Legion of the Lost
 | |
| Author | Jaime Salazar |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | autobiographical novel |
| Publisher | Berkley Books |
Publication date | August 2, 2005 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 256 |
| ISBN | 0425210154 |
Legion of the Lost is a autobiographical novel by American writer Jaime Salazar. It was published in the United States by Berkley Books, an imprint of Penguin Group, on August 2, 2005. The novel is based on Salazar's own experiences as an American in the French Foreign Legion.[1] In 2016, Salazar released the revised and expanded edition of the book through Thistle Publishing UK.
Plot
It tells the story of Jaime, a bored and self-described corporate cog. In a quest to seek solace from his corporate existence, he joined the French Foreign Legion, reputed to be the world’s toughest army. He experiences brutality, adventure, and an uncompromising camaraderie. This is the story of his life in the "Army of Strangers". In a 2008 Note addition on the book’s website, Salazar puts into perspective his reckless weekend behavior, notably that with women, into the context of a typical young man’s military life. He claims not to condone such libertine, amorous behavior then or now. He also claims that some of the characters mentioned were morphed from multiple people. Salazar admits to describing a few incidents that were actually second-hand accounts. He claims artistic license was taken for purposes of clarity and succinctness. In 2016, Salazar released the revised second edition of the book. It was scrubbed for errors and clarity. Additional details, as well as a more spiritual air, were included. A new black-and-white book cover was also created.
Legionnaire Woodman, one of the memorable characters in the book, was a thinly fictionalized version of a young US Army veteran. Notable as a heavily tattooed, hard-drinking brawler in Salazar's book, Woodman went on to return to the US military, where he served as a sniper who survived five combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. He later left the military to pursue an academic career, studying philosophy, logic and computer science at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Maryland.
As of April 2017, Salazar is working with former legionnaire, Alex de Bruyn, co-writing Escaping the Amazon, a memoir of his time serving in the elite jungle regiment, the 3e REI. De Bruyn managed a hair-raising escape from French Guiana in a leaking dinghy in an attempt to sail home to South Africa. Escaping the Amazon is represented by Leticia Gomez of Savvy Literary Agency.
Reception
New York Times reviewer William Grimes described the novel as an "improbable, very funny tale." "Salazar," Grimes wrote, "has a sly, sardonic sense of humor and a gift for understatement."
References
- ↑ Grimes, William (2 September 2005). "Legion of the Lost: The True Experience of an American in the French Foreign Legion". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 May 2013.