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Summary: RE: Shoshana Johnson, remember her?
Review: Not to mention Miss Lynch (bless her red, white and blue heart) got a nice heafty retirement plan, million dollar book deal, T.V spots out of the ying-yang, media coverage like she won the miss world pageant, yada yada yada.MEANWHILE Miss Johnson gets a retirement plan which is just enough to cover groceries each month, rehab for who knows how long. About 30 seconds in the news (after sports and weather), a column in the back of the local paper (after sports, comics and weather), and actually did some fighting. VERDICT Not surprising from a racist, facist, deceptive government and thier media propaganda machine. I wouldn't wipe my a$$ with this book even it there were no toilet tissue left on earth.
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Summary: Check This Out...
Review: The most serious cross-over between news, entertainment, and advertising may have occurred when the media began a bidding war to get the "exclusive" Jessica Lynch story. The Washington Post first broke the story shortly after Lynch was rescued after nine days in a six-story Iraqi hospital in April 2003. Using unnamed sources, the Post reported that Lynch, a 19-year-old supply clerk who was driving a water tanker, "fought fiercely and shot several enemy soldiers after Iraqi forces ambushed [a convoy of the] the Army's 507th Ordnance Maintenance Company, firing her weapon until she ran out of ammunition." The unnamed sources also told the Post that Lynch "continued firing at the Iraqis even after she sustained multiple gunshot wounds and watched several other soldiers in her unit die around her in fighting . . . She was fighting to the death . . . She did not want to be taken alive." The Post also reported that Lynch "was also stabbed when Iraqi forces closed in on her position." Other media quickly jumped on the story and reported not only was she was shot several times by her Iraqi attackers but was also tortured while in the hospital. A daring Navy SEAL/Army Ranger/Air Force rescue effort, against possible hostile fire, freed her after nine days in the Iraqi hospital. The Post, quickly followed by other media, reported, based upon the words of an Iraqi, that "four guards in civilian clothes stood watch at Lynch's first-floor room armed with Kalashnikov rifles and radios." The rescue came, according to CBS, when special forces "ran through a hail of gunfire." The media gave the story front-page play and top-of-the-news broadcasts for several days. There was only one problem-most of the story, piped to the media by unnamed sources, some in the Defense Department, and never verified by the media-was wrong. Lynch wasn't driving a water tanker but was a passenger in a Humvee; she never fired a shot, nor was she shot; her injuries were caused by being trapped by the overturned Humvee; the convoy wasn't ambushed-it had gotten lost, then was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade from a small group of Iraqi irregulars; she was treated well by Iraqi physicians; she wasn't beaten while held as a prisoner; there was no military opposition to the Americans' rescue operation; the Iraqis even offered to give the Americans a master key to the hospital. Lynch herself later said the military exaggerated what happened in the desert. In an interview on ABC-TV, she said the lies and use of unnamed sources by the media "hurt in a way that people would make up stories that they had no truth about." Before the war, the American public "were told lie after lie" by the Bush administration, said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. Rep. Henry Waxman was more specific: "They lied to promote public relations, from the Jessica Lynch ordeal to the president's campaign landing on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln-and about what war would cost our country." Lynch was quick to praise others who had died in the crash or who fought; one, a young soldier, would eventually receive the silver star for heroism-and almost no media coverage. But, the blonde-girl-fights-off-soldiers-and-survives-torture made a good story. So good that a CBS News senior vice-president, trying to get exclusive rights, wrote a letter to the Army that blurred the distinction between news and entertainment. In that letter, Betsy West wrote: "Attached you will find the outlines of a proposal that includes ideas from CBS News, CBS Entertainment, MTV networks and Simon & Schuster publishers. From the distinguished reporting of CBS News to the youthful reach of MTV, we believe this is a unique combination of projects that will do justice to Jessica's inspiring story."
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Summary: Disgraced "author" sell-outs remaining integrity
Review: Rick Bragg had a very good reputation as a storyteller and author. However his sad, disgraceful work on the New York Times (or lack thereof) that led to his leaving the paper, makes this book a sad reminder of what people can achieve in this country even when using interns and researchers to do their own work. Bragg has succesfully written a book, doing nothing more exciting than cashing in for probably a high paycheck to write a book that could have been doner by any of his interns (and may have been!). This is the kind of book you find that are written about celebrities everyday, the so-called autobiography. Thinly veiled as a touching tribute, Bragg really has lost all credibility here-- the sadness here is not the book, which is ok, but the fact that an author like this would tackle a book such as the Lynch story, and sadly trying to recapture fans by tapping into "American patriotism." Steer clear of this- besides, who would trust a book that likely use interns to do the interviews while the author kicks back?
