Rating: 
Summary: Unprofessional, but worthwhile
Review: Although I haven't read any other books by Rick Atkinson, I have no doubt that he is an excellent writer, but in this case, he let his personal feelings of disdain for the Bush administration overshadow his professionalism. In some cases, for instance the latrine grattiti, he purposely distorts the attitudes of our military troops to make his point "that President Bush deceived the American public." He had a unique opportunity to really show what it is like to be an American soldier in combat, but he fell short. I say this because I've spent over 20 years in the US Military and have been very heavily involved for the past three years with Operation Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. The troops out here have been and still are very excited about helping the Iraqis to share the same freedoms we have in America. Many of the troops I deal with daily volunteer to extend because they feel they're making a difference and they enjoy the challenges of the combat environment.
Rating:
Summary: Average (But Hardly Biased) Account of the Drive to Baghdad
Review: Atkinson, son of an Army officer, Pulitzer-prize winning military historian, and longtime reporter and editor for the Washington Post, spent two months in early 2003 embedded with the 101st Airborne Division during its deployment to Iraq and the drive to Baghdad. This resulting book is more or less his reporter's diary of that experience (although not, as the title implies, from the perspective of the average grunt). Those expecting the historical breadth and depth of his award-winning An Army At Dawn will have to wait a few decades for the dust to settle and perspective to emerge. Those expecting to be placed in the middle of firefights and intense combat action will be disappointed (they should check out Evan Wright's excellent, though poorly titled work Generation Kill). What Atkinson provides is a workmanlike portrait of a divisional command apparatus, based on his shadowing of Major General David Petraeus and his subordinates in the 101st as they move from Kuwait to Baghdad, with battles at Najaf, Karbala, and Hilla.
The book is being widely critiqued on two fronts. One is the limitation of its scope, or rather Atkinson's focus on the divisional leadership. The other is for Atkinson's "political bias". The first criticism is more or less on target. While it is interesting to see how the command structure works, how field officers have to deal with the layers above them, and how they grapple with the logistical complexities they are presented with, it doesn't make for very exciting reading. In many cases, the officers come across more like mid-level managers of some large corporation, with Petraeus as the COO. Most of the action the unit encounters comes to the reader through the filter of command post radios, or after-action reports. It also doesn't help that none of the officers emerge as individuals with personalities, other than Patraeus, who we are told over and over is ultra-competitive. For much of the book, Atkinson appears to be so flattered to be privy to high-command confidences that he repeats everything verbatim.
Still, there are plenty of nuggets of interesting information. For example, Atkinson details the logistics of moving an entire division from its base in Kentucky to Kuwait and highlights the importance of this being a smooth operation. This was especially critical as the civilians at the Defense Dept. forced the Army to jettison it's carefully modeled "deployment matrix." Similarly, for anyone interested in Apache helicopters, there's plenty to learn about their limitations in desert and urban environments. There's a section about how the rotors need to be taped or spray painted every few days which is unbelievable! For those interested in modern warfare, he explains how devastating "combined arms" tactics are and shows how complex they are to employ well. For those interested in intelligence, he shows how despite massive pre-war preparation, and a decade of close satellite surveillance, the Army still didn't have accurate maps showing urban sprawl.
The second main critique revolves around Atkinson's personal politics and "bias" as it appears in the book. Many people seem to want to read about the Gulf War in a vacuum--that is to say, they want to read about what the troops on the ground are doing without any mention of why they are there in the first place. Atkinson dares to try and give some context for why the 101st Airborne is doing in Iraq, but many readers seem not to want to be reminded that (A) why we go to war as a nation is the most important question, and (B) the whys for going to Iraq changed a few times along the way. For the most part Atkinson's "leftist political remarks" (as one reviewer put it) consist of quoting statements by the president, vice-President, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, et al, and pointing out that they proved not to be true.
The whole point of a free press in a democracy is to empower the public through the flow of information, which most definitely includes pointing out when the statements of our leaders bear no relation to reality--especially when it involves going to war, with all the attendant sacrifice that means! I will agree that at times Atkinson gets a little snippy, but he's on the ground with the troops running for his gas mask, while we are sitting safely at home, so I can cut him a little slack. The most hilarious reviewer comment has to be "Everyone has a right to their political opinion, but Atkinson should have kept it to himself." In other words, "Just tell me what I want to hear, don't tell me anything that might challenge the way I think about the world." It's kind of amazing that people seem to think Atkinson is some hyperventilating peacenik--the guy is enamored of the military! In the end, it's perhaps making a mountain out of molehill, 'cause this book isn't particularly essential reading about the Gulf War anyway. It's worth it if you're really into the 101st, or Apache helicopters, but for the most part, it reads like a stitched-together series of dispatches lacking the perspective of time.
