paulvanbuuren's review against another edition
3.0
Prima boek als je gek bent op oorlogshandelingen. Filkins heeft het ergste na dichtbij meegemaakt.
Minder geschikt boek als je een stukje duiding of context wil.
Minder geschikt boek als je een stukje duiding of context wil.
elsary's review
4.0
I admire the way Filkins writes, so casually and calmly about the things he saw and experienced. He doesn’t take sides and doesn’t comment on politics, he just reports, and does it well.
lukre's review against another edition
4.0
a really difficult read at times. The reason for less than 5* is probably the writing style. The jumping-aroundness of the segments. But worth the read if you want to expeirence the reality of the Iraq invasion. Also - the title is really appropriate. This became even more obvious after I'd read Haldeman's Forever War this month.
Note to self - I should really review these two books together....
The full review of this book and Joe Haldeman book of the same title is available on my blog
https://anatomyofreading.wordpress.com
wmainwold's review against another edition
5.0
Great book. Important book. Everyone should read it. You get a well-written, unbiased, first-person view of the war in Iraq, and some history on the region. Eye-opening and very interesting. Go read it NOW!
rebecita's review against another edition
Yikes. I can't imagine finer war reporting. But holy crap, I'm going to have PTSD just from the first few chapters. Someone who is made of tougher stuff than me, please read this!
emiged's review against another edition
5.0
Powerful writing about (for most of us Americans) unimaginably horrific experiences. It's difficult to write about this book without sounding trite or sentimentalizing it - words seem inadequate. Honest and painful, remarkably apolitical, it draws the reader in to this terrifying place and forces the reader to acknowledge and confront situations that I'd prefer to pretend couldn't possibly be real. I had to stop several times to allow myself to digest what I'd read and attempt to distance myself again before continuing.
I am so grateful not to have to worry that my sons will be killed by a stray mortar shell while playing soccer. Masked men aren't going to beat down my door in the middle of the night and drag my husband away to a torture chamber, never to be seen again. I can vote without having my life threatened or endangered. I can't imagine living that way, but so many have and do. War is hell in so many ways.
For more book reviews, visit my blog, Build Enough Bookshelves.
I am so grateful not to have to worry that my sons will be killed by a stray mortar shell while playing soccer. Masked men aren't going to beat down my door in the middle of the night and drag my husband away to a torture chamber, never to be seen again. I can vote without having my life threatened or endangered. I can't imagine living that way, but so many have and do. War is hell in so many ways.
For more book reviews, visit my blog, Build Enough Bookshelves.