WAR

By: Sebastian Junger

Narrated by: Sebastian Junger

Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

In his breakout best seller, The Perfect Storm, Sebastian Junger created "a wild ride that brilliantly captures the awesome power of the raging sea and the often futile attempts of humans to withstand it" (Los Angeles Times Book Review). Now, Junger turns his brilliant and empathetic eye to the reality of combat - the fear, the honor, and the trust among men in an extreme situation whose survival depends on their absolute commitment to one another.

His on-the-ground account follows a single platoon through a 15-month tour of duty in the most dangerous outpost in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley. Through the experiences of these young men at war, he shows what it means to fight, to serve, and to face down mortal danger on a daily basis.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2010 Sebastian Junger (P)2010 Hachette

Critic reviews

"Junger mixes visceral combat scenes-raptly aware of his own fear and exhaustion-with quieter reportage and insightful discussions of the physiology, social psychology, and even genetics of soldiering. The result is an unforgettable portrait of men under fire." ( Publishers Weekly)

The Cost Needs to Be Acknowledged

Junger's WAR puts you on the front line of Afghanistan, where he was embedded with soldiers from 2nd Platoon, Battle Company, stationed in the Korengal Valley for a year. There are no hot meals or red meat, no running water, and no women. The men have each other, and combat.

Best of all, it doesn't take sides - it doesn't attempt to justify the war, or condemn it. It simply puts you next to the soldiers and lets you observe their lives and duty.

There's a couple of passages toward the middle of the book where Junger and the troops barely survive a roadside bomb. There's terror, and justified rage. This is contrasted almost immediately with an incident where an enemy combatant's leg is blown off, and he dies crawling around trying to find it while the 2nd Platoon cheers. The complexity of war - and all the emotions it brings out in the men who serve in the military - is staggering, and I often sat riveted in my car, trying to take it all in.

It's an unflinching, and amazingly apolitical look at what happens on the front lines of war, and how the men are affected. It was particularly insightful listening to how meaningful their life is in combat, and how when they return home, their lives don't quite have that same purpose, and how traumatic that can be.

Junger is not the most exceptional reader I've heard, but I am glad he read this. Hearing his voice, knowing that he experienced all this and is telling it to us, adds a certain amount of gravity that would be loss if it were coming from someone else's mouth.

An incredible and thought-provoking book.

Day-to-Day Insights

Sabastian Junger, who also authored "The Perfect Storm," reports in this volume his observations while being embedded with US troups in Afghanistan. He spent five one-month periods there and reports what he saw. This book is an apolitical approach to explaining what conditions and experiences were like for men in the "remotest of outposts" in the war.

This book will disappoint some who are expecting a description of hand-to-hand combat. It is more detached than that. Yet, it reveals the behavior of the troups and places that behavior in context. Digressions into ballistics, passages about particular weapons, tedium and monotony, lack of entertainment and other issues are very insightful. Junger is not unsympathic or uncaring about the men around him, but rather explains what is taking place. To that end, he has done all tax payers a great service.

The book is written very well. Junger reads his own text which is an education in itself. A bonus, comes at the end of the audio book where he first provides acknowlegdements and then when he is interviewed. Don't miss those parts of the audio book.

War may not change your mind about US military involvement, but it will certainly help you better understand what it is all about.

Another Winner for Junger

I read "The Perfect Storm" and " A Death in Belmont" prior to listening to "War". In fact, I've read "Storm" three times over the years. Junger's prose is straightforward and powerful. He lets the images and the stories speak for themselves and does not impart partisanship or rhetoric. In "War", he does not pass judgement on whether the war in Iraq is justified or not. He creates portraits of individual soldiers who form a life and death bond with one another. This is another one of Junger's workds that I will listen to again

Even better than the documentary

Amazing! Have no illusions about the horrors of war, yet still curious how I would handle it, this give you a miniscule amount of insight into what combat is like.

Makes you wonder why

WAR -- Its title alone defines my headline. War -- why, and especially why a war in such a godforsaken place where it seems most of the people there hate Americans. Sadly, not unlike Vietnam, where my husband spent way too much time. The narrator / author gives an insight with words that movies can't begin to show with all their action and noise. A must read and I will end here or not have the review published I fear. 1/21/19

nice snap shot

love when he talks about when you know your being shot at. not necessarily as clear cut as you'd think.

Devastating for everyone

Devastating the lives of those who serve and for those who defend their homeland .
Give peace a chance . Get them out of there . Don't send any more . Please !!

War

Author and book are very easy to listen to and provide a different view of the war the World is going through now.

Best War Correspondence Book Available

Sebastian Junger provides firsthand accounts in astonishing detail. His delivery is also phenomenal. Buyer beware: this audiobook is not for the faint of heart!

This Book Is Amazing

It's Sebastian Junger's account of his time spent embedded with US Army Infantry soldiers in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley. It's a great read and it's completely free of politics and opinion. This us journalistic perfection. Junger writes what he experiences and observes. I 100% recommend watching his documentaries "KORENGAL" and "RESTREPO". Because these actually show you what here merely writes about here. RIP Tim Heatherington.