A time of our choosing : America's war in Iraq / Todd S. Purdum and the staff of the New York times.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Purdum, Todd S.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Iraq War, 2003-2011.

Iraq War, 2003-2011--Press coverage--United States.

Physical Description:

xiv, 319 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Times Books/Henry Holt, 2003.

Summary:

It was a war like no other the United States had ever fought. The twenty [ck] days that began with the bombing of Saddam Hussein's bunker and ended with statues of the Iraqi dictator being toppled in downtown Baghdad were a turning point in America's relations with its enemies, with its allies, and with its sense of itself. And yet for those of us at home, our experience of the war was impressionistic and often confusing-the story of one battle here, one unit there, a report from one city, then another, without the larger context we so desperately needed. Each reporter had his "slice" of the war, it seemed, but no one had the whole story or the broad view. A Time of Our Choosing fills that gap, drawing on the resources and reportage of the nation's most important newspaper, The New York Times. Todd Purdum, one of the paper's most talented prose stylists, traces the story of the war in Iraq from the first rumblings after 9/11, to the diplomatic recriminations at the United Nations, to the battles themselves. Purdum deftly rolls out the whole canvas before our eyes, showing how the individual "slices" fit together into a gripping drama. And yet for all its speed and decisiveness, nothing about the war in Iraq was simple, and Purdum also explores the complex legacy that America's near-unilateral action has wrought. President George W. Bush vowed after the 9/11 attacks that the United States would attack its enemies at "a time of our choosing," and Purdum shows us in vivid terms what this choice has meant for our now transformed world.

Contents:

Part 1 America's Terms

1. Twelve Years in the Making 9

2. The Axis of Evil 21

3. The Bush Doctrine 32

4. Resolution 1441 46

5. The Failure of Diplomacy 63

6. The Week of Waiting 78

Part 2 America's War

7. Best-Laid Plans 95

8. The Element of Surprise 107

9. Shock and Awe 121

10. A Turn for the Worse 132

11. The British in Basra 144

12. Securing the North 153

13. Saving Private Lynch 165

14. Through the Karbala Gap 174

15. Thunder Run 187

16. The Fall of Baghdad 199

17. The Aftermath 213

Part 3 America's Consequences

18. Catastrophic Success 227

19. Smooth Landing, Rough Takeoff 239

20. Casus Belli 252

21. The Price of Going It Alone 264

Iraq and Its Neighbors, Iraq's Ethnic and Religious Groups 8

The War Plan 103

The Opening Offensive 113

The Ambush at Nasiriya 134

Northern Iraq 154

The Karbala Gap and the Approach to Baghdad 184

The Thunder Run 197

The Fall of Baghdad 203.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 289-297) and index.

ISBN:

0805075623

OCLC:

52901400