The Warrior's Heart: Becoming a Man of Compassion and Courage

by Eric Greitens

In this adaptation of his best-selling book, The Heart and the Fist , Eric speaks directly to teen readers, interweaving memoir and intimate second-person narratives that ask the reader to put themselves in the shoes of himself and others. Readers will share in Eric’s evolution from average kid to globe-traveling humanitarian to warrior, training and serving with the most elite military outfit in the the Navy SEALs. Along the way, they’ll be asked to consider the power of choices, of making the decision each and every day to act with courage and compassion so that they grow to be tomorrow’s heroes. Sure to inspire and motivate.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography, Military Fiction, Biography Memoir, Teen, Adventure

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Eric Greitens was an Angier B. Duke Scholar, Truman Scholar, Rhodes Scholar, Navy SEAL, White House Fellow, champion boxer and sub-3 hour marathon runner. He is currently the founder/Chairman of the Center for Citizen Leadership in St. Louis, MO.

Eric's book of award-winning photographs and essays, Strength and Compassion , grew from his humanitarian work. His doctoral thesis, Children First, investigated the ways in which international humanitarian organizations can best serve war-affected children. He has worked as a humanitarian volunteer, documentary photographer, and researcher in Rwanda, Cambodia, Albania, Mexico, India, the Gaza Strip, Croatia, and Bolivia."

Reviews

[Devon · Rating 5 out of 5]

ummm... okay. I'm shookith TO THE CORE. Anyways, I loved this book SO MUCH. For a biography, this was hands down my favorite book; maybe even my favorite book i've ever read. Not only is Eric and incredible leader of his own, but he teaches you that to become a leader, you don't have to be in a "high class". You make the right decisions, do what you think is right, and have hope. Earlier in this book, Eric describes the hardships that his men AND him went through; from battle wounds to trying to help kids in Rwanda. Honestly, its amazing of what each and every person can do, especially the people who really try and accomplish something.

Mainly, this book is about a Navy SEAL who lives through Hell Week, survives a toxic bomb (he was 1/10 men that survived), and shows what the true meaning of a leader is. Eric is a strong character who puts himself before anybody else and will do whatever is necessary to help anyone. For instance, Eric in his early years goes to Rwanda and other countries to refugee camps to help the weak. Every single thing that Eric did, like start a soccer team, bringing medical supplies, bringing fresh food and water, made me feel lucky of everything I have and own. Not only did this book personally think of my life, and made me connect special moments in my life. But it made me think of my future and the moments I spend with family and friends and what the right decision is. During trainings, trips to Rwanda, and "trips" to the battlefield, Eric always had hope. This is what he relied on. Yes, Eric admits that he is NOT the best swimmer and NOT the best runner. But having hope and making the right decisions makes Eric a general and strong leader.

Personally, this book made me think of my life and all the moments I have either regretted or thought of more than others. With that said, this book is really inspiring and thoughtful; with all the words Eric portrayed and all the details Eric portrayed during this book had a deep meaning in my heart. While reading this book, you can really make inferences and connections to all the situations Eric has lived through. Even if you don't think you do.... . Most likely, the first thought in peoples mind while reading the title of this book and reading this review is "why would I have connections to a Navy SEAL that is miles away from his home?" But, think about it. You could think of a family member who lives miles away, or even certain situations you thought of as "hard" and to compare it to what Eric and his friends lived through. There are more comparisons in this book than I have ever read before.

Again, I encourage EVERYONE to read this book if you enjoy helping people and stories during war times. For a biography, this was for sure my #1 book. Remember, don't judge a book by its cover..

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want an encouraging, uplifting, and responsible biography, then Greitens book is fantastic. He does well to alter his message for his audience of MS and HS students to encourage them to live out their dreams, but humbly, responsibly and for the benefit of others.

While certain sections that higlight his many accomplishments like graduating from Duke University, getting a Rhodes Scholarship, traveling to Rwanda, Bosnia, Bolivia to photograph sometimes get a bit uppity, he presents them in a well-meaning way. And the intermittent chapters where he phrases it like a "what would you do" chapter book are humorous to the tragedy that he sees and experiences in the refugee camps and with orphans.

The rigors of SEALs training was fascinating and to hear his no-holds-barred thoughts as well as the life or death training, would appeal to those thinking about entering the military, let alone the NAVY or SEALs training.

Absolutely easy to read and phenomenally uplifting and couragoues. I will definitely be recommending this!

