Ebook403 pages5 hours
War Reporting for Cowards
By Chris Ayres
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
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About this ebook
“Imagine George Costanza from Seinfeld being sent off to cover the Iraq War . . . Hilarious.” —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
Chris Ayres is a small-town boy, a hypochondriac, and a neat freak with an anxiety disorder. Not exactly the picture of a war correspondent. But when his boss asks him if he would like to go to Iraq, he doesn’t have the guts to say no. After signing a one million dollar life-insurance policy, studying a tutorial on repairing severed limbs, and spending twenty thousand dollars on camping gear (only to find out that his bright yellow tent makes him a sitting duck), Ayres is embedded with a battalion of gung ho Marines who either shun him or threaten him when he files an unfavorable story. As time goes on, though, he begins to understand them (and his inexplicably enthusiastic fellow war reporters) more and more: Each night of terrifying combat brings, in the morning, something more visceral than he has ever experienced—the thrill of having won a fight for survival.
War Reporting for Cowards tells, with “self-deprecating wit”, the story of Iraq in a way that is extraordinarily honest and bitterly hilarious (The New Yorker).
“Heartbreakingly funny.” —Anthony Swofford, author of Jarhead
“Chris Ayres has invented a new genre: a rip-roaring tale of adventure and derring-don’t.” —Toby Young, author of How to Lose Friends and Alienate People
“Darkly entertaining.” —Los Angeles Times
“Ayres’s stories of life with Marines are gripping—in part because he’s the perfect neurotic foil.” —People
Chris Ayres is a small-town boy, a hypochondriac, and a neat freak with an anxiety disorder. Not exactly the picture of a war correspondent. But when his boss asks him if he would like to go to Iraq, he doesn’t have the guts to say no. After signing a one million dollar life-insurance policy, studying a tutorial on repairing severed limbs, and spending twenty thousand dollars on camping gear (only to find out that his bright yellow tent makes him a sitting duck), Ayres is embedded with a battalion of gung ho Marines who either shun him or threaten him when he files an unfavorable story. As time goes on, though, he begins to understand them (and his inexplicably enthusiastic fellow war reporters) more and more: Each night of terrifying combat brings, in the morning, something more visceral than he has ever experienced—the thrill of having won a fight for survival.
War Reporting for Cowards tells, with “self-deprecating wit”, the story of Iraq in a way that is extraordinarily honest and bitterly hilarious (The New Yorker).
“Heartbreakingly funny.” —Anthony Swofford, author of Jarhead
“Chris Ayres has invented a new genre: a rip-roaring tale of adventure and derring-don’t.” —Toby Young, author of How to Lose Friends and Alienate People
“Darkly entertaining.” —Los Angeles Times
“Ayres’s stories of life with Marines are gripping—in part because he’s the perfect neurotic foil.” —People
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Reviews for War Reporting for Cowards
Rating: 3.782608695652174 out of 5 stars
4/5
46 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This book was the most hilarious book you will ever read about the Iraq War. Chris Ayres tells his story about reporting on the front lines, all the horrors, the bravery, and especially the laughs. Really great read if your onto meaningful humor.
Book preview
War Reporting for Cowards - Chris Ayres
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