Commandos. Special Operations. SAS. Spetsnaz. Delta Force. The names of these highly trained, elite combat units call up images of Hollywood brawn and le Carre-like brains. They are the best of the best -- small teams of expert, well-equipped soldiers who possess extraordinary intellectual and physical prowess and are trained intensely to get the job done decisively and efficiently. And now, these Perfect Soldiers are determining the way wars will be fought and won in the 21st century. The 2003 war in Iraq was the first example of what these units, utilizing stunning new tactics and armed with advanced technologies, can do when used in large numbers. In this authoritative, in-depth account, military author and historian James F. Dunnigan uncovers the fascinating evolution of the world's deadliest warriors, from skilled prehistoric hunters, through the Stosstruppen, British SAS, Russia's Spetsnaz, the Long-Range Reconnaissance Patrols of the Vietnam War, antiterrorism commandos, SWAT teams, and the commando wars of Afghanistan and Iraq. With brilliant analysis and gripping descriptions, Dunnigan explores the minds, methods, tools, and decisive battles of such elite forces as the Navy SEALS, Rangers, Delta Force, Airborne, and the fast-moving Boer riflemen who bedeviled the British and first coined the term "commando." More than an absorbing history of "the few and the brave," The Perfect Soldier is an inside look at the way the world's top fighting units have raised standards for all combat troops and forever changed the face of warfare. Book jacket.

James F. Dunnigan is the author of over twenty books on military subjects. He has been an on-air analyst for Fox and NBC, and a consultant for the State Department, the CIA, and the Army War College. He lives in New York City