[Sean Galsterer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Has a book ever taught you about yourself and how much you take for granted? If you have not realized that there are others less fortunate than you in the world, The Warrior’s Heart by Eric Greitens puts you in that situation where you have to help the people that are less fortunate. Also, this book taught me to always challenge myself to be the best person I can be. This book fits in the military genre, because it is about a United States Navy Seal who shares his journey through his life in the military, and how becoming a Navy Seal changed his life.
This story takes place in many different countries and states. Eric is the main character who is explaining what he did in his life before he was a Navy Seal and what he had to do to become one. Eric attended college at Duke University. He was given many opportunities to see the world. His first trip was to China to teach English to Chinese workers. He had a few adventures in China and one of them was to the police station. In his later college years he traveled to other countries where the citizens were being assaulted by the government and the poverty rates were high. Eric’s decision to become a navy seal was impacted by many people he met throughout his early life.
In my opinion, The Warrior’s Heart by Eric Greitens is a 5-star book. This book was the best one I have read so far. I admire this book so much, because it taught me to not take anything for granted and that other people need our help. It also taught me that if the nations that are crying for help do not receive any, many people will die or suffer. One other thing this book taught me was that there are many bad people in the world, but there are more good people who are willing to sacrifice their lives to help people in need.

[Jonathon P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an amazing book filled with trials and tribulations. I learned a ton about a Navy Seals experience and how teamwork is so important. The morals in this book where fabulous and it was fascinating to see how Eric Greitens got to where he is today. I had no idea that someone who went to Duke and Oxford University, could just want to serve his country so badly. Eric is very smart and he loves to travel all around the world. While at Duke, he made many trips to foreign countries to learn about their medical treatment and well being. This was a real page turner for me and I highly recommend this book to anybody who enjoys adventure and action.

[Traci Andrighetti · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrific book for every teen.

[Juliet Palmer]

Do you love the military? Do you love adventures? The book The Warrior’s Heart by Eric Greitens is the book for you. It fits into the genre of military, action, and it is an autobiography about Eric Greiten’s life, from when he was a kid to when he becomes a Navy Seal. The book bounces back and forth of where it is placed, at first it starts in freezing cold water in an unknown place to his home town in Missouri. Almost every chapter the place is different. This book is very inspirational to the reader. I really like this book because the main genre is military.

The main character of the book is Eric Greitens, a Navy Seal. When he was just a young boy he wasn’t much more than a kid who reads a lot about “heros” like Pericles and King Arthur. He loved history, as he read many history books. When he was around ten years old his parents told him that he’ll have to pay for college, so he started to mow peoples lawns and shovel snow out of their driveways. As he grows up he starts to make his own adventures. He goes on a trip with his youth group and he goes to a homeless shelter to meet some of the people there and to see what they go through for a night. Then he goes off to college at Duke University as he decided to study public policy. One day he read about going abroad, and he chose China. When he got to China he decided to learn Kung Fu. He took Kung Fu for weeks, when it came to graduation day, for Kung Fu, he had to pass a series of tests. Like he had to have multiple cinder blocks sit on his head and the shifu would take a sledgehammer and break the bricks on top of their head. After he graduated, he ended up teaching English to Chinese people. The students asked a lot about America's government and history questions, like what was the Bill of Rights? A few days after teaching when he was home, some police officers came and took him back to the police station for interrogation. The officers were asking him questions about what he was teaching and who asked questions about the Freedom of Speech. He was later let go free of charges and nothing against him. Then he left for home to the U.S. When he got back he decided to learn how to box. His trainer was Earl Blair, he was one of the best trainers at that gym. Eric trained with Derrick Humphrey. He’s been boxing for three years now and he earned The Golden Gloves Novice Champion, kind of, he was the only boxer so he won by default, but he earned it. Later in his life he started to do more abroad. He goes around the world to refugee camps and to take pictures and to learn their stories. He is slowly making his own adventure. The rest of the story is up to you, read the book and find out what happens next.

I give this books five out of five stars. This book is amazing, I was very interested throughout the whole book, it kept my attention after every flip of the page. I would suggest this book to high schoolers and above due to some of the details the book talks about. It was easy to understand, as the words were not too difficult and easy to understand. Greitens did a great job explaining everything that he went through and that he accomplished. He made the book very inspiring and this is one of the best military books I’ve ever read.

