Level Zero Heroes Review

     If there is one word to be said about Level Zero Heroes, that word would be "raw". This is a riveting account of a MARSOC (United States Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command) team, MSOT 8222, in the northwestern region of Afghanistan. Unlike many books or novels on Operation Enduring Freedom, this one does not take place in the deserts of the Helmand or the mountains of the Kunar province. Located in the Badghis province is a small, almost unknown, valley, Bala Murghab, or as the veterans who fought there affectionately refer to it, BMG. A Taliban safe haven from the fighting in the south and the east. Full of raw emotion and truth, this is a book that I will never forget.
  
  Michael Golembesky, a JTAC (Joint Tactical Air Controller, pretty much the eyes on the ground for aircraft) is embedded in a MARSOC team in preparation for a deployment to Afghanistan. Michael struggles to find a place in MSOT 8222 as it is a tight knit brotherhood, not easily accepting to an outsider. On top of that, Michael Golembesky has the nerve wracking job of safely dropping bombs accurately on targets in the middle of combat. The book accounts through several operations that took place in the Bala Murghab valley, and every engagement is action packed and written in a way that almost makes you hear the snaps of the bullets and the smell of gunpowder. This isn't simple story telling however. Michael Golembesky, or known as Ski, tackles hard to swallow truths and does not shy away from pointing out the mistakes certain officers made on the battlefield. Of course every book about the recent conflict is going to talk about the ROE's(Rules of Engagement), Golembesky talks about it as well, however he puts you, the reader, in his shoes as he makes difficult decisions, and even witnesses the outcome of those who make the wrong choices on the battlefield. It's a nice change instead of reading about someone simply saying how modern warriors struggle with these decisions(not that it's a bad thing) but Golembesky shows you why these rules interfere on the battlefield.

     
    The way the book is written makes for a nice paced read. There aren't parts where you feel bogged down and get bored, nor is there to much action where you don't feel like you have time to think about what has happened. There is a decent pacing of action and dialog. While it is hard for me to find parts that I disliked, there are a few. Honestly my issue, which is something I share with almost any other military book, was following the different characters. The characters are not referred to by their real names (to hide their identity since they are special forces) which actually helps remembering who's who. However, sometimes a character isn't mentioned after a while then suddenly brought up, which might make for confusion with another character. Another issue I had wasn't something I struggled with, but something a regular civilian might. Besides the acronym-soup the military is, there is a lot of grunt jargon in the book readers might not understand. There is a helpful glossary in the back, but that only goes so far. If you don't know what a donkey dick is, you might want to have google on hand while reading. Of course, if you served, this shouldn't be an issue.
 
    Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is not a long read, it will keep you interested until the end and will immerse you in a valley on the other side of the world. If you are looking for a first hand account about the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan, I highly recommend this book.   I really hope I do not look like a Level Zero Heroes fanboy, the topic for my first posts on the blog just timed real well with the reading of this book. My next review will be on the book The Outpost by Jack Tapper, which is a book set in the Nuristan province and follows multiple U.S.Army units that fought there. Until next time.
Overall- 5/5