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Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Ballantine Books
“Courage,” Winston Churchill explained, is “the first of human qualities . . . because it guarantees all the others.” As a naval officer, P.O.W., and one of America’s most admired political leaders, John McCain has seen countless acts of bravery and self-sacrifice. Now, in this inspiring meditation on courage, he shares his most cherished stories of ordinary individuals who have risked everything to defend the people and principles they hold most dear.
“We are taught to understand, correctly, that courage is not the absence of fear but the capacity for action despite our fears,” McCain reminds us, as a way of introducing the stories of figures both famous and obscure that he finds most compelling—from the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to Sgt. Roy Benavidez, who ignored his own well-being to rescue eight of his men from an ambush in the Vietnam jungle; from 1960s civil rights leader John Lewis, who wrote, “When I care about something, I’m prepared to take the long, hard road,” to Hannah Senesh, who, in protecting her comrades in the Hungarian resistance against Hitler’s SS, chose a martyr’s death over a despot’s mercy.
These are some of the examples McCain turns to for inspiration and offers to others to help them summon the resolve to be both good and great. He explains the value of courage in both everyday actions and extraordinary feats. We learn why moral principles and physical courage are often not distinct quantities but two sides of the same coin. Most of all, readers discover how sometimes simply setting the right example can be the ultimate act of courage.
Written by one of our most respected public figures, Why Courage Matters is that rare book with a message both timely and timeless. This is a work for anyone seeking to understand how the mystery and gift of courage can empower us and change our lives.
From the Hardcover edition.
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| John McCain Changes Feelings On Courage |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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In John McCain's Why Courage Matters (Random House Inc, 2004, 209 pages), the popular Senator from Arizona promotes a new way to look at the concept of courage and what it means. John McCain is not only the senior Senator from his state, but was looked at as one of the most powerful and influential members of the GOP in the Senate when this book debuted. Though he has earned the reputation of being a moderate conservative who has not always following party lines and who has called out fellow Republicans for wrong-doings, Senator McCain's service to the nation began when he followed in his father's (and grandfather's) footsteps by becoming an officer in the United States Navy. During his service in Vietnam as a Navy pilot, his aircraft was shot down, and McCain was captured by enemy personal that housed and tortured him for over five years. After Senator McCain retired from the Navy in 1981, he was first elected to Congress in the House of Representatives in 1982, and has since been serving in our nation's capital (mccain.senate.gov). Despite the heroic actions this man has performed, the humbling tales of other individuals daring feats are the basis of the book; actions which are truly heroic. John McCain's Why Courage Matters invigorates readers to question how we define courage.
Rather than being a political book that divides readers based off political philosophy, McCain's goal for this book is to draw in a larger audience that reaches across party lines to grow new support for his personal beliefs. With the election of 2008 already passed, Americans now know that McCain had every intention of running for his party's nomination to be elected President. Prior to 2007 however, this wasn't absolutely proven, and one of the things the Senator needed to do was draw extra support, and raise additional money in order to get his party's nod. With this book being released in 2004, the timetable was set perfectly. President Bush had just been reelected, and before political interest completely died down, this book hit the shelves and generated interest. Though this book was only a contributing factor towards John McCain's run for the nation's highest elected position, it surely had a positive impact, and by March 2008, Senator McCain secured the Republican Party's Presidential Nomination. Why Courage Matters isn't reserved for a certain political or social/economic group, and instead has mass appeal to all audiences: young or old, rich or poor, blue collar or white collar, red or blue, male and female. As Susan Brink of the U.S News & World Report puts it, "Why write about courage now? After [the 9/11 terrorist attacks], people were afraid to leave their homes, to get on a plane, even to go shopping. The enemy has forced us into a world of fear. This is a perfect time to display courage."
