Customer Reviews

War Journal: My Five Years in Iraq

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Richard Engel came to the Mid-East about 12 years ago without a job, little money ($2,000), and no knowledge of Arabic. Now he is head of the MSNBC Bureau in Iraq, fluent in Arabic, and backed by NBC. That, in itself, is an incredible story.

"War Journal," however, spends little time on Engel himself. It begins with telling how it felt to descend into Saddam's spider-hole, and goes on to observe that the rising power of Shiites in Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon is the most significant shift in the region in decades. (Turns out Iran had a strong hand in selecting the Shiite candidates in our greatly heralded first Iraqi elections.)

"War Journal" tells the real story from Iraq's front lines, not the official blather dispensed from the "Green Zone." Engel wastes no time telling readers that many Iraqi army officers felt betrayed by Bremer's telling them to "get lost" after giving them token payments and their having obeyed American instructions to not fight. As for Al-Qaeda in Iraq - Engel states that Saddam allowed a few of their jidhadists in when the U.S. invasion seemed inevitable, but undoubtedly would have run them back out if the U.S. had not invaded. We also learn that Bin Laden planned to suck the U.S. into a war of attrition in Afghanistan post 9/11, but did not forsee locals turning on Al Qaeda.

"Support Our Troops" became a bad joke when contrasted with the poor or non-existent equipment American troops had in Iraq. Hussein's tyranny became replaced by constant kidnappings and midnight murders of sectarian enemies. Engel also tells the heart-breaking story of a grocer's young daughter kidnapped for ransom - when the father learns she has been raped, he tells the kidnappers he doesn't want her back, and she is killed.

Throughout "War Journal," Engel takes us first hand on multiple missions to attack suspected insurgent havens, replenish front-line troops, and in one case, rescue a soldier left behind.

Another big insight from "War Journal" is that while "The Surge" appears to be working, it is mostly due to ethnic cleansing having been completed (3 million refugees have left), and Mahdi Army leaders having decided to lie low - not actual military or political success. Meanwhile, faction leaders continue to jockey for position while American troops are killed and wounded.

Engel was invited to brief Bush II, whom he found to be attentive and knowledgeable about Iraq. Engel suggested undertaking a major diplomatic initiative - Iran and Syria do not want to face the army that took Saddam's apart (the one that killed half a million Iranians in the 1980s) in 21 days with only 150 deaths; meanwhile, they are attempting to tie us down by sending agents into Iraq. (In fact, Engel is angered by our waging war without a peace process.) Engel also pointed out that Iraqi democracy is a sham - Shiites simply follow the Ayatollah, and the Sunnis don't participate. Finally, Engel observes that Bush doesn't understand how Arabs negotiate, and misreads what they say and do.

I must say that books on the war is not usually the kind of book that I read, however I picked this up because I've seen Richard reporting from Iraq and other nearby places on a regular basis on the Today show.
As a reporter on the frontlines, there is little he hasn't seen. He's had close calls, dodged bullets many times, escaped kidnapping attempts and has seen too many dead bodies to count. He is passionate about the region and wouldn't live anywhere else.
He starts the book on the day where he was taken to the spot where Saddam was captured. He writes about everything thereafter in great detail. He also lets you know his position on the war - rather than trying to remain neutral like journalists should, but he wanted to tell it like it is for him. He ends the book by saying that the world has moved on and people don't want to hear about Iraq anymore and how he finds that frustrating and sometimes wonders "why I have done all this?". He knows people are losing interest in the war.
It is a heavy going book and yet, if you push through it, it is interesting and it's great to get a feel for what it might be like over there first hand from a very knowledgable and trusted journalist. I liked this one.

"War Journal" is a personal and engaging account of Engel's experiences in the five years since the invasion of Iraq. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and read it almost straight through in about a day and a half. Engel covers a wide ranges of topics including military tactics, media coverage of the war, Iraqi and US politics, personal accounts from those he speaks with, and even recounts a rather revealing talk he had with Bush (particularly interesting in comparison to Engel's most recent interview with the president). He also revisits most of the moments and events featured in his MSNBC special "War Zone Diary", including the bombings of his hotels and the false kidnapping of one of his reporters. Here he gives them more context and illuminates them with more of his own personal reflections.
The text is quick-paced with the straightforwardness of a journalist. It reads easily and informatively. That said, the descriptive prose sometimes lacks the eloquence of a novelist as the similes often border on the trite and tired. Nonetheless, they effectively convey the atmosphere or mood Engel means to evoke. The quickness of the text seems to mirror the experience of covering the war as Engel is unable to spend much time contemplating the atrocities he sees and the losses he experiences as there always seems to be another story to file.
Engel's personal anecdotes pepper the recounting of events and intersperse the background information Engel eruditely includes to help the reader understand the various "why's?" many of us have regarding the war. His anecdotes range from the harrowing and infuriating to the comedic and touching. All of which helps to humanize and give perspective to the typical news reports everyone has seen on the war, which usually get cut down bare facts and numbers.
I highly recommend "War Journal" to anyone interested in an "on the ground perspective," as Engel calls it, and to anyone interested in a reporter's point of view without the limitations of an evening news story. Engel's story is informative and revealing but at many points poignant, making one stop reading at times so as to remember that this is nonfiction and not horror or science fiction one is reading.

