- Hardcover: 384 pages
- Publisher: Doubleday; First Edition First Printing edition (2 Oct 1997)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0385409168
- ISBN-13: 978-0385409162
- Product Dimensions: 23.2 x 16.2 x 3.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
140,450 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #80 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Protestant > Anglicanism
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
From a life of gang-led petty crime to a key role in the mission that brought the SAS to the attention of the world - the Iranian Embassy Siege - Frank Collins had always been at the centre of the action. Then, out of the blue he underwent an extraordinary religious conversion.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Frank Collins book unlike many SAS memoirs is a very personal account about his life. In this book we read about his transition from boyhood to membership to a very elite army regiment and finally converting to christianity.
While a wonderfully written account you can't help but feel that he was obviously never 'One of the lads' and had a much more considerate attitude than you would expect from a "hard as nails" soldier.
Reading this book and also Seven troop by Andy McNab gives you the distinct impression of Frank being a lost soul, one who never really found a role for himself and you can't help but feel that his last incarnation as a church minister was an unsuccessful attempt to give meaning to his life. I say unsuccessful as he committed suicide not long after this book was published.
But if you want a very different account of a SAS mans life and how a committed atheist found god, look no further.
While a wonderfully written account you can't help but feel that he was obviously never 'One of the lads' and had a much more considerate attitude than you would expect from a "hard as nails" soldier.
Reading this book and also Seven troop by Andy McNab gives you the distinct impression of Frank being a lost soul, one who never really found a role for himself and you can't help but feel that his last incarnation as a church minister was an unsuccessful attempt to give meaning to his life. I say unsuccessful as he committed suicide not long after this book was published.
But if you want a very different account of a SAS mans life and how a committed atheist found god, look no further.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
There are enough books on the SAS to throw a stick at and hit ten at a time. I am not saying that they are not all good. But three stand out to me as being honest and down to earth...They are.. Fighting Scared by Robin Horsfall, Freefall by Tom Read aka ( Nish ). And this one by Frank Collins. To me these three men don't come at you with a tough guy approach, but with a honesty few men today posses. That honesty is the part that tells you, they are not scared of admitting there iner fight within themselves.
I have read this book time and time again. Each time I read it, it gets better & better. Even my wife has read it, and that says it all.
When Frank Collins decided to get baptized in Hereford, he came out of that water, a giant of a man. But Frank was a giant even before he hit the water
If it's a true honest read your after, then you will have to look no further that Baptism Of Fire.
God bless you ( Blondie).
I have read this book time and time again. Each time I read it, it gets better & better. Even my wife has read it, and that says it all.
When Frank Collins decided to get baptized in Hereford, he came out of that water, a giant of a man. But Frank was a giant even before he hit the water
If it's a true honest read your after, then you will have to look no further that Baptism Of Fire.
God bless you ( Blondie).
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Despite sad beginnings in his life, Frank Collins was a man who gave the challenges that came his way his all, because he had found out through life experience that when the going gets tough, the tough get going. With this attitude and determination he made it into the elite British SAS. What he lacked in a human father (his dad was an alcoholic and was not what you would class a 'good father' by any stretch) he ended up finding in a Heavenly Father. Once a high-ranking soldier in the SAS, he soon found his niche as a Padre for the Regiment - and he was well respected in that role due to his background qualifications!
Although Frank seemed to have it all together in some way, he was clearly struggling with his life in another. Sadly, he took his own life. In this sense it is a tragic story, for a life cut short by suicide is never a happy story. This life story is a wonderful one to read and reflect on nevertheless. It is an honest and forthcoming account of someone who was very human. It shows a man who sought to please his biological father, but somehow did not really succeed in doing that, due to his father's unaccepting, non-interested attitude. It shows a man who seeks to live wholeheartedly for what he believes in. It does demonstrate how fragile human life can be; and that despite being a Christian - a believer in the God of Hope - sometimes life is too hard to take. Yes, sometimes Christians like Frank Collins do take their own lives. As a mental health professional I don't condone suicide, but I know that the God Frank believed in understands and knows all, and continues to love those who struggle with life as Frank Collins did.
Although Frank seemed to have it all together in some way, he was clearly struggling with his life in another. Sadly, he took his own life. In this sense it is a tragic story, for a life cut short by suicide is never a happy story. This life story is a wonderful one to read and reflect on nevertheless. It is an honest and forthcoming account of someone who was very human. It shows a man who sought to please his biological father, but somehow did not really succeed in doing that, due to his father's unaccepting, non-interested attitude. It shows a man who seeks to live wholeheartedly for what he believes in. It does demonstrate how fragile human life can be; and that despite being a Christian - a believer in the God of Hope - sometimes life is too hard to take. Yes, sometimes Christians like Frank Collins do take their own lives. As a mental health professional I don't condone suicide, but I know that the God Frank believed in understands and knows all, and continues to love those who struggle with life as Frank Collins did.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
bitterly honest
I have all the sas books and like them for the chance to see what a challenge being right at the top takes as a person, only making it into the paras and not nearly good enough for... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Mr. P. J. Daw
The Secrets of Pain
this auto-biograpy was mentioned in the credits of the Phil Rickman book "The Secrets of Pain" which has a very strong SAS theme running through it. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Terry Smith
Baptism of Fire
An excellent book about a man of great convictions who sadly, after this book was written, took his own life. Read more
Published 14 months ago by David in Spain
Excellent Book
This book is an amazing story of a lad who made it to the top of the british army , in soldering terms. Read more
Published 18 months ago by sapperdan
Read it if you can get it
Hard to find but what an inspiring story. Not very well known about but well worth a read.
Published on 31 July 2009 by Daniel Humphreys
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