500 Miles an Hour

by Shawn Garrett

The story he has to tell is one of trauma and heartache, but also of comradery, nobility, and the strength to survive. His story is private, but in a way it is also shared by anyone who puts on a uniform and serves. A United States Marine, he attempts to reclaim his life after returning from Iraq.

In 500 Miles An Hour, retired Staff Sergeant Shawn Garrett displays not only the sharp reality of military service, but the healing power of sharing your story with others. Reality shines through in the brutal honesty, the intense emotions, and the brotherhood shared by those who give their all in the name of their country.

130 pages, Paperback

First published February 12, 2015

Reviews

[Heather Ashby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m going to let this awesome book speak for itself. Following are Garrett’s words as he describes his PTSD in 500 Miles an Hour: “My heart was broken and my soul was gone. All that was left was a shell of a man sitting in what was the wreckage of my life . . . All of the despair, sadness, pain, heartbreak, the loss of those I considered my sons, the loss of my best friend, and the broken pieces of my soul scattered across the battlefield . . . As I sat in the rubble, the rush of emotions was overwhelming . . . I was feeling the best way to deal with this BS was to deny that any of it ever happened.” And even more: “I would just replay it in my mind, day and night, like a never-ending rodeo, with the bull jumping around my brain, knocking into all the important stuff.”

Garrett found healing by writing 500 Miles an Hour. He says, “At first I wrote this story for me and me alone for my healing purposes. As I wrote, I realized that other people could benefit from my story because if I found that path of healing, others could too.”

Patricia Watson Ph.D. Senior Educational Specialist - National Center for PTSD says this in the introduction: “Anyone who has spent time in combat, or has loved someone who has been in combat, or has lost someone in combat, will find familiar territory and very real, clear guideposts here.” God bless Shawn Garrett for his journey and bless all the troops who will be led to healing by reading 500 Miles an Hour.

[Skye Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shawn Garrett has bared his soul as a soldier to write an intense book that can't fail to touch anyone who cares about the men and women who put their lives on the line for an ideal called America. His character, Sgt Whitehead heads off to war convinced he is ready for what is to come. He comes home broken and disillusioned, but not ready to give up on himself or what he believes in. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good war story or anyone who wants a close up view of what our current wars are like and what it does to the men we ask to fight them.

[John Whitaker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shawn, like his hero, is a warrior. He has lived through horrible battle conditions and in this down-to-earth novel vividly shows the effects of PTSD