Just Another War

Rating:
Summary: Compelling B&W images of U.S. Persian Gulf War
Review: Jarecke's poignant images combined with Cervenka's offbeat poetry and artistic doodlings make for an interesting visual experience. Jarecke was the only major photojournalist to attempt to work "off-the-beaten-path" and outside of the U.S. military's scripted press coverage of the Desert Storm conflict.

It should be noted that this book is not for the lighthearted. There are many gruesome images of disfigured and often charred humans. These powerful images tend to get repetitious by the end of the book and lose their overall impact that I'm sure both authors were attempting to make.

If you're interested in seeing what U.S. soldiers saw from their "Hummers" after U.S. forces decimated the Iraqy militia or are interested in what you "didn't" see from the U.S. and world media, this book is for you.

Overall, the book is a bit disjuncted by the lack of a clear storyline between the imagery,poetry and artwork which, don't seem to have a clear connection to the each other elementally.

Rating:
Summary: Pictures don't hurt as much, but they should
Review: This book is not for the faint of heart. Nor is it a book for anyone that will close their eyes to the atrocities of war. Throughout this book are images that never made it into the newspapers: pictures of barbarians that have no respect for the culture and customs of the people they are supposedly fighting for, picutures that recall the images of the Nazi SS and the hatred they showed to the Russian people on their march of destruction to Moscow. This book is filled with pictures not of Saddam and his armies, but of American servicemen exhibiting the sickening characteristics of the proverbial "Ugly American."

This book does not contain pictures of heroes. It contains pictures of American soldiers that will shock and disgust. Mr. Jarecke was there. The camera does not hide the horrible truth that our servicemen acted no better than the monster they sought to depose.

For some, the images contained with the pages of this book will be a new experience--for me it was painful reminder of my time in the service.

Rating:
Summary: Pictures don't hurt as much, but they should
Review: This book is not for the faint of heart. Nor is it a book for anyone that will close their eyes to the atrocities of war. Throughout this book are images that never made it into the newspapers: pictures of barbarians that have no respect for the culture and customs of the people they are supposedly fighting for, picutures that recall the images of the Nazi SS and the hatred they showed to the Russian people on their march of destruction to Moscow. This book is filled with pictures not of Saddam and his armies, but of American servicemen exhibiting the sickening characteristics of the proverbial "Ugly American."

This book does not contain pictures of heroes. It contains pictures of American soldiers that will shock and disgust. Mr. Jarecke was there. The camera does not hide the horrible truth that our servicemen acted no better than the monster they sought to depose.

For some, the images contained with the pages of this book will be a new experience--for me it was painful reminder of my time in the service.