Product Description

Major Phil Ashby already had a reputation for surviving scrapes, where others would - and did - break bones and worse. His strength, resourcefulness and luck had been tested to the full during his career in the Royal Marines' elite Mountain and Arctic Warfare Cadre and various adventurous expeditions. That luck, however, appeared to have run out in May 2000 when he was working for the UN, disarming brutalized rebels in war-ravaged Sierra Leone. When the rebels turned on the UN's representatives, butchering, skinning alive and dismembering several peace-keepers and taking over 500 hostages, it seemed that all was lost and that Ashby and the other two Brits and a Kiwi would perish violently and gruesomely. Instead Ashby took the decision to die quickly rather than slowly by attempting to escape through the rebel lines. They were vastly outnumbered. They were unarmed. Somehow he led his three colleagues on a daring, dramatic and heart-stopping escape through hostile jungle. He was awarded the Queen's Gallantry Medal for his actions.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #91619 in Books
• Published on: 2003-08-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

About the Author
Phil has collected numerous accolades since graduating from Cambridge in 1991. As a Royal Marine, he has been awarded the Commando medal, served as Troop Commander around the globe, served as Captain with the Parachute Regiment in the UK, Norway and Northern Ireland, and, as Major, was posted to Sierra Leone to work with the United Nations as a Military Observer. In April 2001 Phil was awarded the Queen's Gallantry Medal for 'courage, coolness and leadership'. He has just completed a Masters' Degree at the Royal Military College of Science.

Customer Reviews

The definitive military autobiography
Very rarely do you find a book so competently written within the military bracket. Major Phil Ashby is a man who has experienced so much that it would be a horrible injustice for this book not to exist, and for his story not to be told.

His status as a commissioned officer immediately marks him apart from the majority of military authors, and perhaps his more privileged upbringing explains the unusual fluency of his prose.

Simply put, an incredibly resilient man tells an absolutely enthralling tale of experiences the likes of which you and I could seldom imagine, let alone find ourselves living. If you like books of this genre, you simply won't find a better written or more engaging one than this.

Outstanding, quality read
I agree with one of the other reviewers that the association of the book with "Bravo Two Zero"/Andy McNab is unfortunate. Entertaining as Bravo Two Zero is, Unscathed leaves it far behind in terms of the quality of writing and the ability of the author to engage his (civilian) audience. The book is much more similar to the (non-fiction) works of Ranulph Fiennes.
I could not put the book down - and read it in two days (Working days!) Much to my surprise, my wife then picked it up and had the same experience.
The images of civil-war-torn Sierra Leone are sickening and fascinating by turns.
But this book is really about a fascinating character, doing extraordinary things.
An inspiring read!

If you liked Bravo Two Zero.....
This book caught my eye from the moment I saw it. I rarely read this type of book, but glancing through the photos I was quite intrigued, and so on a whim I decided to buy it. I was not disappointed. If you like personal military accounts, then you will surely like this one.

The first third of the book is an early biography of the author, detailing his mountain climbing adventures, and his extremely strenuous military training. Although this section is certainly interesting, the truly enthralling part of the book comes when the author is posted to war-torn Sierra Leone on disarmament duties. He quickly becomes embroiled in the conflict, and his only hope of survival is to journey through the jungle with three colleagues, in truly horrendous conditions. It is here that I became involved, willing this small group on to safety.

This is quite an easy read, and I managed to finish it within only a couple of days. It would be perfect for passing the time on a long plane or train journey.