Rating: 
Summary: A taste of Disappointment
Review: Everyone has a right to their political opinion, but Atkinson should have kept it to himself. His book serves the cause of those against the war FROM THE BEGINNING, and not that of the historians (or journalists) fair, objective, and, if their good, thoughtful search for the truth. By all accounts, a majority of Americans supported the war, you won't get that from this book. The only "unease" felt by most Americans, was not at going to war, but at realizing how politics can blind some people to what has to be done. There are so many comments made by Atkinson that I could flag as bent, if not comically unfair, but I don't have enough space. The only really good thing I can say, is that the book is written well. But there are a lot of people who write well. I would not recommend this book. While Atkinson's "An Army at Dawn" is exceptional, this book is a tremendous let down and leaves a lingering bad taste after spending $25.00 on it.
Rating: 
Summary: Fair and Objective Look at the War in Iraq
Review: I don't believe a better account could have been made of the ground war in Iraq. Atkinson focuses on the actual job of fighting the war, and like the soldiers, leaves the why questions and the politics for others. This book is an excellent look into how modern warfare is conducted, often "punching with one fist." He does the enlisted men and officers of the 101st proud, professing admiration while maintaining objectivity. Well worth the read.
Rating:
Summary: A bit disappointed ...
Review: I had read the "Army At Dawn" book before I had purchased and read this particular book. I really enjoyed the story telling of the North African campaign and had thought Mr. Atkinson would have done something similar for this book. I was wrong. My main complaint with the book is the choppiness in which it goes to tell the story. Having served in both Afghanistan and Iraq, I laughed at some his stories (AFFES and the missing chocolate cookie), cried specifically when he briefly details the letters soldiers were getting from home, and anguish at the breakdowns in communications when a task is at hand. The story telling was not cohesive and made the book like at times reading a personal diary focused on one day at a time and not connected to either the days before or after.
Rating:
Summary: Stick to the facts please
Review: I picked up this book at the library and glad I didn't pay good money for it. I expected to get an unbiased view of the front lines from the perspective of the normal foot soldier. Instead I got only the perspective from the commanding general, boring. The real combat was miles away. I also got the impression that the author of this book was more than happy to stick his nose up the general's behind and make the impression that the general highly respected him. Maybe so, but I doubt it.
Rick makes several factually incorrect statements in this book at the expense of the Bush administration. Rick misses no opportunity to get his digs on the Bush administration. This is ok as long as the information is factual but it isn't.
The bottom line is if you want a 10,000 foot view of the war, like to hear someone repeatedly pat himself on the back and hate Bush you'll love this book. Otherwise I recommend War Stories from Oliver North as a much better read.
Rating:
Summary: An extraordinary account of the Iraqi war
Review: If you are a military history buff, you will love this book. If not, it might be the right time to take a plunge into the subject. This account of military history is about Operation Iraqi Freedom. While justifications for the recent war between the American-British coalition forces and Saddam Hussein's Iraqi regime are still being debated among politicos and the general public, the facts are that it did occur, American and British soldiers died and were wounded, a brutal dictator was toppled, and we watched the whole event play itself out on live television. Now the Iraqi people have been given the opportunity to rebuild a country in their own image and likeness. Rick Atkinson, a former staff writer and senior editor at The Washington Post and a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author, has written a journal of his experiences in the Iraqi conflict, beginning on the morning of February 26, 2003 at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, home of the famous "Screaming Eagles," the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army. After a couple of days of orientation, Atkinson and dozens of other journalists were flown to the Middle East. Thereafter, he lived with the 101st Airborne Division from their preparations in Kuwait to the occupation of Baghdad -- a period of almost two months -- and was granted complete access to the commanders and troops. "In the Company of Soldiers" is Atkinson's very up-close and personal story of the war, in which he details every aspect of the conflict from planning and debriefings with the commanders, to his accounts of the battles the soldiers fought, to his sometimes intimate stories about the soldiers involved. It is an eyewitness account, occasionally laced with sadness and disappointment, occasionally with joy and pride. But more than that, it is also the story of one man, Major General David H. Petraeus, commander of the 101st Airborne Division, a modern warrior who was described once by a colleague as "the most competitive man on the planet." The author spent much of his time in Iraq alongside Petraeus, who finished near the top of his 1974 class at West Point, and was known then as a "striver to the max." No ordinary soldier by any means, Petraeus had received a doctorate in international relations from Princeton University and for twenty-five years had been through various command and staff assignments, including tours in Haiti and Bosnia. Now he was commanding the "Screaming Eagles," a force of 17,000 troops, in a war in a forlorn and desolate desert environment, testing both his physical and mental skills. Atkinson, sitting in on the daily briefings as the division's attacks were planned, watches as Petraeus wrestles