Lofty Large has known the exhilaration of victory and the terrible despondency of defeat, the satisfaction of seeing his enemies go down and the horrific stinging crash of bullets smashing into his own body. In Soldier Against the Odds he discusses the paradox of army life, from the great parades with hundreds of marching troops, to the weeks and months of silent movement, every nerve at full stretch, with only the muzzle of your rifle or machine-gun between you and the opposition. The author has served all over the world: in the mind-numbing cold, in the blazing desert heat and in sweat-drenched jungle warfare. He has faced minefields, traps and ambushes, as well as bombs, bullets, rockets and napalm. And he has also been a prisoner-of-war. Wounded in action and captured by the enemy at the battle of the Imjin River in Korea, he was released two years later but his injuries meant that he was declared 'unfit for further military service'. He would not give up on his army career and defied the odds, passing the SAS selection course and going on to enjoy a long career in the Special Air Service. Military experience in this soldier's case was always against the odds.