Doing the archetypes for my book is difficult. This is to be expected with a book such as my own, a non-fiction. In Black Hawk Down there is no one main character although most of the characters are portrayed as heroes. The reader is made to feel sympathetic to the plight of the soldiers, fighting a one-sided battle in a small dirty city called Mogadishu in a country not many have heard of and even fewer can find on a map.
There is no drawn line of good and bad, just two different sides from several different points of view from each side. It can be said that each character's experience was hell. Generally speaking, however, the American side is portrayed in the more positive light and, at certain points, the reader is filled with rage and hatred for the Somalian peoples.
My favorite parts of the book are when the story is told through the eyes of the elite Delta operators. Their wisdom is seen and the picture of the battle more clear. On the opposite end of the spectrum, there weren't any worst parts of the book. If I had to pick a part which I liked less, I would say, when the story is seen in the view of the Somalians.
I'd highly recommend this book to everyone. Especially those who liked the movie and are into action packed books. Black Hawk Down definitely fits the bill. Even if you just like to heroic stories or the study of modern warfare, in which case the book provides some valuable insight. This is an excellent book that gives a view into the plight of our elite special forces and how they triumphed against all odds.
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Sounds like a book i would be into. Who did you like better, the Rangers or the Delta operators?
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good book. Is is pretty similiar to the movie or is the book better? How many soliders in total died during this mission?
ReplyDeleteYes, MHW, I believe you would enjoy this book. Of course, I like the Delta Operators best, I've always leaned more to the most elite. Eighteen were killed (of which six were Delta I believe) and 73 wounded. The Somalian death count is anywhere roughly 500 to 1500 dead, according to the Red Cross.
ReplyDeleteSO hey, why do you suppose you made everbody's crash stories as some kind of twisted militaristic crazy??? Hmmmm...
ReplyDeletePerhaps more relevantly, the archetype thing probably does play out, even in non-fiction if your book sticks with particular characters for any signifigant duration at any depth. The archetype thing resolnates with people because it is true, often. People have tendencies toward the types, even in real life... So there.
ReplyDeleteWell then, I admit that I was wrong. I really had no clear idea what I was writing when I did this. I don't know about the twisted cray thing but, the militaristic part is an apt description, seeing as that is my area of expertise and interest. I am just surprised there wasn't much mention of my like for the German people.
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