Customer Reviews

John Walker Lindh: American Taliban

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

The Walker case tends to blur the vision of the American public, prompting us to rely more on our gut than our brains in formulating an opinion. The facts themselves really are not very sexy. The Indictment itself shows that far from dedicating himself to "killing Americans", as the Attorney General has alleged, Walker expressly refused the offer to participate in terror operations against the United States. It's there in Count 1, paragraph 14.

All Walker did was receive training to fight the Northern Alliance. He then went to the front to fight this group of unsavory warlords. That's it. Nothing more. Hardly grounds for the lynch mob mentality that has swept the nation.

The Indictment and many sensible articles on the case can be found [on the web]...

I'd be embarrassed to have my name on the cover of this book (and I'm NOT talking about Lindh!) Beyond even the topic of this book, I have several major issues. First of all, I cannot believe that Jess and Beck even have the gall to call themselves writers. They should go back to 1st grade and start again. This book was a joke, the most poorly written thing I've ever read in my life. Ever heard of an editor? Because I found more typos on the first page than I could count. Ever heard of writing clearly and concisely to get your point across without repeating yourself over and over? How about actual sentences, rather than endless fragments? Maybe you should find some concrete facts before accusing Lindh of unfounded allegations (i.e. his homosexuality, etc.) To potential readers: regardless of your own opinions of Lindh, DON'T BUY THIS BOOK! It insults your own intelligence. I returned mine!

The thesis is that John Walker Lindh became a jihadist is because he was a self-hating homosexual. Astonishing. The Taliban didn't recruit a lot of gays, that I know of. The author also says that 50% of RC Clergy are gay and that the Middle Ages burned witches because gays hate women. It says some equally ridiculous things about Jews, Christians, Muslims-- and the whole thing is a rant and worthless to someone
looking to understand the extremist mind. I have found what I was looking for in Eric Hoffer's 60's manifesto, The True Believer. This book is truly awful. I often sell used books to Powell's in Portland, but this book I intend to toss in the trash.

The connection between religious fanatacism, repressed homosexuality, and self-hatred has a long an ugly history, and the authors make their case. But do they have to do it over and over and over and over again? Jeez! they clumsily revisit every point ad nauseum. On top of it all, their facts are a disaster. For example, they give historical background on Boy Taliban's hometown in Marin County, and state that its old Spanish Mission San Rafael was founded in 1681 (it was founded in 1817), and that those same missionaries enjoyed burning the Indians alive. I have studied California history my whole life, and have never, ever, ever, ever, read that, ever (Oh, do I repeat myself? That's a tic I developed after reading this book). As for clumsy, after giving useless detail about Marin County, they state that Boy Taliban liked playing with plastic Jedi warrior("Star Wars") figurines, yet failed to mention George Lucas and company are based in Marin County as well. So what was the point of local color when you forget the obvious? Later on, they talk about Islam's jehadi (jihad) warriors, and completely missed the opportunity for delicious irony...

Unfortunately, I can't think of one good thing to say about this book. It's poorly written; it puts forth obviously shoddy research, based solely on secondary sources with no original interviews; it is inconsistent in its relation of "facts"; it is sensationalist and alarmist; it barely rises to the level of high school cafeteria gossip. I find it disturbing that any publisher would bother to invest resources in such a waste of paper; I find it more disturbing that potential readers may look at this book as a reliable source of information. This book should be recognized for what it is--a careless and irresponsible way to make a quick buck.

This book was disappointing. It did answer my basic questions about Lindh's childhood years, adolescence, and joining with Islamic extremists. The link between Lindh's political leanings and his alleged repressed homosexuality is intriguing. But do the authors have to repeat things over and over? The writing is amateurish. And what's the deal with Chapter 7, with the authors' diatribe against homosexuality and the American Psychological Association? This is certainly not a scholarly book, and is even questionable for an audience of laymen.

I wish that this book is written by John Walker, then readers may be able to have a clearer picture for how and why he became a Taliban. The authors provide lots of information about John Walker's childhood and boyhood, but there are lots of "gray" areas, for instance there are 8 months nobody knows where John Walker was and what he was doing. The authors are able to raise a lot of questions but I don't think they have the answers. Same as most readers I disagree what John Walker did but I feel sorry for him and his parents. The only thing I "respect" him is that he left America for searching the life of purity because he was tired of American's materialism. Not too many young people realized that how materialism influences this country.

If you are really interested in learning about the facts surrounding the story of John Walker Lindh, this is not the book for you. There is nothing scholarly about this book. It is completely without journalistic integrity. It reads like a trashy tabloid magazine rather than a serious piece of literature on a serious subject. After nearly a chaper-long diatribe speculating that Lindh may have been a closeted homosexual, I couldn't take anymore and had to stop reading. If you are really interested in reading about the story of John Walker Lindh, I would recommend the book "My Heart Became Attached" by Mark Kukis instead of this book. Don't waste your time or your money on this book.

I liked this book. It was a fast read. I was a bit surprised at how Walker and the Taliban were presented in the first few chapters. I almost felt sorry for them. By the end of the book my feelings had completely changed. Walker was certainly a mixed up kid, but the scary thing is that he joined an organization that had carried out terrorist attacks against America and he and a whole lot of Americans were probably being trained by al Qaida to return to America to carry out even more terrorist attacks. What is also scary, is that terrorists associated with al Qaida are probably still here in America.

It raised questions about his parents. Why didn't they draw the lines? If I would be a Mom, I'd never let my Teenage- kid study in another Country but USA, especially not without a Highschool-
diploma. And is he now gay or not? If he would be, why did he write an E- Mail to his Mom about Family-life in Yemen and that he wants to build a house there and get married ( FOXNEWS ).And why did he write to his Parents "... I'm in safe hands now. "? (around Dec., after his capture)I hoped this book would answer questions about this case, instead it raised even more.