While broadening political support may by an underlining issue, the book's main purpose is to prove that the word "courage" should be reserved for actions that truly deserve that title. As early as page 14 of Why Courage Matters, McCain points out the overuse of the term to describe somewhat ordinary actions when he decries, "We say it takes courage to be different from the mainstream in our preferences in fashion, music, the length and color of our hair." He then goes on to say, "They may be steps along the way to acquiring courage. But of themselves, these acts, admirable though they are, are not sufficient proof of courage." McCain doesn't want to take away from positive actions, but rather would like to remind people that courage itself stands for extraordinary actions that can't be described in any other way. McCain's most touching story (and there are many told), is his very first one of a US Army Special Forces commando that young infantry and special operations recruits first learn of while going though Advanced Infantryman Training at Fort Benning, Georgia. Master Sergeant Roy Benavidez' actions in Vietnam earned him the nation's highest military honor, the Congressional Medal of Honor, for actions "above and beyond the call of duty." His actions were so extraordinary that as McCain points out in the end of the first section of the book, "The navy named a ship after him and the army a building. His hometown erected a statue. But Hollywood never made a movie about him. No one would have believed it." Kevin Lang, a former US Army Sergeant that served in Afghanistan as an Infantry Paratrooper still remembers the lasting impact of when he first learned of Master Sergeant Benavidez when Lang was just a private. In a phone interview, Lang says this Medal of Honor story "set the standard for my expectations in the Army. If he lived through that, I can make it through whatever training event I was participating in." Lang, like so many other young men aspiring to serve in the harsh world of the military combat arms jobs, was motivated from early in his military career by such stories that McCain goes onto outline in his book.
In addition to battlefield valor, the book sparks interest in courageous acts by civilians, and insures readers will not take the word "courage" lightly in the future. A young mother named Angela Dawson from Baltimore who battled with the gangs and drug-lord's that controlled her neighborhood, an explorer named John Wesley Powell who was told he couldn't survive creating the first maps of America's growing West, a young Jewish woman named Hannah Senesh that served as a paratrooper-spy for the British in WWII, and other unrecognizable names all appear, and create a heightened sense for the appreciation of human sacrifice and what a single individual might be able to accomplish. These stories change the audience's outlook on what is or is not truly courageous. Stories of everyday people that perform such extraordinary acts, you try to figure out why major movies haven't been made about them before, until you realize that just like Sergeant Benavidez, they almost wouldn't be believable. As book critic Jim Wright of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram puts it ("John McCain's profiles in courage offer inspiration" April 2004), "A few of the book's protagonists seem impervious to the normal, annoying apprehensions that most people feel." Why Courage Matters engulfs the audience into the best of human actions. Military and civilian actions so phenomenal, they sit on the edge of what is or is not possible to be accomplished by a single individual are reviewed and analyzed. By bringing these stories to light, McCain shows how much a single person may affect their surroundings, even when faced with seemingly impossible odds.
By the end of Why Courage Matters, readers realize they've read a motivation book that not only inspires them to have a new outlook on what is or is not an act of courage, but a book that influences them to make a difference in the world they're living in. Whether it be their neighborhood, state, country, or world, positive actions help to better the world we live in, and the actions of individuals captured in the book prove the difference a single person can make. If Senator McCain's Presidential election strategy revolved more around the idea of this book, to gain a larger audience and bring more people together, he just might have won on November 4th, 2008. By instilling pride and hope in all people in the human race, McCain's competitor was able to capitalize on the fundamentals that make Why Courage Matters so intriguing and great for all audiences, and as a result, won the election. Regardless, Why Courage Matters is in no doubt a book of timeless stories that will humble and instill pride in the human race to any and all readers.
Work Cited
.: United States Senator John McCain :: Home :. 30 Apr. 2009 .
Brink, Susan. "Encouraging Courage." U.S News & World Report 10 May 2004.
"Kevin Lang Interview." Telephone interview. 26 Mar. 2009.
McCain, John. Why courage matters the way to a braver life. New York: Random House, 2004.
Wright, Jim. "John McCain's profiles in courage offer inspiration." Fort Worth Star-Telegram [Fort Worth, TX] 21 Apr. 2004.