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Summary: Not the story the press & politicians tried to sell.
Review: Rick Bragg has done what I thought was impossible. He wrote the true story of Jessica and her family with sensitivity, insight and respect. The book reads quickly and like poetry. I was hesitant to read this book, because I thought I would never be able to believe any story I heard about these events. But as a fan of Rick Bragg I was eventually drawn to this book, and I am grateful that I was. It's a book about Jessica, about her family and friends, and about our country, and who our military is. I highly recommend reading this book.
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Summary: A very good investment!
Review: I just finished reading Jessica Lynch's book, and I enjoyed reading about her side of the story and about her family. The book has 200+ pages, and I finished it in three days. It was just too good to put down! If you're really into politics, then this probably isn't for you. If you want to read about an intriguing young woman's life, how she was miraculously rescued (if she had been rescued even a few days later, she would have died), and how she's adjusting to her current life, I think you will find this book a worthwhile investment. Jessica Lynch has been through alot in her short life, and I don't believe any of us have a right to be critical of her. She is a very courageous young woman. It takes a strong person to survive on such little hope, but by the grace of God and with many prayers lifting her up, she did, and she deserves our respect, not our critism.
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Summary: Fair and Balanced
Review: With all the spin, I trust Rick Bragg's story. No, she's not a hero (her special op rescuers are), but Jessica put a pretty face (no fault of her own) on the story and we paid attention.
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Summary: Shoshana Johnson, remember her? aka (Have You Forgotten?)
Review: HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN? She is the 31 year old African American single mother, that was shot through both legs and held prisoner for 22 days in Iraq. Any of you clowns remember her? Probably not, becuase there aren't several books out about her story, a made for TV movie, many many websites dedicated to her ordeal, songs written about her, cruise ships dedicated in her name (yeah check the news wires today for that one). And lets not forget all the TV appearances and news stories. A google search brings up the following results:
Jessica Lynch - 640,000 results
Shoshana Johnson - 23,400 results Hey why wouldnt her story be as big? Is it because she isnt a cute white girl from some hick town? Guess an African American single mom who doesn't look like a barbie doll doesn't make for good copy. You know, those single African American moms, are usually Democrats anyway. God Bless Your America....keep waving those flags...and singing your songs....and praising the white 'heroes'.
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Summary: Fine Portrait of Jessica and her people
Review: This book, beautifully and concisely written, answered every question I had about Jessica Lynch, describing in compassionate yet objective terms her background, her family, the values she shared with her siblings and her community, her motives for joining the armed services and how she came to be a national figure. It is an anti-war book without ever trying to be that because it brings the reader painfully close to all men and women deployed in Iraq, to their ideals and their inevitable limitations and vulnerability, and above all to the simple patriotism without which America can not maintain its military power. In other words, it brings the message home that we are sending young people to suffer and die in our wars, and the men and women we elect to make military decisions must be scrutinized continually. This book is written for now and for the future. The author captures not just the immediate paradox of Jessica Lynch, who became a symbol of our military might, but the rural world from which she came, the world which supplies so many of our soldiers. There is a great deal more that can be said about this book and about its story. But essentially I say "Read this book." You'll learn from it, not only about Jessica but about all of us. As for Jessica herself, she is heroic because she survived what others might not have survived, and she was willing to talk about it fully and honestly. Anne Rice, New Orleans, La.
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Summary: She Is A Soldier - So Just Say Thank You
Review: I Am A Soldier Too is the story of ex-P.O.W. Jessica Lynch. It is told in a hardcover book written by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Rick Bragg. Bragg is also the author of two best-selling books, Ava's Man and All Over but the Shoutin'. The title of the book was chosen because those were the words she had spoken to the soldiers rescuing her.
