Feb 23, 2015 at war is a reported blog from afghanistan, pakistan, iraq and other conflicts in the post911 era. As a foreign correspondent for the new york times, dexter filkins has covered the wars in afghanistan and iraq since 2001. Just war is a concept that governs the conditions under which a war can be waged and how it can be waged. Top 10 books about the iraq war books the guardian. The long road home, which is wrapping up three months of production on the outskirts of texas fort hood army base, relives a heroic fight for survival during the iraq war when the 1st cavalry. Fighting was ended by a 1988 ceasefire, though the resumption of normal diplomatic relations and the withdrawal of troops did not take place until 1990. This epic threevolume masterpiece is to war what gibbons decline and fall of the roman empire was to history. A reading list of modern war stories the new york times. Military memoirs offer unfiltered view of iraq war. Through flashbacks, the film shows what really happened to his squad contrasting the realities of war with americas perceptions.
Ben fountain on his satirical iraq war novel billy lynns. Billy lynns long halftime walk 2016 its going down. The first of these was a brief, conventionally fought war in marchapril 2003, in which a combined force of troops from the united states and great britain with smaller contingents from several other countries invaded iraq and rapidly defeated iraqi military and paramilitary forces. The long walk is a raw, wrenching, bloodsoaked chronicle of the human cost of war. Ben fountains remarkable debut novel follows the surviving members of the heroic bravo squad through one exhausting stop in their mediaintensive victory tour at texas stadium, football. The first cavalry division came under surprise attack in sadr city on sunday, april 4, 2004. Armys longawaited iraq war study finds iran was the only. Billy lynns long halftime walk is the latest work from veteran taiwaneseborn filmmaker ang lee, probably best known for sense and sensibility 1995, the ice storm 1997, crouching tiger. Brian castner, the leader of a military bomb disposal team, recounts his deployment to iraq with unflinching candor, and in the process exposes crucial truths not only about this particular conflict, but also about war throughout history. Like all wars, this one has produced a library of great books. The best books to come out of conflict zones over the past hundred years, from world war one to iraq. The united nations had looked askance at iraqi behavior for some time. For more than a century this magazine has told stories of war and its consequences.
Formerly an active member of the air force, castner was sent to fight in the iraq war on two separate assignments in 2005 and 2006. Estimates of total casualties range from 1,000,000 to twice that number. Though the book chronicles the brutalities of castners deployment, it focuses primarily on the jarring. This book will be of much interest to students of international and cold war history, middle eastern politics, foreign policy, and international relations in general.
All this should remind you of the runup to the iraq war the march to war against iran is echoing the drumbeats of americas last major middle eastern invasion. Like powers, fountain is an american writer depicting the iraq war. A true story from iraq by jeanette winter 30 times. Bonilla, kate bosworth, patrick schwarzenegger and jeremy sisto. Apr 14, 2017 15 great books about iraq, afghanistan. Iraq war still casts a long shadow over a dangerous and. For the film adaptation, see billy lynns long halftime walk film billy lynns long halftime walk is a satirical war novel written by ben fountain, which was published in early may 2012 by ecco press, a publishing imprint of harpercollins. The making of a neoconservative war by muhammad idrees ahmad edinburgh university press, 2014, 256 pp. Abc news chief global affairs correspondent martha raddatz shares remarkable tales of heroism, hope, and heartbreak in her account of black sundaya battle during one of the deadliest periods of the iraq war.
Billy lynns long halftime walk features no more than a few. Lessons learned from the iraq and afghan wars foreign. A twovolume army study of the iraq war is a deep examination of the. Billy lynns long halftime walk is a razorsharp satire set in texas during americas war in iraq. You have seen this all the time, people who lose at the craps table bet bigger to win it back. Tom voss found healing from the iraq war through yoga and. It is the definitive history of the us civil war it gives equal treatment to both sides, and is more than one million words, but is never boring. A darkly comic satire set at a forward operating base in iraq, by a veteran who served in the army for 20.