with numerous tactical enigmas and observes as the general instructs, motivates, and leads his soldiers and subordinate commanders in several intense engagements. While describing this stressful and anxious journey into and during war, Atkinson introduces the reader to many other heroes of the combat, from Lt. General William Wallace, commander of V Corps, to Brig. Generals Ben Freakley and Edward Sinclair, assistant division commanders respectively for operations and support, Col. Mike Linnington of the 3rd Brigade, a number of CWOs who pilot the helicopters used in the battles, and, of course, that ordinary brave soldier on the ground whose job it is to do the job and often be irreverent when speaking about it. Our nation should be proud of them. Even though I was on a deadline to complete another project, I read the entire book in two days because I had difficulty putting it aside. This is a firsthand account of war. It is a vivid picture of a remarkable group of soldiers and commanders. It reads more like a suspense novel than a nonfiction work narrating actual events. Atkinson's writing-style is what I call "facile and friendly," that is, easy on the eye and the mind, so much so that the story stays in the forefront rather than the sentence structure. And yet the details he provides are worthy of a scholarly work. In fact, the writing is so well done it's like a "motion picture in the mind," something I don't say about many books. There are other things I really like about the book besides the writing style. One is the presentation of two maps at the front of the book (The Iraqi Battleground and Route of the 101st Airborne Division) which allows the reader to follow the movements of the 101st Airborne Division in Iraq; the maps are particularly helpful for those of us unfamiliar with the geography of that part of the world. I found myself constantly referring to them as the story unfolded, in fact so much so that I finally put a paper clip on the page so I could access them faster. Also valuable are the schematic which helps to identify the command structure of V Corps and the glossary of military jargon. Without the latter, I wouldn't have known an OGA from a DCU from an ASR. Still another plus is that the index of topics is very detailed. I highly recommend this book to you whether you are interested in military history or not. You will not be disappointed. This is still ongoing history and a knowledge of how we got to this point in the situation seems to me to be important. Many of us watched this story unfold on television. Now we have the chance to read the book. True, this is the reverse of the usual situation -- read the book, then see the movie -- but television coverage, in retrospect, did not really provide us with the up-close and personal experience that Rick Atkinson provides us in this superbly written account of a most significant contemporary military conflict.
Rating:
Summary: What a disappointment!! Don't bother.
Review: It is a shame that such a reverred and accomplished outfit as the 101st had the misfortune of getting Atkinson as an embed. I bought the book expecting to read about their experience in battle. Instead, the story is mostly a behind-the-scenes accounting.
But worst of all, Atkinson uses the book to espouse his negative views of the Bush administration, inserting little pot-shots here and there. Perhaps he needed to do this to maintain his employment with the Post. It certainly improved his chances of an interview with NPR--which he got. But it's a smear on the legacy of the 101st to be associated with such vitriol.
In the future, Atkinson should partner with the likes of Howard Dean or Michael Moore, not the courageous patriots of the 101st.
Rating: 
Summary: Embedded... very embedded
Review: Most journalists were forced by uncertainties in Baghdad to cover the war by embedding with American units as they invaded Iraq. Rick Atkinson was one of these embedded journalists, and his book, In the Company of Soldiers tells the story of his time with the Army's 101st Airborne Division. Aside from his duties with the Washington Post, Atkinson is also a military historian of some repute (his World War II book An Army at Dawn won a Pulitzer in 2003) and it shows. He is interested most in the tactics employed during the invasion and in the commanders who implemented them. Atikinson's narrative is tied to Major General David Petraeus, a no-nonesense military man. The 101st, and Atkinson along with them, saw their share of action during those early days, but much of what transpired during those first weeks feels like a footnote -- or ancient history -- compared to all that has happened since. The most interesting parts of the book are the most personal. Atkinson's daily struggles against the harshness of the desert and the austerity of military life shine far more brightly than the methodical movements of the troops he travelled with. The book takes the US to task for fouling up the aftermath of the invasion, but Atkinson's epilogue seems hastily tacked on, an attempt to save the book from being made irrelevant by the nasty turn that this war has taken.
Rating: 
Summary: Decent, but flawed
Review: Mr. Atkinson is a gifted writer and this is a very readable book. As a military professional, I appreciated his conspicuous respect for the soldiers, officers and enlisted alike, with whom he lived and travelled. Embedding with the 101st Division HQ allowed unique access to the Division's General Officers, which yields an interesting perspective on their leadership styles and concerns sometimes at the expense of what might have been a more comprehensive account. I would give this particular effort 2.5 stars with the main downside being the author's clear and present disdain for the national command authority's decision to go to war in Iraq. I do not argue that the decisions made should not be scrutinized closely, but Mr. Atkinson addresses them only with matter of fact (and mostly contemptuous) comments. I enjoyed his writing enough to find An Army At Dawn in the library and am glad I did.
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