American soldier, Jessica Lynch, was captured and taken as a prisoner of war in Iraq. After being beaten, broken in pieces, raped, and living for days with the fear of what tortures might come next, she was rescued. Townspeople built her a house, the military gave her a purple heart, her countrymen called her a Hero, and the media made her an Icon. The soldier asked for none of that. She had only asked to be saved. The American people needed to feel hope during a time of War, in which they were beginning to feel lost. They used her to fulfill that hope. As she lay in a hospital bed seriously injured, myths began to form. When it came to light that the media or military may have exaggerated certain events, it was Jessica Lynch they began to criticize for it. After partially recuperating, she took it upon herself to bring out the truth, only to be criticized again for not speaking out sooner. The story of Jessica Lynch is being told, for the most part, to set the record straight on the events of her capture and rescue. More directly, it is being told to lift the impression that this ex-P.O.W. should be blamed for inaccurate reports of those events. After reading this book, any intelligent person without a heart of stone should come to the realization that this soldier did absolutely nothing wrong. She deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. That is the very least we can do for the soldiers of our country.
In the book, Bragg gives a very detailed description of the life back home, which Jessica Lynch left to become a soldier. He provides the same detailed description of her family, as well as her hometown and people who live there. The events of her life as a soldier and time as a P.O.W. are told, as she remembers them. Jessica claims that she is NOT a Hero. She credits her fellow soldiers who lost their lives beside her, as well as the brave soldiers who rescued her, as being the true Heroes.
I'm sure Bragg enjoyed writing about Jessica's hometown of Palestine, West Virginia. However, he spent too much time on his descriptions of it. The details were dragging on, causing me to lose interest. The author also seemed to jump around a bit toward the beginning; and there were some run-on sentences that were difficult to follow. Once the book got back to the story it was meant to tell, I could not put it down. It was very captivating and I was moved to tears more than once.
In chapter seven, Bragg portrayed Capt. Troy Kent King as incompetent, careless, and ultimately responsible for Jessica's ordeal. In the same chapter, it was also implied that Marines knowingly led the soldiers of the 507th to their deaths by allowing the convoy to continue on route toward Nasiriyah. This seems one-sided and I didn't find any evidence in the book that supports the implications. The book does, however, clear up confusions regarding P.O.W. Jessica Lynch. To this soldier's detriment, her M-16 jammed. With no fault to her, it was rendered useless by the sand. Everyone around her was dying and she had no means of defending herself. I can only imagine the fear she must have felt, as that moment swallowed her up. I don't want to imagine what she must have gone through during the three hours after her capture. Following her rescue, the soldier was blamed for not immediately rectifying misconceptions of others. Her efforts to put forth accurate information caused her to be accused of claiming fame. This soldier can't seem to win for losing.
In my opinion, this book gives an honest account of Jessica Lynch's life as a soldier. It provides a good understanding that the aftermath of conflict and debate toward this soldier, following her rescue, is not justified. Should she be considered a Hero? There are those of us who go above and beyond what is expected in the course of our duty. Those who make a decision to put their own lives on the line in an effort to save the life of someone else. They do it regardless of the peril they may face in the process. Such persons stand out among the rest of us. And should be recognized with an outstanding form of respect and reward. Did Jessica Lynch act as such? No. Should she be considered any more a Hero for the injuries she sustained or the unknown torture she endured? No. Any soldier in the entire Armed Forces could have been made to suffer the same horrible circumstances. It is a risk for all soldiers. However, what is being forgotten is that she did, in fact, put her life on the line for us. She agreed to go in our place, so that we may remain safely in our homes with the warmth of our families around us. She is our Hero; they all are. Let's not let them forget that.
This book will also be useful to the young people of our country. It will provide them with an awakening of what may lie ahead in deciding to join the military. The risks should not be taken lightly. Being in the Armed Forces should never be viewed as merely an escape or stepping-stone to something else. It should be a way of life preferred.
Thank you Jessica. I wish you a speedy recovery.
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Summary: Interested in Iraq? There are better books...
Review: I have nothing against Jessica. She seems rather naive but nice. Rick Bragg didn't handle the material very well, ruining what could have been a better story. I'm surprised at Jessica's choice of an author. I am a soldier that served in Iraq for the past year and I would think most Americans would want to learn about IRAQ rather than Jessica and with that in mind, I highly recommend two other books: "Because Each Life is Precious" and "Mayada, Daughter of Iraq." Both books are spell-binding and Mohammed Odeh and Mayada Al-Askari are REAL heroes, people worth reading about. Mohammed basically saved Jessica's life. Mayada Al-Askari saved a lot of Iraqi lives due to her influence with the higher-ups in Iraq. Like I said, REAL HEROES and you learn about Iraq in the same read. Both books are good gifts for soldiers.
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