Final Salute: A Story of Unfinished Lives by Jim Sheeler Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Final Salute: A Story of Unfinished Lives
Book Review: Sheeler paints a vivid picture
Summary: 4 Stars
Jim Sheeler, a reporter for the Rocky Mountain News, won a Pulitzer Prize in 2006 for his story on which this book is based. The primary focus is Major Steve Beck, a Marine officer whose duty it is to knock on the door of a soldier's family to give them the unbearable news that their son or husband or brother is dead.
Although Sheeler claims his book has no political agenda, FINAL SALUTE deals with matters that at least a portion of the general public would just as soon ignore, uncomfortable in the face of the reminders of the human cost of our involvement. Sheeler makes no effort to sugarcoat the details of the deaths of these men. Details border on the grotesque, as if he is forcing the readers to keep their eyes open, making it impossible to look away.
There is no question that the Marines, the primary unit of the armed forces represented in FINAL SALUTE, is indeed a band of brothers, and it's quite emotional to read about them breaking down with the task of burying one of their own. This is where Sheeler shines. The attention to detail in how the honor guard carries out their sad duties --- attending to the corpse, throwing unquestionable support to the survivors --- paints a vivid picture.
He also touches on mundane yet practical matters that make the military administration look small and cold-hearted. In one case they question whether a fallen soldier is really the father of a child whose mother is seeking benefits. The "death gratuity" --- recently, finally increased --- still seems a pittance. Even the manner in which the fallen are honored proves inadequate; Beck takes it upon himself to conduct a ceremony of honor to deliver the medals and citations to families that would ordinarily be sent through the mail.
But at the risk of seeming like a curmudgeon, it becomes too much at times. Sheeler jumps back and forth between the families, which becomes confusing and disjunctive (although perhaps he's mimicking the emotions of the families). It is as though he could not make up his mind what format to follow, whether to stay with one soldier at a time, or tell the grisly story in a semi-chronological order. The comments of the family, while completely understandable when speaking about the loneliness of those left behind, the children growing up with fathers, or the small practices they follow to remember, become repetitive after a time. And why is there no mention of the more than 100 women who lost their lives? Is that too taboo a subject for delicate American sensibilities?
Let us agree that there is nothing sadder than a young life snuffed out before its time. The young men and their loved ones profiled in FINAL SALUTE deserve our thanks and respect regardless of what we might think about the war in Iraq.
--- Reviewed by Ron Kaplan
Book Review: Service, sacrifice, and loss made visible
Summary: 4 Stars
I am grateful to Jim Sheeler and especially to the soldiers and their families whose lives and losses are illuminated in this spare but moving chronicle. Sheeler tells the stories of families and soldiers who have borne a disproportionate burden during the Iraq war years, with a particular focus on the emotional cost to all involved when a soldier's life is lost and the next of kin are notified. Whatever one's feelings about the merits of the war in Iraq, this book is well worth reading for its compelling insights into what soldiers and their families are contributing (and having to suffer) through their remarkable service to our country.Book Review: Four thousand, one hundred, and thirty-seven military personnel have died in Iraq.
