On Point: The United States Army in Operation Iraqi Freedom

by Gregory Fontenot, E.J. Degen, David Tohn

Foreword by Gen. Tommy R. Franks, USA (Ret.) This hard-hitting, authoritative account of U.S. Army operations during the Second Gulf War draws on official records and work carried out by the Army’s Operation Iraqi Freedom Study Group. The authors cover everything from logistical operations to gunfights at platoon level to help readers understand the complexity, scale, and rigors of the war and what it was like for the solders in the field. As Gen. Tommy Franks says in the foreword, the book is far more than a standard campaign history. It not only puts the Army’s story in the context of joint operations in Iraq but also analyzes the operation in admirable detail. Using hundreds of interviews of the troops and scores of detailed maps and illustrations, it provides a user-friendly guide to the Army’s first major campaign in more than a decade and ten-years worth of investments in digitalization and interservice operability. The first part of the book reviews the evolution of the Army since the First Gulf War and establishes the context in which preparation for the second occurred. A narrative of combat operations through 1 May 2003 follows with a focus at the tactical level but set in the context of theater-level operations. The book concludes with suggestions of early implications for the Army and joint forces as they shape future force structure and training. This book is published in cooperation with the Association of the United States Army.

Genres: Military Fiction, History

539 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2005

Reviews

[Rob Tesselaar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides a good summary of the planning and execution of the initial portion of operations in Iraq in 2003 and a snapshot of how the situation was understood by the US Army as of August that year. The authors freely admit the shortcomings of publishing a history so soon after events occurred, so I will not comment on how interpretations have changed in the 15 intervening years. For me, the bigger flaws come from the rush to get this work published - It could have used another round of editing.

[David Johnston · Rating 1 out of 5]

One star because I tried reading the Kindle version and the text is chapter after chapter of repeating lines of text and jumbled up words. Almost completely unreadable. Where's the money I paid for this garbage!

I have the impression that if I had been able to read it it would be a good book...who knows?