Heard a book interview with author, today on NPR. Mr. Engel's concise and keen knowledge and appreciation of the culture, coupled with his language skills left me with a realistic impression of what lies ahead regarding the alliances and treaties being formed in the lull of a war-torn society. What struck me most was the caller who asked if we are getting the whole story from the media and leaders of our country. Without hesitation, Mr. Engel said, 'what we assess as illogical and as irrational reasons for war is not without its own logic.' Based on the observations that history and events have led to what he identified as five (5) separate wars, I believe he has made his case. This informative book, without embellishment provides compelling talking points necessary to our national dialogue on the subject. This timely assessment should be on every citizen's must read list.

I have just finished reading this book and - WOW - what an education! Engel explains differences between Sunni and Shiite from how they communicate to how they express their religion. Honestly, this is a difficult book to read. Engel doesn't soften anything. He tells it like he saw it and sometimes it is very graphic. In his telling though, is an easy to follow chronology from 2003 to today that helps the reader understand what happened and how the situation in Iraq got all twisted up. It's a tough book, but it's honest and all the events are linked in a way that makes sense. If you're wondering, how did Iraq turn into the situation we have today? Read this book.

This is the real deal. This guy has been there from the beginning. He has met with the generals, soldiers, insurgents and our President. Very well written and full of information you should know and understand. This is an election year. Stop listening to the talking heads and their OBama rips and McCain raps. You cannot understand a platform if you don't learn about this war. Yes, there were no WMDs. We are there, however, and these brave soldiers are doing our work. Unfortunately, the people they are trying to help do not value life. They are in never never land, living this life thinking there is something better that they are entitled to. This book makes you think and will make your stomach turn. Ten stars for this book, it is in the top three of anything I have read politically in the last few years. As good as Looming Towers? I think so, just as informative. A note to Richard Engel if he reads this, Thank you for the reporting!

this is an excellent book by a journalist who practices his art with intelligence and guts. no dumbing down for the evening news broadcast here. he actually goes into specific details as to the religious conflicts wracking the country. america and the muslim world both suffer from a serious misunderstanding of the other side's motives and way of things. mr engel opens up quite a bit more in his journal than he ever was able to do on air. if you want to know the real story, get a solid understanding of what we are up against and how ham fisted our dealing with this mission is, this is the book for you. graphic, scary, anxious moments are not spared the reader.

Anyone supporting the war in Iraq needs to read this book.

No holds bared, account of life in Iraq during the occupation. A must read.

I've never written a review for a book, but I felt obligated to at least say something about this book since it had such an impact on my life. It truly opened my eyes to what has been happening in Iraq. I realize there are many different perspectives of this war, but this account really moved me. It is hard when you are living in the United States to imagine what is or has happened in Iraq. I have read this book a few times and even purchased a couple copies for friends. I highly recommend it.

I have just read "War Journal" by Richard Engel. Normally I do not read books full of blood and gore and gratuitous violence, but the author has the credentials to make a person sit up and take notice. He speaks Arabic, has lived in the Near East for years, and was in Iraq before we invaded it. He has a lot more to say than the sound bites in the evening news. The book is both hard to read and hard to put down, and we learn a lot about Iraqi culture and Islamic culture as well. We have to give thanks for every minute Richard Engel survives to report another day. If he keeps doing it, he will die there. He risks his life every minute he is in Iraq.

I am extremely impressed with his summary of the differences between Shia and Sunni. I read "Islam for Dummies" and didn't get as clear a picture. Also, with examples, he is able to give us insight into the paranoia of Islam. Some examples are absolute lunacy Israel has trees that are loyal to Allah, and, when Judgement day comes, Jews will try to hide behind the trees, but the trees will call out to the Moslems that here is a Jew behind it. Jews, knowing this, are trying to cut down all the trees, but there are too many. Other examples sound almost rational: We would not be making the huge mistakes in Iraq if it weren't part of some larger plot so that the Sunnis can rule again because obviously we wouldn't want the Shia to rule. Or the obverse, we came in to put the Shia in power. Clearly to most rational observers that can't be true because that is virtually handing Iraq over to Iran so there must be some sort of conspiracy not yet clear.

Engels got to meet with Bush. The account is fascinating because Engels is another person who finds Bush to have a good mind. This is the second book I have read which shows that Bush is motivated by idealism.

There are some parallels that show up in the book From the Islamist: Egyptian Politicians are corrupt; Islam is the solution. Israel is on our border; Islam is the solution; Dirty water is making my child sick; Islam is the solution. From George Bush: The Palestinian Authority has collapsed; Democracy is the solution. Iraq is in chaos; Democracy is the solution.

This was a painful book to read, but it is not hard reading. You can probably never find a better book to increase your understanding as to what is happening in Iraq. EVERYONE should read it.