Rating: 
Summary: Very Good
Review: I really wanted to go to BUD/S when i was in the Navy, but i have terrible shin splints. This book makes me so envious of these young guys, but also makes me realize that I would have had a tough time making it through without developing stress fractures. BUD/S is really a tough selection course and this book really makes you respect the guys who make it. Some of the toughest in Class 228 didn't make it due to sometimes no more than bad luck. If you want a detailed description of part of the difficult road of becoming a Navy SEAL check this out. It's very good.
Rating:
Summary: HOOYAH . . . Buy it now!!!
Review: I have read many books on the training of Navy SEAL's, and this is by far THE best that I have seen. The level of detail that Dick Couch goes to in describing the process of becoming a SEAL is incredible. Written from both the student's perspective, and the instructor's perspective, it gives you an amazing look at why the training is conducted the way it is. Most books leave you with the impression that surviving Hell Week is the end game. This book takes you through diving phase, as well as land warfare phase . It was amazing to me to learn that even some tough SOB's who made it through Hell Week, and even diving phase, get washed out in third phase as the standards go up. If you are thinking about becoming a SEAL, or just a SEAL enthusiast like me, this book is a must read!
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent, Informative Read
Review: Dick Couch is a retired Navy SEAL who follows a recent class of prospective Navy SEALS thru their first very difficult phase of training. Of the over one hundred men that started only a handful completed this phase. His easy to understand style takes one into the hearts and minds of the instructors and trainees. This is an excellent book for ANYONE interested in what it takes to become a modern-day Navy SEAL. I found the book difficult to put down and very informative.
Rating:
Summary: "The Warrior Elite" is a tribute to SEALs and an apt title
Review: CAPT Couch's account of the officers and men of BUD/S Class 228 is a masterpiece. The class, which began with 147 members and ended with only 10 original members graduating, is followed from Indoc through all three training phases to graduation and beyond. BUD/S training is the most strenuous and demanding in all the world's military and completing it is the first requirement for those aspiring to be SEALs. What most who have no experience with Navy Special Warfare don't know is that just finishing BUD/S does not make one a SEAL. The training, as CAPT Couch shows, never stops. Once assigned to a Team, there is still a probationary period and failing to meet standards can lead to expulsion. Gaining the coveted Trident (the SEAL pin, also called "The Bird") is no sure thing either; the fledgling warriors having to pass a review board of their peers.
This is not just another "gosh, what harsh training!" book. Told in a straight-forward style, the process is presented for what it is with no embellishment or histrionics. As good as the training descriptions are, the last chapter and epilogue are almost perfect evocations of the warrior ethos, its development, future and nurturing by leaders who have all been tested in the same way. The value of the experienced chiefs and senior petty officers is highlighted; truly they are the institutional knowledge of the Teams.
The SEALs I have known and worked with were all quiet professionals, dedicated men who did the hard things that their country demanded. The younger SEALs are the same: willing to go in harm's way, to risk death for all the right reasons. They are truly an elite, even among the other special operations forces. This book lets you know how they got to be the way they are.
HOOYAH!
Rating:
Summary: "The Warrior Elite" -- U. S. Navy SEAL Training and Mission
Review: "The Warrior Elite" is about the mission and training of Navy SEALS. It was written by Dick Couch, who was a SEAL himself, led a platoon of SEALs in Vietnam, and knows the subject by heart. This book takes you into the remarkable training and daunting mission of the SEALS; it gives the reader a mind blowing first-hand account of the grueling process of forging a team of professional warriors. I couldn't put the book down. It starts with a bang and kept me breathless for the entire story. The book is jam packed with insights into SEAL training, weapons, and capabilities. It also reassuring: we've got some really tough, good guys going after the really bad actors around the world. And for that reason, it's a very timely book.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put this book down....
Review: My title says it all. I could not put this book down. Even after seeing the Discovery Channel's documentary on Class 238, this book adds so much more to the real life experience. I think this is the very best book written on BUD/s. Makes my 1972 Marine Corp boot camp experience feel like kindergarden. Hooyah to all past, present, and future Seals.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing Individuals, Amazing Read
Review: I first became interested in the Navy SEALs during a Learning Channel 5-part series that follows class 324 thru BUD/s (Basic Underwater Demolition, Seal training) To see the various evolutions these young men had to go thru was inspiring. Thus when I was on Coronado Island I decided I had to get a book that dug deeper into the forging of a Navy SEAL. I was recommended this book by the owner of a Coronado bookstore. Dick Couch, the author and former Navy SEAL was given access to BUD/s class 228 to tell the story of the men who make it to graduation and beyond. Throughtout the book you get a real sense of what it would be like to go thru the training, and all the internal thoughts that you need to fight off to make it. There is a great deal of detail put into Indoc., First Phase, Hell Week, Second Phase and Third Phase. While that entails all phases of BUD/s graduation there is much more training ahead for the graduates, that most likely gets told in Finishing School. I highly recommend this book, to at the bare minimum understand the trials these men go thru, and at the max. to push yourself to achieve things you never thought possible.
Rating:
Summary: Terriffic!
Review: I purchased this book with little knowledge of the SEAL training program, other than what I had seen in movies. As soon as I began reading the first few pages, I knew I was hooked - I could not put it down! Throughout the book, I found myself cheering on the members of the team, and feeling a pang of despair each time one would drop from the team. Reading the descriptions of the immense training SEALs are put through was enough to make me reconsider any athletic training I had ever thought to be difficult! Although as I am female, I could never be a SEAL, this book was still immensely inspiring to me, and has consequently become one of the select titles I am very very protective over.
Rating: 
Summary: Great story, so-so storytelling
Review: This book gets by on the sheer compelling nature of what it takes to be a Navy SEAL. The process truly is amazing. Unfortunately, you don't get to know the people going it through it as well as you might want (somewhat understandable, since they were kind of busy at the time). I also wanted to know more about life in the teams and actual missions. I realize that's probably a different book, but I didn't want it to be. If you want great military writing, this is not your book. If you want a feeling for what a SEAL (or SpecOp in general) has gone through to get where he is, this is a must-read.
I also found it truly inspiring. When I'm on a run or working out and it starts to hurt, I think of what 228 went through and things don't seem so bad. Or else I just tell myself the basic lesson I learned from the book: SEALs don't quit, so I won't either.
Rating:
Summary: Up close & personal
Review: I got hooked on these type of books by a friend reading Warrior Soul at the beach and couldnt take his eyes off the book. I thought the book was fantastic! Dick Couch really goes into detail of class 228 going through BUD/S. He really immerses you in the experience of training to become a navy seal and the mind sets of the class. By the end of the book I felt like I really knew some of the students like burke & birch. These guys are no joke! Reading about all the training that goes on in 1 day alone is unbelievable. If you are looking for a book that really goes into the training involved along the path to becoming a seal then this is a must have.
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