The Real Team

Even hardcore aficionados of the hairy-chested, adrenaline-fueled Marcinko and John Weisman Rogue Warrior novels (Rogue Warrior: Option Delta) will likely be disappointed by this medley of thumbnail, hero-worshipful autobiographies by 10 men associated with SEAL Team SIX, here identified as models for fictional characters in the highly successful series. Purporting to be an insiders guide to successful corporate team-building but overflowing with fulsome unsolicited testimonials for Marcinko, this testosterone-laden tribute is little more than an advertising ploy. Despite the seeming navet of these narratives, each prefaced with anecdotes from the Rogue Warrior himself, the small-town-boy-makes-good-and-saves-the-world theme quickly blurs into homogeneity. The not-so-subliminal message is that Marcinko is the worlds greatest corporate team builder, and the entire book becomes a commercial for the Rogue Warriors planned CrossRoads Training and Development Center for corporate leadership development. Readers with the right stuff will feel burned by this blatant exercise in self-promotion. (May)