Customer Reviews

One Perfect Op: Navy SEAL Special Warfare Teams

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

 

 

I've read a bunch of special forces bios/memoirs and have come to enjoy the layered aspects of their lives. Pre SEALs, selection, training, operations and then their lives after they leave SEALs (or other special forces). Chalker certainly tried to cover all aspects. We see him in the Army, then the Navy and of course SEALs. His life in the Teams is discussed and his term as Command Master Chief of BUDs. But the most important part is the operations, the results of such heavy selection and training, and yet this is surprisingly absent from One Perfect Op!

With SEAL and Delta Force and other special forces bios/memoirs we often have to give them the benefit of the doubt. They may have taken part in operations that are as yet still classified and can't obviously talk about them. But Chalker makes a point of establishing his timeline and the operations that he had. In fact, according to him he didn't take part in a "hot" operation until Grenada, where he specifically stated that was his first combat ever. Joining the Army in 1971, being discharged and then joining the Navy, SEALs and so on, until Grenada in 1983. 12 years and no combat at all. Okay, this in and of itself is understandable, but when reading about a SEAL and you have to read 140 pages until your first combat and the read is not that interesting. There is only so much training, joking and partying to go over before the read becomes uninteresting.

In fact according to Chalker he went on all of 4 "hot" operations. One in Grenada, two ops that resulted in absolutely nothing, and then one op where he rescued an 18 month old baby with no enemy contact. Not too interesting to read about. Even the selection and training was rather uninteresting as he glossed over everything without too much detail. What saved Chalker's account of his life was Red Cell. His was the first account I've read where we were treated to a much more in depth account of how and why each operation took place. Very insightful account of the elite SEAL team.

There are certainly other bios/memoirs that are more memorable and more in depth. I wouldn't really recommend One Perfect Op unless you had a particular interest in Red Cell. Other than that I would not recommend.

2.5 stars.

This autobiographical story of one man's selection, training, and service as a Navy SEAL is an interesting read, although at times for all the wrong reasons. When detailing some of the ops he participating in - primarily those of Red Cell - it is highly entertaining and insightful. But it is Chalker's occasional foray into the after hours comraderie of the teams that shines new light on what happens when highly-trained, hard-charging warriors have to operate outside of combat ... in the civilian world. From bar fights to drunk driving, it is simultaneously enlightening and discouraging to read about the very human discretions of elite servicemen we put on such a pedestal.

One passage details the author climbing behing the wheel of a government vehicle after downing an undisclosed number of drinks, wrecking said government vehicle, then physically and verbally assaulting the arresting officers. Not one for hubris, he describes his illegal activity with a sense of pride, recapping the insults and threats he made against sworn police officers. Anyone who's seen an episode of Cops will recognize the angry drunk barking at the police to come in there, uncuff him, and see who the real man is. But this is not some trailer trash rube. This is supposedly one of America's elite warriors. Given the SEAL training, he probably could beat up the cop, but does that make it OK to act like such an insolent prick? Even if he felt he was being treated unfairly (which, given the limited facts of the incident, he wasn't) his behavior was still criminal. What's unusual is that in the telling of this tale, Chalker gives the impression that, as a Navy SEAL, he was somehow above the law of the land he committed his life to defend. This attitude was reinforced when his commanding officer intervened and the judge subsequently dropped all charges. Despicable. Late in the book Chalker mentions his post-Navy work with tactical police teams. I only hope the contacts he's made has given him a respect for law enforcement that seemed to be lacking throughout his Navy career.

The moral of this story - SEALS operate by a strict code that makes them efficient in combat but, in this case, didn't seem to extend to life outside of the combat zone. Chalker retired from the Navy in the 1990's. Let's hope today's Special Forces aren't as brazen.

This was not as god as I expected, but then I had just finished reading Warrior Soul, by Chuck Pfarrer, so I have to say that I was disappointed. The prose was not colorful, just very matter of fact and no real feeling of any personal connection with the reader.

Snake,

I enjoyed the book. I cannot wait until you write a book about Camp Dublin.

You were right your book is better than Two Combs.

You wrote a book with a personal touch that did not gave away tactics.

Thanks

Daytona

I've really enjoyed reading this book. Contrary to the impression given by the title, it is not an in depth recounting of a single mission. It is really a biography of sorts of the life of a SEAL from his childhood through retirement, touching on the highlights of his career. As with any non-fiction military literature, there are details of missions that must be left out, but it has been done well enough that the impact of the stories has not been sacrificed. This is my third Navy SEAL non-fiction, a genre I will be reading from more and more!