[Tyler Wentzel · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Warriors Heart is a fantastic book and I really enjoyed reading every page of the book. I would honestly recommend this book to anyone looking for an extra book to read for fun. Its a book about Eric Greitens and his life. He grew up in a small town in Missouri and always wanted to be a superhero as a little kid. He was an excellent soccer player during his high school days and was also a very smart man, so smart that he went to Duke University for 4 years.
In college he met a boxing trainer named Joel and he trained him to become a very well known boxer at the college level. He was also able to learn very valuable lessons while boxing. His senior year of college he decided to study abroad at the University of Oxford and he LOVED being in a new country, so after he graduated college he then decided that he wanted to travel the world to smaller countries and to help out any way that he could help. He spent many years traveling around the world helping and felt as if he was missing something, he felt as if he wasnt helping enough until he saw a flyer to join the United States NAVY.
Eric decided to join the NAVY because he wanted to be challenged and he also wanted to help others around the world. At first he was second guessing himself on why he had joined the NAVY because during basic training they were doing "pointless" choirs. But later on in training he and all of his classmates realized that every choir they did taught them to take pride in themselves and to prove that the US NAVY was good. He and his classed passed basic training as they had made that a goal for for the group. They then were asked if they wanted to do NAVY Seal BUD training and he said that he wanted to be challenge again and accepted this challenge.
It was just 5 days, but it was the longest 5 days that anyone would have to endure, constant drilling and yelling and pushups and situps. and long runs on the beach and surf torture which was laying down on the beach locking arms with all of your classmates and just laying in the beach for hours. Eric and his boat crew of 6 men decided at the beginning of the week that no matter how bad it was going to get, that they were going to stay together, brothers in arms finishing the week as NAVY SEAL BUDS and they accomplished it.
Now as an official member of the NAVY SEALS he felt as if this would be what he was looking for and that this was his destiny, and he was right. He loved being a NAVY SEAL and he loved being able to help people in the USA and outside the USA. He was able to help wounded soldiers and their families in the US and he grew close to all of them, all different but all apart of his new family. He was stationed over seas in Iraq different times during the war and he came back each time, but not all of his brothers made it back and i could only imagine how hard that is on someone, I know that my dad doesn't like talking about his experiences so I know that it must be very rough and hard.
I would reccomend this book to anyone who is looking for a good book to read.

[Jack Ruth]

This book is called The Warrior's Heart by Eric Greitens. The main theme of this book would be to always persevere through hard times and to feel kindness and empathy to others. The author would want me to take away is that people always have it worse than and you should never complain about whats happening in your life when you should realize how good you have it. This is pretty accurate to the world we live in now because this is a nonfictional book that is accurate to the world. This book has accomplished in showing me how to create a good memoir.
The genre of this book is nonfiction because it really happened in the world. The setting takes place in Rwanda, Mexico, and in America because he travels to other places to show people how people are living in different countries. In America he learns at Harvard for a while in photography. This book is about the life of a Navy SEAL. He has so many stories and adventures in his life that he has to do and he tells everyone in his book. He travels to poor countries to take pictures where people would attempt genocide and silence of speech about anything of the government or else they will be thrown in jail or prison because of what they said. Also, he goes to places where people are sniffing glue to get high because of how bad their lives are that is the only way out of it. He sees people suffering and takes pictures of them to show people back in the U.S.A to see if they can do something about it. He sees people who died because of a broken collarbone but died not from the collarbone, but the poor medical health the countries have that led to an infection in the collarbone to kill him. He also has a very interesting life in his Navy SEAL training. He has to learn to work as a team or else they will all be kicked out of the training. They had to under go terrible drills and practices to prepare them to be Navy SEALs. They had to carry 150 pound logs up the hills, do daily 10 mile swims, and sit in freezing cold water laying down just enough so they can breath for 10 hours.
This book is an amazing book for all people because of how interesting it is. I like that he writes like he is there in the moment and it feels like he remembers everything about those events because of how impactful they were to him.
People who will enjoy this book are people who love books about the military. They also will like this book if they just enjoy hearing incredible stories from people and love it. This book also is one of my favorite and I hope you will read it.

[Miguel Flores · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is astonishing due to Eric's humbleness and bravery. Eric motivates his readers to step up and reach for their dreams. Eric stated, "You are the heart of this book. I wrote it with you in mind, because you are powerful. You are powerful because you have the potential to make a positive difference in the lives of your friends, your neighbors, your community, our country, and our world. Your mission, and your own adventure awaits" (261). Eric's journey of becoming a Navy Seal is inspiring. Eric didn't know what his destination in life was, like others don't know as well. He went to college because that's what his parent's told him to set his eyes on, and he tried boxing as well. After time, he became an amazing boxer. Eric still didn't know what he actually wanted to achieve in life. He later on started volunteering in third world countries as a photographer to help raise awareness, but that wasn't enough in Eric's eyes. Eric wanted to be there before the third world countries went through the miserable experiences they experience. He then went through the hardest military training in the world, being the Navy Seal, and strived through the training, in order to be able to protect refugees from third world countries. Eric later founded a nonprofit program called The Mission Continues which allowed disabled veterans to continue to serve for the United States in whatever way they wanted and were capable of. This book has motivated me to reach for my dream of becoming a Homicide Detective and I appreciate Eric for his inspiration. Before reading this book, I was frightened to dedicate my time to becoming a homicide detective and then fail miserably, but now my whole mindset has flipped upside down, and I am now motivated to succeed.

