The author wrote this book to give us "some sort of an insight into the mindset that war tends to put you into. It's an interesting place, and I really wanted y'all to get an understanding, or at least familiarization with it..." He succeeds admirably! All the footage we've seen, the movies, the shows, none of them prepare us for the reality of day-to-day life of an infantryman fighting for us in Afghanistan. He went as an idealist, fighting for his country and his dream of freedom. He begged to stay at the end of his deployment. And though he came home with no physical scars, he is forever changed, his health compromised, but his dream intact. His story is compelling, and leaves one grateful beyond measure for the sacrifices made for us on a daily basis by all of the people in our armed forces.