Heart of a Soldier

A truly fantastic story from start to finish. A must read for those who appreciate heroism displayed by ordinary men who are called upon in dire circumstances.

I only heard of this 'bestseller' after it had been made into an opera. That's right, you read correctly! There's a brand new opera, based on the life story of Rick Rescorla, one of the two hearty soldiers in the book, and I attended the world premiere of it In San Francisco a week ago. There isn't much point in reviewing the opera per se here; it was a stunning success as a theatrical event but the music left little impression on me -- too episodic, too subordinate to the dramaturgy and stage business. The composer, Christopher Theofanidis, was not much in charge. He was commissioned after the fact, after impresario David Gockley and conductor Patrick Summers had concocted the project while they were both at the Houston Opera. The initial idea may even have come to them from stage director Francesca Zambello and/or librettist Donna di Novelli. To my mind, this was opera made backwards, starting with a theatrical vision and hiring music to support it. A Hollywood process, "producer-made" opera.But I was of two minds about the libretto and the concept of heroism that it presented. Rick Rescorla and Daniel j. Hill, the two soldiers of the book and the opera, both fought fiercely in Vietnam, the war that I myself protested, resisted, and fled. Rescorla went on to the the chief security officer of Morgan Stanley, the largest tenant of the World Trade Centers, and Rescorla's intrepid actions on Sept. 11, 2001, are credited with saving a multitude of lives. Rescorla himself died in the collapse of the second Tower. The opera went a little too far in the direction of mythologizing, wrapping itself complacently in the flag of patriotism, simplifying the moral and psychological issues of war and warriors, to satisfy me. So I decided to read the book ...... and honestly I didn't expect to like it. What to my surprise, the book is subtler and deeper in its depiction of the Hearts of the its two subjects, Rescorla and Hill, than the opera. The two are pretty obviously sublimated 'lovers' -- Achilles and Patrocles, Castor and Pollux -- two testosterone-maddened guys who feel themselves alive only in situations of mayhem. In a Norse saga, they'd be berserkers. In a foxhole or in any catastrophe, they'd be the guys you'd want next to you. But are they heroes or psychos? Are they people with a necessary role in society or are they in truth the prototypes of all terrorists and fanatics, DNA throwbacks to the mentality of the Stone Age? Any epic depiction between Homer and Verdi's military operas would have unquestioningly celebrate their courage. Most of the positive reviews of the book here on amazon interpret author James Stewart's text as a celebration of individual heroism.But it's not so simple. Stewart's portrayal of the two men is intelligently ambivalent. Both men are revealed to be troubled underachieving misfits in modern society. Neither is satisfied with his own life or easy with his conscience. Hill diverts his self-unease into religion; he becomes a Muslim. Rescorla represses his self-distaste by suppressing his memories, discounting his own 'heroic' deeds, and flinging his passion into a late-blooming love for a woman, Susan. He is plainly shamed and horrified by the realization that the war in Vietnam was both unjust and futile, a slaughter of humanity for mere politics and ideology. He is dying of prostate cancer, by the way, at the time of his late romance and his self-sacrifice on 9/11. The opera ignores that fact.Stewart's book is well done. Many of its insights into the two Soldiers' Hearts remain implicit. That's probably the only way the book could avoid being preachy or polemical. The portrayal is as thoughtful as the reader chooses to be thoughtful about it.

(Sorry if this review is too long, and sorry if the first part is about me and not the book. I put it in here to help give some context as to why this book affected me so intensely.)I joined the Army at 29 years old in April of 2001 and spent the summer of 2001 at Infantry basic training. My report date to Fort Hood was September 12, 2001. I awoke the morning of September 11 to the news reports of the attack on the WTC and had turned the TV on just minutes before the second plane hit. When I reported to Fort Hood the next day, the base was on lockdown. Cars had to be searched and my first night at the Replacement Depot I was assigned guard duty on the barracks that we stayed in.A week later, I was assigned to D Company, Second Battalion of the Seventh Cavalry Regiment. I learned about the battalion's history starting as B Troop 7th Cav under Custer, and about the Regiment's storied history in the Pacific in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. I read "We Were Soldiers" and watched the movie, and I felt a kinship with my fellow GarryOwen troopers. D Company was folded into C Company a couple of years later, and the "Comanches" of C 2/7 deployed to Iraq in 2004. We fought in Baghad and Fallujah.Even though he was in "We Were Soldiers", I didn't really learn about Rick Rescorla until much later. Sometime in 2011 or 2012, I read an article about him and was surprised to learn that he was integral in saving the lives of so many on 9/11, and that he had been in 2/7 in Vietnam. I re-read "We Were Soldiers" and at the time, "Heart of a Soldier" was out of print and not available as an ebook. It finally came out as ebook and I must say that this is one of the most moving biographies that I have read."Heart of a Soldier" is an extremely well written account of Rick's life, and not just the "good" or the "exciting" parts. I feel that the author took the time to get to know Rick through all of his interview subjects and that shows through in the prose. I couldn't put the book down and I read it over the course of a few days in whatever spare time I could, but when I got to the chapter on 9/11 I just couldn't get through it. I ended up in the bathroom at work crying my eyes out during lunchtime. I couldn't help thinking about the extraordinary heroism that this man had. It also stirred up feelings of pride to have been a fellow 2/7 trooper and sadness thinking about the soldiers that C Company lost in Iraq.Bravery is one thing, it is standing up to fear, controlling it, and doing what needs to be done in spite of that fear. Heroism is another thing completely. Heroism to me means bravery on behalf of others, and Rick Rescorla is, in my opinion, one of the most heroic people that I have heard of.

I knew the story of Rick Rescorla fairly well, but the book gave me so much more detail and insight. It left me in tears, a fantastic read. He was truly a remarkable man, and you won't regret purchasing it!

SO VERY MOVING. WHAT A MAN!

Thoroughly enjoyed.

one hell of a (true) story.fascinating read.real hero.