Customer Reviews

Twice Armed: An American Soldier's Battle for Hearts and Minds in Iraq

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It is almost heartbreaking to read this book, to wonder where Iraq would be if men like Alan King would have been more involved on the ground and in the decision-making process at the Pentagon. He speaks the language, respects the culture, but also plays hardball when he needs to, and guess what? He gets results, fewer people get killed, and the bad guys in Iraq get caught. I could not put this book down. I hope he gets assigned to a think-tank at the Pentagon or White House soon so we can find a way out of the mess that is Iraq today. The stories he tells about catching the guys in the famous "deck of cards" are worth the price of the book alone, but you cannot help but imagine what might have been if more military personnel - at all levels - used their own faith, both in God and democracy and doing right - to respect the faiths of Iraqis and get their country on a path to working and not civil war. A great read and the best book on Iraq I have read of the 11 I own.

Twice Armed provides an excellent, balanced view of the US effort in Iraq. Alan King has taken advantage of his experience at the tactical and strategic levels to provide the American public with an apolitical view. Twice Armed, particularly when read in concert with other current publications on the subject, fills in the detail required to fully comprehend the complexities of Iraq and the Middle East.

I enjoyed this book very much - it was facsinating to read the stories of the "deck" captures and the sense of understanding the writer has about the Iraqi people and their culture. The writer conveys his story in such an amazing way! - I felt like I was right there with him as he served his country on foreign soil. Very well written and truly a great story to read.

There have been many books written about the war and the present situation in Iraq by soldiers, reporters and politicians but author R. Alan King gives us an insider view that is seldom, if ever, reported. His memoir "Twice Armed: An American Soldier's Battle for Hearts and Minds in Iraq" takes the reader on a personal journey that opens up questions about what happened in Iraq and what is going on now. He looks at what went wrong, what worked and also points out what we should do in order to win the hearts and minds of those in Iraq.

Seldom has there been such a riveting and insightful memoir that captures history right off the front pages of recent history. This book gives us a different view then what we have been getting from the TV or the newspapers or even from the White House. His dealings with local people show a sensitive social and religious tolerance that makes for good diplomacy and good soldiering. Men like King are certainly not common in the ranks. They should be treated as rare and valuable government assets but too often they are ignored. It amazes me that our leadership chooses to ignore such men and continues to pursue policies and actions based on their limited blinded understandings of the real world.

It gives me some hope that perhaps there are other military minds out there who are making a difference. My fear is that we have lost the righteous momentum for solving the huge problems in Iraq and now are scrambling for any escape from this dangerous arena.

I enjoyed reading Lieutenant Colonel King's accounting of his experiences in Iraq and his views on the situation there. I highly recommend his book for all American's to read. They might come away with a much broader and knowledgeable view of what is going on in Iraq and perhaps why things are as they are. This book deserves the MWSA"s top book rating of FIVE STARS! A MUST READ BOOK!

TWICE ARMED: AN AMERICAN SOLDIER'S BATTLE FOR HEARTS AND MINDS IN IRAQ is for any American reader who would understand, from an insider's perspective, the magnitude of the military and social fighting taking place in modern Iraq. Author King is a war fighter and soldier who negotiated with numerous sheiks and clerics, earning their trust. He captured or accepted the surrender of nearly a dozen of the most-wanted Iraqi personalities from Saddam's regime, and yet was willing to practice the customs of the region so he could gain the people's trust. A riveting story evolves of his years of duty.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Lt Col King is not your typical soldier. He and the unit he led, the 422nd Civil Affairs Battalion, occupy an odd place in the military. Part of the special forces but focused more on dealing with a civilian population than combatants, civil affairs units don't always get the respect they deserve in the Army. More often than not, they come from the reserves. Yet, in today's war on terror, the civil affairs units are more critical to victory than firepower-laden infantry or armored battalions. King clearly respected the Iraqi people, their culture, their history, and their challenges as a society. It made him more effective as a leader of his unit and as an advocate for those Iraqis who saw the invasion as an opportunity to build a better future for their country. Twice Armed is thoughftul, fast-paced, and provides the kind of perspective that has been missing in much of the debate over Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Lt Col King isn't Ernie Pyle, but he does have his moments. His description of an ambush and feelings about losing an Iraqi bodyguard, Fallah, is heartfelt and moving. It hits you where you live, which is more than can be said about a lot of memoirs coming out of Iraq. Nevertheless, the book is choppy and he often doesn't provide the context that would help the reader understand what he's doing and why. Twice Armed also needed a better editor and proofreader. Typos are understandable from a small publisher, but they're frequent enough to become distracting.

That said, Lt Col King is one of those honest-to-goodness soldiers who makes you proud of your military, proud of your country, and angry that more people don't share his understanding of the challenges before us or his commitment to overcoming them. Twice Armed won't win him any writing awards; he'll have to settle for being a great American in the truest sense of the word. Either way, we owe him a debt of gratitude for writing the book, relating his experiences, and sharing his thoughts. Read it. You'll be pleasantly surprised.

Also worth reading: Waging Peace by Rob Schultheis, a writer who embedded with a Civil Affairs Team from the 425th Civil affairs Battalion.

I believe Lt. Col King has really hit the nail on the head. Our DOD heads do not want to conduct a sucessful operation in Iraq, otherwise they would have more people like Lt. Col King over there making the campaign sucessful. I applaud Lt. Col King for his truth telling story and look forward to his next book.

You don't hear about what Alan King does in the media. It's not sexy and doesn't involve divisions of our boys getting blown up. But this text is a phenomenal example of the complexity and difficulty of the ground level diplomacy that is required to build a nation as fractious as Iraq.

Despite the numerous difficulties, King managed to establish important relationships with religious and sectarian leaders at all levels. His repoir with the local leaders was so great that many of the "Most Wanted" list walked into his office and surrendered. The effort in Iraq was deeply affected by his presence. - Semper Fi

A great story of manipulation and friendship!
Alan King and his colleagues present an often overlooked, misunderstood and yet extremely important aspect of post conflict military operations!
Highly recommended as a must read text book for all military commanders deploying to the sandbox!

Lt. Col King is clearly a dedicated and studious person. Would there were more like him in the US miliary.
He has a good story to tell and he tells it clearly and simply. I wish him well in his future endeavours.