Uncommon Grit

Starred review from September 21, 2020
Retired U.S. Navy SEAL McBurnett documents the character of the elite special forces unit in his blunt and beautiful photographic chronicle of the intensive training required of SEAL recruits. McBurnett details the first four weeks of SEAL training with its culmination in “Hell Week,” five days and nights of acute sleep deprivation, nonstop cold, and arduous exercise, endured in service of developing a mastery of physical and mental pain. Stunning photographs document the program in Coronado, Calif. Of the most grueling physical tests, McBurnett singles out the combat training tank exercises, such as the perilous 50-meter underwater swim, which provides “the first sneak peek to see if you have the mental capability to push you beyond your comfort zone.” Full-page layouts mix black and white, color, and sepia photos of sand-covered grimacing soldiers as they haul huge logs overhead, are sprayed with water during sit-ups, or lie in a curving formation of bodies, battered by water on the tide line. (There’s also an actual seal in the mix, oblivious on beach.) McBurnett’s artistry elevates the training of elite warriors with a mixture of bracing realism and cinematic romanticism, appealing as much to fine photography fans as the military crowd. Agent: Howard Yoon, the Ross Yoon Agency.

October 15, 2020
McBurnett, a retired Navy SEAL and professional photographer, presents a visual montage of the toughest four weeks in U.S. military training, a Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) course including the same exercises he endured as part of the first SEALs class in 1996. At first glance, you see pictures of men in water, men holding up a boat, men carrying a log, then, page by page, this grueling regimen, the demands of which steadily increase, comes into ever-sharper focus. Each photograph captures the determination of each trainee and each man's dedication and perseverance through hardship long after the Good Idea Fairy has departed. The sum of this photographic journey conveys what words alone cannot. Gazing at these images and reading about the SEALs, one cannot fail to empathize with these young men and gain understanding of their commitment. McBurnett makes you feel the cold of the surf, the chafing grit of sand, and the length of the day. Uncommon Grit is an uncommon work of art documenting a little-seen aspect of the forces that keep us safe.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)