This book is about their NYC origins, response on Sept 11, and the transition of the modern 69th from a marginal National Guard unit to an effective fighting force in Iraq. As a Civil War reenactor, I was thrilled to learn more about the awesome tradition. In 2000, I slept overnight on the floor of the Regimental Armory and marched in the St. Patrick's day parade. The old place is gritty and the roof looks like its wrapped in duck tape. But all the battle streamers were there in a grimy display case, still proud after all those years; more decorations than any unit in the world, but for the Black Watch. The history is mostly in the first disk, then it gets into a tactical chronology. The unit is only about 13% Irish now, but, as expected, still mostly immigrants. As they say "If anything forlorn, insane or desperate was needed, then they called for the 69th". Faugha Ballagh !

This is the real deal on the National Guard. Having served in the National Guard during its transformation back into an effective fighting force, I was relieved that someone explained honestly, what it's like in a guard unit. It made my heart swell with pride as it is perfect example of the American dream come true. ANY American can achieve true glory and honor through dedication and courage.

This book, as its subtitle indicates, is about "one Remarkable National Guard Unit's Journey from Ground Zero to Baghdad." It is a well-written and interesting remarkable tale of human and group growth. It is the story of one of the nation's worst military units with soldiers who could not give a damn about virtually anything, who became patriots who fought for our nation, many of whom sacrificed their lives.
Although unstated by its author, the phrase "Ground Zero" has two meanings. The first is the unit's soul-piercing experiences in New York at Ground Zero on September 11, 2001. The second meaning is a description of the unit's low level of morale and military preparedness for several decades until that date.
The Fighting 69th is an army battalion. A battalion is composed of 500 to 700 soldiers led by a lieutenant colonel. The 69th was founded in New York in 1851 and was originally made up of Irish Americans. It had a remarkable heroic history. In fact a movie, The Fighting 69th staring James Cagney, was made about the battalion. However the unit deteriorated in the mid twentieth century.
Hardly any of the 69th's members were now of Irish descent. Most of its soldiers had joined the unit for selfish unpatriotic reasons, for money and to get away from their wives, to spend time drinking alcohol. The unit became a bad joke.
National Guard units are generally used only in the US to respond to hurricanes, ice storms and other natural disasters. They are low priority units outside the US, and used outside the US only in near emergency situation, and are funded, trained, equipped and manned accordingly, very poorly. As bad as most National Guard units are, the 69th had deteriorated to be at the very bottom rung.
However, when Ground Zero was attacked on 9-11-2001, the battalion's commander called his soldiers to the site to help the survivors and to secure the area. The soldiers found that they were the first National Guard unit to respond and they felt proud of the help they could give. The experience sparked a sense of patriotism among the 69th. This experience began their slow climb back to respectability.
President Bush declared that the US was now at war. Various units of the National Guard were mobilized to active duty. After helping at ground zero, the 69th was called to active duty for a year-long security mission to help secure West Point Academy. This was the unit's first wartime mobilization since World War II.
Then, to the utter surprise of this "homeland defense force," the 69th was mobilized again to go to Iraq. Thus the unit that had been at the very bottom of the pile in the military served in Iraq until September 2005.
The unit's first mission was to suppress enemy fire against Camp Cooke, twenty miles from Baghdad. When the 69th hit the streets, the mortar fire that had devastated the US troops for many months, ceased. The other soldiers at Camp Cooke lauded the wok of the 69th. Now they felt safe. They did not have to wear the heavy body armor any more at the base. Then the 69th fought at Taji where they captured more than a hundred insurgents in just a few months.
Among many other events, Sean Michael Flynn tells the story of how and why a member of the 69th accidentally killed an important senior officer in the Italian military intelligence and security service who had been kidnapped by Iraqi insurgent forces and had just been ransomed for five million dollars. This event was widely publicized in newspapers and TV. Flynn describes the event and shows why the 69th was not to blame.
The 69th left Iraq on September 10, 2005, exactly four years after 9/11, the day that America was viciously attacked, the day that the 69th came back to life. But rather than bask in their glory, many members of the 69th rushed down to New Orleans to help the beleaguered city that had been struck and almost destroyed by a hurricane.
The unit acted heroically in Iraq, but they suffered greatly. Nineteen members of the 69th were killed in Iraq and eighty-six others were wounded. The nineteen soldiers who were killed left behind sixteen children.
People who want to learn something about the inner workings of the military and what was happening in Iraq, will want to read this book.

