The Warrior's Heart

Eric Greitens's memoir is a great read.  After weeks of putting it off thinking it would be too manly for me, I read the whole thing in one day!  What a great story about the importance of living a life of service.

The story starts when Greitens was in college and went on several humanitarian trips.  The first one led him to China where he taught English to college students and learned for the first time what it is like to live in a world with strong government control.  His students were hungry to learn anything about America, and when he learned that several of his students participated in the protests at Tienanmen Square, his view of the world really began to change.  These were normal people who were willing to risk everything to fight for their rights.

Greitens when on several other humanitarian trips before eventually deciding to join the military.  He knew that if he really wanted to make a difference in the world, he would need to step up and protect those who couldn't protect themselves.

The first half of the book describes Greitens humanitarian efforts that led him to the decision to join the military, and the second half mostly focuses on his SEAL training.  There he learned about strength, perseverance, and learning to protect his team.  Greitens class started with over 200 men, most owhom dropped out before graduation.

This is such a great read and an inspiring story.  I do want to mention that in the military section of book there is some "bleeped" profanity--the first and last letters with a dash in between.