[Kyle Earll]

Personal Response: I liked this book because it was about a person that was in the army and he went around helping all the poor towns and helping them get ahead. I also like this book because there are a lot of teens out there that need help and that's what the book was about a navy seals guy helping out people out of the country.

Plot summary: In the book, there was this guy named Eric was a Navy Seal and when he went around all of their towns in the middle of nowhere he seemed what was really going on in some of these countries. There was kids so skinny he was surprised they were still alive. So he did what he could do but he also had a job so he had to keep training because he had to keep up in shape.

Characterization: This one boy in the book that Eric was trying to help out named Steven did not like it when all the Americans. He thought that they would try to take his stuff and would kill his family. But after some time with everyone helping the poor family out the whole family ended up liking his including steven that then when they left he made him a pic of Eric and his team helping out his family.

Recommendation: I think anyone that is able to understand a somewhat thing book would like it. Also, I think anyone that likes to hear of other people helping each other out and also war would like this book.

[Ken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eric Greitens' YA entry, THE WARRIOR'S HEART, is an adaptation of his previously-published memoir, THE HEART AND THE FIST. The episodic nature of this book will make it a popular title on the nonfiction shelf. Greitens first talks about his experiences with boxing lessons and humanitarian trips to Bosnia, Rwanda, and Bolivia. Each serves as concrete evidence of the author's self-discipline and commitment to others. And each is depicted in Greitens' spare, straightforward writing style.

From these early missions, the book moves into Greitens' long road to becoming a Navy SEAL. The reader is treated to snapshots of many of his comrades and the training regime they suffered to become one of these rare warriors. Though never heavy-handed, Eric Greitens also uses the people he meets as character examples -- men that inspired him. Young people should be moved by these examples, as well as by Greitens' call to action at the end of the book, where he asks that they answer the call to serve by volunteering and making their world (country, town, school, neighborhood, family) a better place. Suitable for middle and high school readers.

[Noahprince]

This book was a very exciting book that I thought gave me the full experience of his young adult life that led up to his experience in becoming a Navy Seal. The stories he told made your adrenaline rush, arms swore, and in the emotional parts sad when he told about all the hardships he came across.The massive amount of detail and also the pictures where he had traveled to 3rd world country's to work with the red cross and all the humanitarian groups there. The author ,Eric Gordon, who stared in the book not only wrote this to help young people become active in their community's but also to make people aware of the excellent program he created and is expanding.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this more than I thought I would. I am not into military might or the concept of macho soldiers so I thought I wouldn't enjoy this. I was pleasantly surprised at how this book highlighted the man's wish to do good and his humanitarian work before he became a soldier and how he felt that he could do some good to protect those in need by joining the Special Forces. Plenty of information on training and toughness but tempered by lessons in what it means to be a good man.

[Grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think that Warrior's heart is a really book because, it talks about courage, compassion, and honor. The Navy Seal's are a team that fights the war's that they were in. I would also consider this book to people that like military and courage, compassion and honor.

[Milli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was meant for teens but I was really inspired by this book! I volunteer on the PTO at my sons school but Im now wondering what more I could do.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hate reading autobiographies. Bleh!

I couldn't put this one down. I really, really enjoyed the path this man took and the message he portrays.

[Shelly Carman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exemplifies compassion.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay book. More about his travels and what got him into the SEALs than actual SEAL stories.

[MasonD]

the warrior's heart is probably one of my favorite biographies, right next to American sniper but this showed me what it was like for a military family and someone in the military. the events leading up to it, the events during it, and the events after it

[Briley Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good not only inspirational but informative I give it 5 stars I loved it so much.

[Holden Satre · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently finished reading The Warrior's Heart By, Eric Greitens. The main theme of this book is that if you try hard you will succeed. I think that because he got into the seals by trying as hard as he could. He also tried as hard as he could in his lawn care business and he got lots of customers. If the author wanted me to get one idea from this book it would be that I can do anything if I try my hardest. This book does not contrast to the world I know except that it is 2000 and right now it is 2018. However there are many ways it compares. One of those ways is that in real life there are navy seals, just like in the book. Also in the book there are boxing gyms like in real life. Everything about this book compares with the real world because it is all nonfiction stories.

