SIMPLE MACHINES
by Manuel Carreon and Marla Dean
4.2 stars – 72 reviews
FREE with 
– Learn More
– Learn MoreText-to-Speech and Lending: Enabled
Here’s the set-up:
Master Sergeant Joseph Cevera is a respected man, decorated hero and feared leader of one of the most highly trained and lethal army units in the Global War of Terror. What happens when the unbreakable is broken? We see this erupting world through the eyes of a seasoned warrior as he is pushed to the edge of his humanity. SIMPLE MACHINES takes us deep into the life of the American Army Ranger as he must navigate a combat zone. This is a war novel with the rush of battle, agony of loss, and courage of the undefeated. Not for the faint of heart nor those who look romantically at war and heroes, SIMPLE MACHINES is a stark look into the reality of combat depicting an anti-hero damaged by the horror of war and questioning the price he and his men are asked to pay. Editorial ReviewsIf you’re looking for a traditional war story of a man and his buddies who go through combat, you won’t find it here, but what you will find is a searing emotional journey through the eyes and thoughts of Sergeant Joseph Cevera, a thin guise for the true life experiences of co-author Manuel Carreon, as this young American soldier releases the raw imagery from his gut-level view of the fog of modern war. “Captivating” and “emotionally wrenching” seem too tame to describe the power of this writing from the pens of Carreon and co-writer Marla Dean. Open it to any page and you’ll find beautifully written prose, as beautiful as any from more seasoned writers. In a moment of relative safety in the chow hall at Bagram Air Base, our protagonist sits quietly with his squad mates and relishes “the fragile space between missions.” Or the noble National Guard First Sergeant who, with his dying breath, tells our hero, “I’m sorry for you, Joseph. Men shouldn’t have to be the way you are.” Any page. Open it. That’s what you’ll find. The writing sings and the impact takes you by the heart and will not let you go.It was powerful from page one, but took me a few chapters to get REALLY into it, once in….. WOW!! What a story!!! My advice is keep reading… it is so worth it. This isn’t my usual genera of book, but it was enlightening and fabulous. I understand war, the military, and our veterans on a whole new level.Even though the book is fiction the men in the unit operate for days on end and they are given amphetamines to stay alert (the military calls them go pills and no go pills for sleep.)awake just like they are given sleeping pills on long plane helo rides back to base. The amphetamines and lack of sleep for days on end will produce personality disorders in even the best soldiers .not to mention the adrenaline dump of live combat. What you end up with is depleted dopamine serotonin and nor epinephrine among other chemicals in the brain that cause the soldier to simply be on autopilot with a less empathy and caring.also they become aggressive extremely easy. But when you’re at the jsoc level and have a leader back at base who only seems to care about his team being the best what’s a Team member who is somewhat out of line I’m sure that the leader would rather get his use out of the elite warrior and have him die in combat than say hey I have a guy who needs a few weeks off to get right in the head. That to an egotistical leader is just something that is unfathomable.READ THIS BOOK IF YOU WANT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE MEN ( &SOON TO BE WOMEN) OF THE SOCOM / JSOC COMMUNITY DEAL WITH AND ALL THE SACRIFICES THEY MAKE