Nothing Left to Prove, Nothing Left to Hide

A man grows up in the shadow of a heroic WWII veteran and takes extreme measures to follow in his father’s impossible footsteps, hoping to finally earn his parents’ love and respect.

Nothing Left to Prove, Nothing Left to Hide chronicles the life of Major Sebastian Thomas Tosto, from his troubled childhood in suburban Connecticut through his improbable path to becoming a physician, a paratrooper, and ultimately his ascent to Brigade Surgeon in the 82nd Airborne Division of the United States Army. Tosto served in combat zones in Afghanistan and Iraq, earning both the Bronze Star and Meritorious Service Medals, and then deployed with the 82nd to New Orleans in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He had matured from a nervous, frightened little boy who lived in awe of his brave and formidable father into a great leader and protector of the men with whom he served. But he harbored a dark secret of which he was ashamed, and he spent most of his life desperately seeking exoneration from his guilt and remorse. He kept that secret carefully hidden from everyone he knew...until now. This is a story of fathers and sons, indignity and honor, tragedy and triumph, deception and truth—a long and winding journey culminating in one man’s redemption after a lifetime of shame and regrets. Chapter by chapter, the author reveals fragments of the protagonist’s life, taking the listener on their own journey until the aggregate parts combine to unveil the previously unforeseen whole.

Dr. Scott Zuckerman’s first book, Dreams of My Comrades, was awarded first place in the non-fiction category of the 2015 Utah Original Writing Competition. In 2020 he contributed two chapters to the Sunbury Press anthology After the Pandemic: Visions of Life Post COVID-19.