Article first published as Book Review: Fragments from Iraq by Zsolt T. Stockinger on Blogcritics. “[W]hen Allah created hell, it wasn’t terrible enough, so he made Iraq – and added flies.” Old Arab saying (page 81). About: Fragments from Iraq: Diary of a Navy Trauma Surgeon by Zsolt T. Stockinger is a non-fiction book which recounts the daily life of a trauma surgeon on the front line. The book is in diary format written by the doctor which seems as if he was talking to his wife. 255 pages Publisher: Mcfarland (May 3, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 078646951X My rating for Fragments From Iraq – 4 Buy this book in paper format Thoughts: Fragments from Iraq: Diary of a Navy Trauma Surgeon by Zsolt T. Stockinger relates the daily activities this front line trauma surgeon encountered in his base in Iraq. From the boring daily routine, to the military’s “hurry up and wait” mentality and to the serious injuries, whether from an IED, to local babies, self inflicted wounds and more. The diary is written in an informal style, but it seemed to me that it was edited and maybe sanitized to make it more palatable to a larger audience. Personally I see…

“Daughters of Iraq” by Revital Shiri-Horowitz is a well written account of Jewish Iraqi family who is forced to immigrate to Israel from Iraq in the 1950s.

I appreciate what the authors tried, and somewhat succeeded to do in this book. They brought together warriors of past decades and intertwined their fates

The book describes the long relationship between Polish & US intelligence agencies. Poland has been trying to come out from under the heavy hand of the Russians

An Israeli novel about a woman who finds letters her late father left her from her birth, to his death, discovering a family saga from previous generations

Beyond Vom Kriege: The Character and Conduct of Modern War by R. D. Hooker Jr. is a non-fiction consisting of essays about the theory of war.

The book follows 4 decades of public service from Mr. Powel’s service in Vietnam and Mr. Cheney’s entrance to government to the administration of George W. Bush

The author tells real stories of real soldiers that have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, some are new to the military and others are veterans of other conflicts

. I especially liked the many anecdotes the authors give along with the points they are trying to make, instead of just giving a few tidbits here and there, or worst, throwing names around.

Spotlight feature: Al Shabah: An Assassin’s Story takes readers into the heart and heat of the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990). The story starts with a ten year old Paul as Bassam, a terrorist known as “Yellow Eyes”, overtakes Paul’s small hometown in the Bekaa Valley, killing his brother and sister in front of him. This forces Paul to take an oath: To grow up and find the yellow-eyed shooter—a man who soon becomes the charismatic leader of a jihadist group destroying his home country. As Paul watches Bassam recruit and head his own group of fighters and suicide bombers, Paul is forced into military action as a teenager. Paul fights for the Lebanese Forces to protect the innocent families caught up in a war disguised as a fight for religion, but is actually about gaining control and greed for a few selected powerful figures in the Middle East. Realizing that the foot soldiers are expendable fodder for poorly trained military leaders, Paul joins counter-terrorist operations to fight against Bassam, training in Israel with the Mossad and Kidon. Paul and Bassam cross paths as Paul is sent out on dangerous missions, only to come face-to-face in a final showdown—a showdown only one will survive. “The…