Brutal. In one moment achingly heartbreaking and in another inspiring. ( )

this was a fantastic read. written by a journalist embedded with a ranger squadron for most of the Iraq war, it really gives a sense of what daily life in Iraq was life for infantry rangers. while remaining pretty neutral, politically it covers morale, mental health, and war, from both a leadership and subordinate point of view. this is very much not an account of a heroic battle, ala Black Hawk Down. This is the nitty gritty of the Iraq war. ( )

This book. This fucking book.

This is literary journalism at its finest. Finkel is lyrical at the darkest times, mining emotion and meaning from some of the most horrific and terrifying experiences humans have had to undergo in recent times. He’s spare sometimes and luxurious at others—surprisingly succinct when describing someone’s death, and then taking pages to illuminate mundane things. Uch. He’s just a great writer, trying to tell the story of great men, and it works.

For me, the experience of reading this book consisted of waiting. On the edge of my seat, for the next battle, the next encounter, the next explosion. The next death, most of all. When someone died I would skip to the page with the pictures of the dead at the end and sort of meditate on that person and think about how he died and try to see it. This is a powerful book. It’s fast and it’s scary. Explosive. It makes you understand why soldiers come back home and shoot themselves.
( )

Reading this felt like sitting in the dark and having a ten-ton weight slowly crush my chest. This account of soldiers during the surge in Iraq is forceful, beautifully written, and will make you break down into tears several times (at least). You want a modern day nonfictional account of wartime that doesn't take sides or pull punches? You've found it. ( )

I first heard about this book on This America Life where actors read excerpts from the book. Based on these excerpts I had thought the structure would be similar to “Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam” which I had really liked. I downloaded the audio version and found that it was not written in this fashion at all, but in more of a linear narrative, focusing basically on one main character, Colonel Ralph Kauzlarich.

The narrative follows one battalion, the 2-16, during the surge in Iraq. Finkel covers a lot of ground: operations, strategy, politics, the home front, causalities, the wounded and their post care, and even gives background on an Iraqi National who is an interpreter for them. While he does touch on all of these subjects and more, he doesn’t focus on any one thing, other than the causalities, and since he didn’t spend a lot of time telling you about these individual soldiers they all become a blur.

I have to say that when I found out early in the book that Colonel Kauzlarich had been one of the investigators into the death of Pat Tillman (ex-football star killed by friendly fire), my whole attitude about him changed. While Finkel makes him a three dimensional character (shows us his good side, his blunt side, his frustrated side, his family side etc.), I couldn’t help thinking throughout the book that he knew about the massive cover-up of Pat Tillman’s death, but still went on a radio talk show after Tillman’s death and said that Tillman’s family couldn’t get over it because of their religious beliefs (they were atheists) and therefore couldn’t handle that he would just be worm dirt. Is that what a “Good Soldier” says about a family whose son’s death he knew to have been part of a massive cover-up? While I’m not saying he had to be PC about it (soldiers usually aren’t), why did he have to say anything at all which just added fuel to the fire when he very well knew why this family couldn’t get it over it; it makes me question his good judgment, and how much more he knew about the cover-up. Needless to say because Kauzlarich was such a major part of the storyline the whole book was a bit tainted for me.

The Tillman situation aside, I have to say I was not “blown away” by this book. For those who were, I must assume this is the first book about war they have ever read. War is War. There are some wars that have clearly defined Good Guys and Bad Guys (WWII), Winners and Losers (WWII), and then there are other wars like Vietnam where the objectives and enemies are less clearly defined. When I was reading this I felt like I was reading about the Vietnam war only set in the dessert. People lose their lives in wars, they lose body parts, they lose friends, they lose their sanity, and they lose their innocence. All of these things happened in this book, as it has in all of the wars we have been in--this is not new. The soldiers questioning “Why are we here?,” is not new (Vietnam all over again). The real question is, “Did we not learn anything from Vietnam?”

What this book does do, is it brings this war to the forefront of your conscious. It makes you think about it, instead of it just being another small news story that is quickly forgotten. And for that I would actually give it 3.5 stars.
( )

A grueling, depressing book about the 2007 “surge” in Iraq from the perspective of a group of American soldiers. Finkel is at his most harrowing when describing the physical wounds inflicted by modern combat, though the psychic damage also comes through as well. They’re very good soldiers, but there is a hollowness at the core of the fight, and that matters—to them and to us. ( )

I cannot think of a book that has delivered more powerful prose. "An EFP exploding from a trash pile is nothing like an EFP exploding from a water buffalo carcass." That's an example of the more mundane, matter-of-fact narrative. Powerful narrative comes like storm waves throughout the book. It certainly has its share of Rambo-like scenarios, but it is not a "shoot 'em up" war story, but an extremely personal accounting of a single U.S. Army platoon during the "surge" in Iraq. And a word of warning to those with a particular sensitivity to profanity...this book has its share, but if the profanity is what disturbs you most about this book, I suggest you go back to the store and buy yourself a new soul. ( )

If you care about anyone who puts their lives, not only on hold, but, on the line in defense of this nation and her people, continue reading. The book, The Good Soldiers written by David Finkel, a staff writer for The Washington Post, is a gritty, in your face look at current warfare.