List of books and articles about just war doctrine online. The cost of war is a dramatic and groundbreaking blowbyblow account of one of the most pivotal and controversial conflicts in recent world history. This week marks the 10year anniversary of the start of the iraq war. Unsung heroes from iraq, afghanistan, and the home front, tells true stories of extraordinary heroism by american troops at war. Published in 20, this book dives deeply into the syrian revolution and how it transformed into a civil war. The iraq war remains highly controversial, but in all the uncertainty about weapons of mass destruction, the use and misuse of intelligence, and the whereabouts of saddam hussein, it remains an awesome military and political event and a formidable exercise in american power aided by the british army. Jul 07, 2016 the iraq war is going to affect this part of the world for many generations to come, concludes izadi. This debut novel by dallas resident ben fountain takes on that misbegotten war. It shows what happens when you invade a country and dont think carefully when. During a fivemonth trek from milwaukee to california featured in the. The end doesnt even make the top ten stories of the. Now, with fountain well into his 50s, his fulllength debut has finally emerged a fierce, exhilarating novel about the iraq war. In this stunning new narrative of the road to americas new longest war, one of the nations premier diplomatic historians excavates the deep historical roots of the u.
Bonilla, jon beavers, joey luthman, darius homayoun. Billy lynns long halftime walk by ben fountain an extraordinarily vivid portrait of what public expectations surround soldiering in. Ang lees superhighdefinition take on the iraq war joe alwyn in the title role of billy lynns long halftime walk, directed by ang lee. He won the national book critics circle award for fiction, and billy lynns long halftime walk was a finalist for the national book award. An army lieutenant stationed outside baghdad in 2007, he started a lively, candid and intelligent blog, attracting thousands of readers. No other book ive read takes us closer to the lives of the people there, breathing a muchneeded human dimension to understanding life in iraq. Thirteen years agoin the spring of 2002this country was just beginning the runup to its invasion of iraq. The 10 best contemporary war novels publishers weekly. Air force officer and the author of the novel id walk with my. Iraq war, also called second persian gulf war, 200311, conflict in iraq that consisted of two phases. The iraq war hasnt yet had its catch22 or slaughterhousefive, but billy lynns long halftime walk is a contender.
Novels and memoirs by service members that address their time in afghanistan or iraq have not benefitted from the sense of closure granted veteran writers of world war two, or even vietnam. The riveting, exclusive true story of an iraq whistleblower who continues to be betrayed by his country, as told by an international bestselling author. Lyndon johnson and the wars for vietnam, 1995, etc. The new york timess awardwinning team provides insight and answers questions about combatants on the faultlines, and civilians caught in the middle. All this should remind you of the runup to the iraq war. Based on martha raddatzs new york times bestseller of the same name, the series relives a heroic fight for survival during the iraq war, when the 1st cavalry division from fort hood was. Publishers weekly mar 19, 2012 with a degree in electrical engineering, castner served as an air force officer in saudi arabia in 2001, and iraq in 2005 and 2006, where he earned a bronze star. Recent literature of the iraq war books tell you why, inc. Armys long awaited iraq war study finds iran was the only winner in a conflict that holds many lessons for future wars. Afghanistan war stories the long walk by cj chivers. Ben fountain, the author of the 2012 novel billy lynns long halftime walk, about a group of iraq war soldiers on a media tour, is also a member of my generation, born in.
These three books on the iraq war are just the first look at what must be thousands of stories still to be told. Nineteenyearold private billy lynn joe alwyn, along with his fellow soldiers in bravo squad, becomes a hero after a harrowing iraq battle and is brought home temporarily for a. The forever war is a nonfiction book by american journalist dexter filkins about his observations on assignment in afghanistan and iraq during the 2001 war in afghanistan and the iraq war. I have seen iraq, gulf war, and afghanistan vets since not long after the beginning of these conflicts. Jun 22, 2017 the long road home, which is wrapping up three months of production on the outskirts of texas fort hood army base, relives a heroic fight for survival during the iraq war when the 1st cavalry. Prohibited from publication when originally written in 2004, and fully updated and revised following the publication of the chilcot inquiry, iraq. Gallagher began writing about the war in iraq from inside it. Saddam husseins move into iraq was so alarming that it galvanized most of the nations in the region to send troops to saudi arabia to help oppose the iraqi build up. The contributions to the volume serve to underline that the iraniraq war was a defining conflict, shaping the perspectives of the key protagonists for a generation to come. Jun 07, 2010 as of today, june 7, 2010, the war in afghanistan has lasted 104 months, surpassing vietnam as the longest war in american history.