This book, as its subtitle indicates, is about "one Remarkable National Guard Unit's Journey from Ground Zero to Baghdad." It is a well-written and interesting remarkable tale of human and group growth. It is the story of one of the nation's worst military units with soldiers who could not give a damn about virtually anything, who became patriots who fought for our nation, many of whom sacrificed their lives.
Although unstated by its author, the phrase "Ground Zero" has two meanings. The first is the unit's soul-piercing experiences in New York at Ground Zero on September 11, 2001. The second meaning is a description of the unit's low level of morale and military preparedness for several decades until that date.
The Fighting 69th is an army battalion. A battalion is composed of 500 to 700 soldiers led by a lieutenant colonel. The 69th was founded in New York in 1851 and was originally made up of Irish Americans. It had a remarkable heroic history. In fact a movie, The Fighting 69th staring James Cagney, was made about the battalion. However the unit deteriorated in the mid twentieth century.
Hardly any of the 69th's members were now of Irish descent. Most of its soldiers had joined the unit for selfish unpatriotic reasons, for money and to get away from their wives, to spend time drinking alcohol. The unit became a bad joke.
National Guard units are generally used only in the US to respond to hurricanes, ice storms and other natural disasters. They are low priority units outside the US, and used outside the US only in near emergency situation, and are funded, trained, equipped and manned accordingly, very poorly. As bad as most National Guard units are, the 69th had deteriorated to be at the very bottom rung.
However, when Ground Zero was attacked on 9-11-2001, the battalion's commander called his soldiers to the site to help the survivors and to secure the area. The soldiers found that they were the first National Guard unit to respond and they felt proud of the help they could give. The experience sparked a sense of patriotism among the 69th. This experience began their slow climb back to respectability.
President Bush declared that the US was now at war. Various units of the National Guard were mobilized to active duty. After helping at ground zero, the 69th was called to active duty for a year-long security mission to help secure West Point Academy. This was the unit's first wartime mobilization since World War II.
Then, to the utter surprise of this "homeland defense force," the 69th was mobilized again to go to Iraq. Thus the unit that had been at the very bottom of the pile in the military served in Iraq until September 2005.
The unit's first mission was to suppress enemy fire against Camp Cooke, twenty miles from Baghdad. When the 69th hit the streets, the mortar fire that had devastated the US troops for many months, ceased. The other soldiers at Camp Cooke lauded the wok of the 69th. Now they felt safe. They did not have to wear the heavy body armor any more at the base. Then the 69th fought at Taji where they captured more than a hundred insurgents in just a few months.
Among many other events, Sean Michael Flynn tells the story of how and why a member of the 69th accidentally killed an important senior officer in the Italian military intelligence and security service who had been kidnapped by Iraqi insurgent forces and had just been ransomed for five million dollars. This event was widely publicized in newspapers and TV. Flynn describes the event and shows why the 69th was not to blame.
The 69th left Iraq on September 10, 2005, exactly four years after 9/11, the day that America was viciously attacked, the day that the 69th came back to life. But rather than bask in their glory, many members of the 69th rushed down to New Orleans to help the beleaguered city that had been struck and almost destroyed by a hurricane.
The unit acted heroically in Iraq, but they suffered greatly. Nineteen members of the 69th were killed in Iraq and eighty-six others were wounded. The nineteen soldiers who were killed left behind sixteen children.
People who want to learn something about the inner workings of the military and what was happening in Iraq, will want to read this book.

Dr. Israel Drazin is the author of a series of books on Maimonides, a twelfth century rational philosopher, and the co-author of a series of books on Targum Onkelos, the earliest existing translation of the Hebrew Bible. Both are published by Gefen Publishing House, [...]

An interesting chronicle of how the culture of the National Guard has shifted away from the pre- 9/11 mentality and moved full court to a warrior credo. This book examines one unit's journey back to being a proud infantry unit.

I was amazed at the detail this book offered. I have read several books on this subject and I am always partial to the ones written from the soldier's perspective. There was an added bonus with The Fighting 69th as I am privileged enough to know one of the remarkable men mentioned in this book and his devotion to his country. It was truly a remarkable story that reviled the hardships this unit (as well as other's) had to overcome to survive to make their journey home. Its a must read for anyone who believes in our soldiers regardless if you believe in the war.

I'll use a word in the title: Remarkable! This is an excellent book. Get it.