Summary: 4 Stars
(p 48) "Imagine an accountant, a plumber, or a lawyer being pulled out of the office at any time and being directed to walk up to a stranger's door, tell them what nobody wants to hear, and then go back to work." Marine Major Steve Beck, casualty assistance calls officer, informed next of kin of their loved ones death in Iraq for two years. (p 9) "They're falling-either literally or figuratively-and you have to catch them." Final Salute is his story. More than that, it's primarily the story of five brave men (out of the thousands of persons who have died serving their country in Iraq): Marine Lance Corporal Kyle W. Burns, Navy Corpsman HM3 Christopher "Doc" Anderson, Marine Second Lieutenant James J. Cathey, Marine Corporal Brett Lee Lundstrom and Army Private First Class Jesse A. Givens, their lives, their deaths and the families they left behind. Each section of the book: The Knock; Reverberations; Bringing Them Home; and After the War, Stories, covers a different aspect of the process. It's often exceedingly sad (have tissues handy). The photos alone may bring you to tears. Author Jim Sheeler, who won a Pulitzer Prize for a Rocky Mountain News newspaper article of the same name (one wonders if that might have been a better format), follows Major Beck's interactions with the family members from the time he knocks on the door to inform the next of kin, "Please tell me it's not Jimmy. Please tell me it's not my son," until he can no longer be of service to them and a lot of the time in between. The best parts of the book are quotes of folks from all walks of life that he comes in contact with:
Iraq Veteran Sergeant Andrew "Andy" Alonzo, setter of headstones at Fort Logan National Cemetery, Denver, Colorado, "I wanted to tell her [the mother of Staff Sergeant Holder as she left his grave], `You don't have to worry. We'll take care of him now.'" (p 48)
Army Private First Class Jesse A. Givens, in a letter written to his son in case of his death, "Take in every breath like it's your first." (p 51)
Marine Staff Sergeant Kevin Thomas, who stands guards over the caskets of his fallen comrades, "You always hear these statements like `Freedom isn't free.' You hear the president talking about all these people making sacrifices...But you never really know until you carry one of them in the casket..." (p 77)
Sergeant Gregory Edwards, whose life was saved by Navy Corpsman HM3 Christopher "Doc" Anderson, but lost both legs and the use of one hand, "I lost my legs, not for this country, but for the country of Iraq, so their children will be able to run around just like mine...If time was turned back, I'd do it all over again." (p 188)
Katherine Cathey, widow of Marine Second Lieutenant James J. Cathey, "It seems like they're just using our guys as guinea pigs...There are these IEDs all over Iraq, and they're sending out guys in to find them-to find them by getting blown up." (p 232)
Sam Holder, Senior, father of Marine Staff Sergeant Theodore Same Holder II (killed in Iraq), "You look at the war and it only touches a few of us. It doesn't touch the majority of the American people...What always bothered me was how disproportionately the whole war has affected people in the U.S." (p 238)
Melissa Givens, widow of Army Private First Class Jesse A. Givens, "The war sucks, but as a country we made a decision to go in there, and we have to support them." (p 251)
Final Salute is an important, powerful book. My primary complaint about it is that due to format (moving between families at different points in time) it has a bit of a choppy feel. It is also repetitive at times, probably the author's attempt to reacquaint the reader with a given family member when reintroduced. Also good: Operation Homecoming: Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Home Front, in the Words of U.S. Troops and their Families edited by Andrew Carroll, and Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2003 to 2005 by Thomas E. Ricks.
Book Review: You need to read this book.
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't care who you are. Don't care if you support the war, or you don't. Don't care if you "support the troops" whatever that might mean (like me!). This book is about the reality of our soldiers not coming back. And the heart-rending, noble efforts of the military to honor them. If you can read this book without crying, you're a robot. If you can read this book without wanting to reach out, you're heartless. (I recommend Operation Gratitude, you can find many local groups doing the same.)
Jim Sheeler, you're a hero. Just like all the ones you showed us in this book.
Book Review: "GARDENS OF STONE...RE-VISITED"
Summary: 5 Stars
"FINAL SALUTE" A Story of Unfinished Lives by Jim Sheeler is perhaps, the most emotionally moving book I have read in my entire 61 years! It is a true modern day version of the old movie: "Gardens of Stone."
Sheeler's literary style and understanding of real life drama will eviscerate you while it drains your soul, all... in one dynamic swoop of the pen.
It is "easy reading", but...a difficult book to "keep reading." It is also, impossible to put down! You can not read this book without stopping to wipe the tear drops off the pages, or to blow your nose. It is a book every American (including those in the White House) "should" read, and a book that every student..."be required" to read!
Here in 280 pages lies the humbling stark reality of life, war, and death as it touches into American families directly involved in the Iraqi war.
This book is a masterpiece of literature, human drama, and spirit.
YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK..."IF," YOU DARE!!!