Excellent work which clearly and graphically describes Iraq during the critical period between 2006-2008 when the American journalists abandoned the field leaving the American people blind on events in the war.

gmicksmith | Jun 12, 2009 |

The Strongest Tribe was a long, dense book. Covering the many facets of the war and the continual ups and down did become tiring, but I suppose that is the nature of a book like this. I felt author's willingness to quickly praise good actions as well as criticize mistakes by all parties involved provided a solid and balanced overview of how things happened. The summary, along with the author's thoughts and questions at the end, were a solid ending and helped round the book off nicely. (

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tyroeternal | May 26, 2009 |

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West emerged some time ago as the most astute observer of the war [in Iraq]. He knows both war and politics, and is therefore equally in his element whether talking to the civilians who develop policy, the generals who plan and execute the strategy derived from policy, or the frontline “grunts” who execute the operations on the ground. . . .

West’s thesis is simple: From the summer of 2003 until the fall of 2006, the U.S. was losing the war militarily. But since the beginning of 2007, there has been an undeniable turnaround, the result of changes made by leaders in the thick of the insurgency — men West calls “warrior kings.” The turnaround resulted from the fact that the military adapted to events on the ground, eventually accepting the reality that it would have to fight a war different from the one it would have preferred to fight. These changes were finally validated by policymakers at the top.

added by TomVeal | editNational Review, Mackubin Thomas Owens (Sep 15, 2008)

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