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Moment of Truth in Iraq: How a New 'Greatest Generation' of American Soldiers is Turning Defeat and Disaster into Victory and Hope | 
| Author: Michael Yon
Publisher: Richard Vigilante Books
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
Buy New: $17.93
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Avg. Customer Rating:  32 reviews
Sales Rank: 98
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1st
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6 x 1.1
ISBN: 0980076323
Dewey Decimal Number: 956
EAN: 9780980076325
ASIN: 0980076323
Publication Date: April 1, 2008
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Book Description
Never underestimate the American soldier. That's the moral of former Green Beret Michael Yon's brilliant battle-by-battle, block-by-block tale of how America's new `greatest generation' of soldiers is turning defeat and disaster into victory and hope in Iraq. The American soldier is the reason General David Petraeus's brilliant strategy of moving our soldiers off isolated bases and out among the Iraqi people is working. Working to find and kill terrorists, reclaim neighborhoods, and help lead Iraq to democracy. Yon is no cheerleader. According to the New York Times, he has logged more time in combat situations in Iraq than any other reporter. When failed American leadership was driving Iraq into chaos and civil war, nobody told the story earlier or better than Michael Yon. The top brass was so mad that twice the U.S. military denied him access to Iraq. So Yon has supreme credibility when he says that we are finally winning, not primarily with our overwhelming technology, not with shock and awe destruction, but with the even more powerful force of American values--with the courage and leadership, strength and compassion of our soldiers. Iraqis respect strength, says Yon. They know American soldiers are "great-hearted warriors" who vanquish the Al Qaeda terror gangs that "raped too many women and boys, cut off too many heads, brought drugs into too many neighborhoods." But Iraqis also discovered that these great warriors are even happier helping rebuild a clinic or a school or a neighborhood. They learned the American soldier is not only the most dangerous man in the world, but the best man too. That's what turned defeat into victory. Here is the true, untold story of the American soldier and the courage and values that are bringing victory for America--and Iraq.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 27 more reviews...
Reality Revealed May 12, 2008
This is one of the few citizen journalists whom I will grant any credibility, and he has written a supurb book. He does not write so people will agree or disagree with him. I disagreed with him about the civil war in Iraq which he says started a year before anyone took notice. That is not his concern. The FACTS on the ground are his concern, and that is what he writes about in this book.
When you wrote about the successes, the losses, the children, the living and the dieing, you had me in smiles and tears and awe. Especially when you wrote about the times you'd see 'that look' on our mens faces after losing a brethren. How awful! We must not let them down.
It may amaze many people who have only watched TV to get their news, but we are actually winning over in the Iraq theater!
You may also read Michael's reports on his website, [...]. He is an incredible writer, and this book just esteems this fact. It seems to have written itself. That is because Michael makes it appear so easy. Trust me, it is not.
I'm grateful we have someone who is willing to go over there on his own (without any financial backing) seeking the truth as his only agenda, instead of having a closed mind either way. Thank you, Michael Yon. I love the book, even though it is emotional for me. Excellent job.
A Front Row Seat May 10, 2008
Michael Yon has been giving great dispatches from this front for years and his book takes it to a whole new level. Alongside the men of our armed forces in small teams, Yon is able to get a front row seat for the courageous battles, subtle diplomacy and true scenes of bravery. Only a former Green Beret would actually participate in the battle he is writing about. Its about time someone talked about the magnificent job that our brothers and sisters are doing in an incredibly difficult situation. Thank you, Michael, from all of us.
I liked it. May 8, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The book is 3 things:
- First-rate first-person war reporting
- An account of what is going on tactically in Iraq
- A partial handbook on COIN/4GW and the importance of the non-kinetic activities
I highly recommend it.
Calm, methodical, and even-handed. Above all, convincing. May 1, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I got turned on to this book by Instapundit, Glenn Reynolds, [...]-- who often links to Michael Yon. MY review is choppy, but the book is not. I'm just shepherding a couple of children and it's tough to get my thoughts together. In contrast, Yon's writing in Moment of Truth is very lucid. Don't judge the book by my writing style, please.
I didn't know it would be such a good read. My first impression was that Yon brought clarity to the myriad units fighting, and he clarifies the relationships between our allies and our enemies. This alone would be reason to buy the book -- current media war reporting runs to lazy, ill-informed, agenda-driven, or incomplete stories. It has been almost impossible to decipher WHO are our allies, and WHO are the enemy. Clarity.
Yon relates events even-handedly. There is no lip gloss on this book -- you are going to get the straight story. Did we execute poorly at the beginning of the war, to the detriment of our credibility? We did. Did it nearly cost us the war? It did. Have things changed? They have.
Yon is trustworthy. He has been embedded with US and British units since 2004, fighting with them. He's not a cheerleader. He's a professional. We will win counterinsurgency with media reporting such as his.
Yon lays out story after story of how Iraqi governance is being built through watching the example of American soldiers.
The book is up to date, with reporting into January of 2008.
It's a fast read -- takes maybe 2 evenings, but it's the war coverage the American public should have been getting all along.
For me, the most hopeful takeaway from this book is that the US Army is becoming competent at counterinsurgency and urban warfare. This is encouraging news. Our soldiers have always been the best among us. It is the hearts of the American soldiers that is turning Iraq into a success story.
Get it and read it -- I am so glad I did.
INDESPENSABLE WAR JOURNALISM April 30, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Mike Yon is a "hands on" reporter...he doesn't talk about theories of the war--he walks his readers through it. He doesn't tell readers what to think about the war--he describes the details and allows the readers the freedom come to their own conclusions. Deep. Thought provoking.
Another thing I really value about Yon's writing--he humanizes the Iraqis. They are so "far" away from the American public, that they are often not even considered when discussing the tragedies and losses of this war. If you ask the average citizen here how many they think have died in Iraq, they will almost always just refer to the Americans.
Yes, this is a war influenced by and affected greatly by media...and Yon's journalism is one of our greatest assets in this fight. His words are brutally honest in describing what he saw, encountered and experienced, but then, that is exactly what makes this work, so refreshingly unbiased, so valuable. Way to go, Mike!
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