Mark Hertling Talks Fatherhood, New Book, If I Don’t Return: A Father’s Wartime Journal & More

Mark Hertling Talks Fatherhood, New Book, If I Don’t Return: A Father’s Wartime Journal & More

From The Art of Fatherhood Podcast by Art Eddy - Fatherhood

May 25, 2026 · 42 min

About this episode

Mark Hertling discusses his fatherhood journey and his new book, exploring the parallels between fatherhood and military leadership.

Mark Hertling sits down with me to talk about his fatherhood journey. He and I talk about the values he looked to instill into his sons as they grew up. In addition, he shares the life lessons his kids have taught him. After that he and I talk about his new book, If I Don’t Return: A Father’s Wartime Journal. He tells me how this book came to be and how his sons were the inspiration. We also talk about the similarities of fatherhood and being a leader in the military. Lastly, we finish the interview with the Fatherhood Quick Five. About Mark Hertling Mark Hertling served thirty-eight years in the US Army as a tanker and cavalryman, serving at every level from tank platoon leader on the East-West German border to commander of the US Army, Europe (USAREUR) and the Seventh Army. During his combat tours, Mark served as a major in a cavalry squadron during Desert Storm. From 2014 to 2024, Mark appeared as a military and national security analyst for CNN/CNN International. Today, he is a freelance analyst and writes extensively on national security and leadership for a variety of media outlets.Make sure you follow Mark on Instagram over at @markhertling1975. Also make sure you purchase…

People in this episode

Host: Art Eddy

Guest: Mark Hertling

Topics covered

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CodeMonkey

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: CNN

Books & works: If I Don’t Return: A Father’s Wartime Journal

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