In the book Finkel follows the 2-16 IN BN, from Ft. Riley, Kansas through their deployment to Iraq, where, instead of escorting convoys and securing roads in the western part of the country, they become part of The Surge to increase security in Baghdad. The view is very direct and forward. There is no sugar coating to be had, just ass deep in the shit, not only, with the troops on the ground but, also the aftermath of IEDs and EFPs sent home to the families.

You get a first hand look at not just the external face of war, but the internal face as well. While the external face is gritty and sometimes gory to the point of destroying the prospective of the bigger picture; the internal face is raw and tormenting, struggling in a life and death battle that pits compassion against sheer existence. Finkel does a copious accounting of warfare on the people right in the middle of the blast crater. The journey that starts with honor and motivation ends with acceptance and resignation, yet hope while metamorphosed manages to survive in some corners.

While, this read is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach, if you can handle it, it should be a must read for ALL Americans. ( )

This is the first book since The Things They Carried that made war uncomfortably--palpably & emotionally--present for me. Not having personal experience of war, I cannot judge if this is an accurate portrayal. What I can say is that the vision of young men in combat that Finkel offers is powerfully evocative, complex & devastating. ( )

Audiobook. Follow a battalion(?) for 15 months in Iraq. Sent as part of the surge. Very compelling book. Follows individual characters. Based on conversations and individual voices. Woven together into a compelling story. I recommend this book.

The Good Soldiers by Pulitzer Prize journalist David Finkel was a difficult read. He describes the horror of the American war experience in Iraq with an unflinching eye and it was unbearably sad to read of incidents that left young Americans dead or changed for life. Set in 2007, it is also unbearably sad to know that these kind of things are still happening in the Middle East today as the death and suffering continues.

This author brings both the war and the men who fought it to life on these pages as he describes their day-to-day activities, both in combat and in general duties. This is not a book about the political manoeuvrings of Washington, instead it follows one battalion throughout its 15 month deployment and allows the reader to feel a part of their experience. David Finkel spent 8 months with the 2-16 in Iraq and in telling of this units’ operations, he clearly shows the what the cost was:

“in the final minutes of a month in which four soldiers died, one lost a hand,
one lost an arm, one lost an eye, one was shot in the head, one was shot in the
throat, eight were injured by shrapnel, eighty IEDs or EFPs detonated on
passing convoys, soldiers were targeted by gunfire or rocket-propelled grenades
fifty-two times …”

And he humanizes this cost.

Yes, a difficult read, but presented in a moving and unforgettable manner which will make The Good Soldiers a hard book to forget. ( )

I want the President and every elected federal official, as well as the Secretaries of State and Defense to read this book. Finkel simply portrays the reality of war from the place of the soldiers who fight it and their families. Devastating, and the best argument against war I have read in a long time. ( )

Journalist David Finkel spent eight of the fifteen months during which the 2-16 Infantry Batallion were deployed in Baghdad. This was January 2007 through April 2008, the Surge. The writing reminds me a lot of Tom Wolfe's nonfiction, particularly in "The Right Stuff". Looking at the events chronicled here, it's hard to see this as a "war" in the way most of us understand the concept. The assignment is basically to tame and reclaim a rundown neighborhood on the eastern wing of the city. On the sides of the roads are sewage trenches wide and deep enough to swallow a humvee. (And they do). The soldiers are set to restore order and morale to a place that has become lawless. Fourteen American deaths occur during the deployment, and numerous grisly injuries that would leave a lot of folks wishing for death. The soldiers are decent Americans who have a hard time understanding why the improvements they try to build (schools, sewage systems, swimming pools) keep getting sabotaged by the insurgent element. You can almost hear the voice of a parent saying, "This is why we can't have nice things". If this book makes one point, it is that, whether or not you agree with the United States being in Iraq at all, our troops are representing us humanely and well. ( )

Again, another war story that had me smiling and tearing up the whole way through. This book brings home the reality of what our soldiers are putting on the line everyday for us, and the reality of what they have to live with when they come home. It makes me want to thank every soldier every time I see one! ( )

Lo consiglio.

