Based on Evan Wright's National Magazine Award-winning story in Rolling Stone, this is the raw, firsthand account of the 2003 Iraq invasion that inspired the HBO® original mini-series.
Within hours of 9/11, America’s war on terrorism fell to those like the twenty-three Marines of the First Recon Battalion, the first generation dispatched into open-ended combat since Vietnam. They were a new pop-culture breed of American warrior unrecognizable to their forebears—soldiers raised on hip hop, video games and
The Real World. Cocky, brave, headstrong, wary and mostly unprepared for the physical, emotional and moral horrors ahead, the “First Suicide Battalion” would spearhead the blitzkrieg on Iraq, and fight against the hardest resistance Saddam had to offer.
Hailed as “one of the best books to come out of the Iraq war”(
Financial Times),
Generation Kill is the funny, frightening, and profane firsthand account of these remarkable men, of the personal toll of victory, and of the randomness, brutality and camaraderie of a new American War.
“A pungently written combat narrative and a close-range study of a bunch of twentysomething warriors trying to get a handle on who they are.”—Time
“Nuanced and grounded in details often overlooked in daily journalistic accounts...A complex portrait of able young men raised on video games and trained as killers.”—The New York Times
“A stellar reporting achievement...Think Black Hawk Down or Michael Herr's Dispatches.”—ottawa Citizen
“Shockingly honest.”—Entertainment Weekly
“Visceral, sometimes shocking...a brutally honest acount of America's latest generation to experiencethe stark, horrifying realities of warfare.”—Boston Herald
“Sidesteps Greatest Generation clichés to find the unexpected—a self-described ‘Marine Corps killer’ who listens to Barry Manilow, a corporal who compares a gunfight to Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.”—The Washington Post
Wright wrote about [his] experience in a three-part series in Rolling Stone that was hailed for its evocative, accurate war reporting. This book, a greatly expanded version of that series, matches its accomplishment. Wright is a perceptive reporter...a personality-driven, readable and insightful look at the Iraq war's first month from the Marine grunt's point of view...compelling portraits...a vivid, well-drawn picture.”—Publishers Weekly
“The language is blue, the blood red, and the action explosive. This may be the book of the Iraqi engagement.”—Richmond Times-Dispatch
