Ryan Smithson's Why I Chose Ghosts Of War

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Ghosts of War Synopsis Ryan Smithson didn't have any kind of plan. High school was almost over, and he longed for a purpose. After witnessing the 9/11 attack on television, Ryan couldn't help but think about the military. When he was seventeen, he talked to military recruiters instead of college recruiters. When he was nineteen, Ryan Smithson was deployed. His story represents others like him, and it isn't at all what you thought it’d be. Why I Chose Ghosts of War The cover of this book was the first thing that interested me. Its title, Ghosts of War, was eye catching. After picking up the book, the quote made me pause and read the summary, rather than placing the book back onto the shelf like I had done with countless others. The quote had been “If I don't do something, who will?” I chose this memoir after reading the brief summary because it’s a true story, told by Ryan Smithson himself. His story is an account of a teenager, only a few years older than my peers and I. I had skimmed through the first chapter, and was captivated. An Important Person Ryan Smithson tells his story in first person. At the start of the book, Ryan is a sixteen year old junior attending Columbia High School in Albany, New York. With blond hair and blue eyes, he describes himself as the average teenage boy. Considering …show more content…

Drill sergeants must break them down twice, building them back up afterwards. The first three weeks is the first breakdown - the hardest part. “They tell us we're worthless, that mommy ain't here, and that we are no different than any other rotting piece of compost in army fatigues. They tell us we're not wanted, that our recruiters lied to us, and that we should just go home.” Although most people know that military drill sergeants are harsh, it's entirely different from realizing it’s something that is, well, real - and people have actually experienced

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