Attack State Red

By Colonel Richard Kemp
Published by Penguin

Published: 14 September 2009

Andy McNab, ex-SAS and best-selling action author, describes Attack State Red as ‘an unputdownable account of a British battle group on the offensive’. But is it really ‘unputdownable’? Like myself, some readers may find the weaponry jargon a little confusing and perhaps off-putting after beginning the book. However, the personal voices of the service men involved do start to take over as you delve deeper into Attack State Red.

Written by Colonel Richard Kemp, a former Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion in The Royal Anglian Regiment and Daily Mirror Security Correspondent, Chris Hughes, Attack State Red tells of the events that took place during the Royal Anglians’ deployment to Afghanistan’s Helmand Province. The descriptions of combat come directly from the soldiers involved, told during interviews for the book.

Throughout Attack State Red, accounts of battle are rich in detail and description and are fast paced, relaying the exhilaration and adrenalin of the soldiers and providing a deeper insight into the experiences of war. Other difficulties of conflict are also addressed, such as losing comrades and friends in combat.

Accompanying photographs from the front line provides complementing visual imagery of the soldiers mentioned throughout and show environments faced by service men and women in Afghanistan.

Jargon aside, Attack State Red is hard-hitting and fast paced account of life on the front line.

Review by Charlotte Clews