Working With Giants – John Norman

Working With Giants is the long-awaited memoir from Chief John Norman, the retired FDNY Chief of Special Operations and best-selling author of Fire Officer’s Handbook of Tactics and Fire Department Special Operations. Drawing on more than three decades in the fire service — from his start as a volunteer firefighter alongside his father in 1970 to leading search-and-rescue operations at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 — Norman delivers a firsthand, richly detailed account of life inside FDNY Rescue Companies. Readers follow him through major structural collapses, high-stakes rescues, and the personal losses that shaped his career, all told with the same clarity and credibility that made his tactical textbooks required reading for fire departments nationwide.

More than a firefighting memoir, this book is a tribute to the men and women Norman calls the “giants” of the American fire service — the humble, dedicated professionals who put their lives on the line for strangers. Reviewers have consistently called it an unforgettable, hard-to-put-down read: fire service veterans praise Norman’s remarkable recall of incidents and tactical detail, while civilian readers highlight how clearly he explains the reasoning behind fireground decisions. Some have compared it favorably to classics like Report from Engine Company 82, calling it a must-read for anyone interested in firefighting, emergency response, leadership under pressure, or the true story of 9/11 from a first responder’s perspective. Whether you’re a firefighter, a fan of first-responder memoirs, or simply looking for an authentic, emotionally powerful true story, Working With Giants delivers a front-row seat to the modern history of America’s fire service.