Into the Storm: A U.S. Marine in the Persian Gulf War

by Phillip Thompson

Phillip Thompson had kept a journal for years, from the time he was in college in the 1980s at the University of Mississippi until he attended the Artillery Officers' Advanced Course, when the demands of school interrupted. His desire to keep track of the events in his life was re-ignited with the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, his impending deployment to the Persian Gulf in August 1990, and the beginning of Operation Desert Shield. While in the Persian Gulf, Thompson kept a small green, military-issue notebook with him at all times, writing down everything he could, drawing maps, explaining his emotions, and oftentimes, venting his anger. Upon his return from Saudi Arabia in 1991, he had filled three notebooks, which evolved into this work. Here are Thompson's personal experiences and his observations of those around him in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

200 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2001

About the author

Phillip Thompson grew up near the East Mississippi town of Columbus, birthplace of Tennessee Williams. He received a bachelor's degree in journalism from Ole Miss before serving in the Marine Corps for 12 years. As a Marine, he served in California and Hawaii, aboard the USS Missouri, and in combat during the Persian Gulf War with the 1st Marine Division. He also spent the better part of two years traversing the island nations of the South Pacific as the lead planner for the 50th Anniversary of World War II in the Pacific.

Since leaving the service, he has worked as a reporter and editor at newspapers in Mississippi and Virginia, and his journalistic work has been featured in newspapers across the Deep South and the East Coast. He wrote as a freelancer for Civil War magazine and The Washington Times and worked as a staff cartoonist for 10 years at Marine Corps Times. He has also worked as a defense analyst; media spokesman; consultant; speechwriter and Senate aide.
Phillip Thompson is the author of novels, "Enemy Within," "A Simple Murder" and "Deep Blood." His short fiction has appeared in "O-Dark-Thirty" the literary journal of the Veterans Writing Project; "Thrills, Kills 'N' Chaos," "Out of the Gutter Online," "The Shamus Sampler II" and "The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature." He attended the Bread Loaf Writer's Conference as a fiction writer in 2003.

He also authored the non-fiction account of his Gulf War experience "Into the Storm: A U.S. Marine in the Persian Gulf War."

He lives in Virginia. Find him online at http://kudzucorner.wordpress.com.

Reviews

[Barry Sierer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phillip Thomson has written a compelling memoir, but not one that celebrates the Marine Corps. While some military authors praise their home service (at least as an over all organization) others can be unreservedly critical, Thomson shows that he is proud of his time in the Marine Corps but pulls no punches in his assessment of certain leaders, tactical decisions, and the service as a whole.

It should be noted that Thomson also has an axe to grind with the Corps. He was relieved of command in 1996 over a safety violation allegedly committed by an artillery battery under his command.

Thomson’s book details the difficulty of sitting in the desert while trying to stay proficient and motivated through: extreme heat, poorly thought out tactical schemes, and the long and uncertain buildup to Desert Storm.

Previous books I have read on the Gulf War give short shrift to the issues of having soldiers or sailors wait in an extremely demanding area of operations for an uncertain amount of time for a war that may or may not happen. Despite/ or perhaps because of Thompson’s point of view and its experiences, I would actually recommend it.