Company C: The Real War in Iraq [Hardcover]

John Sack (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 1995

John Sack was one of the only journalists to accompany the troops into Iraq--and was the only correspondent on hand during the largest tank battle since World War II. Sack lived with the soldiers of Company C and got to know them well. This is their story--about the war that they experienced--told mercifully free from the jargon that clutters most war coverage.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Sack (M) here chronicles the unguarded words of several members of a 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized) armored company as they wind up their training at Ft. Riley, Kansas, and are airlifted to Saudi Arabia to participate in Operation Desert Storm. From 135 hours of tapes, 575 pages of typewritten transcripts and 950 pages of handwritten notes, he has meticulously reconstructed a block of time, a cast of characters and a series of actions conveying in documentary fashion what it is like to go to war as a modern American soldier. The young men in these pages are keyed up?a condition heightened by Sack's ever-present tape recorder and notepad; but the mood turns solemn when Company C joins in the largest tank battle in American history, the Battle of Al Qarnain on Feb. 27, 1991. Sack conveys how the stress of combat affects each of his characters in turn, and he has a sharp eye for the unpredictable flourishes of war?the weeping colonel who calls himself an angel of death, the young tank driver who deliberately runs over an Iraqi and pronounces the experience "awesome."
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

As he did in an earlier book and on another war (M, 1967), Sack follows a unit of the U.S. Army from stateside to overseas deployment and into combat. He lets the men of C. Company/2nd. Battalion/34th Armor of the 1st Infantry Div. (Mech) tell their stories in their own words through transcriptions of taped conversations interspersed with some narrative. The result is a portrait of the Gulf War as seen from inside an Abrams tank. Sack, a former war correspondent and now an author and magazine contributor, shows that the character of war has not changed. For the reader, this account provides a contrast to works about the conduct of the Gulf War at higher levels. Because the story is told chronologically, Sack is constantly switching from one narrative thread to another, which may confuse the reader. There is no analysis or sense of the "big picture" here, simply a group of soldiers who go to war to do their job (for the most part) and go home. For both general and specialized military collections.?John F. Camenga, Tampa-Hillsborough P.L., Fla.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 241 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (December 31, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688112811
• ISBN-13: 978-0688112813
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,489,780 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Was it Really the "Real War", February 6, 2000

By 

Ron R Shaffer (U.S.A.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Company C: The Real War in Iraq (Hardcover)

Not only have I read the book, but I was also one of the Tank Commanders in the book. Not only was the book poorly written, but a total disappointment to myself and to the men of C co. 2-34 Armor. I Do not reccomend this book to anyone.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I was there also, May 30, 2000

By 

Steve Schmidt (U.S.A.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Company C: The Real War in Iraq (Hardcover)

As with Mr. Medine and SFC Shaffer I have also read the book and was in the book. I hope anyone that reads the review by Mr. Medine, does not think this book is worth buying, it's not. SFC Shaffer and the majority of reviewers are right on, it's poorly written, hard to follow (even for me and I was there) and at times not totally factual. The book by Mr. Sack is a combination of articles written for Esquire magazine in 1991 after the war. These articles were also poorly written and hard to follow, at times I had to flip back and forth between pages thinking I missed a word or skipped a page. ...................................I find it in poor taste that Mr. Medine choose to berate a fellow soldier in this type of venue where SFC Shaffer has no way to defend himself. SFC Shaffer was one of the best tank commanders in the company, as evident by the Bronze Star that he received for his actions during Desert Storm. Mr. Medine was at the time a Sergeant who was passed over by numerous tank commanders for a position consumate with his rank, a Gunner. But because SFC Shaffer and others choose others of lower rank as their gunners, Mr. Medine was relegated to a loaders position during the war. In the Armor community the loaders position is considered a entry level position, for a Private right out of Basic/Advanced training, not a Sergeant. I guess by those who snubbed Mr. Medine, he has picked this as his soap box to stab other more honorable soldiers in the back. I would hope that Amazon asks Mr. Medine to revise his review to remove the remark about SFC Shaffer, he was by far a better leader, soldier and person than Mr. Medine will ever be.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars poor written book, talks how ignorant we are., April 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Company C: The Real War in Iraq (Hardcover)

The style was unlinear and hard to follow. The charcters where vividly drawn and some emphasis on race in many places.