David Finkel è un giornalista e questo libro non è un romanzo ma un reportage.
Racconta la guerra in Afghanistan/Iraq di un battaglione americano inviato a Baghdad.
E dei 15 mesi di durata della missione David ha passato con le truppe circa metà del tempo, raccogliendo testimonianze che poi ha descritto in questo libro.
Un libro in cui molta importanza ha l'aspetto psicologico, le emozioni provate dai soldati.

Che poi questa non è una guerra in cui i soldati sono dei Rambo che prendono il mitra ed escono dalla base correndo e sparando miliardi di colpi a tutto e tutti... La missione di 'sti poveracci (ho già detto che l'età media del battaglione è circa 20 anni?) è quella di sorvegliare una zona di Baghdad e combattere i terroristi, facendosi, allo stesso tempo, amici i civili. Quindi, praticamente, si limitano a spostarsi da una base all'altra coi mezzi blindati e a saltare per aria... Perché i mezzi blindati da 150.000$ degli americani si disfano come se fossero di plastica quando passano sopra gli ordigni piazzati in strada dai ribelli e riempiono di schegge i ragazzi all'interno facendo saltare mani, piedi, arti in generale, occhi e crani...

A me, 'sti ragazzi hanno fatto proprio pena... ( )

Through this first-rate and appropriately devastating journalistic account of the experiences of the members one U.S. Army battalion deployed to serve in Baghdad during 2007-2008, Finkel chronicles what New York Times reviewer Doug Stanton describes as "ordinary men enduring extraordinary circumstances." Finkel pulls few punches in describing U.S. soldiers' ambivalent understanding of the U.S. mission in the Middle East, soldiers' harrowing injuries and deaths via roadside bombs, and the war at home as families struggle to hold it together during family members' deployments. Written with admirable journalistic neutrality, this book is a must read for anyone with an opinion on the war in the Middle East, and for anyone who knows or loves a soldier. ( )

I really didn't think I would like this book, but I did. It was not exactly an enjoyable read, although there were a couple of humorous parts. If you wanted to know what things were like on the ground in Baghdad at the start of the Surge in early 2007, this book might be what you're looking for. Following a single battalion that worked in Baghdad for 15 months during 2007 and 2008, the book gives one a sense of the horror and fear of being there. Soldiers die, projects get blown up, people get on with their lives the best they can. It's not pretty. ( )

Journalist David Finkel’s account of his eight months in Iraq from 2007-2008 with the 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. David Finkel set out with the purpose of documenting this particular battalion’s part of the Iraq War during what was known as “the surge”. It is not a book on the strategy of the war or the politics of whether or not we should have gone into Iraq, but rather a harrowing, unbiased, and honest account of the soldiers of the 2-16. To his credit, I think that Finkel does an excellent job with depicting life in an infantry battalion on the ground. That being said, it’s written from the perspective of a journalist, not a soldier, with central focus around the battalion commander, LTC Ralph Kauzlarich. There are no defining battles or Medal of Honor heroics here, just the constant convoys, IEDs, rocket attacks, gunfire, trash, dust, and general paranoia of fighting an insurgency in 2007 Iraq. The words that come to mind after reading this book are raw, brutal, graphic, horrific, futile, surreal, sad, thoughtful, simple, honest, obscene, and moving. Bottom line, this is one of the most moving accounts of war I’ve read thus far.

Each chapter of the book is preceded by a quote from President Bush concerning the strategy and goals of the surge. Throughout the book, Finkel throws the realities of the war right in your face. It’s not super-subtle, but it works. I conjecture that his intent was to demonstrate the difference in realities between the war on the ground, and the war as they saw it in Washington D.C. To the politicians and some generals, the surge was a winning move based on what statistics and reports showed. To the soldiers of the 2-16, their tour in Iraq was anything but simple numbers and theory. It was real and it was grinding on the nerves. As the book progresses, we see the attitudes of many of the soldiers begin to degrade as they take casualties. Finkel also juxtaposes the opinions of the enlisted men and junior officers, with that of those in higher command. What we see is, the higher up the chain of command you go, the more optimism replaces reality. From President Bush saying, “We’re kicking ass”, to Colonel Kauzlarich continually saying, “It’s all good”, to the once morally upbeat Major Cummings eventually saying, “Stupid fucking scumbags”, success at this point, seems all relevant. Finkel also tells the soldiers’ opinions of those generals and reporters who get the “windshield tour”, that is, they come in and stay a few hours or days, and then go home and report to the “experts” who give their “assessment” on the war. This contrasted with Finkel’s eight months on the ground with these men, and you have a radically different view. In a way, it’s very powerful.

