Reviews

Sea Stories: My Life in Special Operations by William H. McRaven

lwb's review against another edition

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3.0

I found this refreshing in a world soured by Trump and his ilk.

jmmcand's review against another edition

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5.0

Great book from an American hero!

mesprunger's review against another edition

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3.0

I loved parts of this book and some of it was a slog fest! The earlier stories were quite entertaining and held my attention. I noticed that when he started to tell the stories from a command point of view they got a little wordy and harder to keep my attention.

asolo's review against another edition

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adventurous informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.75

haponte's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.5

ssager's review against another edition

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dark informative inspiring reflective

3.0

aleriahawk's review against another edition

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5.0

I really enjoyed his matter-of-fact storytelling.

rmversluis's review against another edition

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4.0

Very impressive book and career and excellent storyteller. It would have been five stars if he had given credit to Obama and deigned to speak his name.

donnelle's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring medium-paced

5.0

papidoc's review against another edition

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5.0

I wasn't sure what to expect from McRaven's Sea Stories, but having heard him speak and read other works by him, I thought it worth the time to check it out. I wasn't disappointed. If you are looking for a serious historical analysis, or an in depth study of special operations, this isn't it. If, however, you are interested in a fireside chat with one of America's pre-eminent special forces operators, this is your book.

Basically, in Sea Stories McRaven reflects and recounts his involvement in various experiences that helped set the course of his life. These range from childhood adventures, through training and injuries, and finally to his oversight of the raid that led to the final fate of Osama bin Laden. I thoroughly enjoyed it, learning more about McRaven the man, and at times feeling like we were sitting side-by-side in a couple of armchairs in front of a fire enjoying a conversation together. That the audiobook was read by the author himself made it even better. Those he is clearly not a professional narrator, he did a fine job and the memories clearly evoked something deeply personal for him. One of my favorites so far this year!