Antonio Ruiz

Add friend
Sign in to Goodreads to learn more about Antonio.


We Fight Monsters...
Rate this book
Clear rating

 
Loading...
David Bellavia
“Evan stares at me.
I try to hug him. He takes a step back. I pause, my heart in my throat. I’ve got to reach out to him, let myself be vulnerable. I find the courage, but he backs up again.
“You can’t go to Iraq anymore.”
“I know.”
He looks up at Deanna, then back to me. “Did you fight bad guys? You told me you weren’t.” His voice is suspicious, full of accusation. He doesn’t trust me, and I don’t blame him for that.
“No, Evan. I didn’t fight bad guys.”
I can’t bring myself to tell him the complete truth. I want so desperately to go back into this fight. I miss it every day. I always felt I could change the world with a rifle in my hands and our flag on my shoulder.
“Did you get shot?” he looks me over, apparently searching for bullet wounds.
I grin a little. “No, Bud, I didn’t get shot.”
“People get shot in Iraq.”
“Yes, they do.”
It strikes me then that Evan for the first time has a grasp on the dangers that are faced over there. He’s six now, and the world is coming into focus for him.
“People get shot, Daddy. They die. Bad guys kill them.”
I think of Edward Iwan and Sean Sims.
“Yeah, I know they do, Evan.”
David Bellavia, House to House: An Epic Memoir of War

David Bellavia
“All the sins I've committed, I've done them with one objective: to keep my men alive. Those kids in my squad, those kids of mine, they are everything. My wife doesn't understand this job or why I do it. My son is too young. My dad wouldn't get it if I tried to explain. My mom would have a heart attack. The need to keep my men alive makes everything else negotiable, and everyone and everything a potential threat.”
David Bellavia, House to House: An Epic Memoir of War

David Bellavia
“I am a Christian, but my time in Iraq has convinced me that God doesn't want to hear from me anymore. I've done things that He can never forgive. I've done them consciously. I've made decisions I must live with for years to come. I am not a victim. In each instance, I heard my conscience call for restraint, I told it to shut the fuck up and let me handle my business. All the sins I've committed, I've done with one objective: to keep my men alive.”
David Bellavia, House to House: An Epic Memoir of War

Chris Kyle
“anyone who has a problem with what guys do over there is incapable of empathy. People want America to have a certain image when we fight. Yet I would guess if someone were shooting at them and they had to hold their family members while they bled out against an enemy who hid behind their children, played dead only to throw a grenade as they got closer, and who had no qualms about sending their toddler to die from a grenade from which they personally pulled the pin—they would be less concerned with playing nicely.”
Chris Kyle, American Sniper

Mark L. Donald
“There were good men in Afghanistan, men like those who made up our Afghan force, but most were mired in ancient traditions and their deep-seated ambivalence toward women troubled me. If they didn't have the strength to stand up against the persecution of their own flesh and blood, then how could we expect them to have the strength to support a centralized government? We had already done the heavy lifting by freeing them from the oppression of the Taliban; it was their responsibility to move their country ahead and take advantage of the freedom. I could accept dying trying to free the oppressed of the world, but not one American life was worth sacrificing for people willing to accept tyranny.”
Mark L. Donald, Battle Ready: Memoir of a SEAL Warrior Medic

103385 Military Authors and Readers — 147 members — last activity Jun 22, 2025 06:56PM
A group where authors of military books can come together to discusses books, a place where readers can learn more about military authors
year in books
Myra
415 books | 36 friends

Daniel ...
1,376 books | 11 friends

Raul To...
406 books | 133 friends

Ramon
46 books | 72 friends

Xandie
4,568 books | 137 friends

Elena E...
194 books | 75 friends

Lyndol ...
1,941 books | 214 friends

Marilyn...
33 books | 211 friends

More friends…

Favorite Genres



Polls voted on by Antonio

Lists liked by Antonio