Since Sept. 11, 2001, just over 30,000 veterans have died by suicide—four times more than the number of US military personnel who have died in combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. My 83,000-word debut memoir, American Airman, is an unflinching look at one veteran’s life. Like Jake Wood’s Once a Warrior, American Airman is about a transitioning veteran channeling his pain into a new life purpose. Unlike Once a Warrior, though, it tells a more complete life story, from a veteran’s adolescence and enlistment in the Air Force, to a near fatal injury while serving on active-duty, and then through his difficult transition back into civilian life.

American Airman is a story of vulnerability, resiliency, and hope that will particularly appeal to America’s 2.9 million Wounded Warriors. No veteran returns the same as when they first enlisted. More often than not, the scars and wounds go unseen and the battle doesn’t end at discharge: According to VA statistics, every day, 23 veterans take their own lives. Ryan’s story bears witness to the men and women who, in fighting for our rights and freedoms, make unimaginable sacrifices and, then, must search for that elusive “new “normal” after sacrifice becomes reality. It grapples with several issues that are regularly covered by the media, including mental health, veteran health care, and the impact of a recovering veteran on their family.