Big Boy Rules: America's Mercenaries Fighting in Iraq [Audiobook, CD, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Steve Fainaru (Author), Patrick Lawlor (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 8, 2008 | ISBN-10: 1400137829 | ISBN-13: 978-1400137824 | Edition: Unabridged,Library - Unabridged CD

A parallel army lives on the margins of the Iraq war-nearly 100,000 armed men, invisible yet in plain sight, doing jobs the overstretched and understaffed military can't or won't do. The U.S. media call them "security contractors." They call themselves "mercs," and they operate under their own rules.Washington Post reporter Steve Fainaru traveled with several groups of security contractors to find out what motivates them to put their lives in danger every day. What emerges is a searing, revealing, and sometimes darkly funny look at the men who live and work in the battlefields of Iraq: some are desperate, some are confused, and some are just out for a lark. Some disappear into the void that is Iraq and are never seen again. It's not a pretty picture that Fainaru reveals, but it is brutally real and shockingly honest. Big Boy Rules is an unforgettable leap into the mayhem of Iraq and into the dark recesses of the minds of American policymakers and the warriors they hire.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

For this mordant dispatch from one of the Iraq War's seamiest sides, Pulitzer Prize–winning Washington Post correspondent Fainaru embedded with some of the thousands of private security contractors who chauffeur officials, escort convoys and add their own touch of mayhem to the conflict. Exempt from Iraqi law and oversight by the U.S. government, which doesn't even record their casualties, the mercenaries, Fainaru writes, play by Big Boy Rules—which often means no rules at all as they barrel down highways in the wrong direction, firing on any vehicle in their path. (His report on the Blackwater company, infamous for killing Iraqi civilians and getting away with it, is meticulous and chilling.) Fainaru's depiction of the mercenaries' crassness and callousness is unsparing, but he sympathizes with these often inexperienced, badly equipped hired guns struggling to cope with a dirty war. Nor is he immune to the romance of the soldier of fortune, especially in his somewhat bathetic portrait of Jon Coté, Iraq War veteran and lost soul who joined the fly-by-night Crescent Security Group and was kidnapped by insurgents. Fainaru's vivid reportage makes the mercenary's dubious motives and chaotic methods a microcosm of a misbegotten war. (Nov. 17)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"[A] harrowing expose." Time Magazine "Steve Fainaru tells a story that is at the heart of the war in Iraq: the U.S. military's unprecedented reliance on mercenaries. It is a dark tale that until now has remained largely untold, and is related brilliantly here. To understand this war, you must read this book." The Washington Post" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Tantor Media; Unabridged,Library - Unabridged CD edition (December 8, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400137829
• ISBN-13: 978-1400137824
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 6.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,177,201 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars RICK "SHAQ" GOLDSTEIN SAYS: "THE UNWANTED, DOING THE UNFORGIVABLE, FOR THE UNGRATEFUL.", December 16, 2008

By 

Rick Shaq Goldstein "*SHAQ*" (Danville, Ca, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Big Boy Rules: America's Mercenaries Fighting in Iraq (Hardcover)

As an honorably discharged Viet Nam era veteran I try to keep an insightful eye on the transformations that seem to inevitably take place in every war... as assuredly as night follows day. From the battle field strategies maneuvering battalions... to the increasing use of sniper teams... to the current... almost unbelievable use of large... larger... and largest... *PRIVATE ARMIES*. Call them mercenaries (merc's) if you desire... but in today's reality it has almost become a militarized-privatized-Fortune-500 Army. There's an old expression that says "art imitates life"... well I am a witness to "life imitating art"! About a year ago I read a military novel that was built around a Bill Gates type character... who instead of owning Microsoft... he owned a gigantic private military company that would fight America's wars. I thought that was a ridiculous premise... until I read this book. One of the many deceitful things that the author pulls out from behind a very thick government curtain, is how a large company gets a contract from the state department for security forces... then that large company... sub-contracts the contract to a smaller company... who sub-contracts to another smaller contractor... Ad Nauseam. Embedded in the heretofore unexplored upsurge in "merc's" in Iraq, is the fact that the Government doesn't include the number of "sub-contracted" private army personnel, when they divulge to the public how large a fighting force they're using. The government also hasn't been including the "merc's" in their casualty counts.

