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xxstefaniereadsxx's review
informative
slow-paced
4.0
Saddam Hussein was born in Iraq in 1935. He had a pretty rough start to life. His father and sibling died before he was born, and so distressed his mother that she tried to abort her pregnancy and kill herself. Once he was born, she did not have any desire to bond with him or care for him, and he was subsequently taken in by an uncle. In the meantime, his mother remarried. Once Saddam returned home, his stepfather beat him mercilessly. I would imagine that may have had something to do with his later personality, but I am no expert in psychology.
Saddam attended a very nationalistic high school before enrolling in a law school in Iraq. He studied law for two years, and dropped out to join the Ba'ath Party, which was a socialist party. His uncle was a member, which is probably why he joined this party instead of some of the other more established and far reaching socialist parties. He got up to plenty of activities while he was having to do with this party, which would really be classified as low level crime and domestic terrorism. He began building a reputation for himself, especially in the late 1960's and early 1970's. He made a big move into politics, putting himself out there as a very progressive socialist who was going to fix all the infrastructure and make the standard of living better for everyone in Iraq. In actuality, he did do a lot using oil funds to repair roads and develop industries. Of course, he also used terror tactics against members of his own government, family, friends, and the Iraqi people as a whole. He was notoriously corrupt and untrustworthy. If he thought anyone said a word against him or his policies, they vanished to a prison or worse. If he suspected a coup or any dissent, gone.
I really did not know a lot about Saddam Hussein's political life and ideas. I knew that he was a dictator, and a very cruel person. I knew that he caused a lot of turmoil for his own citizens. I remember his capture and trial being in the news, but it didn't really mean a lot to me at the time. I think I was about 14 when that occurred. This book really went into great detail about his political interests, and I found it to be educational but still maintained interest. It wasn't boring to read, as political biographies can sometimes be. I learned a lot about the state of affairs prior to the Iraq Invasion post 9/11.
Saddam attended a very nationalistic high school before enrolling in a law school in Iraq. He studied law for two years, and dropped out to join the Ba'ath Party, which was a socialist party. His uncle was a member, which is probably why he joined this party instead of some of the other more established and far reaching socialist parties. He got up to plenty of activities while he was having to do with this party, which would really be classified as low level crime and domestic terrorism. He began building a reputation for himself, especially in the late 1960's and early 1970's. He made a big move into politics, putting himself out there as a very progressive socialist who was going to fix all the infrastructure and make the standard of living better for everyone in Iraq. In actuality, he did do a lot using oil funds to repair roads and develop industries. Of course, he also used terror tactics against members of his own government, family, friends, and the Iraqi people as a whole. He was notoriously corrupt and untrustworthy. If he thought anyone said a word against him or his policies, they vanished to a prison or worse. If he suspected a coup or any dissent, gone.
I really did not know a lot about Saddam Hussein's political life and ideas. I knew that he was a dictator, and a very cruel person. I knew that he caused a lot of turmoil for his own citizens. I remember his capture and trial being in the news, but it didn't really mean a lot to me at the time. I think I was about 14 when that occurred. This book really went into great detail about his political interests, and I found it to be educational but still maintained interest. It wasn't boring to read, as political biographies can sometimes be. I learned a lot about the state of affairs prior to the Iraq Invasion post 9/11.
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