRUE
Review: I bought this book when it first came out, and I loved it. I read "The One That Got Away" by Chris Ryan, who escaped this mission, and then "Storm Command" by Sir Peter de la Billiere, who commanded the UK forces in Desert Storm and who formerly commanded the SAS.
At the time, "Bravo Two Zero" seemed to confirm my view of the SAS as the world's premier elite unit, up there with the US's Delta Force and Israel's Sayeret Matkal. The tale that Andy McNab tells shows how training, guts and determination could overcome botches like being dropped too close to a hive of Iraqi soldiers with faulty intelligence and poor radio gear. The story of how the unit adapted to adversity was inspirational.
There's only one problem. Much of it is not true and I feel kicked in the teeth by the betrayal. Pick up a copy of "The Real Bravo Two Zero" by Michael Asher, published by Cassell & Co, ISBN 0-304-36436-3 in May 2002. The author is a former SAS trooper who has spent many years travelling in Arab lands. He read Bravo Two Zero and The One That Got Away and felt there was something wrong with them, apart from the fact that they flatly contradicted each other in many places. So he went into Iraq with a film crew and did some detective work.
Amazingly he found the original drop zone and all of the other significant sites in the book. He met the Iraqis who were on the other side and finds artifacts of the mission. The Iraqis (who were ordinary farmers and who, as we see, have no reason to lie) confirm the basic details of what the book says, but they (together with Asher's GPS) show up that many of the really heroic parts were exaggerated or plain made up by McNab!
For example, McNab exaggerated the distances they covered (journeys he says were 70km were actually 2km) and made up whole incidents (most of the combat scenes, the brutality of the Iraqis apart from the interrogators). Far from causing hundreds of Iraqi casualties, the whole patrol appear to have caused none. And, most importantly, Asher clears the soldier who McNab and Ryan blame for much of what went wrong.
Ryan's book, Asher concludes, was much more accurate except for three incidents: what Ryan said the wrongly-blamed soldier did; and the two combat incidents he lists. Ryan's story was epic and amazing, and it is a shame he had to make up some parts unnecessarily to make himself seem more glorious and brave than he was. His treatment of the poor soldier seems to be ex post facto justification of Ryan's own failure. McNab's story, too, would have been great if he kept to the real details, but he appears to have embellished it to sell copies of his book, sure in the knowledge that no-one could ever show him up. Well, Asher has.
Rating: 
Summary: fascinating look at how special forces operate under fire
Review: The book centers around Andy McNab and seven other members of the British special forces who were dropped behind enemy lines in Iraq to disrupt land lines and destroy mobile Scud launchers.In fact, Allied forces failed to destroy a single mobile Scud during the War. I was shocked to learn that this mission was doomed to failure from the beginning due to faulty intelligence and telecom. These fellows were dropped in the midst of two armored divisions without air support! The first part of the book gives a gripping account of the group's attempt to fight its way to the Syrian border. It is estimated that these eight men inflicted over 200 Iraqi casualties before they were finally captured. I found the discussion of the equipment they brought into the mission to be fascinating. Apparently each man had about 200 pounds of equipment to carry on his back, most of which was weaponry. The account of McNab's group's survival and torture by the Iraqis was fascinating, but was not something I would have wanted to read about for its own sake. The fact that McNab came out of this emotionally intact ( more or less) is inspiring.I found his attitude toward his captors to be healthy and refreshing. He states at the end of the book if he could he would kill them all today.
Rating:
Summary: Good FICTION !
Review: The book is a great exciting read. In the tradition of Star War's !
Mc Nab certainly has a way of catching the readers attention. I loved the book, there is no doubt it is an exciting book to read. However there can also be no doubt that its not 100% a true story. Certainly the events are based on fact, however the truth has been stretched and embelished to make it far more exciting for the reader. If you are going to read this book you should also read Michael Asher's book. 'The Real Bravo Two Zero' You can make your own mind up on what is the truth and what isnt. However common sense should tell you McNab's version, although exciting to read...is far from the truth.
Rating:
Summary: A Must!
