Customer Reviews

War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom (With DVD)

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

LtCol North gets it right in this book!

Unfortunately, unlike a soldier from Columbus, GA who wrote the review dtd 16 January. The soldier impugns the veracity of LtCol North's account of the evacuation of a dead corpsman. How do I know what really happened? I am the pilot who DID evacuate the corpsman, and I can vouch for the version in the book. The statistics of the Medical Company in question have little or no bearing on whether this happened like North says it did. The Company should be offended at the actions of one of their own members, and not at North for telling the truth.

While there are minor inaccuracies in this book, (e.g., he lists my unit as Marine Light/Attack Helicopter Squadron 267 when it was actually 269) they are not substantive, nor do they alter the gist of the individual stories. This is a great read - LtCol North got it right!

Major Timothy Kolb

I like tales of war and I kind of expected this to be a nice, glossed over, made-for-TV version of the Iraq War (part II). But it was so much more than that! It was real! All the grit, gore, and horrors of war play out from page to page. You really get a feel for what it was like to be there, but you also get a taste of the strategy and tactics of the field brass, and a true feeling of what the grunts were going through. North was in Vietnam and occasionally brings in comparisons of that.

The DVD is just a really nice added bonus--as are the color photos in the middle.

I served with the Marines in this Operation and can say from personal experience that this book is 100% dead on accurate. A great account of the war from a great American!

Ollie writes about what really happened during the war, and what the liberal media does not want you to know. In thi book you'll read about the battles we won, during what was the most sucessful military operations in world history! Don't be fooled by negative reviews about this book, they are by liberals who have not even read the book. They WANT TO KEEP YOU FROM KNOWING THE TRUTH!

First and foremost Oliver North has strong political convictions. Whether you agree with his politics or not, is your own personal business. But buyer beware, his politics is a part of this book.

Now, if you can look beyond his politics, again whether you agree or disagree, this is a great first hand look at the War in Iraq and a look at being an embedded reporter during this war.

Again, politics aside, this is a great primary source reading on both the war and the media coverage of the war.

North brings a lot of military experience into his reporting and that is an added plus.

The DVD that comes with the book is fantastic. However, I warn all readers that they should read the book before watching the DVD. The DVD covers much of the same material in the book, and you will find both the book and DVD more enjoyable if you read before you watch.

Again, get over, accept, ignore, North's politics and you have a great book/DVD primary source of the second war in Iraq.

This book shows how brave our military is!

With all of the negative gloom-and-doom pessimism of the liberal media, War Stories proves to be a veritable fresh breath of air that salutes the commendable bravery and courage of our men and women protecting our freedom both home and abroad. With the likes of Peter Jennings, Tom Brokaw, and Dan Rather incessantly ballyhooing about the daunting "quagmire" in Iraq like a broken record, Col. Oliver North provides an - get this - honest account of what REALLY transpired during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In an impromptu interview with two grunts of the 4th ID, North, in an attempt to ascertain the truth and to dispel the unfounded rumors of an ill-prepared and ill-equipped US military, asked the soldiers: "The New York Times says the Marines are out of food, water, and ammo. Are you hungry?"
"No, sir."
"Are you thirsty?"
"No, sir."
"Are you short on ammo?"
"No, sir."
"Well, what do you need?"
'Without a moment's hesitation, the young Marine replies, "Just send more enemy, sir."'

Suffice to say, you won't find that on your network evening news or in The New York Times. North gives us not only unbiased accounts from foot soldiers, but also great previously unseen footage from Operation Iraqi Freedom on the enclosed DVD. With the book and the DVD, how can you go wrong?

WHAT A GREAT BOOK! Colonel North tells the stories of the warriors on the ground and in the air. This has got to be one of the finest war correspondant books ever written.

The stories in this book ran my emotions the whole range from laughter to tears. Col. North focuses on writing the stories of the Lance Corporals, Privates First Class and Speciailists that are actually fighting this war. Laced with conservative commentary on the politics involved, and bringing to light the biases of the other networks, Col. North puts together a highly entertaining and captivating book on this phase of the Gulf War.

Received it for Christmas from my daughter and read a few "sit reps" a day until finished. I loved this book.

Semper Fi

For those who think that Oliver North is simply a cheering section for our nation's military, read the book. Certainly retired Marine Lt. Col. North would be predisposed to like the armed services (not, in my view, a bad thing), but he does not hesitate to point out the flaws that the organization has. Check out the section on the pause during the war. Here and in other reports, North provides criticism of how things were being handled.

As a friend of Lt. Col. Jerry Driscoll, I was interested to see him featured repeatedly in "War Stories." I knew that North was imbedded with HMM-268 and that my friend and he interacted a lot. What I didn't know was what close scrapes my friend had been involved in, and this after talking with him shortly after his return from Iraq. So, Jerry, thank you for your service, and I expect that there are many families in America who owe the lives of their sons and daughters solely to the bravery of your and your Red Dragons.

Being a combat veteran of an earlier era I found Col. North's book a fascinating read on how warfare is waged in this new age of high tech and high media exposure. Unlike steril fact books, this gives you the perspective of the infantrymen who are on the ground, dealing with it every day. I have handed this book off to several of my buddies, who have also been "out of the loop" for a number of years, telling them it's good look at how things REALLY were in Iraq vs. the tainted picture portrayed by the media.

I have not always been a big fan of Col. North's but know first-hand that he will tell it like it is, regardless of how unpopular his message may be. That, in my view, makes him a credible and valuable author, and this, a valuable testament to the men and women serving us in Iraq.

Oliver North's "War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom" is a straightforward and compelling view into the Iraqi war as told through the eyes and voices of the young American's who were fighting it. This is as refreshingly-far from the armchair generals and TV talking-head analysts as one can get, providing unique insight into what was happening as seen by North while embedded with the Marines as they fought their way from Kuwait to Baghdad to Tikrit in March-April, 2003. Told in a series of vignettes - "sitreps" in mil-speak" - Retired Marine Colonel North relates the story as he sees it, depending more on the perspective of the enlisted men than of the senior officers of his unit. North captures the details of day-to-day life in desert, where sacrifices are routine and acts of heroism common and mostly unsung. He delivers these tales with straight prose and clinical precision, resisting any temptation to sensationalize or to evoke pity. It is an honest and unvarnished view of the Iraq war, at least as seen through the rather narrow sights of the unit with which North traveled. (In fact, as North notes frequently, he and he troops on the ground had scant insight to the progress of the war in the "big picture". An occasional opportunity to catch a Fox News transmission were their best sources of intelligence).

It is unfortunate that some will dismiss or disparage this fine documentary simply because they disagree with Oliver North's political views. I happen to believe that Colonel North is an inspiration and a great American, but notwithstanding, "War Stories" is a powerful first-hand portrayal of one of the most important historical events of our time. If not for North, then read it as a tribute to our young volunteer armed forces who have sacrificed so much.