The Untold Story of the Marine Corps' Greatest Sniper

 The Sniper: The Untold Story of the Marine Corps' Greatest Marksman of All Time 

by Jim Lindsay

A sniper in Vietnam circa 1968 by USMC Archives from Quantico, USA, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Thank you Netgalley for providing an advanced copy of this book. This was the second book I read through Netgalley. I think it came up as a recommendation. The Sniper tells the story of Chuck Mawhinney, a sniper credited with the most kills in Vietnam. It traces Mawhinney’s story from his early life, through his enlistment in the military, sharing his stories in the military, and life after the military. Interestingly, Lindsay explains that after leaving the military, Mawhinney’s record as a killer was not revealed until the 1990s when a fellow marine outed him. This notoriety changed Mawhinney’s life, as he experienced some backlash, but also acknowledgement of his killing abilities, ultimately parlaying that into sharing his shooting skills as a teacher and trainer. Lindsay writes this book as a friend of Mawhinney’s, not realizing his background until later in life. Lindsay’s narration has an easy-going quality that kind of undercuts the horror and violence of Mawhinney’s life as an enlisted killer. I found the folksy storytelling to be in contrast to the violence of the book, undercutting some of the events. What was more interesting was Mawhinney’s adjustment to life after the military, and dealing with the blowback from being outed as a successful wartime killer. Although the book is a war memoir, it doesn’t seem to treat the ambiguities of war as ambiguous. It was entertaining, but I was hoping for more from this book.