I heard the author being interviewed and was interested as a retired reservist. Great story. I could relate to problems with 'old guard'. I was in NY on 9/11 and had that tie. My best to the 69th.

Hu Rah account of a rag-tag group of guys who were first on the scene after the 911 attacks and followed the war to Iraq with a personal score to settle with the radicals who murdered thier freinds and neighbors. A good read. My only complaint - I wanted to hear more about the author himself.

This is a must read book for all Americans: civilians, regulars, Congressmen, fellow reserve component Soldiers, etc. It's also a must read for the enemy, too, as you must understand the true mettle of the American fighting man when aroused or face the consequences. As a Reserve Component Infantry Soldier (both Guard and Reserve) who was also called up to do a Homeland Security mission (01-02), a tour in Bosnia (02-03), and then one in Iraq (05-06), the experiences and opinions shared in this book are shared. I said, "A-men!" or "Ha!" or "I can't believe how similar..." a lot...and loved the author's penmanship.

I especially liked the comments about military bureaucrats--the antithesis of the WARRIORS we say we treasure. I was also drawn to the book because of all the connections. e.g., I met BG Basilica, the 69th's brigade commander at the War College in 07, I also went through a non-sensicle train-up in the states, went through Camp Buering (in August!) like the 69th IN, went through "Campus Victory" for a couple days, was posted in Taji for a week before going to Fallujah as an Iraqi Army advisor in 2005-06, and basically compared my experiences with theirs. I also loved how the book is a TRUE LEADERSHIP MANUAL.

Only one point of order: the author claims that we got BS training in the states (and we did) because of what happened to PFC Jessica Lynch and her company of loggies. I agree with that point but the author states that she and her company were Reservists. They were not, amigo, but Regulars(small detail to correct the historical record).

The modern-day 1-69th US Infantry (TF Wolfhound), which literally went from the pit to the palace, reminded me a lot of Wheat's Tigers, the infamous 1st Louisiana Special Battalion of 1861-62. In fact, they are the absolute incarnation of the original Tigers.The First Louisiana Special Battalion: Wheat's Tigers in the Civil War

If the author of this book is reading this, please contact me at gary.schrecengost on my army.mil account and give me an address so I can give you all a copy of my book on Wheat's Tigers (see it on Amazon), as you fellows embody the true spirit of the American Citizen Soldier. Huzzah and a TIGER and pass the beer and the ammo and NEVER FORGET THOSE WHO GAVE THIER LIVES. The next time I'm at Gettysburg, I'll be sure to leave a card of memorandum for my brothers from the 69th at their monument along the Wheatfield. Semper Paratus, and This, We'll Defend: To the Death.

This book left me speechless. I am a US Army Infantry officer and have read about 150 military books. Never have I read anything quite like this. With regard to the guy who gave it one star, I suspect he might be a racist who wasn't the least bit happy to read a book about a bunch of poor immigrant kids serving their newly-adopted homeland and exceling. (Those people do exist.)

The writing and the events depicted in the book were both quite depressing. The author was obviously kissing up to Ltc. Slack who IMHO was/is a brick shy of a load. I got very little that was interesting from this book and lots that disgusted me. Of the hundreds of military history that I have read, I rank this as the worst.

Captain Flynn tells the story of the National Guardsmen who served in the 69th Infantry in the aftermath of the 911 attacks in New York and in service in Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He does not romanticize the experience or try to cover up short comings of this fabled unit but tells the story with clarity and honesty and with the voice of one whose own boots were on the ground. This book is a must read for anybody interest in the history of this unit or in the conduct of the war in Iraq. Thank you Captain Flynn

This is a must read book for every family member who had a member serving with the 69th in Iraq. Thank you Sean Michael Flynn for putting many unknowns into perspective. Now we know why we had little feedback from our officer son during Sept 2004 to Sept 2005.

So it drags a little in spots....but very interesting and what an awesome group of men! Plus it helps that my brother is in the book!

This is an easy read about a difficult subject. Didn't want to put it down from beginning to end. Interesting story for guys, and I know the girls will like it, too. Share it with your friends!

Excellent book on a Famous Unit. The 69th's struggle from a Down & Out Unit pre 9-11 to Successful Combat Soldiers in Iraq makes for a good read. The Central Characters Journey from Ground Zero to Iraq is an Odyssey the reader will remember.

Author pulls no punches about Infantry Combat in Baghdad & Taji