Book Review: Voices From Iraq: A People's History, 2003-2009by Mark Kukis
Published by Columbia University Press (May 4, 2011),
240 pages, ISBN-10: 0231156928
Reviewed by Michael Few
Download the Full Article: Book Review: Voices From Iraq: A People's History, 2003-2009
Ultimately, the American intervention in Iraq is one small trajectory along the arc of nation and state development in the land that claims the birthplace of civilization. As with every human endeavor, this arc is fraught with tragedy, triumph, violence, resistance, and hope. The current history of the intervention remains American-centric examining what United States forces and their allies did and failed to do following the regime change of Saddam Hussein. In Voices From Iraq: A People's History, 2003-2009, Mark Kukis presents the Iraqi voice drawing from over seventy interviews conducted in 2009. This book is a must read as it adds to the comprehensive historiography of the past decade; moreover, through the personal narratives, the reader is given a glimpse into the emotional and physical costs of small wars.
Download the Full Article: Book Review: Voices From Iraq: A People's History, 2003-2009
Major James Michael Few is an active duty armor officer with multiple tours in various command and staff positions in Iraq. Currently, he serves as the editor of Small Wars Journal.
About the Author(s)
Michael Few is a retired military officer who served multiple combat tours to Iraq including the Thunder Runs and The Surge, and he currently serves as the editor of Small Wars Journal. He is a graduate of the United States Military Academy and studied small wars at the Defense Analysis Department at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA
Comments
I actually finished reading this book today. I would go even further than Mike here and venture that it could be seen as a classic in years to come. Stories of multiple car bombs in Baghdad, sectarian torture with power tools and other gruesome facts of the Iraq conflict were just another snippet of news for anyone interested a couple of years ago.
This book finally tells the horror of the war at length as seen by Iraqis- not just from a single quote at the site of a bomb blast, or "an Iraqi policeman whose name has been withheld because he was not authorised to release the information". Anyone unsure of how serious the sectarian violence in Iraq was need look no further than this book. Kukis has done the Iraqis a huge service with this modest dedication to their suffering. Read it and be thankful you were born in the free world...