The genre of this book is memoir. I know this because it is a book of the author's memories. This book has multiple settings. They are Missouri, China, California, Florida and Iraq. That is where the action of this book occurs. The author does a very good job of making me feel like i’m there. That is because of his multiple paragraphs used to describe his location when he was a certain location. For example when he was in China he spent time describing the location of where he was staying. One example of that was when he said that the building he lived in reminded him of dorm in college. This book is about the life of a man named Eric Greitens. He was a navy seal and this book travels through his life up until he became a navy seal. It started before college when he and his brother owned a lawn care business and they did a less than perfect job and came back to fix it. It ended with him finishing his navy seal career. Although in the book it skipped the majority of his navy career. The main character of this book is Eric. There are other minor characters but he is the main character. Because Eric is the only main character he is very adequately described. There is not really any direct characterization of eric but there is some things I can infer. For example based on his actions I could tell that he is very compassionate. I chose to believe what he says but he can stay whatever he wants in his memoirs so he could be lying about what he said. That is why I say that this character is believable.

This book has about an even number of strengths and weaknesses. One weakness is the ending. This book is a very long book but I still feel that he could have included more moments that define him from when he was in the S.E.A.L.S. One strength is the amount of memories that he included. I could not even count the number of chapters in this book. Another weakness is the way he included moments from chose your own adventure books and he made up his own choose your own adventures that foreshadowed parts in the book that did not yet occur. I thought that took away from the flow of the book and I think the book would still be fine without them. Another weakness was the pictures that he grouped all in the middle of the book. They did not only pertain to the current memoir that they were interrupting, they were about memoirs that had not occurred yet or memoirs that had already occurred. I feel that if he included a picture at the beginning of each memoir that it would be more effective. I liked this author's writing style a lot. I loved how he made the memoirs interesting and how he spent more than one paragraph describing people he met along his journeys. For example he spent a whole page describing the people he met working at the homeless shelter in Bolivia. It was only two people that he used that page to indirect and directly characterize those people.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has seen Eric in the news as the governor of Missouri and wants to know more about his past. (the run for governor is not in this book). I would also recommend it to people who like learning about what it is like working at refugee camps because that is what Eric talked about for the majority of the book.

[Gatlin Bender · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the warriors heart by Erick Grietens, the book has the navy seal emblem on it which would lead you to believe it was about wartime but it was actually more of an autobiography. The book opens up about his childhood, then his education, and finally his military service. Erick Grietens wrote about mission trips he took and his experiences with boxing much more than any other subject and then finishing with his training to become a navy seal. The text about his military service was by far the best part but also one of the smallest ones.

[Erica · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is apparently an adaptation of his earlier memoir, here aimed at middle-school & high-school readers. Mr Greitens cleverly begins each section with a mock choose-your-own-adventure scenario, that is based on his real-life experience. This should ensure that it appeals to some of the short-attention-span, action-oriented readers. For those young people, it may include more social issues & social awareness than they normally seek out. For those impressionable young readers, it could be inspiring and engaging.

However, if lengthy, repetitive descriptions of survival, battles, & physical challenges don't excite you, you may notice the subtext (presumption of support for American military ventures) and may be turned off by the insipid and arrogant story telling. I'm sure for a man as intelligent, physically capable, morally upright, and compassionate as Mr. Greitens, his descriptions of his accomplishments are relatively modest and humble. However, normal human beings might suspect that he is superhuman or that he's slightly exaggerating.

I was dismayed that this book probably will appeal to empty-headed young men who might be led to believe they would be serving humanity by learning how to use weapons & withstand torture. Mr. Greitens, having been so "well-educated", should be able to see through his own logical fallacy. (Did his service in the Navy SEAL program prevent war/destruction/pain/suffering or did it enable it?) Therefore, this is manipulative in the extreme, and I hold him responsible for the future wounded and dead he is encouraging to blindly follow into military service. If Mr. Greitens sees himself as a "man of compassion and courage," he should by all means forgive himself for helping the US invade another nation, but he should have the courage to admit it was a fraudulent mission that did far more harm than good. I'm sorry for the many young men and women who believed they were serving their nation and were sorely misused. I'm not sorry for this Rhodes Scholar who should have known better what brought us to that war.

