The Forever War (Vintage)

Filkins' book is basically a collection of impressionistic scenes from a war front. His vignettes really paint a clear picture of why the US has had such a hard time building democratic nations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Basically, it comes down to generations of fear, hatred and distrust. One guy tells Filkins, "In Iraq, we learn to not even trust our brother." Whoa. Another passage tells of how...more

Filkins' book is basically a collection of impressionistic scenes from a war front. His vignettes really paint a clear picture of why the US has had such a hard time building democratic nations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Basically, it comes down to generations of fear, hatred and distrust. One guy tells Filkins, "In Iraq, we learn to not even trust our brother." Whoa. Another passage tells of how would-be strongmen figure out who has a "fine mind" or "tender soul" or any capacity to create a space for democracy and how they kill them. Tthere is a lot of evidence in the book to support the statement that Iraqis don't trust their brothers. So if you want a sobering, illuminating, grim but lyrical read, I highly recommend this book. It doesn't deal with a lot of high falutin' theory, but its ground-level view is more eye-opening than you'd ever expect.   hide

A reporter's sometimes too-close/perilous view of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It's refreshingly clear of political polemic, gets multiple perspectives, and lets you draw your own conclusions.

Not what I was expecting, but incredible and sobering accounts of one journalist.

Well-drawn vignettes illuminate the difficulty of trying to operate within socio-cultural landscapes that we don't understand.

Vividly highlights the question: Why are we fighting in this part of the world? Book is a bit disjointed because it consists of a series of articles written over several years, but takes you to the war(s) first hand, and from several points of view. Recommend.

Interesting look at the war w/ a not too political view.

comprehensive overview of the Iraq war and the human cost of violence and chaos.

My expectation was that this would read like a history book, but with a lot of first hand material. Instead, most of the events were not in any chronological order. This made for a confusing narrative, because the reader is left with no reference point. Are things deteriorating or improving? For example, the opening chapter describes events in Faluja, Iraq in 2004, but jumps straight to...more

My expectation was that this would read like a history book, but with a lot of first hand material. Instead, most of the events were not in any chronological order. This made for a confusing narrative, because the reader is left with no reference point. Are things deteriorating or improving? For example, the opening chapter describes events in Faluja, Iraq in 2004, but jumps straight to Afghanistan before 9/11. The material was interesting and gives a good look at the complexity of the situation in Iraq and Afghanistan, but fails to chronicle the story of the war, as one might think.   hide

Great writing - interesting how different things are reported from "behind the lines" vs "behind the desk".