Throughout the ages, men and women have fought to protect the freedom of others. Sometimes this battle takes place in lands away from home to protect the interests of those they love. Medal of Honor – Ryan Pitts introduces us to one such man. Ryan Pitts fought in the Mountains of Wanat, a hero in the US Army. Learn of his deeds in this book by Michael P. Spradlin.

From the Cover:
Staff Sergeant Ryan M. Pitts enlisted in the Army when he was seventeen, and was just twenty-two years old when he fought at the Battle of Wanat in Afghanistan, where his heroic actions earned him the Congressional Medal of Honor. On July 13, 2008, Staff Sergeant Pitts was trapped and badly wounded at an elevated outpost, but helped turn back a brutal attack by 200 insurgents and save many of his company in one of the bloodiest battles of the war with Afghanistan.

What you Get
First off you get an introduction to the basic set up of the US Military forces. You learn ranks, units and their sizes.
Then we are introduced to Ryan Pitts and the battle he faced with his unit. A precarious position they were put in with a need to defend. Would he and his unit hold?

Lots of pictures illustrate the pages of book of daring-do. These pictures help us to see what faced Ryan Pitts and his team.. from the Taliban fights, to the mountainous terrain. Arial images depict the camps and areas they fought in, helping us to better understand the difficulties facing these men.

Interspersed throughout the stories were cut outs that explained America’s War on Terror, what military expressions mean, and different operations that were going on.
The book seemed to bounce around abit from setting the scene, to background history of Ryan Pitts, to the actual battle being fought. This occasionally made it a harder to read story.
My Thoughts
Even though I dislike books the jump around, I enjoyed this read. It is one I will place on the shelf for my military minded lad to pick up. I think he’d enjoy it and learn a great deal about tactics, good character, and fighting even when it seems impossible. The images show detail that words just can’t convey well. Definitely worth reading for middle school students.
You can read my review of Jack Montgomery here.

Medal of Honor: Ryan Pitts
Afghanistan: a firefight in the Mountains of Wanat
Michael P. Spradlin
Farrar Straus Giroux
Medal of Honor Series
112 pages, trade paperback, ages 8-12
Afghanistran, War, US Army, Hero, Military
Reviewed for Raincoast Books.
