Jim DeFelice (Scott McEwen) Books in Order

Jim DeFelice and Scott McEwen are best known for teaming up with Navy SEAL Chris Kyle to write American Sniper. This page focuses on that collaboration and the related editions that grew out of it, pulling the key books into one easy place.

At its core, American Sniper is Kyle's story of growing up in Texas, joining the SEALs, and serving four brutal combat tours in Iraq. The book follows him from training to rooftop overwatch in cities like Fallujah and Ramadi, tracking how a rodeo cowboy became the most lethal sniper in modern U.S. military history.

DeFelice and McEwen help shape those memories into a narrative that stays close to Kyle's own blunt, unvarnished voice. The chapters move back and forth between firefights, quiet stretches on base, and short returns home, with sections from Kyle's wife, Taya, that show what those years looked like from the family side of the war.

Both coauthors bring different strengths to the project. DeFelice has spent years writing about politics, intelligence, and military history, so the book can step back and explain how larger decisions in Washington and Baghdad filter down to a single sniper on a rooftop. McEwen's background as a trial attorney, his interest in long range shooting, and his work with veterans' charities help keep the details grounded in how operators actually talk and think.

The result is a memoir that reads like a long conversation rather than a formal history. It does not try to cover every aspect of the Iraq War or the wider war on terror. Instead, it stays with one man, his teammates, and a handful of turning point missions that defined his decade in uniform and the difficult transition home.

Readers should know that the books on this page do not shy away from violence, loss, or the moral weight of combat. Kyle and his coauthors write frankly about killing, about friends who did not make it back, and about the strain that repeated deployments put on a marriage. That honesty is a large part of why the collaboration reached so many people.

If you are coming here after seeing the film adaptation, this page helps you find the written side of the story in order and understand how the book differs from the movie. If you are starting on the page with no background at all, it offers summaries, publication details, and a clear path into the DeFelice and McEwen partnership that made American Sniper such a touchstone for military readers and civilians alike.