I'm a cautious book buyer, normally waiting several weeks to months after a book has been released to get the low down on whether I really want a particular item for my personal library. I just made an exception and preordered Baghdad at Sunrise: A Brigade Commander's War in Iraq by Colonel Peter Mansoor. I can't imagine anything by COL Mansoor being less than outstanding and figure the pre-release reviewers (an impressive list at that) can't be all wrong.
From the Amazon.com Baghdad at Sunrise page:
This compelling book presents an unparalleled record of what happened after U.S. forces seized Baghdad in the spring of 2003. Army Colonel Peter R. Mansoor, the on-the-ground commander of the 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division—the "Ready First Combat Team"—describes his brigade's first year in Iraq, from the sweltering, chaotic summer after the Ba'athists' defeat to the transfer of sovereignty to an interim Iraqi government a year later. Uniquely positioned to observe, record, and assess the events of that fateful year, Mansoor now explains what went right and wrong as the U.S. military confronted an insurgency of unexpected strength and tenacity.
Drawing not only on his own daily combat journal but also on observations by embedded reporters, news reports, combat logs, archived e-mails, and many other sources, Mansoor offers a contemporary record of the valor, motivations, and resolve of the 1st Brigade and its attachments during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Yet this book has a deeper significance than a personal memoir or unit history. Baghdad at Sunrise provides a detailed, nuanced analysis of U.S. counterinsurgency operations in Iraq, and along with it critically important lessons for America's military and political leaders of the twenty-first century.
Frederick W. Kagan, American Enterprise Institute
"This book will be read by students at military academies and war colleges for years to come. It also speaks to general readers interested in Iraq, in the voices of our soldiers, and in understanding the problems we faced and those we created, without the hyperbole and politicization of most first-person accounts of the early years of this conflict."
Conrad Crane, lead author of the Army/Marine Corps Field Manual 3-24, Counterinsurgency
"This is the best personal memoir of the Iraq War that I have seen."
General David H. Petraeus, US Army, Commanding General, Multi-National Force - Iraq
"Baghdad at Sunrise is a masterful account of command in counterinsurgency operations. Colonel Peter Mansoor''s superb description of his brigade''s experiences during our first year in Iraq is a must read for soldiers, scholars, and policymakers, alike-and all would do well to examine the lessons he draws from his experiences."
Colonel H. R. McMaster, US Army, author of Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Lies that Led to Vietnam
"A moving, insightful, and unique account of a combat brigade''s experience in Iraq crafted by a gifted soldier-historian-a must-read for anyone who wants to understand how the U.S. military is coping with counterinsurgency warfare in the 21st century."
Thomas E. Ricks, military correspondent, The Washington Post, and author of Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq
"The Iraq war has produced many good books by sergeants and lieutenants, but few notable memoirs by senior officers. Finally, in Baghdad at Sunrise, Colonel Mansoor gives us an account of a year''s combat in the Iraqi capital as seen by a brigade commander. What''s more, he brings the eye of a trained historian to the task. He is candid about both the successes and the failures of the U.S. military. Read it."
Williamson Murray, author of A War To Be Won: Fighting the Second World War
"Colonel Mansoor has provided us with an exceptional memoir from mid-level of the tragic course of post-conflict operations in Iraq. It represents an account by a first-rate soldier and perceptive historian that is a must read for anyone interested in what really happened."
Preorder Baghdad Sunrise at Amazon.com.
Hardcover: 432 pages
Publisher: Yale University Press (September 15, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 030014069X
ISBN-13: 978-0300140699