CALL SIGN CHAOS

A MEMOIR OF A FIGHTING SOLDIER, FROM MARINE CORPS RECRUIT TO FOUR-STAR GENERAL

Author: Jim Mattis and Bing West Publisher: Random House Price: £17.99

In nine words, the dedication in Jim Mattis’s book reflects the author’s innermost beliefs, “To all those who serve in the defence of our values.” Taking the story forward nearly half a century, from Mattis’s enlistment in the Marines in 1972 to the end of his tenure as US Secretary of Defence in 2018, we encounter the same principles embodied in his letter of resignation to Donald Trump.

The letter abounds with expressions like “showing respect to allies” and “the solidarity of our alliances”. It ends with the diplomatic, “Because you [Trump] have the right to have a Secretary of Defence whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects.”

The book, with input from military historian Bing West, takes the reader through three aspects of soldiering that are key to Mattis’s career: direct, executive and strategic leadership. It is the career of a general who leads from the front, ‘raised’ by the Vietnam generation of Marines, where he first led troops into battle. The narrative moves on to his tours of executive leadership, when Mattis commanded forces of up to 40,000 troops and had to adapt his leadership style to ensure his intent and concerns were transmitted to soldiers he would seldom see. He rounds off the story by delving into the challenges and techniques at the strategic level, covering issues like civilian-military interaction and the challenge of reconciling war’s grim realities with political leaders’ aspirations.

Mattis’s highly-readable book brings to light a personality shaped by the credo of the need for lethality and a winning spirit, combined with the enlightened values of cooperation and ideals to draw support form allies.