The Green Berets in the Land of a Million Elephants

Ultimately, this is a good read about a little-told part of a story that paralleled other American military actions in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. It sheds light on the operations of the Army Special Forces in that piece of geography, and on their continued world mission.
~The VVA Veteran

“A strength of this account is the many working-level veterans of service in Laos the author contacted and quoted, often from journals or letters they wrote at the time of their service, adding authenticity and color to the story.” ~ARMY Magazine

"This is a highly detailed, authoritative, and fascinating account of the special operations conducted
by the U.S. Army Special Forces – the Green Berets – who were deployed in America’s secret war
in Laos from 1959 to 1974." ~The Journal of Counterterrorism & Homeland Security International

"This book is a labor of love by the author to honor the veterans of this little-known and little-studied war. His extraordinary interviews and first-person accounts tell the story but also provide lessons for the modern employment of Special Forces 'through, with, and by' indigenous forces to support the achievement of U.S. strategic objectives." ~War on the Rocks

“Joseph Celeski’s Green Berets in the Land of a Million Elephants gives us a much needed account of the U.S. Army Special Forces’ secret role in Laos before and during the far better known Vietnam War. Meticulously researched and anecdote-filled, this book provides detailed context to the political and strategic aspects of the conflict, while also bringing to light the personal stories of the men and their teams who lived and fought alongside their Laotian comrades. Celeski details how Green Berets, working with the CIA under the direction of the U.S. Ambassador(s) in Vientiane from 1959–1974, applied and refined their skills in one of the first applications of a new special warfare doctrine. This book stands with Shooting at the Moon and Shadow War as an important addition to the history of the ultimately tragic Laotian campaign.” ~James Stejskal, author of Clandestine Cold War Operations of the U.S. Army’s Elite and Masters of Mayhem: Lawrence of Arabia and the British Military Mission to the Hejaz