House to house : an epic memoir of war

Format:

Book

Title:

House to house : an epic memoir of war

Author:

Bellavia, David, 1975-

ISBN:

9781416574712

9781416596608

Edition:

1st Free Press hardcover ed.

Publication Information:

New York : Free Press, 2007.

Physical Description:

xi, 321 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Contents:

Prologue: The coffins of Muqdadiyah -- In the shit -- Beyond redemption -- The measure of a man -- Land rush -- Machines of loving grace -- The first angel -- Battle madness -- Doorways -- Dorothy's Oz gate -- Shadows and wraiths -- Rooftop Alamo -- The stay puft marshmallow cock -- Where feral dogs feed -- Better homes and gardens -- "The power of Christ compels you" -- The failed test of manhood -- A soldier's prayer -- Man-to-Man -- Blood oath -- The last caress -- A smoke on borrowed time -- Nut to butt in body bags -- Epilogue: Broken promises.

Summary:

In November, 2004, a U.S. infantry squad in Fallujah plunged into one of the most sustained and savage urban battles in the history of American men at arms. Ssg. Bellavia and his men confronted an enemy who had had weeks to prepare, booby-trapping houses, arranging ambushes, rigging entire city blocks as explosive-laden kill zones, and even stocking up on steroids. Entering one house, alone, Bellavia faced the fight of his life against six insurgents, using every weapon at his disposal, including a knife. Bringing to life the terrifying intimacy of hand-to-hand infantry combat, and populated by a well-drawn cast of characters, this is more than just another war story. The book develops the intensely close relationships that form between soldiers under fire, in a harrowing story of triumph, tragedy, and the resiliency of the human spirit.--From publisher description.

Personal Subject:

Bellavia, David, 1975-

Bellavia, David, 1975- (OCoLC)fst01669524

Subject(s):

Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Personal narratives, American.

Geographic Term:

Genre:

Personal narratives -- American.

Added Author:

Bruning, John R.

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Woodburn Public Library	956.7044 BELLAVIA	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Willamina Public Library	956.7044 BELLAVIA	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

"On the night of November 10, 2004, a U.S. Army infantry squad under Staff Sergeant David Bellavia entered the heart of the city of Fallujah and plunged into one of the most sustained and savage urban battles in the history of American men at arms. With Third Platoon, Alpha Company, part of the Army's Task Force 2/2, Bellavia and his men confronted an enemy who had had weeks to prepare, booby-trapping houses, arranging ambushes, rigging entire city blocks as explosives-laden kill zones, and even stocking up on atropine, a steroid that pumps up fighters in the equivalent of a long-lasting crack high. Entering one house, alone, Bellavia faced the fight of his life against six insurgents, using every weapon at his disposal, including a knife. It is the stuff of legend and the chief reason he is one of the great heroes of the Iraq War." "Bringing to searing life the terrifying intimacy of hand-to-hand infantry combat, House to House is far more than just another war story. Populated by an indelibly drawn cast of characters, from a fearless corporal who happens to be a Bush-hating liberal to an inspirational sergeant-major who became the author's own lost father figure, it develops the intensely close relationships that form between soldiers under fire. Their friendships, tested in brutal combat, would never be quite the same. Not all of them would make it out of the city alive. What happened to them in their bloody embrace with America's most implacable enemy is an unforgettable story of triumph, tragedy, and the resiliency of the human spirit."

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Staff sergeant Bellavia's account of the fierce 2004 fighting in Fallujah will satisfy readers who like their testosterone undiluted. Portraying himself as a hard-bitten, foul-mouthed, superbly trained warrior, deeply in love with America and the men in his unit, contemptuous of liberals and a U.S. media that fails to support soldiers fighting in the front lines of the global war on terror, Bellavia begins with a nasty urban shootout against Shiite insurgent militias. Six months later, his unit prepares to assault the massively fortified city of Fallujah in a ferocious battle that takes up the rest of the book. Anyone expecting an overview of strategy or political background to the war has picked the wrong book. Bellavia writes a precise, hour-by-hour account of the fighting, featuring repeated heroic feats and brave sacrifice from Americans but none from the enemy, contemptuously dismissed as drug-addled, suicidal maniacs. Readers will encounter a nuts-and-bolts description of weapons, house-to-house tactics, gallantry and tragic mistakes, culminating with a glorious victory that, in Bellavia's view, will go down in history with the invasion of Normandy. Like a pitch-by-pitch record of a baseball game, this detailed battle description will fascinate enthusiasts and bore everyone else. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Kirkus Review

Staccato account of infantry combat in Iraq. In November 2004, Army staff sergeant Bellavia led his men into the chaotic urban fighting described here. They were part of the successful recapture of Fallujah, a command base for Iraqi insurgents. Months earlier, the burnt corpses of four American contractors had been hung from a bridge in the same city. Written with military historian Bruning (The Devil's Sandbox, 2006, etc.), this rapid-fire recreation of the block-by-block fighting captures perfectly the horror--and horrible peak-experience attraction--of war. In an era of high-tech weaponry, Bellavia puts us on the ground with modern-day grunts who could just as easily be fighting in World War II in Europe. They are filthy, hot, tired and dehydrated as they slog through rubble, broken glass and dead bodies to conduct risky searches of houses that may be "clean" or filled with booby traps and enemy soldiers. The frantic, present-tense narrative abounds with scenes and dialogue that make this account of battle read like a realistic war novel. Bellavia emphasizes the close bonds among disparate comrades, including Lance Ohle, master of the light machine gun, who talks like a gangsta rapper; Piotr Sucholas, the Michael Moore-loving liberal with ice water for blood; and Bryan Lockwald, the guitar-playing intellectual with wire-rimmed glasses and a handlebar mustache. The men enter homes through holes blown into walls by tanks, work their way to rooftops and engage a resourceful enemy, one of whom the author knifes to death in vicious hand-to-hand combat. Discharged in 2005, Bellavia finds he misses the feeling of importance and usefulness he derived from combat, returns to Iraq briefly as a Weekly Standard journalist, then comes home to try to repair strained relations with his wife and son. Take his word for it: "War's a bitch, wear a helmet." Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Prologue: The Coffins of Muqdadiyah

Chapter 1 In the Shit

Chapter 2 Beyond Redemption

Chapter 3 The Measure of a Man

Chapter 4 Land Rush

Chapter 5 Machines of Loving Grace

Chapter 6 The First Angel

Chapter 7 Battle Madness

Chapter 8 Doorways

Chapter 9 Dorothy's Oz Gate

Chapter 10 Shadows and Wraiths

Chapter 11 Rooftop Alamo

Chapter 12 The Stay Puft Marshmallow Cock

Chapter 13 Where Feral Dogs Feed

Chapter 14 Better Homes and Gardens

Chapter 15 ""The Power of Christ Compels You""

Chapter 16 The Failed Test of ManhoodChapter 1

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Bound With These Titles

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Summary

Summary

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Kirkus Review

Table of Contents