“Of course, I had no idea of the
cost that came with war. You have to be
there, and you have to see it for yourself, to fully understand it.” SSG Salvatore Giunta
When my advance copy of Living with Honor, A Memoir arrived it
took me a few hours before I finally sat down to read it. Since I know Sal and many of the men he
served with I was anxious as to what stories he had shared in the book. I wasn’t sure I wanted to revisit most, if
not all, of those stories. By the time I
had finished the book it was clear that, while he certainly addresses the
experiences of joining the Army and of being deployed in war, this is not a
typical blood and guts war story.
To be honest my initial thought
when I asked for the advance copy was that I would write a book review to publish
along with an interview with Sal. I’m
not sure what I was thinking. I’m too
close to Sal and many of the men he wrote about to be completely subjective
about this book. However, I will say
that, without question, Sal should be extremely proud of this book. It is respectful, insightful, thought
provoking, thorough, emotional and candid.
Living With Honor, A Memoir by Medal of Honor Recipient SSG
Salvatore A. Giunta is divided into four parts; Before Afghanistan, First
Deployment, Korengal and Rock Avalanche.
SSG Giunta writes about the fire
fights and ambushes, the loss of friends, the relationships with and separation
from loved ones, the dynamics of being a U S Soldier, the mentoring of his
leadership, training, the brotherhood, losing friends and fellow Soldiers in
battle and, of course, the event that lead up to his being nominated for and
receiving the Medal of Honor.
As he has so often done in interviews,
he writes about how he’s not any different from anyone who has served our
nation throughout time and emphasizes that the Medal of Honor is not his but
that it belongs to all of those who served.
I’ll never forget a quote from Sal during an interview after it was
announced that he would be awarded the Medal of Honor. He said, “They are just as much of me as I
am.” Sal was talking about all of the
men who were on the patrol with him that day and how, even though the Army was
awarding the actual Medal to him, it belonged to (and always will) anyone with
whom he has served.
INTERVIEW
Sal is an affable, self effacing and humble young man. I had asked him for an interview after I read
the book and was grateful that he agreed to do so. On the day that I called Sal he was home but out
running errands so he asked me to hold on while he walked out to his car for
privacy. As we began this interview I
was immediately struck by how nervous he was.
When I asked him why he told me that it’s not easy to talk about the
book to someone he knows.
Me: How did you
decide on the title “Living With Honor, A Memoir”? Is there any significance to the title?
Sal: Originally I wanted the title to be “In
the Valley” to represent what American Soldiers do and did there. At only 27 years of age I didn’t think I had
a lot of years behind me to be writing a memoir but the people I was working
with thought the title we settled on was a better fit.
Me: How long did
it take to write the book?
Sal: It took about seven months from the time
I started working with Joe (Joe Layden).
Part of that was the writing but there was also the fact checking and
editing part, too.
Me: How did you
get connected with Mr. Layden?
Sal: When I started thinking about writing a
book I spoke with one of the older Medal of Honor Recipients. He put me in touch with a literary
agency. They selected Joe.
Me: Aside from
the obvious (the events of October 25, 2007) what else can we expect to learn
from the book?
Sal: I hope the take away from reading this
book is how plain and average I am just as are most Soldiers who fight for our
nation. I also hope the readers learn
that service isn’t just for those in uniform; that anyone can get involved at
the community level and make a difference.
While those I served with and I may be professional Soldiers we really
aren’t any different from any American citizen.
We just all “gave back” in our way.
Me: Aside from
the events of October 25, 2007 what was, emotionally, the most difficult part
of the book to write?
Sal: I honestly think it was just trying to
pull up things that had happened in the past.
I had to force a lot of things from the past back to now. I didn’t want to do that and it wasn’t
easy. It took a real toll to think of a
lot of things that have happened over the past seven years; to think about the
guys who aren’t here anymore because of their service. Talking about Gabel was really tough because
I remembered the deep sense of loss I felt when I heard about his death. I hated he wasn’t here. When Gabel spoke at Rougle’s Memorial in
Afghanistan I hadn’t seen him in a while.
His words seemed so black and white then. A month later he was gone. I didn’t feel the emotions about all of that
then like I do now that I’ve had to revisit that for the book.
Me: Did writing
this book help you with any healing?
Sal: No.
It actually opened up a lot of old wounds. I hope they heal better this time than they
did before. To be honest I don’t know if
there has been any healing yet. It
really all depends on the acceptance of the book; first by my battle buddies
then by the general public. It’s really
important to me that people know just how awesome the 173rd is because
it IS the most awesome Brigade in the Army bar none.
Me: Have any of
the guys you served with read the book?
Sal: No.
I read a few parts to some of them for fact checking but none of them
have read it yet.
Me: Will we be
surprised about any part of the book?
Sal: (laughing) Well, maybe that I was promoted
eight times before I made SSG.
Me: Why did you
choose to write so much about your life’s journey than about the specifics of
your war experience?
Sal: Part of the story I wanted to convey is
that we can always do better in life.
I’m a product of my environment and I want to give credit to my
family. There is more to war than being
in country and firing a gun. If you only
focus on combat you lose who you are.
Me: You were
recently awarded the LT Michael Murphy Valor Award. Tell me about that.
Sal: When I was first contacted I said no
because I don’t think one should receive an award for having an award. Then I talked to SFC Leroy Petry who received
the award last year and I changed my mind.
By receiving that award, just as with the Medal of Honor, it allows me
to have a voice for all of those who have served. That’s important to me. I didn’t get to meet LT Murphy’s
parents. They weren’t able to be
there. I hope to get to meet them one
day soon. I was very honored that I was
selected to receive the award.
Me: Will there
be a book tour? (This question was asked before the dates were set. See below for a partial list of dates)
Sal: Yes but no dates have been set or cities
selected yet. I will be in New York City
in early December promoting the book via which ever outlets will have me.
Me: Will people
be able to order autographed copies or will they have to come to a book signing
to get an autographed copy?
Sal: There are no plans to sell or provide
autographed copies so I guess people will have to come to a book signing for
that. There will be an audio book,
too. I recorded the prologue and the
epilogue. Keith Nobbs will record the
actual book itself.
----------------------------------------------------------
BOOK TOUR INFORMATION:
(This is a partial list. Final
list will be published once received. Dates
and Times subject to change)
6 Dec 12 Peterson AFB, Colorado 10:30 AM
6 Dec 12 Fort Carson, Colorado 1:30 PM
7 Dec 12 Buckley AFB, Colorado (Mid Morning)
20 Dec 12 NAS Joint RES Base, FT Worth TX 11:00 AM
21 Dec 12 Fort Hood, Texas 11:00 AM
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