Review: This is very good book and i recommend evreyone to read it!
Rating: 
Summary: absolute nonsense!!
Review: i have never read anything more stupid in my whole life.....i really cannot beleive that in a rational world in which we live there are people whol belive this stroy about eight commandos battling and killing hundreds of soldiers and destroying armoured vehicles with a ration of 1.25 rounds for every hit....the first such rate in the history of human warfare. I wonder why the coalition forces in the last war didn't use 100 of such Rambo's to destroy the iraqi army and take baghdad, why did they rely on heavy aerial bombardment and hundreds of tanks, rockets, artillery, and suffer casualties that so far reached more than 500 killed when they could use McNab?
For better understanding of the real story read THE REAL BRAVO TWO ZERO by Michael Asher. GUESS WHAT? McNab FORGOT to tell the story of the armed confrontation and killings in his debreifing that took place in front of all of his superiours and unit members after he got back home. He ONLY REMEMBERED his extraordianry Rambo-like actions when he started publishing about it. REMARKABLE SELECTIVE LOSS OF MEMORY, dont you think?
Rating:
Summary: A Dramatic story of the modern day SAS
Review: As an American citizen who happens to be a big fan of the British SAS, I generally snatch up and read any SAS book I can get my hands on. I found McNab's book really good. Its full of descriptive realism...of the harsh realities of being a small, direct action squad of SAS troopers operating deep behind Iraqi lines. McNab's descriptions of the harsh weather and terrain make one realize that all the chest thumping in the world means squat when youre doing it for real. McNab's descriptions of how some brave SAS men succumb to hypothermia makes you realize that all the toughness in the world means squat when dealing with extremely harsh weather and terrain. One of the things that particularly interests me is how McNab's SAS team is able to cover huge amounts of terrain, in terrible weather, carrying monstrous loads on their back. This is a physical capability that only the SAS seems to have among the world's SOF units. To me, this ability to operate independently deep behind enemy lines, carrying huge loads on foot is a hallmark of the SAS and is very impressive. McNab is eventually captured by the Iraqis and his description of his capture is harrowing. Another member of his patrol, Jack Ryan, manages to get away and survives a harrowing long march thru the desert, with no food or water to reach Syrian lines. What a classic SAS adventure! General Norman Schwartzkopf, skeptical and suspicious of SOF units during the Gulf war, eventually warms up to the 22nd SAS Regiment and McNab mentions this in the book. I find it interesting that a conventional US Army General who as a general rule despises SOF ends up finding the SAS a first rate unit. The SAS must do something different...they ARE different. Since reading McNab's book, I have since read conflicting stories about whether its totally true. I dont know if these rumors are true or not. Whether McNab stretched the truth in certain areas of the book or not I dont know. But to me, it was interesting, readable and had a very British SAS tone to it. That was enough for me.
Rating:
Summary: Decent
Review: The book is "okay". Many have pointed out some probable embellishments. I will read the "Real Bravo Two Zero" once I can get my hands on it, so I'll save those opionions for then. In any case, the book has its moments. It does a little bit of every thing, unfortunately it doesn't do them well enough to make an impression. The brief fire fights are handled hastily but his captivity is handled very well. I primarily read this book to get a non-American view point as I've read many US war books. So, in that sense, I feel like the author accomplished something. The writing is above average, it's just that the story seemed to lack substance. (I know easy to say, I wasn't there getting shot at and freezing my a$$ off) It's worth a read, but in all honestly "Black Hawk Down" is the way to go if you have to ration your reading time. I don't mean to say that BHD is a better book (It is, in any case) but it is definitely a better story and more importantly the story is captured magnificently by the author. It almost bothers me to have to recommend this book over Bravo Two Zero because for those who have not read BHD, you probably think it's some Hollywood flamed movie. In all honesty, it is one of the best books I've ever read. A second recommendation if you're looking for a "Ranger-ish" special forces type book, "Ghost Soldiers" is a must read. To those who gave Bravo Two Zero 5 stars and raved about the action, I'm just curios to know what you would give BHD? 30 stars???????
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