Customer Reviews

The Colonels (Brotherhood of War, Book 4)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Following a dozen major characters and twice that many supporting players through an eventful a quarter century is an impressive literary achievement. Griffin's "Brotherhood of War" series does just that: always competently, sometimes brilliantly. The flashes of brilliance are fewer and farther between in _The Colonels_ than they were in _The Lieutenants_ and _The Captains_, but they're definitely *there* in a way that they weren't in _The Majors_.

The action in _The Colonels_ takes place in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The central thread of the plot is the establishment of the Green Berets, and most of the book's best scenes revolve around the shaping of the Green Beret program. The book ends with the disastrous US-backed attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro by landing a force of Cuban exiles at the Bay of Pigs--an operation in which many of the characters play peripheral roles. Griffin keeps old plotlines in play, but also takes the time to service a number of characters who were in danger of slipping out of the story: notably Barbara Bellmon, Paul Jiggs, and Phil Parker IV.

Griffin's ear for soldiers' voices and his familiarity with military routine comes through in many individual scenes: several training exercises, an unauthorized visit to an aircraft graveyard, Mac Macmillan's chance encounter with a young lieutenant, and a running subplot about the Green Berets' distinctive headgear. The bureaucratic guerilla warfare that took up much of _The Majors_ is back, but it works better in _The Colonels_, perhaps because the outcome will affect the lives, not just the careers, of people we care about.

_The Colonels_ ultimately fails, however, to hit the same heights that _The Lieutentants_ and _The Captains_ reached. Part of the problem may be the time frame it covers. _The Lieutenants_ had the shift from WWII to the Cold War; _The Captains_ had Korea; _The Colonels_ has the Bay of Pigs, but not yet Vietnam. Especially when it strays from the "building the Green Berets" thread, it often feels like it's just marking time.

I enjoyed all of Griffin's Brotherhood of War and Corps books; however, the first part of this one helped me to understand some of the build up to the Viet Nam conflict. I grew up during the pre-Viet Nam conflict era but wasn't old enough or interested enough at the time to pay attention to the causes. This book (along with Tom Dooley's [spelling?]) filled in a lot of the holes.

The Colonels is the fourth in W.E.B. Griffin's series Brotherhood of War. it follows a group of colonels and other military personnel from December, 1958 until April 1961, the period during which the US military advisors were becoming more entrenched in Vietnam and the time when the famous Bay of Pigs debacle took place.

Griffin, who was a soldier has a degree of expertise regarding military matters and the ability to interest the reader in them through his plot and character development. While this is the fourth of the series, it can be read as a stand alone, because Griffin provides enough insight into the previous lives of the characters without clobbering the reader with facts and information from the other series books.

In The Colonels, one of the characters, Paul Hanrahan is running the training school for the Green Berets, another Craig Lowell is working on the development of rocket firing helicopters and a third, Sandy Lowell is a military advisor to the president. This is only a partial list of the characters in The Colonels and one of the drawbacks to Griffins style. He employs a large cast who are tied together through their back history and through the plot, but the story jumps quickly from one character and location to another. This style can be choppy and difficult for the reader to piece together. In the end, I found the story and characters intriguing enough to overcome the writing style.

I am planning on reading more of Griffin's Brotherhood of War series.

I've read this series several times over the last 20 years or so, and just started it again after a 5+ year layoff. Reading it again I've forgotten how good of a storyteller Griffin was before writing with his son in his last few books. While this one sets the stage for each of his other series (i.e., Corps, Vigilantes, Philadelphia police series) with a rich guy who always bucks the system to beat up the bad guy, with this one you have good character developmet and dialogue, and get a history of the Army from WWII through Vietnam - Korea, tank development, army aviation, Green Berets, you name it.

I always liked rooting for Lowell, and each of us has a very tight stickler to the rules Bellmon in our lives - Griffin portrays his characters similar to people ni each of our lives.

Reading each book in this series is well worth it - wish I could say the same about his latest books with Butterworth the IV!

I had found this book used, and I read through it. I've known from previous books of his that I have read that he takes military life down to the smallest detail. I'm an active duty US Marine and its refreshing to see him break down the most mundane things in military life down, because I not only find that kind of stuff funny to be broken down the way he does it, but it really helps me identify with the characters in his books, even if his books that I've read generally cover the WWII era through early Vietnam Era, although I'm sure Vets would appreciate his writing even more than I do. I have about 10 of his books, and it also helps that some of the characters are reused between books as they get promoted and move on with their careers and their interpersonal relationships.

If your a first time reader of these types of books, welcome to his world, but if you like military books, you'll like this one, especially if you are military, and even more so if you are a veteran.

Another masterpiece in a series that defined the history of the officer corps of the US Army I served in (1970-1996). The characters continue to be rich,fearless and bold - the women lusty and prominent in the lives of their husbands and lovers. ... and the Famous Grouse continues to be poured for every special occasion ... The creation of the Green Berets took place during the Presidency of John Kennedy - but the need had been realized long before-its roots in the exploits of the WWII OSS (another series from this author)... Typical of any government organization - there are traditionalists who resist change - fear competition, loss of authority - and mission to this new creation.

If you have gotten this far in the series of the "Brotherhood of War", this 'chapter' will not disappoint. The author let's us peek behind the scenes through fiction of history neither published or taught conventionally - certainly not available to the public - nor to many of us in uniform. I've learned more from this author about the roots of the organization I served than from any other source- period ... just got to maneuver through the sex, booze and action to find it!

A page turner-like all the others. Recommended reading - the entire series is a very satisfying 'must have' ...

This book is part of a series about Army warriors. For anybody interested in the U.S. Army, and the many good guys that defend our country, there is no better author than Griffin. He tells you about the good and the bad, and gives great examples of both. His books are like real life, because they follow soldiers and their families through their careers, with some dying, and others entering to take their place.

The book takes place in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The central theme is the establishment of the Green Berets. The book ends with the Bay of Pigs disaster. Griffin brings back old friends and has them making new friends.

If you like a great series about the Army, the Brotherhood of War is the best, and the Colonels reflects the marvelous insider knowledge that Mr. Griffin has of the inner workings of the Army. I keep buying more and more military history books to figure out which people and events are real, which are fictional, and which are a combination of both.

You will love this book and every book in this series if you like a great book about the Army.

Really a fantastic series (this is book 4) that not only entertains the reader with great characters but also walks us through the history of the Army's development from WWII to the present. For those military history buffs or any ex-GI, this is a must read.

This is a great way to buy used books. When they say 'used, like new' thats what you get. Inexpensive but high quality. I think this was my 50th used book purchase from amazon. I bought the whole Tom Clancy series as well as all my WEB Griffin books. When I need a book it is the first place I go.

My library does not have the book in its collection and I wished to read it. The book was available and not expensive so I bought it.