Koevoet!

Southern Book Publishers, South Africa, 1988, hardcover, illustrated, glossary, 236 pages, apart from edgeware to dust-jacket, no marks, internally : as new, overall condition: very good.

'Koevoet' is in a class of its own as a very well-written and illustrated military history. This book is for those interested in warfare, African macro-politics - or those looking for a very exciting read. Be warned, though, that sections of the book and some of the photographs are not for the faint-hearted. -SA Financial Mail Journalist Jim Hooper took time to be accepted by this elite group. When they learned to trust him, he gained a unique insight into the bush war. He writes openly and movingly of the hot pursuits, the "contacts", the kills the failures and the successes. He tells of seeing men-who had become part of his life-suddenly wasted by a piece of shrapnel, a bullet, a landmine, a "strim" rocket. He describes how, wounded himself, he watched as a comrade's fight for life finally ended with the heart monitor straightlining. -The Star [Koevoet]...a sympathetic book...[is] written by an American journalist who was given the unprecedented facility of living and patrolling with the unit for more than six months. The author, Jim Hooper, describing them as "hunter-killer teams", says of Koevoet: "They very much fit the mould and psychological profile of other elite special warfare units...extremely aggressive and thriving on adrenaline highs. The fact is most of the love and need the constant stimulation of combat..." -David Beresford, The Guardian