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Linda Polman
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War Games: The Story Of Aid And War In Modern Times Paperback – International Edition, May 25, 2010

by Linda Polman (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 66 ratings
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From Rwanda to Afghanistan, from Sudan to Iraq, this devastating expose shows how the humanitarian aid industry, the media and warmongers are locked in a cycle of mutual dependency on battlefields around the world.

'Polman shines a light on the multibillion dollar juggernaut that is today's humanitarian aid network. A disturbing account that raises profound questions' Financial Times

'One of the finest reporting journalists of the modern age - Polman is gutsy, intellectually penetrating and far from naive' Evening Standard

'Cool, brusque, fearless. A marvellous account' Guardian
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  1. Print length
    288 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Viking
  4. Publication date
    May 25, 2010
  5. Dimensions
    6.02 x 0.67 x 9.17 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0670918962
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0670918966
  8. See all details
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4.4 out of 5 stars
66 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • W. E. DALLAIRD
    5.0 out of 5 stars Chronicles Ms. Polman's experiences in the world's trouble spots ...
    Reviewed in the United States on February 25, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    Chronicles Ms. Polman's experiences in the world's trouble spots and her views of the international aide agencies (UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders, etc.) that help these distressed people. The picture she paints is not very complimentary. Stories of these agencies misleading the public with the help of the world's news agencies are very troubling. In there attempt to lure donors, they cherry pick the pictures and stories that the public sees on their newscasts and read in their newspapers.

    After reading the book, I decided that my charitable contributions will be limited to the needy in my own community.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Kennyrice
    4.0 out of 5 stars Above Average
    Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2011
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    Order was received on time and in the condition desribed by the seller. An excellent read for anyine engaged in economic development. I saw similar scenarios from this book play out in Afghanistan.
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  • Lara
    5.0 out of 5 stars Critical in a interesting way, easy read
    Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2013
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    It really made me rethink some of my thoughts but still it's very one sided which is okay if you know the other side. Found the comparison between Florance Nightingale and Henry Dunant ICRC interesting
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  • michael geoffrey smith
    5.0 out of 5 stars War Games is a 'must read' for all those involved ...
    Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2014
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    War Games is a 'must read' for all those involved and/or concerned about the effectiveness of aid in conflict-affected countries.
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  • Alaska333
    5.0 out of 5 stars A must read
    Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2010
    I agree that it's a shame this book is not being sold on the US Amazon. I ordered it through the UK Amazon site and patiently waited two weeks to get it, but boy was it worth it.

    Linda Polman speaks from her extensive experience abroad as a journalist and presents the dark side of humanitarian aid that we rarely get to see. I don't think that this book as an agenda of trying to stop all "humanitarian" aid, but it simply presents facts and stories from the ground. We all love a story of a hero swooping in to save to the day, but this book gives an important lesson about what few people realize. When you start to understand that aid organizations (even the ones with the best of intentions) must make money to survive, that there are thousands of these organizations competing with each other, that the one with the most gruesome or heart-wrenching story wins media attention, that we as consumers of media either allow or encourage these sensationalist news organizations to show us only the most extreme stories, that these stories in turn make us feel obligated to donate money (because it's the least we can do from our couches), that some of this money gets invested into resources that are partially dispersed to rebel groups (in the cases of war) that allow them to continue fighting, and that some of the "victims" of these disasters learn that "looking war-torn" is the only way you get food on the table, you realize that this is one big vicious cycle. And Linda Polman attempts to address this cycle from every one of these steps.

    I don't think that Linda Polman thinks that all aid is necessarily bad. She does, however, make us question the point of what we're doing. And I think that is the biggest lesson of all. We should all take a step back and think about all the unintended consequences of our actions. We see stories on TV of victims of war in Africa and of tsunami and earthquake survivors. Then we donate. How many of us really know where that money is going? How many of us look back one or two or ten years later and ask what ever happened with all those people? Did we make the situation better or worse by trying to help? Polman does not answer all these questions in the book, but she does present stories from her own experiences that allow us to start to think about these things.

