Not only is Mr. Clancy a writer of riveting tales, he produces a highly worthy documentary narrative of non-fiction military subjects as well.

This is a Marine Corps reference for all. Even as a Marine Corps veteran myself, having deployed aboard ship to Somalia, this is a highly readable tome of knowledge. Within these pages you will learn about the amphibious warfare capabilities of America's MOST PROFESSIONAL and EFFECTIVE branch of service.

I have served in both the army and Marines. Ignore the cowardly negative reviews from those who stupidly disparage this book. If you haven't served in the Marines, you have no grounds to criticize. Any Marine will gladly face you man-to-man if you want a "debate".

SEMPER FIDELIS

This book first came out when I was a young, eager, yet naive Cadet at The Citadel pursuing a commission in the USMC. When it hit the shelves I snapped it up instantly and suddenly realized that there was much more to the Marine Corps than Cammie Paint, Physical Training, Marksmanship, and Dress Blues. This book gives the reader a nuts and bolts breakdown of the expeditionary force in readiness of the USMC the MEU (SOC).



Though most of the technology covered in the book is well out of date at this point in time, the formations, unit size, missions, and structure remain basically unchanged. Anyone interested in the way the Marine Corps task organizes for combat and other real world operations should read this book. Moreover, anyone interested in the day to day operations and training of Marines for war will find this book informative. Make no mistake though, it can get very technical and it is about the primary function of the Marine Corps which is Warfighting. Warfighting is not just a sexy term, it embodies all the funtions of Marine operations and is in fact, the way that everything in the Marine Corps is geared towards.



Personally, this book helped shape the course of my career. I knew that I wanted to go out on a MEU (SOC) and at the time I came in the Corps the place where the MEU was the mission was Camp Lejeune, NC. (Not a dig to the Hollywood Marines, I MEF has always had bigger fish to fry. Not disputing that.) Camp Lejeune where the book is set has truly mastered what it takes to assemble a MEU, lash them together, and send them into harms way. The MEUs from Camp Lejeune have performed every mission of the MEU in their history. Beirut was Lejeune Marines, the first wave into Bosnia were Marines from a Lejeune MEU, the Non-combatant Evacuations of Liberia were performed by Lejeune based MEUs. I wanted very much to be a part of all of that. Also, being assigned to a MEU makes being stationed at Camp Lejeune easier to cope with, it's a great place to live as long as you're away from it 50% of the time!



The MEUs are truly where the Marine Corps puts its long ball hitters. Of the major characters covered in Marine, Colonel Allen went on to command The Basic School (where Marine Lieutenants are trained), is currently a Major General and is now the deputy division commander of II MEF. Colonel Battaglini also made it to Major General and retired recently having been the Director of Expeditionary Warfare Division, Department of the Navy, having also commanded the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade and the 3rd Marine Division. Another one of the commanders in the book LtCol Lefebvre went on to command the 22nd MEU as a Colonel, is currently a Brigadier General and is the Commanding General of MCRD Parris Island and the Eastern Recruiting Region. These 3 gentlemen are just 3 examples of the type of officers who succeed in the Marine Corps, they are Warfighters up one side and down the other. I would go to war with any one of them, any day.



If you are looking for a primer in modern Marine Corps Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures as well as an easy to comprehend picture of Expeditionary Operations this is a book you will enjoy. This is truly how the United States projects power throughout the world, responds to crisis, and influences tense international sitiations. Well worth the money.

This book first came out when I was a young, eager, yet naive Cadet at The Citadel pursuing a commission in the USMC. When it hit the shelves I snapped it up instantly and suddenly realized that there was much more to the Marine Corps than Cammie Paint, Physical Training, Marksmanship, and Dress Blues. This book gives the reader a nuts and bolts breakdown of the expeditionary force in readiness of the USMC the MEU (SOC).

Though most of the technology covered in the book is well out of date at this point in time, the formations, unit size, missions, and structure remain basically unchanged. Anyone interested in the way the Marine Corps task organizes for combat and other real world operations should read this book. Moreover, anyone interested in the day to day operations and training of Marines for war will find this book informative. Make no mistake though, it can get very technical and it is about the primary function of the Marine Corps which is Warfighting. Warfighting is not just a sexy term, it embodies all the funtions of Marine operations and is in fact, the way that everything in the Marine Corps is geared towards.

Personally, this book helped shape the course of my career. I knew that I wanted to go out on a MEU (SOC) and at the time I came in the Corps the place where the MEU was the mission was Camp Lejeune, NC. (Not a dig to the Hollywood Marines, I MEF has always had bigger fish to fry. Not disputing that.) Camp Lejeune where the book is set has truly mastered what it takes to assemble a MEU, lash them together, and send them into harms way. The MEUs from Camp Lejeune have performed every mission of the MEU in their history. Beirut was Lejeune Marines, the first wave into Bosnia were Marines from a Lejeune MEU, the Non-combatant Evacuations of Liberia were performed by Lejeune based MEUs. I wanted very much to be a part of all of that. Also, being assigned to a MEU makes being stationed at Camp Lejeune easier to cope with, it's a great place to live as long as you're away from it 50% of the time!

The MEUs are truly where the Marine Corps puts its long ball hitters. Of the major characters covered in Marine, Colonel Allen went on to command The Basic School (where Marine Lieutenants are trained), is currently a Major General and is now the deputy division commander of II MEF. Colonel Battaglini also made it to Major General and retired recently having been the Director of Expeditionary Warfare Division, Department of the Navy, having also commanded the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade and the 3rd Marine Division. Another one of the commanders in the book LtCol Lefebvre went on to command the 22nd MEU as a Colonel, is currently a Brigadier General and is the Commanding General of MCRD Parris Island and the Eastern Recruiting Region. These 3 gentlemen are just 3 examples of the type of officers who succeed in the Marine Corps, they are Warfighters up one side and down the other. I would go to war with any one of them, any day.

