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Title: Boots on the Ground: A Month with the 82nd Airborne in the Battle for Iraq by Karl Zinsmeister ISBN: 0-312-32663-7 Publisher: Truman Talley Books Pub. Date: 01 September, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.06 (16 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: It Ain't Blackhawk Down
Comment: The definitive book of the Iraq War (at least the first part of the conflict) has yet to be written. Boots on The Ground is interesting but lacks the character depth and riveting narrative of a book like Blackhawk Down. It's an enjoyable book for the insight it provides into the daily activities of soldiers who were there. Unfortunately, it doesn't stick with any specific group of soldiers for very long and tends to fall back on generalizations. If you want a general overview of our soldiers and their time in Iraq this is the book. Otherwise, keep waiting for that definitive work.
Rating: 5
Summary: The first classic from the Second Gulf War
Comment: In his book "Boots on the Ground" the author chronicles his journey from the time he was informed that we would be an imbedded reporter, through thirty days of the campaign, to his eventual homecoming. During this journey Zinsmeister details a lot of the sights and sounds of a combat unit in action, but more importantly when they are off the line. In this respect this book gives the reader a genuine feel for what goes on in a combat unit.
Finally, he give a cogent aregument that the reporting of the news from Iraq was biased and self-serving by a number of embedded journalist, and by a few who feld they did not need to be close to the action to render their "expert" opinion. This section only reinforces what Bernie Goldberg wrote in "Biased".
In all, this was a well written book that deseves attention by the public at large as it represents the first rough draft of history.
If the book has any shortcomings it would be in the area of its length. I assume the the author had considerably more material than he used; I would have preferred he used it as the subject warrents expanded coverage.
Rating: 3
Summary: Good, but could have been much better
Comment: As we learn more about the war in Iraq from the soldiers and reporters who were there, we're bound to get more accounts like "Boots on the Ground." They really seem to provide a good quick look at isolated battles, or a ground-level look at how history happened. This is an interesting read; Zinsmeister does an admirable job detailing his time with the 82nd, and anyone inclined to pick it up will probably be in familiar territory...it really conveys the feel of America's military these days, and numerous anecdotes he relays gave me the sense of pride that I've felt so often watching the military in action.
However, I could have used a lot more detail (barely 200 pages, it was finished in less than a day of on-again-off-again reading), and a lot less of his opinion of the French, the UN, the Left, and the media, which I'd guess most people reading it would share anyway. There's a number of fairly bold typos and statements (saying that the A-10 stalls from the recoil of its cannon, calling an AC-130 a "Specter," etc.) that seem ironic considering how much of the last part of the book he spends going after the media.
Still, if you want an "I was there" chronology from a guy embedded with a key US Army unit on the way into Iraq, this will offer a tasty appetizer before more substantial titles are released. I'd recommend it.
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Title: The March Up: Taking Baghdad With the 1st Marine Division by Ray L. Smith, Bing West ISBN: 055380376X Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 09 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Embedded: The Media At War in Iraq by Bill Katovsky, Timothy Carlson ISBN: 1592282652 Publisher: The Lyons Press Pub. Date: September, 2003 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
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Title: 21 Days to Baghdad: Photos and Dispatches from the Battlefield by Editors of Time Magazine, editors at TIME Magazine ISBN: 1932273123 Publisher: Time Pub. Date: June, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: 82nd Airborne Division: All American (Spearhead Series) by Mike Verier ISBN: 0711028567 Publisher: Ian Allan Pub Pub. Date: February, 2002 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title:National Geographic - 21 Days to Baghdad ASIN: B00009RXI5 Publisher: Warner Home Video Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.98 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $17.98 |
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