Jan Breytenbach

Excellent war memoirs of a rather unconventional military commander leading more then unconventional combat outfit.

From the very start - landing on old airstrip not knowing whether friend or foe is holding it - through meeting with soldiers that Breytenbach is to train and lead, the lightning tempo of operation Savannah that took South Africans leading their Angolan troops [a total unknown to South Africans in terms on how these will behave under fire and also South Africans being total unknowns to Angolans who fought for years and been used by their commanders as cannon fodder] into the very heart of Angola, complete and utter breakdown of African nation - so many factions in Angola it is reminiscent of Middle East, where everyone is ready to stab the other in the back, literally, and where civilians lives mean so little - trials under fire of the new unit and its progress to the elite fighting unit in South African Armed Forces [at the time this book was originally written, which I think is 1986] this is very fast paced book that keeps you glued to its pages from beginning to the end.

Highly recommended to history and military aficionados.
… (mais)