by James Owen
Well, I guess Howard Wasdin didn't expect to survive as the lone operative on the bow of a ship carrying men working for Saddam Hussein. Nor did he probably expect to survive as he laid naked on a runway with two bullets in both of his legs, one leg nearly blown off. But that is all in a day's work for a United States Navy SEAL (SEa Air and Land) sniper.
When the United States Navy sends their elite, they send the SEALs. When the SEALs send their elite, they send SEAL Team Six: a top secret tier of the SEAL Teams that specializes in counter-terrorism. This is the story of Howard Wasdin: a SEAL Team Six sniper who lived through the Navy's grueling selection process for the SEALs, managed to get through training to get into SEAL Team Six, and lived through one of the bloodiest battles in U.S. military history. Join him as he takes you on a first person journey through the through the death stricken streets of Mogadishu, Somalia, the barren deserts of Iraq, and in the bay of a helicopter as its blades are sheared off. He recounts the exciting, the terrifying, and the embarrassing parts of his life. But for a SEAL, the only easy day was yesterday.
Themes
Howard Wasdin takes you through his life in this story and recalls many thematic moments.
He recounts his relationship with his brutal and abusive stepfather and how they reconciled. He brings up the topic of family and how difficult it is to balance home life with the SEAL Teams. He talks about the pain of war and how much it tears people apart. He discusses his faith and the morality of killing.
The themes of SEAL Team Six are good conversation starters and leave the readers with some interesting thoughts, However, you must take into consideration your maturity level before reading this book.
Content
Being the genre that it is, SEAL Team Six is littered with frequent language and war violence.
War violence throughout this book is something to be expected. The author recalls times when his stepfather would mercilessly beat him with a belt until he bled. Wasdin describes a man's death as he orders a missile in to destroy a compound. He uses fairly flippant language in describing using his sniper rifle to kill people. During the Battle of Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993, which is recounted in this book, the United States sustained heavy casualties including 18 Special Forces troops killed and 72 wounded. Wasdin describes being on the run in no-man's-land in Mogadishu, being chased and shot at. During the battle, Wasdin is forced to gun down women being used as shields to protect the insurgents that were firing at them. When he is first shot, Wasdin describes how his leg was contorted into grotesque positions. This book certainly has its share of violence.
The language throughout the book is purposefully kept moderate in strength, however, there is plenty of it. The stronger words are referred to in the book by their first letter. Other than swearing, some crass speech is used.
There is a couple of scenes that have some sexually suggestive content. Wasdin has a section where he talks about his experiences with French kissing and dating in high school. He talks about a club that he and his SEAL Team buddies visited, though he is sure not to go into much detail and rebukes their behavior. He recounts a divorce with his unfaithful wife and remarriage. While these scenes are not painstakingly described, they could be an issue for some readers.
Conclusion
If you read this book, you will realize and understand how much our military goes through to protect our country. As the author recalls his experiences in combat, he concludes the same as another famous author: "War is hell."
The content of the novel may present a concern for younger readers. However, one must take into consideration that this is a true story and it would be a lie if it didn't include this content. For those younger readers who are interested in this story, Wasdin has written a different version of this book called I Am A SEAL Team Six Warrior, which is essentially the same book, but with the content toned down.
I would recommend SEAL Team Six for ages fifteen and up. If you are younger, you might want to look into I Am A SEAL Team Six Warrior.
As Wasdin described his journey to hell and back, I found myself sitting in dumbfound awe. What am I doing? I thought to myself. There are men out there risking their life and limb so I can cuddle up and watch Loony Toons. After reading this book, I made a point to try to thank every serviceman that I came into contact with. The initial reason I read this book was for research and to get context for a story that I was writing about the SEALs. After I finished the book, I didn't even go back to the story I was writing. Because nothing could compare to the story of a real United States Navy SEAL.
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