Young men and fire by norman maclean

I first read this book as a very young firefighter. I decided to read it again recently, and my appreciation for it has grown substantially.

It’s the true story of 13 Smokejumpers who died on a “nothing” fire in 1949, and the 3 survivors who held its secrets. It’s the story of the author, Norman Maclean, who spent years and years investigating the fire on his own. And it’s one of the best written books about a fire that I’ve ever read. Simple, beautiful passages about a horrible fire and the deaths of 13 young firefighters:

“To project ourselves into their final thoughts will require feelings about a special kind of death—the sudden death in fire of the young, elite, unfulfilled, and seemingly unconquerable. As the elite of young men, they felt more surely than most who are young that they were immortal. So if we are to feel with them, we must feel that we are set apart from the rest of the universe and safe from fires, all of which are expected to be put out by ten o’clock the morning after the Smokejumpers are dropped on them.”

Recommended for all ranks (because as a member of the fire profession, we should have a knowledge of our history.)