Overview

""Few war memoirs achieve the level of literary depth and emotional resonance of Downriver."" - General David Petraeus, U.S. Army (Ret.) MWSA Gold Medal Winner BookLife Prize Critics Score: 9.5/10 (Perfect scores in Prose and Character Execution) Downriver is a powerful story about leadership, trauma, and the long journey home-told by an officer who fought in some of the most consequential battles of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. As a platoon leader in the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division, Ryan McDermott fought in several key engagements, including the Battle for Objective Peach and the Seizure of Saddam International Airport (now Baghdad International Airport). These rarely captured frontline moments, now studied by military historians and students of modern warfare, are presented with clarity, honesty, and emotional depth. But Downriver is not just about war. It is about what comes after. Following his combat tour, McDermott transitioned to Wall Street-only to experience another collapse from within Lehman Brothers during the 2008 financial crisis. What began as a celebrated career change became a confrontation with trauma, identity, and reintegration. The memoir chronicles the private struggles that followed: post-traumatic stress, the challenges of rebuilding purpose, and the search for meaning as a husband, father, and survivor. For readers of The Long Walk, Redeployment, The Last True Story I'll Ever Tell, Jarhead, No Easy Day, and Matterhorn, Downriver offers a unique blend of historical insight, literary craft, and emotional honesty. It speaks to veterans, military families, and anyone who has struggled to rebuild after loss or upheaval. Downriver stands apart for its historically significant firsthand accounts, its intimate look at combat and reintegration, its award-winning literary quality, and its rare fusion of memoir and poetry. More than a war memoir, it is a meditation on identity, trauma, redemption, and the battles that continue long after the war ends.

Full Product Details

9798888247068

Table of Contents

Reviews

""Few war memoirs achieve the level of literary depth and emotional resonance of Downriver. And even fewer help us understand the burden of leadership in combat, and the resilience required to forge a new path beyond the battlefield.""-General David Petraeus, US Army (Ret.) ""A compelling and unflinchingly personal story about his winding road toward wholeness and healing."" -Kirkus Reviews ""Revealing memoir of the Iraq war, the financial crisis, and a soldier's will to succeed."" -BookLife Reviews (Editor's Pick) ""Few memoir writers can claim to be among the first U.S. troops to cross into Iraq in 2003 and part of last associate class to join Lehman Brothers in 2008. Ryan McDermott's experiences thus embrace milieus atypical of either military or financial memoirs alone, fostering a mix of insights and influences that is unique.""-D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review ""A deeply personal memoir of struggle, Ryan McDermott's Downriver: Memoir of a Warrior Poet is a valuable addition to the corpus of veterans' voices in the world reshaped by 9/11."" -IndieReader (IR Approved) ""The beating heart of the memoir is his intense desire to find love and build his own family.""-Independent Book Review ""Downriver is more than just a memoir-it is a meditation on identity, redemption, and the human capacity to heal."" -Readers' Favorite (5 Stars) ""The scenes of combat are vivid but not glorified, and what stuck with me wasn't the action but the moral gray zones, the toll on the soul. I saw echoes of The Things They Carried and even a bit of Cather in the Rye, but with more sand, steel, and stock market crashes."" -Literary Titan (5 Stars) ""What sets Downriver apart is McDermott's use of poetry and creative writing as a fantastic healing tool.""-Feathered Quill

""Few war memoirs achieve the level of literary depth and emotional resonance of Downriver."" -General David Petraeus, US Army (Ret.) ""Downriver: Memoir of a Warrior Poet is a powerful story of our generation of veterans. It is an important lens into the life of a multi-generational modern American military family.""-Eric Chewning, OIF Veteran and former Chief of Staff to the U.S. Secretary of Defense ""Downriver is not only a personal account; it is a tribute to the warriors who led from the front in one of the most significant campaigns of our time.""-Lieutenant Colonel Rock Marcone, US Army (Ret.) ""Ryan embodies the American spirit of resilience, opportunity, and hope. Through poems written in the moment, we witness the journey of his soul. Most importantly, Ryan captures his quest for meaning-a story rooted in the profound question, Why?"" -Lieutenant General Ed Cardon, US Army (Ret.) ""This book not only honors the memory of those we have lost but also ensures their legacy endures, capturing the essence of who they were-not just as soldiers, but as extraordinary individuals whose impact continues to inspire.""-Gary Patriquin, Gold Star Parent ""A heartwarming memoir that will help with life's struggles.""-Ed Freeman, Professor of Business Administration, UVA ""Ryan McDermott gives us an intimate and detailed account of what it is like to be a modern American military family. His account made me proud again to be an American with fellow citizens like him."" -Jim Clawson, Professor Emeritus of Leadership, UVA ""A deeply personal memoir of struggle, Ryan McDermott's DOWNRIVER: Memoir of a Warrior Poet is a valuable addition to the corpus of veterans' voices in the world reshaped by 9/11.""-Indie Reader ""Downriver is more than just a memoir-it is a meditation on identity, redemption, and the human capacity to heal.""-Readers' Favorite

Author Information

Ryan P. McDermott is an executive in the aerospace and defense industry and a former senior Pentagon official, specializing in national security policy, finance, and government relations. A US Army veteran, he served from 2000 to 2006, leading a platoon into combat with the 3rd Infantry Division during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He is a recipient of the Bronze Star Medal and earned the Ranger tab and Combat Infantryman Badge. Following military service, McDermott transitioned to Wall Street and Lehman Brothers before its 2008 collapse.A West Point graduate, McDermott holds an MBA from the Darden Graduate School of Business at the University of Virginia and an MA in security studies from Georgetown University's Walsh School of Foreign Service.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available