    If you have any sort of personal interest in humanitarian aid, I would highly recommend this book if for nothing else than to give you a fresh perspective on the field, that no good deed goes unpunished.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Sasha Alyson
    5.0 out of 5 stars Top-notch reporting and writing; this is the same as the U.S. title "The Crisis Caravan"
    Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2015
    This is indeed a powerful indictment of the aid industry. It is sold in the U.S. under the title "The Crisis Caravan", which explains some of the other comments here regarding how Amazon lists it.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Phil Sparrow
    2.0 out of 5 stars inaccurate and cynically polemic
    Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    It's not a good book. It might appear so to those who have never worked in aid, who have never dealt with the complexities of such contexts. Polman's book is in fact, poorly informed, undiscriminating in scope and blithe in nature. She criticises everything, but offers no solutions. It is like blaming a policeman for ongoing crime. Policeman's fault? I think not. Polman fails to understand much, if any, of the Rwandan conflict (refer to 'We Wish to Inform You that Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families: Stories From Rwanda', if you do want to understand this issue). The rest of the book is much the same.
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Top reviews from other countries

  • T Bancroft
    5.0 out of 5 stars Harrowing and mind-opening
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 11, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    This represents Linda Polman's experiences as a journalist across many war- and catastrophe- zones. It is a counter view to that with which we are presented with in the media and exposes the underbelly and corruption of the aid game. From ethics, to the commercialisation of aid to the manipulation by aid agencies to the corrupt control of aid camps by rebel gangs...
    There is too much to say, and too much to fully comprehend, but what she exposes is something we all need to think about. Her message is that International Aid needs to change, to block corruption internally and externally.
    And to deliver help to those that raeally need it.
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  • Ian Johnson
    4.0 out of 5 stars A sceptical view of aid to Africa
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 9, 2010
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    The United Nation's "Millennium Development Goals" set out to halve the number of poor people in the world by 2015, without defining which half, or what would happen to the other half. Yet, twenty of the world's poorest countries still receive little or no aid. It is therefore important for a sceptical eye to be cast over what is happening to the aid funds that we contribute through taxes or collection tins, particularly for causes and crises in Africa.

    This book by a Dutch journalist sets out to do precisely that, beginning by reviewing the creation of the concept of humanitarian aid in the middle of the Nineteenth Century with the foundation of the Red Cross with a presumed duty to relieve human suffering unconditionally. The author's case is that by doing so, the aid agencies put themselves at the mercy of the belligerents and the corrupt.

    Using well documented examples, she demonstrates how TV and the Internet have raised awareness of crises, and how - as the news media cut costs - journalists have become passive processors of the agencies' publicity. The agencies themselves manipulate the media by highlighting or even exaggerating the worst cases of need to help them in the competition to raise money. That might be considered `fair game' were it not for the fact that insurgents and corrupt regimes deliberately worsen situations to attract attention.

    Many of the smaller agencies are inexperienced and provide inappropriate assistance. Their multiplicity only serves to make the situation worse. If one refuses to help, there will always be another willing to step in to justify its existence, assisting corrupt governments which have maintained the crises in their countries to enable them to milk the agencies by taxing imported food and medical supplies or by ensuring that services available to them can only be provided by associates of the regime.

    It is widely estimated that 60% (or more) of aid money is lost through corruption. The delegation of responsibility to sub-contractors makes it almost impossible to check whether money is being spent properly.

    Inevitably, given the content, the book depends heavily on anecdotes and unattributed comments from agency staff, but there is enough hard evidence elsewhere, such as the US Auditor General's reports on aid to Iraq, and World Bank reports. The presentation in the book is aimed at giving pause for thought in an arena in which hearts rather than minds have too often influenced decisions. There is no easy solution to the problems she raises, but at the moment no one is talking about them. Perhaps this book will do a little to help to end the conspiracy of silence.
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  • Yelena Mihailovna
    5.0 out of 5 stars Two titles - one book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 29, 2013
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    Linda Polman's War Games is, apart from an introduction, the same as her Crisis Caravan. I could not get the contents of Crisis Caravan as this was a kindle edition. But the first chapter of both books is Goma -a total ethical disaster.
    I know this as I bought both books, thinking, obviously, they were different.
    As I had to rate the book for the purpose of this review I have given it 5 stars, because I think it is excellent
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  • AMH
    5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 2, 2020
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    Linda Polman is a great author and if you liked this book you should check out her others.
    As an International disaster management and humanitarian response student I find her books very helpful to understand the context and difficulties faced by organisations in the field.
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  • TABLET GABRIELA
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, but I've already read it under the ...
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 19, 2015
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    Great book, but I've already read it under the name "The crisis caravan" by the same author: one book under two titles. Good commercial tactics.
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