Finkel’s writes extremely well, and as a result, it makes you feel for the soldiers who were lost and the ones who were severely wounded. You see them not as statistics or a blurb in the papers, but as people. It’s written in a way that’s not overly maudlin and Finkel avoids using cheap tricks to try and tug at your heartstrings. Instead, the honesty of the writing becomes the drama and truly makes you sympathize with these soldiers. If you read lots of war memoirs, you’ll immediately notice a difference in the style of writing. Most soldiers (the ones who write memoirs anyway) are not exactly Shakespearean in their prose, but Finkel’s writing is much more fluid and has an air of eloquence to it. This is what differentiates The Good Soldiers from any other run-of-the-mill war memoir…the writing. Put simply, it’s good.

Finkel does a pretty good job of remaining neutral on his views throughout the book. That being said, I can’t help but feel that by putting a quote from Bush at the start of every chapter, he was trying to make some kind of political message. One thing he does exceptionally well is tell an honest story. Parts of the book are filled with obscene language, but that’s how soldiers talk. Parts of the book are extremely graphic in terms of the violence being described, but that’s the kind of war these men fought. It’s journalism done right in my opinion. It doesn’t try to overtly spin a sob story for you, nor does it try to cram politics down your throat with heavy-handed didacticism. It’s just this battalion’s little piece of the war. There is no happy ending to this book or even a triumphant victory. Furthermore, there is no ground-breaking message or theme to this book. It’s the old, war is bad, and people get hurt and die message.

To sum things up, I’d give David Finkel’s The Good Soldiers an excellent 5 out of 5 stars. Finkel’s clear and honest telling of the experiences of these men paint a moving picture of life on the ground in Iraq. It’s an example of fine-tuned journalism that is well-written, but without resorting to cheap sentimentality or spin-doctored political nonsense. If you want a macro analysis of the counterinsurgency strategy, this book is not for you. If you want a well-written, honest and heartfelt account of the life of an infantry battalion, along with all their triumphs, defeats, and everything in between, then check out The Good Soldiers by David Finkel. ( )

Such a brutal book - an account of an army Battalion in Iraq. As little as I understood the war before, I understand it even less now. ( )

When Americans obtain there knowledge of history from books instead of the cable news shows, the world is a better place. This work gives the grim reality of brave soldiers fighting a war. The results of this action ultimately resulted in victory, but you wouldn't know it from the time frame in which this investigatory work was written. Grim reality. ( )

This is an account of the a year (from April 2007 to April 2008) of a Ranger battalion in Iraq. It is a searing and distressful account, certainly the most vivid I have read of the Iraq War and on a par with Vietnam books such as We Were Soldiers Once...and Young. It spends more time on the wounded than is usual for this type of book, and one is appalled at the price those who fight pay physically and mentally. Since I have never believed the Iraq War should have been commenced this book reinforced that belief, even though its message is not blatant in regard to the war, and the officer who is the central person in the account vigorously believed in the war, at least in the beginning. ( )

I was very unsatisfied with this book. When I heard the author on NPR I was excited to read this because I wanted to see the war through the experiences of the soldiers. The author tells the stories, but he tries so hard to manipulate how you feel about these experiences, and he does it through such cheesy writing that it detracts from the power the stories should have. I agree with the Washington Post review in this regard. ( )

This is an excellent account of one battalion's 15-month tour of ground work (called "the surge") in some of the most war blighted areas of Iraq. The interesting thing about the reporting is that while the entire mission is an implosion of politics gone horribly awry, this is not a "political" book, per se. It is merely one man's [very intimate] observations of this group of soldiers, in this time, in this place. It is a VERY graphic book, not only in description of injuries and killings but what mental/emotional torture and severe anxiety do to the soldiers who for the most part, are still kids in many ways. It is nightmare producing to say the least. I do not have any better understanding of what is going on in Iraq (it just seems aimless, fruitless and neverending), but what I did take away from this is an enduring amount of compassion and sadness for any of the human beings who must go there. Highly recommended, but not for the faint of heart. ( )

Best account of the military operations in Iraq by an embedded journalist that I've read this far. In less that 300 pages Mr. Finkel shows, what seemingly is, every single aspect of US soldiers on deployment during the surge. The faith in the mission, the despair as casualties mount, the ever so tenuous link with those back home, the twisted relationship of the soldiers with the only locals they really interact with (their translators), the struggle of those injured and their families, the effort towards keeping the regular military life going amidst the conflict (that's to say promotion boards, re-enlistments, ...) and all of this punctuated by lines of sheer literary brilliance. ( )

Fantastic book. So sad. These guys are so strong mentally. It's difficult to read what they are going through and sacrificing. ( )