In 2008, CBS' Chief Foreign Correspondent, Lara Logan, candidly speculated about the human side of the war in Iraq: "Tell me the last time you saw ...
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Nov 20, 2011
Benjaminxjackson
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Jess Goodell has written a book that left me thinking for long time. She was a Marine who served as part of a mortuary affairs unit in Iraq. She and her fellow Marines in the unit were the ones who cleaned up the messes made by the battles and booby traps and prepared the bodies of U.S. service people to come home and the bodies of Iraqis for burial. These are the bodies that fill the flag-draped coffins the Pentagon does not want the American public to see.
While it is unavoidable to More...
While it is unavoidable to More...
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Dec 26, 2011
Amy
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Wow. This was far more powerful than I thought it would be. I thought it was an account of one soldier's experience in the Mortuary Affairs division in Iraq. It was so much more than that. Ranging from the harsh conditions in Iraq to the rampant sexism of the Marines to the excruciating job she had to do, to the difficulty becoming a civilian again with the PTSD and guilt after the war, this book covers the gamut of the military experience. The writing was a bit awkward in places, but Goode
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Feb 13, 2012
Kirsten
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This is a memoir of a young female Marine who served with the Mortuary Affairs unit in Iraq. The stories she tells (in Iraq and after she returns home) are of course horrifying and raw. I hesitate to critique her writing, but the book as a whole might have benefited from some tighter editing. Her stories are certainly worth reading, and she shines a light on a particularly gruesome sort of darkness. We need to hear more of these stories, and I'm pretty sure the veterans need to tell them.
Oct 13, 2011
Deni
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This is a short but troubling book about a female Marine's experiences working in Mortuary Affairs in Iraq and what it was like to return home. A lot of the book describes the hard and sad work she did "processing" the dead but I found myself more interested in, and upset by, the sections describing life as a woman in the Marines and then the pain and alienation she, and many many many others, felt after leaving the service. I learned a lot from this book.
Jan 21, 2012
Dave
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I disliked the fact the Jessica felt it necessary to berate the capabilities of Army personnel in Iraq, but that is not a surprising sentiment coming from a Marine. But, putting that one minor detail aside this is a very compelling memoir. The first half of the book is somewhat unorganized and doesn't seem to have a coherent theme, but she more than makes up for that in the second half. Her perspective is very unique, and she handles the subject matter with the appropriate amount of reverence wi
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Jul 30, 2011
Fascinating look at being a woman in the Marines -- and at being a Marine working in Mortuary Affairs. More importantly, I think, this is a glimpse into the difficulties some of our soldiers have re-integrating to society when they return. It only gets 3 stars because the writing isn't spectacular and there's an awful lot of repetition.
Jul 10, 2011
Chris
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This young Marine/woman/war veteran/mortuary platoon member/student/human shares what it means to be in combat and to have to return to "normal" life. She eloquently says as much by what she leaves out as she does in her clean, clear prose. This is a must read for anyone who wants even a glimmer of understanding of what it is to go to war.
Nov 18, 2011
Laura
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This is a very intense and important book about one female Marine's experiences as a member of Mortuary Affairs in Iraq. The writing is a bit unpolished, but I thought it added to the immediacy of the book, almost as if you were sitting in a bar with the author as she attempts to work through her experiences and emotions.
Sep 28, 2011
Deby
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A sobering report of not only the realities of being a woman in the Marine Corp but also an indictment of how the military has inadequately responded to the needs of returning Vetrans.
Sep 22, 2011
Awab
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قصص حقيقية لمجندين خدموا ضمن جيش الاحتلال الأمريكي في العراق، ومشاهداتهم هناك، والآثار النفسية والجسدية التي خلفتها الحرب عليهم بعد عودتهم الى أمريكا
الكتاب بالنسبة لي كان فرصة كبية للشماتة في الأشخاص الذين دمروا بلدي
الكتاب بالنسبة لي كان فرصة كبية للشماتة في الأشخاص الذين دمروا بلدي
Feb 08, 2012
Heard an interview with Jess Goodell on NPR's Fresh Air show, and I was so interested and troubled by the interview, that I wanted to learn more of her story via her book.
Oct 05, 2011
Kim
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This was not a pleasant book to read but it told a story that needs to be told.
Aug 16, 2011
Kate
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I bought this book after I heard Jess Goodell, the young Marine who wrote it, speak on NPR. this is not going to be light reading.
I am impresed with the level of writing in this book. it is a quick, page turner of a read. while I will certainly never understand what it's like to be in Iraq I think I gained a small idea of what our military feels. I highly recommend this book.
I am impresed with the level of writing in this book. it is a quick, page turner of a read. while I will certainly never understand what it's like to be in Iraq I think I gained a small idea of what our military feels. I highly recommend this book.
Aug 14, 2011
Andrew
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Went from good to great in the last 1/3 or so. Moving and eye-opening.
Nov 19, 2011
Russell
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Excellent expose on the treatment and abuse of women in the military and the horrors of war as experienced by a Woman Marine in the Mortuary Platoon in Iraq. A must read for any women's study program of group. It moved me to tears and provoked anger.
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