Author Event: Rory Fanning discusses his new book, Worth Fighting For: An Army Ranger's Journey Out of the Military and Across America, in conversation with Dave Zirin
"Partly an evocation of 'the bloody birth of the nation I now walked through' and its often troubled history, part memoir of the author's transformation from conservative Christian soldier to radical atheist and pacifist, part indictment of a foreign policy in which 'Iraq felt like a bait-and-switch—and a betrayal.' But mostly it's about the people he met in the small towns he visited and the encouragement they gave him."
—Kirkus Reviews
Pat Tillman's death by friendly fire was covered up just days before his comrade Rory Fanning—who served in the same unit as Tillman—left the Army Rangers as a conscientious objector. Disquieted by his tours in Afghanistan, Fanning sets out to honor Tillman's legacy by crossing the United States on foot.
Told with page-turning style, humor, and warmth, Worth Fighting For explores the emotional and social consequences of rejecting the mission of one of the most elite fighting forces in the world. It is only through the generous, and colorful people Fanning meets and the history he discovers that he learns to live again.
RORY FANNING walked across the United States for the Pat Tillman Foundation in 2008–2009, following two deployments to Afghanistan with the 2nd Army Ranger Battalion. He is a housing activist living in Chicago, Illinois. Rory works for Haymarket Books and this is his first book.
Named one of UTNE Reader’s “50 Visionaries Who Are Changing Our World”, DAVE ZIRIN writes about the politics of sports for the Nation Magazine. He is their first sports writer in 150 years of existence. Zirin is also the host of Sirius XM Radio’s popular weekly show, Edge of Sports Radio. He also co-hosts the radio program "The Collision: Sports and Politics with Etan Thomas & Dave Zirin." Zirin is the author of nine books about the politics of sports, including the latest, Brazil's Dance with the Devil, and was nominated for the 2014 PEN American award for literary sports writing. He is, in addition, a columnist for SLAM Magazine and the Progressive.
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