Iran iraq war 198088, prolonged military conflict between iran and iraq. Increasingly, it also handles the post war issues of legal claims about war crimes committed previously. The novel chronicles the experience of a group of iraq war veterans who are hailed as heroes and sent on a victory tour following their engagement in an. Young boy a country childhood the long walk of nelson. Dec 26, 2014 a selection of books related to the wars in iraq and afghanistan. Delusions of regime change in iraq by michael macdonald harvard university press, 2014, 336 pp.
Precise narrative connects the dots between vietnam and gulf war ii, primarily from a political and diplomatic perspective. Little, brown and company 1994 reprinted with permission of the publisher. American oil diplomacy in the persian gulf and the caspian sea gawdat bahgat isbn10. The long walk will hook you from the very first sentence, and it will stay with you long after its final gripping page has been turned. A country childhood book excerpt from chapter 2 of mandelas autobiography long walk to freedom c. Id walk with my friends if i could find them jesse goolsby. In a ghostwritten book called the long walk, he claimed that in 1941 he and six others had escaped from a siberian gulag camp and begun a long journey south on foot about 6,500 km or 4,000 mi. Feb 22, 2016 like powers, fountain is an american writer depicting the iraq war. Americas war in afghanistan now officially longer than vietnam. The book is part memoir, part travelogue of a unique trip he took with a fellow iraq war veteran and part inspirational text. Afghanistan and its future as youve never seen it eight years into the war we were compelled to wage, the ground mission in afghanistan remains just as brutal as war there has. For memorial day why not turn to a biting, thoughtful, and absolutely spoton new novel, billy lynns long halftime walk, about american iraq war vets back home on a. Gregory ford, an intelligence agent and medic, was in iraq for only a short timefrom the invasion in march 2003 until early june of the same year, when he was strapped to a stretcher.
Foreign policy from the 1970s to the present lloyd c. The first is an engrossing story of the iraq war from the. An accidental soldiers account of the war in iraq by john crawford 32 times american sniper by chris kyle 31 times the librarian of basra. Billy lynns long halftime walk, ang lees ambitious, uneven and heroically idiosyncratic new movie, follows a u.
The theory of just war is known in variant forms since antiquity and several versions exist within both religious and philosophical. Films of the forever war billy lynns long halftime walk is hollywoods latest attempt to dramatize our wars in iraq and beyond. In war, the law of the jungle is a constant lure, especially for soldiers trying to distinguish between detainees who are common criminals, cases of. American forces invaded afghanistan in october 2001, kabul fell. Learning from the long war was produced in response to two questions from general martin dempsey, thenchairman of the joint chiefs.
Redeployment by phil klay, the yellow birds by kevin powers, billy lynns long halftime walk by ben fountain, the watch by jo. It explores the gaping national disconnect between the war at home and the war abroad. In his memoir, the long walk, castner chronicles his three tours in iraq and the life that followed when he returned home as a different man, unable to forget what he saw or experienced in iraq. Lloyd gardners sweeping and authoritative narrative places the iraq war in the context of u. Pages in category iraq war in fiction the following 14 pages are in this category, out of 14 total. Ricks new book about american military strategy in iraq, warns that despite the administrations promises of massive troop withdrawal, the u.
Mar 19, 20 10 of the best works of fiction and nonfiction. You may purchase the long walk at your favorite local bookstore, or these retailers. While most of the country tries to forget the iraq war ever happened. Mariella frostrup talks to ben fountain and discusses his satirical iraq war novel billy lynns long halftime walk which takes a wry look at americas relationship with the iraq war. But between headlines, many also turned to books to understand the strategy. Last fall, as the casualties began to mount, correspondent david martin set out to meet some of the. We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article. American forces occupying iraq are ambushed in a baghdad neighborhood.
Oct 16, 2007 military memoirs offer unfiltered view of iraq war a new crop of memoirs from soldiers in iraq highlights stories from the front lines, the complications of leadership, and the terrible choices. Thats also what journalist martha raddatz did in the long road home, her book about a deadly iraq war ambush. The national defense universitys institute of national. On this day in 2003, the united states, along with coalition forces primarily from the united kingdom, initiates war on iraq. At this juncture, the united nations felt compelled to condemn iraq and to request an immediate withdrawal of troops. Stories from a new generation of american soldiers. Best books about war in iraq for more than seven years, americans learned about the war from news reports. This book examines my struggle to confront the new person who came home from iraq. With joe alwyn, garrett hedlund, arturo castro, mason lee.
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