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chazzerguy's review
3.0
Meh. Good writing, and some parts are interesting and even intense.
Other parts just feel like long dry slogs of reading. An okay book. Not sure I'd really recommend it to anyone.
Other parts just feel like long dry slogs of reading. An okay book. Not sure I'd really recommend it to anyone.
neil_reimer's review
4.0
“Words into bombs. Speech into death. The jihadis may have believed they were carrying out Gods will, but the men on this terrace could summon it.”
While this book contained the shocking, gruesome, terrifying, yet at times heartwarming experiences of a journalist at the front lines of the battle of Mosul it is so much more than that. It shares the fascinating history of the region which many are not familiar with. It shares the personal stories of refugees who were directly under attack from the Islamic state, and even some who were part of it. it is brilliantly written from a seemingly unbiased point of view. This book educated me greatly on the matter and I’d encourage anyone to read this book as American history can no longer be fully understood if we don’t also fully understand the history of the war in Iraq and it’s catastrophic repercussions.
While this book contained the shocking, gruesome, terrifying, yet at times heartwarming experiences of a journalist at the front lines of the battle of Mosul it is so much more than that. It shares the fascinating history of the region which many are not familiar with. It shares the personal stories of refugees who were directly under attack from the Islamic state, and even some who were part of it. it is brilliantly written from a seemingly unbiased point of view. This book educated me greatly on the matter and I’d encourage anyone to read this book as American history can no longer be fully understood if we don’t also fully understand the history of the war in Iraq and it’s catastrophic repercussions.
jfcremos's review
5.0
Gripping story. Doesn't quite tell the full history of the rise of ISIS but rather focuses on the journalist's experience of it (although there are parts where the author "zooms out" to look at the broader historical perspective).
jmarryott23's review against another edition
5.0
4.5 stars... I didn’t feel like this was the end-all-be-all on the fall of ISIS that I thought it might be going in. It’s really more of one limited perspective on the later stages of their reign. The book is interesting and thought provoking - it really put you in the perspective of citizens who experienced this. We think the world is made up of pure good and pure evil, but this book opened my eyes to understand there is more complexity here.
One more aside - the book also shows how important America’s involvement of foreign affairs truly is. The author insists many times that America’s decision to invade Iraq in the early 2000s is almost entirely the reason for ISIS. I don’t think it’s that simple - but I do think foreign affairs that the average American knows nothing about actually have massive ramifications. The US invading Iraq in 2003 and the US pulling troops in 2011, both of which had good intentions, ultimately MAY have played some part in the rise of ISIS.
One more aside - the book also shows how important America’s involvement of foreign affairs truly is. The author insists many times that America’s decision to invade Iraq in the early 2000s is almost entirely the reason for ISIS. I don’t think it’s that simple - but I do think foreign affairs that the average American knows nothing about actually have massive ramifications. The US invading Iraq in 2003 and the US pulling troops in 2011, both of which had good intentions, ultimately MAY have played some part in the rise of ISIS.
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