Be forewarned: the gender bias evident in the subtitle is consistent throughout the book - women are not Navy SEALs, apparently. For a woman to become a person of compassion and courage, she merely has to suffer - all the victims he met in Rwanda, Croatia, & Bolivia were notably compassionate & courageous. Men can do that, too, but I don't believe Mr. Greitens was positing that his character was developed through suffering. However, nothing in this book gives any hint about how or why he believes he gained compassion or courage. Having read all 264 pages, I can see why most men of his ilk pare down their basic message to short phrases like, "Suck it up," "Be a man," "Stiff upper lip," etc. I think Mr. Greitens message could be summed up as; "Volunteer first for the toughest assignments and then; stay relaxed."

My hope is that young people will be inspired to emulate the volunteer work he did as a teenager, and see his service in the military as a wrong path to avoid in their own lives.

[Liz Friend · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story: Here's the story of Eric Greitens, a man who took a very unconventional route to becoming a Navy SEAL, and who has been doing very unconventional things ever since. Readers will find out there are a lot of reasons for wanting to fight--but the best reasons aren't the ones about YOU. They're the ones about helping other people.

June Cleaver’s ratings: Language PG-13; Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Violence PG-13; Substance Abuse PG; Magic & the Occult G; GLBT Content G; Adult Themes PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: This book starts with Greitens's back story, showing how his life, and the important characters in it, brought him to the place where he decided to become a Navy SEAL. His deep-down wish is to serve others, and after taking a reactive view of service as a young man and a student, he decides he needs to be more proactive in offering protection to those who can't fight for themselves. This is an interesting read and sheds light on a choice I would personally never make (although I do embrace the concept of serving other whole-heartedly), but it really isn't for most MS kids: the blowing up doesn't start nearly soon enough! For the best effect, give this one to thoughtful high school readers.

Annotation with spoilers: Eric Grietens doesn't start the book at the part where he joined the Navy with the idea of becoming a SEAL. Instead, he talks about his childhood, and learning to work as he mowed lawns; about his high-school experiences working with the homeless; about learning to box in college and all the hard work it took to become an athlete. He discusses his college days at Duke University, which were interspersed with trips abroad--mostly to refugee camps in places like Bosnia and Rwanda, where he took pictures, did gopher work, and built up a desire to do more to help those displaced by war--in fact, his desire to help grew into a desire to prevent such atrocities from happening in the first place. After becoming a Rhodes Scholar and finishing graduate work at Oxford, he departed from the expected path and decided that becoming a Navy SEAL would be the best place for him to make a stand against evil in the world.

About halfway through, the book gets to his entrance into SEAL BUD/S school, the most difficult military training on earth. He talks all about the grueling months-long training, goes briefly into his experiences overseas, and then, at the end, talks about his new mission as the CEO of a service organization that helps disabled vets fit back into society by helping them determine to serve in their own right.

Anyone reading this will come away amazed by this one man's determination to help others, even at the cost of his own comfort and well-being. Someone like Greitens would certainly qualify as a modern-day American hero to me: not because of his deeds of derring-do, but because of his commitment to improving the lives of those who are less fortunate than he.

[Brent · Rating 5 out of 5]

It may be hard to meld the concepts of war and compassion into a single book, but as the author of The Warrior’s Heart, Eric Greitens pulls it off. The Warrior’s Heart is an adaptation of Greitens’ New York Times bestseller The Heart and the Fist for teenagers. A literary element used very prominently in the book is one that I like to call “reader’s choice”, because Greitens gives you a scenario that he encountered and asks what you would do in that situation. I will give you one scenario:

They call it the grinder. It’s where they grind you down. A slab of concrete the size of a basketball court and surrounded by two-story walls, it’s where you’ll be herded and cursed at while guns sound all around you and cold water from a fire hose is blasted in your face. Being driven into the grinder, tormented and physically punished, is the first act of a very long week. The instructors try to throw you off balance, to flush out the weak and to separate you from your team. But there’s another way. You’ve thought it over. When the guns start firing, when the yelling begins and the hoses start to spray, you have a choice. You can run out of the tent with your men, run right into the chaos. Or you can tell your team to crawl out under the sides of the tent, gather together, and run past the mayhem. You can ignore the instructors as they yell at you to drop down for pushups, and you can find a spot to hide your team. It’s sneaky, and it has its risks. If they catch you, your punishment will be severe. You’ll be marked for retribution all week long. But if they don’t catch you, you’ll start the hardest week of the hardest military training in the world on your own terms. You’ll be able to rest for just a few minutes. You’ll go into the week having made decisions, bucked the system, avoided pain, just a little bit. And that one little act of defiance might be enough to boost your confidence, and that of your crew, for the entire week. You sleep, and when you wake, it’s to the sound of automatic weapons and air-raid sirens. It’s begun. You fall to the floor, your men beside you. They look at you for your decision. You can rush out the main exit with your crew, run, with the rest of the class, right into the middle of things, or you can take a chance and crawl under the side of the tent. What do you do?

