Sog: Secret Wars of America's Commandos in Vietnam

Studies & Observations Group. Seldom has a military unit's title so inadequately described what they actually did. Which was, of course, the point. I have read many books on the subject of Special Forces & covert ops in Vietnam. This is, without doubt, the best. Still utterly compelling and inspiring, even now on the third read. What you have to keep reminding yourself, when reading this book, is that it is a true account of a secret war. So brave, heroic, selfless & daring were the deeds carried out by the men of SOG, it is easy to forget that they were real events that happened to real people in real danger. It's a gripping account of the activities of men, who's job it was to play the most dangerous game of `cat & mouse' imaginable. SOG men volunteered to go into hostile territory in small teams (typically 6 to 8 men), surrounded by thousands of enemy soldiers and bring back vital intelligence which was almost certainly responsible for saving many thousands of American lives. Sometime they did this completely undetected, all too often they had to run and fight for their lives to escape a vastly numerically superior foe intent on their destruction. John Plaster recounts many recon missions and the battle for survival SOG men faced each time they waged their silent war against the VC and NVA. You can almost feel the fear and adrenaline generated from such dangerous work. Almost. No book could ever truly give you a full understanding of how it felt to do what SOG did, but this book gets closer than any other I've read. At times this book also made me angry. All too often, deeds of heroism and bravery went unrecognized, due partly to the secret nature of what SOG did but sometimes due to the incompetence of the military. Although several SOG men received The Congressional Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War, it is clear many more should have. That said, the men of SOG didn't fight for medals or for some ideological hatred of communism. They fought and died for each other, their fellow soldiers, their "brothers". The greatest accolade for a SOG man wasn't a medal, (Purple Hearts were often not even requested) it was to be considered to be "good in the woods" by their peers. During The Vietnam War, SOG suffered a casualty rate of over 100% (every man wounded at least once). The unit had a kill ratio of 150:1 (150 enemy dead for each SOG operator killed). After reading this book you'll understand why they were so effective and you'll be amazed that their casualty rate wasn't higher.

Great book well written and very informative about the secret war fought by SOG.

As highly interested about SOG stories, this is book that must be in any library of SOG stories fans and historians.

Listened to a podcast he was on called SOG Cast by tilt. Never judge a book by its cover, John's a super humble guy after all these years. Damn Legend!

Ancien membre de cette unité des Forces Spéciales US, John Plaster livre ici un excellent ouvrage historique. Le contexte de la création et de l'évolution du MACV SOG ( il fut créé afin de reprendre en compte la conduite d'opérations clandestines dans la péninsule indochinoise après que la CIA ait fait la démonstration de son incapacité à les gérer) est bien rendu, les récits des incroyables missions de reconnaissance ou d'action directe effectuées dans la profondeur du dispositif ennemi au Nord Vietnam, au Laos ou ailleurs sont remarquables et les nombreux portraits d'opérateurs Américains ou de recrutement local apportent une touche humaine très appréciable. Les conditions d'exécution des missions, les pertes très lourdes subies par les reconnaissance teams, les nombreux disparus apportent, si besoin était, la preuve de la très grande difficulté des tâches confiées aux unités du MACV SOG; en raison de la nature hautement secrète des missions menées, ces combattants d'exception ne reçurent d'ailleurs que rarement la reconnaissance à laquelle ils auraient pu légitimement prétendre. Etayé par plus d'une centaine d'interviews d'anciens du MACV SOG, le travail de recherche ayant mené à la publication de ce livre est remarquable d'autant plus qu'en tant qu'ancien de l'unité sur laquelle il écrit, l'auteur aurait pu être tenté de s'en dispenser au prétexte qu'il était sur le terrain et qu'il connait donc l'histoire du MACV SOG . Un seul regret: le livre est écrit en petits caractères et la reliure est faite de telle manière que le dernier mot de chaque phrase est parfois tronqué. En conclusion, l'un des meilleurs livres que j'ai pu lire sur les opérations spéciales menées par les USA en Asie du Sud Est.