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| I like to read this when I think I have it rough... |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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Courage Indeed Matters, John Mccain, Helluva Of A Man, Ran Against Bush, A Moderate Republican, A true American Hero, This Book He talks About Not Himself But Other Heroes...Highly Recommended...Reading this Book, It is so sad, that America Made such a Bad Choice, And that the Media was in the tank the whole time for the other candidate despite so much controversy surrounding the other candidate. You have to Admire a Man Like Mccain what He did For His Country, and Continues to do so. He is not Perfect, But His Experience could have helped us so much, Sadly Hollywood and other Extreme elements did not Think so. This Book Is Great, Revealing of A Great Man Who Sadly Could have been, As a 26 year old, I never brought that this man Could die as the popular belief was in his first four years, which is one of the reasons people gave that he was too old, but with age comes wisdom and experience, This Man Served For the Greater Cause, Was A P.O.W. and was a Champion Of Finance Reform, I urge all Including the other candidates supporters to read this Book
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| To have courage for whatever comes in life--everything lies in that |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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"I think I can offer...thoughts about courage. Not because I possess such an ample supply myself. I wish I did. But I have spent time in the company of heroes. I was raised by them, served with them, was taught to revere them...I know what courage looks like. I know what it can do. I know its different expressions. I think I know what it costs. And if I can't tell you how to get...courage--no one could...I can provide a few suggestions, learned by observing the example of the people I admire the most, about what one might do, how one might live, to become ready for the occasion of heroism and possibly in a difficult, dark, confused, and consequential moment, to strike...[a] 'little spark of courage.'"
The above is found in this somewhat unique and inspirational book by Senator John McCain, a formal naval officer, a former P.O.W., a man who has seen many acts of bravery and self-sacrifice, and one of America's most admired political leaders. Co-author of this book is Mark Salter, who has co-authored other books with McCain.
McCain shares stories (examples of courage important to him) of ordinary people who have summoned the courage and risked everything to defend the principles they believe in. Then result is a "meditation on courage" that exemplifies Mother Teresa's timeless words that title this review.
Note that this book is not just stories! McCain analyzes each story of courage and extracts from them what he considers to be the elements of courage in them. He then gives his advice and insights on courage to the reader.
Throughout the book, are black and white photographs of the individuals McCain is profiling. This allows the reader to attach a face to the courageous story.
Finally, the only problem I had was that many of the stories, though interesting, are somewhat long with a lot of detail. Some people might get frustrated by this.
In conclusion, this is a rare book with a timeless message. I leave you with this book's last few sentences:
"Don't let the sensation of fear convince you that you're too weak to have courage. Fear is the opportunity for courage, not proof of cowardice. No one is born a coward...So be brave. The rest is easy."
(first published 2004; 11 untitled chapters; main narrative 205 pages; acknowledgements)
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| Courage, And Politics |
| Customer Rating: 3 out of 5 |
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"Why Courage Matters" is the thoughts of a hero on what courage is and how each of us can exhibit it. Author John McCain begins with his views of problems which arise in every day life when courage is lacking. He defines what is and what is not courage and cautions against watering it down to include things which are not really courageous. He expounds on the types of courage, including moral and physical.
Most of the book consists of the stories of courageous individuals. Some came from World War II, including troops and a Jewish undercover agent in Europe. He adds an American Indian who fought to preserve his people's way of life, a Mexican who fought oppression in his country and a Burmese activist. At the end he comes back to how courage can enable us to reach higher than we otherwise would.
I found this book to be interesting, but it did not stir me to action. As I went through this book, I was torn between the image of an author who told stories of great courage and one of a politician who tried to associate himself with courageous individuals from as many groups as he could. Ultimately, the latter image prevailed.
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| Read it and weep for your country |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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McCain's book is not original, but the technique is sound. The technique is to show good examples to follow.
McCain won't be the next President. That is unfortunate. The book shows the character of the man, which is of an honorable and decent man. This is going out of style, which is more a reflection of this country than upon McCain himself. He fought the good fight, no need for regrets. I don't agree with him on important matters, but there is no question about his loyalty to his country.
JFK's Profiles in Courage comes to mind. Kennedy's book was about US Senators who he believed showed political courage in going against public opinion and suffered the consequences of their principled stands. McCain's profile's were more of the physical kind of courage, who risked their very lives as opposed to Kennedy's, who only risked their political careers.
McCain should have considered putting Winston Churchill in his book as another example of courage. Yet Churchill would be a better fit in JFK's book because Churchill's courage was perhaps not so much physical courage, but moral and political courage. When Churchill denounced the Munich agreement to appease Hitler in the House of Commons- he couldn't speak for several minutes because of the uproar against him. How many politicans in this day are willing to tell the crowd they are making a big mistake? History showed that Churchill was right about Hitler. Unfortunately for England and the world, great suffering had to be endured because they failed to listen to him.
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