Eric Greiten is a Navy SEAL, humanitarian, and boxer. In this memoir, he talks about challenges that he faced in all of those occupations. Because this is a memoir, he talks about these experiences from his point of view (perspective: literary element).

Many people have enjoyed this eye-opening book, including me. I would highly recommend this book.



R3

[Matthew LaVita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matthew LaVita
9/12

Summer Reading Book Review


The book I read over the summer is The Warrior's Heart, by Eric Greitens. The Warrior's
Heart is an autobiography that was published in 2012. The author is a former U.S Navy SEAL and is the current Governor of Missouri. To date, Eric has written two books about his experience as a SEAL, which also include other important chapters in his life, such as important lessons he learned in his childhood, and his adventures as an aid worker during summers between college. This book holds very identifiable themes throughout its chapters. Eric puts a lot of focus on what is to be learned from his stories. Each chapter is a different story from his life, but more importantly, a different lesson to be learned. Along with all the separate themes between chapters, The Warrior's Heart has a central theme that can be summarized as; learning what it means to be courageous and to have compassion, and that to have either, you must have both, hand in hand. The Warrior's Heart, can be broken up into three sections from beginning to end; Eric’s strongest memories as a boy learning to become a man, his college years where he sought adventure outside of his comfort zone and struggled to learn how he could leave his mark on such a big world, and finally his experiences as a Navy SEAL where he learned true leadership and brotherhood and where he taught others how to end conflicts without violence.

Last year, I read Eric's first book The Heart and Fist, which is similar in theme with The
Warrior's Heart. I read his first book last year because I am interested by the military and especially the area that Eric was involved in, the special forces. I picked up The Heart and Fist assuming it would focus mostly on his experiences in the Navy but, I was confused during the first few chapters which focused on stories about Eric’s childhood, which didn't seem all too different from mine. I enjoyed these chapters but, felt like I had been misled by the title. Knowing that The Warrior's Heart wouldn’t only focus on his military career, before I read it, helped me appreciate the variety of life lessons highlighted throughout the book. I enjoyed The Warrior's Heart and will hold onto the lessons learned from former Navy SEAL Eric Greitens for a long time. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the military, or anyone nearing adulthood looking for motivation or answers about what it means to be brave and to be a compassionate warrior.

[Sky Nic · Rating 5 out of 5]

You sitting in an interrogation room in a foreign country. The only noise you can hear is the diatribe from the investigator to your co-work and her crying. The investigator say to you,”All you need to do is tell him who are the kids in the class who ask about freedom of speech and rights in america and you can leave.” “What would you do?” is what best selling The Warrior's Heart by Eric Greitens would ask you.The book pulls you in and holds you by your collar to see if he makes it the next day know that an innocent kid dying or if he will survive the night.
Who do you think you are? Who do you want to be? How do you become who you want to be? The answer or at least a goal many people should be, “A better version of myself than I was yesterday.” The warrior's heart is a heartfelt transformation from a kid named Eric to a Mr. Greitens the Navy S.E.A.L. The book is a nonfiction account of Eric Greitens life starting out as a boxing champion while majoring in ethics, philosophy, and public policy. Eric is a leader one who puts others needs or wants above his own. He is always making sure that his SEAL-mates are taken care of and everyone is ok. It’s amazing how the is completely non fiction, but still feels like an action-adventure fantasy novel. Eric not a very hard person to relate to if you look him from afar, but he is someone who has done so much that it’s hard to put yourself in his shoes.

This is a recamoned for teens or just interested kids over the age of 11. The book is not for the faint of heart. There is a lot of personality tragedy and poor living conditions. Some of the things that happen in the book are quite unsettling. Like when one of his shipmates is doing a 50 meter depth swim he starts to drowned he dove in and saved him against his sergeant's order. This book is even a good read for adults. The audio book is about six hours and has action at every turn. The book is truly amazing and full of questions that will make you ask yourself., “How much have I actually done with my life.”
There are so many questions in life that are “hard” the answer and most consider this to be that hardest, “What would you do?” Would you tell the officer about the kids and put their lives in danger, would you lie and say there was no one in the class who would ask or talk about stuff like that, or would you hold your ground and refuse to tell officer any thing. Now that the thought is in your head go read the book and when it comes time to answer the question, “what would you do?” You may already know.

[Kellen Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

IRP: The Warrior's Heart
First off, this book was very good I rate this book. This book can be rated about a 4 out of 5 stars. The author did a very good job of seperating details.


