Saved: A War Reporter's Mission to Make It Home

Saved is an adventure story. It is also a war story, a love story and a tale of gratitude. At the center is how a remarkable man named Benjamin Hall used a catastrophic injury to grow and mature in his marriage, his career and his faith. Hall’s parents exposed him to the world and gave him a love of travel and adventure. For years, he was a freelance journalist specializing in war, mostly in the Middle East. Hall always tried to be as close to the action as possible, despite the risks. In 2015 he became a full-time Fox News Channel employee and married his girlfriend Alicia Meller. They have three daughters.On March 14, 2022 Benjamin Hall, cameraman Pierre Zakrewski and producer Oleksandra (Sasha) Kuvshinova and two Ukranian security guards drove north of Kyiv in search of a story. As they were returning to the city, the Russians shelled the car three times. The car was destroyed and burned and only Hall escaped alive. He credits this to the appearance of his oldest daughter telling him to “get our of the car.”The story that follows is one of survival and of cooperation between governments and non-government agencies, including the Prime Minister of Poland. Save Our Allies did the difficult and dangerous job of getting Benjamin Hall out of Ukraine to the safety of the U.S. Army.Hall’s journey from Landstuhl in Germany to Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas was painful and harrowing. He had a skull fracture and was experiencing nightmares and hallucinations that continued in Texas. His injuries are horrific: the loss of both feet, one eye, one leg, a shredded hand, blindness in one eye and severe burns.His wife Alicia was his main support throughout the recovery period. Hall calls her the real hero for keeping their family stable for the months he was away. There was also support from friends, relatives, colleagues and thousands of Fox News viewers. The medical staff at both Landstuhl and BAMC are professional and caring. Although told that his recovery would take two years, Hall decided that he needed to be home in months. His recounts the sometimes uplifting, sometimes gruesome details of his treatment in a factual journalistic fashion with no hint of self-pity.Benjamin Hall still has a long way to go with his recovery. But there is no doubt that with his unconquerable spirit and the love and support of his family, friends and Fox News viewers, he will succeed and go back to the career he loves. Hall no longer wants to cover wars but looks forward to telling the stories of goodness that he has found in the world.

Survival stories have always been my favorite genre and Ben’s story is without a doubt, one of the most amazing and inspirational ones I have ever read. His powerful will to survive driven on my his Daughter’s beautiful little voice giving him urgent orders to get out the of car is enough to take your breath away. There were so many miracles and angels along the way that there is no doubt like Ben mentioned that this was not his time to leave the planet. I have hung on to any news of Ben’s recovery and I was so grateful to know he was releasing this book on the anniversary of the bombing. There was a reason, Ben, you ended up in Texas. Texans have the biggest and most loving/giving hearts in the world. My Son at age 26 was treated (successfully) for late stage cancer at MD Anderson in Houston and it was then I realized how incredible Texans truly are. My Son walked in the hospital for the first time and as dire as his situation was, he just immediately knew he would be cured there. Besides all the medical miracles and expertise you were showered with, it certainly was the people and their many kindnesses that make the biggest difference as you so often spoke of. I just love your story - although i had to put it down at times as it was so heart wrenching. I know I along with millions of others are so grateful that you are back with your beautiful wife, Alicia and spunky Daughters. My Son always says his life is a new normal post cancer, but how grand life is just to be with the ones you love. I so highly recommend this book and I’ve already bought a bunch of copies for gifts. I look forward to hearing/reading/watching more about Ben and his family. Cheers!

In fairy tale fashion, I believed that war correspondents left their hotel, did a quick report, and headed back to the bar for drinks. Benjamin Hall disabused me of that idea. His commentary was tough and brutal, and above all, a harsh realistic view of a war correspondent’s life. Very special people do that job to bring us the facts of war.Hall then goes on to describe the bombing and his survival there after. He unblinkingly described the pain and his mental condition at the time. To combat the pain, he set goals. Get home to his family. That was the ultimate goal. Nothing mattered but that.I loved this book, and I especially loved Hall’s humility and gratitude. He unfailingly mentioned everyone who helped him along the way. He had kind words for the doctors and nurses, both In Ukraine and the US, Seaspray and his team, the people at Fox, and many more. He gave special thanks to Pierre, his cameraman, who he credits with saving his life, and of course, to his wife, Alicia, and children who supported him along the way. This is a great book from an excellent writer. Buy it. You won’t be sorry.