The Sniper is a brilliant biography of one of the greatest marksmen to ever walk the planet. A blend of coming-of-age, thriller, military history, and comedic tales, The Sniper perfectly weaves the story of Vietnam sniper Chuck Mawhinney in a fascinating read that will fly by as fast as a bullet out of a Remmington.
This story kicks off with the one story I had heard about Mawhinney - in the Arizona Territory in Vietnam, on a peninsula in a river with dozens and dozens of Vietnamese soldiers wading across the river in his direction. From here, you get to learn about everything that led to this moment - from Mawhinney's childhood, to his tales of adolescence, his first kill in the Marines, and everything in between. Author Jim Lindsay dove deep into Mawhinney's life and recounts the moments with crystal clear clarity, bringing Mawhinney's life into a beaming spotlight. This novel has inklings of Lindsay's debut non-fiction novel, The Little Bastards, with hilarious childhood tales of small town living, but also blends the action of a modern military thriller. It is a book that has you nervous, laughing, astonished, and bewildered all within its pages.
It's rare that I read a book in only a sitting or two anymore, but The Sniper was one of those books. I felt like I was sitting at the Idle Hour in Baker City right next to them, sipping Coors Light, enveloped by the stories. Lindsay made this book feel like you were in the room, talking with Mawhinney, right next to him, as he recounted his life story. A brilliant, fascinating, and real tale of heroism from one of the top marksmen to ever live.
Epilogue from the reviewer: Sometime between 2016-2018, I was repairing computers in Corvallis, Oregon, and I received a phone call from a gentleman who needed some help with his computer. I went to his house, and upon entering, saw a giant poster board covered with sticky notes with different words or phrases on it. It was semi-obvious what it was about, as I saw phrases like "Chuck's childhood," "Vietnam," etc. I asked this man, Mr. Lindsay, about what he was working on - it was a book he was outlining about a man named Chuck Mawhinney. At the time, I had heard of Mawhinney from a documentary on the History Channel about snipers. Jim began to recount the novel, told me about Chuck, and I was fascinated. I was praying I would get to see this book on a shelf one day, as the story sounded incredibly interesting. I'm thankful that day has finally arrived, and I am grateful that I got the opportunity to give it a read.
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