JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A new book written by a Jacksonville native reflects on his decision to join the Marines after 9/11.

"You think you have a preconceived notion of what's coming, and you quickly find out that you're very, very wrong," said Patrick Turley.

Patrick Turley says nothing could have prepared him for boot camp in the Marines. He enlisted less than 24 hours after 9/11, wanting to serve his country in the wake of the attacks. It was an experience he felt compelled to write about.

"You lie in your rack at night and think about the men braver than you who lay in that same rack and fought," said Turley.

His book, Welcome to Hell, reflects on the time immediately after 9/11 and the young men and women who made the decision to serve their country.

"It's like our generations Lusitania for our great grandparents or Pearl Harbor for our grandparents, or the Kennedy Assassination for our parents. That moment that everybody remembers where they were and every little detail," said Turley.

All the proceeds from Turley's book will go to the Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation.

First Coast News