Chris Kyle, the most successful American sniper in U.S. Army history, once responded to a journalist:

Question: In a previous interview, you mentioned that Carlos Hathcock was the greatest American sniper who ever lived. Why do you place him above yourself?

Chris Kyle: Successes are relative to the circumstances you are in. I had many targets presented to me. Also, the snipers of World War II had more opportunities than anyone else. Hathcock, on the other hand, used all the skills required of a sniper: approach, concealment of his movements, waiting for the right moment, etc. – and he did it better than anyone else. That is the true ability to be a sniper, not just the moment of the shot.

The book recounts all the thrilling actions of the legendary Carlos Hathcock during the Vietnam War: How he pinned down a group of 150 enemies in the Elephant Valley for days. The chase of the woman known as "Apache," a notorious Viet Cong sniper. The mission to kill a Viet Cong general. His famous "duel" in the jungle with the opposing sniper sent from North Vietnam with the mission to kill him. His enemies called him "White Feather" and had put a bounty of $10,000 on his head.