As clear as crystal. In the book The Warrior's Heart, Eric Greitens describes the rough life of servicemen to a whole new level. The way he portrays these characters in this message. Eric wants to challenge young readers to make a difference in the world and to not be afraid of chasing your dreams. The way he directs the reader is not confusing, he has a clear message and wants everyone to try and follow it. Eric was once a navy seal, has a PHd, and was a national boxing champion when he was younger, now he writes to young audiences to never give up on anything and to keep pushing through hard times.In the novel he has a good balance of the characters point of view, but also ties his own experiences into it to show the realistic side of things. The author's word choice throughout the novel helped the reader really imagine the hardships these servicemen (and himself) had to go through to be the responders they are now. He for sure draws the reader closer and more in depth in the novel. He will be talking about a subject that could not be important but with his words he can completely suck you into it with the extreme detail and word usage.
As good as Gold. In this novel right away you think of a true warrior, or soldier of some sort. This novel definitely showed that this was what the title and the table of contents it explained it was. It was a slow start to the book, the action didn't really start happening too quickly but that didn't change the fact that it met my expectations. The author did a really good job really stating the hardships him and his fellow servicemen had to endure during the whole entire novel, and he did a really good job portraying it to the reader. The facts of the story really didn't foreshadow the propaganda, it was very well put together and was good by itself not with the propaganda getting in its way. He sometimes did show signs of repetition,tying back to training to be seal and what he endured. I also feel as though he didn't use too much repetition though, he stayed consistent with newer information and tried not to repeat.

[Theodore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eric Greintens, The Warriors Heart. The main theme is determination, never giving up, and doing what's right even if it involves sacrifice. The author wanted us to understand that there is no succeeding without hard work and pain. This story is about the life and accomplishments of Eric Greitens. Eric went to Duke University and studied ethics and philosophy. Greitens then went to Oxford and earned his PhD. During college, Eric traveled to China to learn karate and learn about the Chinese culture and also traveled to Bosnia and Rwanda to help care for and aid refugees in camps. After college, the book talks about Eric going back to his home town in Missouri to box and build his strength for the Navy. All the work he did paid off when he went into Naval training in Coronado, California and became a Navy Seal. During the story, he writes about the challenges of Navy training and the commitment it took. The difficult training takes up most of the second half of the book, which concludes with a few scenes from his service in Iraq and a description of The Mission Continues, his nonprofit organization he created to help retired veterans. This book is a non-fiction autobiography and it takes place in Rwanda, Iraq, Bosnia, Eric's home town Missouri and China. The author makes me feel like I am really there in the book by adding a lot of imagery and description of scenes and places. The author also adequately describes Eric and other characters by introducing their back rounds, physical descriptions throughout the book, and in depth descriptions of their personality traits. Personally, I thought this book was a perfect mix of motivation and story telling. It used very accurate, thorough descriptions of places, people, and scenes. Although the author could have done a better job of using high-level vocabulary, it was still a great book to read. I like how the author puts the reader in a challenging situation and asks them questions like "what do you do?" during the scene when a soldier is struggling through the cold water during training. All in all, I would recommend this book to everyone because it is enjoyable no matter your age. I recommend reading this book because it is very motivating, fun to read, and is written well.

[Emily Adkisson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Warrior's Heart is an inspiring book of strength and courage. The author Eric Greitens traveled to many different countries during and after college such as Croatia, Bosnia, China, Romania, and Bolivia. There he met amazing people in refugee camps and homes he volunteered at. He heard many people telling their story of the war and what they had to live through. These people had gone through so much and were brave enough to keep fighting even though they faced horrible circumstances. Greitens had a desire to help and protect these people and this conviction eventually led him to join the Navy Seals. He endured months of brutal training and exhaustion and completed his BUD/S training. A good portion of the book was written about Hell Week, the dreaded fourth week in the training where all boundaries are pushed and trainees have to get by on 3-4 hours of sleep a night and running, swimming, and tests the other 20 hours. He was then deployed to Afghanistan for a short period of time before he was injured and sent back to the United States. Although, the training was not at all a waste because it made him mentally and physically stronger than he would ever have thought possible. The book did a great job of portraying the refugee camps and how hard life must have been for those living in them. However at some points in the book the author did seem like he glorified himself a lot. Obviously he has many accomplishments (boxing champion, Navy Seal, attended Army Airborne School where he learned to jump out planes, philanthropist, and more) but at times it seemed to get boring and towards the end of the book I was struggling to finish, which I probably would not have done if it was not required for school. In short, the stories of the refugees were inspiring and heart wrenching, learning about the things he had to do in Navy Seal training was kind of interesting but at some points it felt like a brag book.