Once the reader feels indoctrinated into the daily brutality of the war in Iraq... and is shocked as to the almost "lawlessness" of the military contractor's... just when you feel you can't be taken aback any further... you're hit with the legal order that governs "merc's": "COALITION PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY ORDER NUMBER 17 (CPA-ORDER 17) GRANTED MERCENARIES AND OTHER CONTRACTORS IMMUNITY FROM IRAQI LAW. THE IMMUNITY WAS TO REMAIN IN EFFECT UNTIL THE DEPARTURE OF THE FINAL ELEMENT OF THE MNF (MULTINATIONAL FORCES) FROM IRAQ, OR UNTIL THE NEW IRAQI GOVERNMENT OVERTURNED IT. THAT, EVERYONE KNEW, WAS UNLIKELY AT LEAST IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE." The "merc's" were basically given a license to kill... and their utter disdain for treating the local people with respect... defeats the entire concept of winning the Iraqi's hearts. As the author Steve Fainaru (whose brother Mark, is the co-author of the book "Game Of Shadows" that unleashed documented evidence against Barry Bonds and his steroid use.) travels with one military contractor and becomes close with some of their employees, he gets a call from home that his elderly cancer ridden Father is close to dying. This is a beautifully written pivotal point in the story. The entire direction of the story changes... and the author handles it like the beauty of a metamorphosis of a caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly. Though there was death all around him in Iraq... this is more than the dying of a man's Father... it is the utter loving compassion of a son to a Father... and it is the strength and dignity of a Father facing death... with an energy for life... even though cancer... has taken his natural energy.

What happens next would not be believed if created in a movie script. Right after Steve leaves Iraq the "merc" that he had personally gotten closest to, was part of a group of "merc's" that were taken hostage. The ensuing part of the story leads the reader through the sad... yet beautiful ending of a Father's life... and the untold horrors of the hostage situation... through the eyes of the author and the hostage's poor anguished families. This story will open your eyes to a "new" part of today's war that has not been scrutinized near enough... and it will open your heart... on more than one front. This is simply an exquisite reporting job by the author.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very well written and engrossing account of the war in Iraq and it's unseen impact on the lives of those who serve it's cause, December 5, 2008

By 

T. Harrelson "Literary Enthusiast" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Big Boy Rules: America's Mercenaries Fighting in Iraq (Hardcover)

I recently completed this read. I found Mr. Fainaru's depiction of the experiences and lives of the mercenaries to be frank, eye opening, sometimes humorous and in many cases very heartrending.

Steve describes the chronological events in graphic detail and paints a picture of life and death in Iraq. His portrayal of the months leading up to and the last days of Jon Cote's life describe a young man obviously tortured by events from his past and struggling to find peace. His outlet, the Iraq War.

The spotlight on the irrational decisions and careless actions of Jon's employer, that set the stage for the events that stole Jon's life and those of his comrades, as well as, Mr. Fainaru's descriptions of the actions of other unscrupulous private security companies, show how volatile situations are for those serving or simply surviving in Iraq.

I would recommend this book to others seeking to read a well written human interest on the War in Iraq.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shocking, Riveting, Eye-opening, February 8, 2009

By 

Tracy R. Mahoney "gamediva2112" (Manhattan, KS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Big Boy Rules: America's Mercenaries Fighting in Iraq (Hardcover)

I am an American. I had no idea all this was going on. This is a great behind the scenes look at the lives of military contractors on the ground in Iraq. The main story is about the security contractors, but we also get a glimpse of those who hire them, the other contractors who deliver supplies and build bridges and are simply there to rebuild Iraq. Its amazing that we get anything done over there. The shocking part was how so few people will sign up for this kind of work that these companies must pay HUGE salaries and take anyone they can get, qualified or not, sane or not. The whole thing sounds like a big cluster f---. I could not put this book down. Read it in about 8 hours.