I Am A SEAL Team Six Warrior: Memoirs of an American Soldier

I have been fortunate to have read a reviewed numerous books about SEAL Training, as well as some fantastic memoirs of SEAL warriors who related their incredible experiences so that we may all learn some valuable life lessons from them. I was in the U.S. Navy (1959-1963) but did not have an opportunity to attend BUD/S because of my medical problems at that time. However, I have always had enormous respect and admiration for the UDT/SEALS and other Special Ops units in the Navy, Army, Marines and Air force. This excellent book relates the experiences of Howard E. Wasdin, a former U.S. Navy SEAL Sniper. The text is organized into two parts. Part one he relates his sad home and family challenges, but the interesting part is that he puts a positive spin on his bad home life. He was able to endure the hard and brutal SEAL training because of his tragic home life at the time. He is not bitter but actually shows enormous humanity in his story. The first part also covers his joining the Navy and of course, the difficult SEAL training program, as well as his entry into SEAL Team Two, where he served in Desert Storm. The second part explains his slection into the legendary SEAL Team Six and his Sniper school training. This section also has the most tense and exciting story of the Battle of Mogadishu. If you saw the movie Black Hawk Down, the author was there when the fighting was most intense. He was wounded seriously in the leg in that battle. He has some harsh, but true criticism for the political decisions made which he blames for so many Americans who died during that engagement. He does not hold anything back in his evaluation of the Mogadishu battle and the mistakes that were made at that time. In conclusion, this is a book that should be read by all Americans in order to understand what these American heros endured fighting for this country. There are also many photographs in the middle of the book showing SEAL training exercises as well as photos of the author. A must read book. Rating: 5 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Predator Hunter: A warrior's memoir)

Thank you Dr. Wasdin, for writing such an important autobiography. After all, there are only a few hundred people who hold positions as this country's best special operations soldiers, for whom their military can always count on for brave, impossible assignments. Special Operations soldiers are rarely seen and until recent years, rarely heard of. You wrote one of the best described books on how it is to make it...as a Special Op's. warrior... by living it. I am very proud, and feel safer to be on American soil after reading all that you and your brothers are willing to strive for, in the name of our county. So am I grateful for your opening up as candidly as you could, with your life in this genre. I agree too, that the way you were raised, physiologically enhanced your character when you needed to strive most--in SEAL training, in the Special Forces, and in your life once leaving the field. It was interesting to find that your team works with other USA Special Ops., like Delta Force, Rangers and especially those greatly over looked, yet much needed 'pilots' in the skies! They showed themselves as heroic by working as flying, moving, living targets in the course to free our guys on the ground from a locked-in situation during one of your missions. Those pilots were incredible! I have seen BUDS on the Military Channel, and recognized different faces of fear, exhaustion and failure. I wish I had seen yours along with the few making it to the end with you graduating--only to train for the rest of your careers and specialize in a particular field as a Special Forces soldier of which ever division. I conclude that your mission in Mogadishu was compromised by communications delay in it's timing, as it was passed on seconds too late from each operator being told what to do and pass on. And unfortunately no one knew of this soon enough. (Those interested in Mogadishu will find it interesting in the role that the U.N. took being there too.) Then due to the unexpected, drugged-up Somali non-military groups with weapons, yes, those 'extra' bad guys, were not what you were there for in your mission. If they had been your mission, your special military equipment and weapons would have been fully enhanced and available to you in fighting urban warfare. Their violent response to your entrance is also a true-to-form testament reveling that your mission was not to fight them. Your original mission was planned to take less than an hour when devised, thus making this hostile environment of humans on drugs while carrying lethal weapons, an impossible task for your mix of guys as you were all taken by surprise. I know that your future book readers will gasp when they read your personal turning point as you exit the area, as well as Somalia, as that situation became it's own story changer for you. I recommend this book to everyone due to the subject matter, while discovering more about the person whom you can become...a self-assured person once you find your drive and apply it to your own interest(s). Besides this memoir, that is also what I got from this book. And I'm thankful Dr. Wasdin told his story in the way that he did...executed brilliantly!

This was a really good book and Howard is a hero in my eyes. Thanks for sharing your true story with me and all of your readers. I honestly do not know how you were able to with stand your step Dad beating you without you killing him. He made you as tough as you are and definitely made you qualified to endure all of your training to become a Navy Seal and then on to Seal Team Six. What an unbelievable accomplishment. Glad to see you are happy with your new career as a Chiropractor. Good luck.

Great book, loved it for my school book report. It is very exiting and interesting. The book can really tell you how a Navy SEAN'S life really is.

I found this autobiography very interesting and informative. The determination of Wasdin to become a seal is determination I wish all Americans had in each of their endeavors. Becoming a SEAL is EXTREMELY difficult and this young man was one of the few who made it. After I read this book I decided that it should be in the libraries of both junior and senior high schools as there are many young men who look at professional sports or the Olympics as a way to their athleticism goals.. However, when young men strive to become SEALS and reach their goals, they are the real "supermen" of our times; athleticism and endurance beyond the normal imagination. Unlike professional athletes and Olympians, the SEALS never ask for public recognition. They do their job for the love of nation and for the dedication to democracy----putting their lives at risk with each mission. I really appreciated this story and the young man about whom it is written. God bless the SEALS!!

this is the real world account of a true Navy Seal , its how things are done in the real world . I can vouch for this as i served with the author .You wont be able to put it down

Chock full of reports that make one feel they are going through the experiences. Written in a calm style that nevertheless makes the reader feel the enormous effort required for the training and the horrors of the battle experiences. It was astonishing to realize that despite amazing technologies available now a rescue vehicle can make a wrong turn or get lost on the way. / I loved this book. Thanks so much to Howard for his service, and for sharing these stories. r of the

My students don't always speak in a correct manner (I'm working on that in the classroom) but they are brutally honest with me. A few weeks ago, I came across this book while looking for something that would appeal to male students (all former dropouts) in an alternative school setting. The book has not only grabbed and held the attention of these students but many more are asking for a copy to read. One student told me he hasn't read or touched a book in 4 years but enjoyed reading about Howard's life. Many have expressed how they could relate to his earlier experiences while growing up which makes it extra special to them. In addition, I located a study guide that goes with this book that enhances the learning for these young men. Though I haven't haven't read this book from cover to cover (I'm writing my own book) the students told me to give it 5 stars!

I read the news about this when it happened. The perspective this memoir presented, enabled me to begin to comprehend the emotions of those on the ground that day.

This book is not all gun-ho it tells the story from the view of one man, from his early years, through his teens up to when he joined the navy etc etc, i rate this book, its a good read

Excellent book, read it within a few days. Would highly recommend. I have read quite a few books regarding navy seals and this one is near the top.

Stories told by a former Navy Seal, Team Guy, this item contains some of the background stories I needed in my research.

Really good read