Full Review of War Journal by Richard Engel

"My review of Richard Engel’s book was published earlier this month in the New York Post, but very heavily edited for length. Below is the full version.

I have found that no matter how war-torn a country becomes, liquor, Marlboros, prostitutes, guns and pornography are never in short supply.” So writes NBC News’ senior Middle East correspondent Richard Engel in his new memoir, War Journal: My Five Years in Iraq.
And perhaps the most telling attribute of Engel’s account of covering the Iraq war is that it is unashamedly real. As a former Marine officer who spent seven months in Iraq in 2006 I identified with many of his stories. I laughed, winced, choked-up and became angry as he told story after story that sometimes closely reflected my own experiences. “I liked the jargon,” Engel admits, “cursing, bad coffee in the TOC, and all the macho brotherhood. I was happy to be back out with the Marines. There was no spin, bullshit or talking points, just business.”

Engel shares his own evolving emotions and psychological state at each stage of the conflict. Divorce, feeling detached, identifying the war as “home,” anger, apathy, and changing states of mind over the course of a deployment are all things I observed in others or experienced first-hand. It is actually uncanny how closely Engel’s psychological state parallels that of many combat veterans. Describing his feelings during his third year in Iraq Engel writes, “I was jittery, cold, wired, hungry, and most of all detached.”"
Midnight in Iraq