Beyond the Call of Duty: The Life of Colonel Robert Howard, America's Most Decorated Green Beret

Written by Stephen L. Moore

Narrated by Johnny Heller

As a child, Robert Howard was taught by his Granny Callie to always face his threats head-on. Some thirty years later, he emerged from the Vietnam War as America’s most decorated Green Beret.

For the first time, Robert Howard’s story is being told in full. Respected military historian Stephen L. Moore takes readers into the heart of the Vietnam War's covert Special Ops jungle warfare in this immersive, suspenseful read. Through family sources, National Archives documents, and dozens of testimonials from the Green Berets who fought alongside him, this “one-man army” will finally be given the recognition he deserves.

Robert Howard grew up in poverty in a small town in Alabama, with a strong sense of faith and determination. When he enlisted in the army at age seventeen, his Granny Callie’s words echoed in his head, and he pledged to follow them to the bitter end. In the most dire of combat experiences, Howard ran directly toward his opponents, sacrificing his body to protect others and to complete the mission above all else. Time and time again, he survived battles that should have claimed his life, suffering countless bullets, a spinal injury, and shrapnel and blast wounds. Recon commanders who ran missions with him declared him to be the bravest man they had ever met.

In return, Howard received a staggering number of awards and ribbons for valor and distinctive service in combat—over fifty in all, including the Medal of Honor, eight Purple Hearts, the Distinguished Service Cross, a Silver Star, and four Bronze Stars. He holds the distinction of being the only soldier nominated for the Medal of Honor three times in only a thirteen-month period. In total, Howard spent a grueling, treacherous forty months in combat duty in Vietnam, including over two years with MACV-SOG’s elite covert group.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Audio
• Release date: Dec 3, 2024
• ISBN: 9780593947319

Stephen L. Moore

Stephen L. Moore, a sixth-generation Texan, graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University. He is the author of multiple books on World War II and Texas history, including the critically acclaimed Eighteen Minutes: The Battle of San Jacinto and the Texas Independence Campaign; the four-volume Savage Frontier series on the early Texas Rangers and Texas Indian Wars; and Taming Texas, a biography of his great-great-great-grandfather William T. Sadler, who was one of the first Texas Ranger captains in the 1830s. Steve lives north of Dallas in Lantana, Texas, with his wife, Cindy, and their three children.