If you are looking for a primer in modern Marine Corps Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures as well as an easy to comprehend picture of Expeditionary Operations this is a book you will enjoy. This is truly how the United States projects power throughout the world, responds to crisis, and influences tense international sitiations. Well worth the money.

I was a Marine at the time this book was written. For me it was a great tool to hand to me friends and family. Although the equipment is now outdated, the mission is still the same. With the majority of today's conflicts becoming lower intensity, the USMC MEU(SOC) is an ever greater tool for American interests abroad. The fact that some posters here are so anti-USMC surprises me. The Army doesn't need to bash the USMC, they have separate missions. This was proven in Iraq and Afghanistan. A large Army is still as relevant and necessary as well as a fast mobile and forward deployed quick reaction force like the Marines. In fact, as the occupation of Iraq shows, we still need a large number of US Army ground pounders to accomplish the age old task or holding the ground so dearly fought for. Let the Marines do their job and the Army do its.

"Some" previous posts ignore a lot of common sense and history. They also distort the numbers. In reality, the army has a 24 to one ratio of support troops to combat troops. The USMC has about 8 to one. Now where's the bargain for the US taxpayers? Truth is the USMC has a lot more than 3 battalions and if you count the Marine Corps creedo of "Every Marine a rifleman" that ratio is now one to one. In addition, the publicity and fear the USMC exerts in the world of international politics is well known. The term "Send in the Marines" is synonymous with taking action and saving the situation. All of the Army's berets and "Army of One" slogans could never buy that kind of reputation.

The truth is the Army is now taking a page from the USMC's manual and shedding its heavy Armor and support units. Lighter faster, more mobile and hard hitting are its new mantras. The fact is the Army has had to adapt to a Marine Corps style of operation to stay relevant, not the other way around. The Marine Corps has no competition in its function. To call ship obsolete, you should call the Army's heavy tanks and armored vehicles obsolete. To compare the British naval action in Argentina with any situation the US Navy might find itself in today is just plain ignorant and shows that "someone" has never read a book on the Falkland conflict. The British navy spent 20 years adapting to a Soviet submarine threat and were wholly unprepared for a giant naval convoy and invasion circa 1944. They had to commission passenger liners and bring ships out of mothballs. Everyone knows their Aircraft were seriously outmatched. Harriers are not air superiority fighters and were no match against the Skyhawks and Mirage's of the Argentine AF. Yet through good old British ingenuity they proved themselves worthy and eventually won the day.

So what's my point? Simply that the USMC is here to stay. Read the book and find out why. There is no greater guided tour of what today's Marine Corps is made of. There is nothing quite like them in the world today. They are not elite troops, but they fight and act like it. You'll see that America's 911 force has a lot more going for it than other posters will ever allow themselves to admit.

For a final parting shot I ask the posters who feel the USMC is irrelevant and a waste of money -Who occupies three of the six most prestigious military posts in the US Armed Forces. Let's see:

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of staff (incidently the #1 spot) - General Peter Pace
Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR)- Gen James Jones
NATO Military representative, Gen Edward Hanlon

What branch of service do you suppose these gentlemen came from?

The United States Marine Corps.

I enjoyed the non fiction but understand it's somewhat dated now. But it is difficult to find similar material especially here in New Zealand where my resources are lilmited.

The United States Marine Corps, as best-selling author Tom Clancy explains in the fourth entry in the Guided Tour series, is America's most hallowed armed service. Marine: A Guided Tour of a Marine Expeditionary Unit, is an in-depth look at a Marine Expeditionary Unit - Special Operations Capable, a 2,000-strong assault force equipped with armor, artillery and a small but powerful air support detachment that is capable of executing many types of military operations.

Currently, seven MEU(SOC)s are in active service; three each on each coast, plus one in Okinawa with the Third Marine Division. Each unit can carry out almost any type of operation, ranging from short-duration raids on an enemy shore to providing humanitarian assistance after a natural or man-made disaster. Clancy describes the tools and weapons used by the men and women of a MEU(SOC), the amphibious ships of the Navy (the Corps' parent service) as well as the history and doctrine of the United States Marines. There is an interview with the 31st Commandant of the Marines, as well as a fictional depiction of how a MEU(SOC) might be employed in a future combat.

The thoroughness and deep respect Tom Clancy brings to this analysis of a US Marine Corps Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable), or MEU (SOC), will not surprise anyone at all familiar with the author. What makes this book different from his similar titles about Army and Air Force units, as he notes early on, is that whereas technology is a key element in defining the armored cav unit or air wing, the principle distinctive for the Marine Corps is the Marine ethos and, therefore, the Marines themselves. Clancy does a fine job in capturing what makes the USMC unique among American, and indeed the world's, military forces.

Liking or disliking Clancy's writing is largely a matter of taste. Though I generally find him informative and reasonably insightful, he does tend to go on. Though "Marine" is relatively more compact than some other of his titles, here too I occasionally found myself skimming over long sections on training or, especially, the various weapons and other "tools of the trade" the Corps uses. Other people might find these the highlight of the book, though. To each his own.

On the whole, this book is a fine overview, not only of what a MEU (SOC) is and how it operates, but the larger issue of why we have a Corps and what makes it distinctive. As some of the reviews on this page indicate, the Corps is the only American military force that continually has to justify (to some) its existence. This book, like Victor Krulak's "First to Fight" (USNI Press, 1984), helps do that. It would also be a very valuable read for someone considering becoming a Marine, or for family members and friends wondering what their Marine has gone through, and why. This book may not be for everyone, but Clancy fans will definitely enjoy it, and interested readers will probably get a lot out of it.