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No Place to Hide: A Brain Surgeon’s Long Journey Home from the Iraq War
A War Zone of the Soul Dr. W. Lee Warren’s life as a neurosurgeon in a trauma center began to unravel long before he shipped off to serve the Air Force in Iraq in 2004. When he traded a comfortable if demanding practice in San Antonio, Texas, for a ride on a C-130 into the combat zone, he was already reeling from months of personal struggle. At the 332nd Air Force Theater Hospital at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, Warren realized his experience with trauma was just beginning. In his 120 days in a tent hospital, he was trained in a different specialty—surviving over a hundred mortar attacks and trying desperately to repair the damages of a war that raged around every detail of every day. No place was safe, and the constant barrage wore down every possible defense, physical or psychological. One day, clad only in a T-shirt, gym shorts, and running shoes, Warren was caught in the open while round after round of mortars shook the earth and shattered the air with their explosions, stripping him of everything he had been trying so desperately to hold on to. Warren’s story is an example of how a person can go from a place of total loss to one of strength, courage, and victory. Whether you are in the midst of your own crisis of faith, failed relationship, financial struggle, or illness, you will be inspired to remember that how you respond determines whether you survive—spiritually, emotionally, and sometimes physically. It is the beginning of a long journey home.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published February 25, 2014
130 people are currently reading
1035 people want to read
About the author
W. Lee Warren
8 books137 followersW. Lee Warren, MD, is a practicing neurosurgeon and award-winning author. His book, "I've Seen the End of You," won the Christian Book Award for Biography and Memoir in 2021.
His newest book ,"Hope is the First Dose: A Treatment Plan for Recovering from Trauma, Tragedy, and Other Massive Things," releases in July 2023 from Waterbrook.
Dr. Warren has appeared on The 700 Club and CBS Evening News and his writings have been featured in Guideposts magazine. His appearance on Focus on the Family was chosen as one of the “Best of 2021.”
He writes a weekly "Self-Brain Surgery" letter at drleewarren.substack.com
The Dr. Lee Warren Podcast, heard in more than 80+ countries around the world, explores the connections between faith and science and how to find hope even when life is hard.
Dr. Warren lives in Nebraska with his wife, Lisa.
His newest book ,"Hope is the First Dose: A Treatment Plan for Recovering from Trauma, Tragedy, and Other Massive Things," releases in July 2023 from Waterbrook.
Dr. Warren has appeared on The 700 Club and CBS Evening News and his writings have been featured in Guideposts magazine. His appearance on Focus on the Family was chosen as one of the “Best of 2021.”
He writes a weekly "Self-Brain Surgery" letter at drleewarren.substack.com
The Dr. Lee Warren Podcast, heard in more than 80+ countries around the world, explores the connections between faith and science and how to find hope even when life is hard.
Dr. Warren lives in Nebraska with his wife, Lisa.
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November 23, 2017
An engrossing, non-dramatised, eye-opening memoir.
This is the memoir of Air Force neurosurgeon, W. Lee Warren, who was sent to Iraq.
In a war zone, he worked with a team of specialised medical personnel, in a facility that received severe casualties from the front lines. The injured were operated on and then stayed in intensive care. If they survived, then, as soon as possible, they were flown to a military hospital in Germany and then home to the USA, once their injuries were able to sustain the trips.
We read of horrific injuries (and I mean horrific, mind-blowing injuries), and mass casualty situations when the hospital is inundated.
We follow Warren and the team as they attempt to save man after man whose bodies have literally been blown apart and who have received injuries that require extensive intervention. The medical team work in a hospital made up of tents. They frequently lack blood supplies and essential equipment. They work around the clock until they are exhausted. Many people who are brought to them, die.
Warren must make terrible, split-second choices about who lives and he recounts these experiences with honesty. Never before, as a civilian surgeon, has he been faced with such decisions. They have four operating theatres and very few sets of sterile equipment – so he is forced to choose between who gets the first emergency operations (and hence, who will live).
As a reader, we feel his agony at the decisions they had to make and the patients that they could not save. Also, the bombings of the hospital, the constant state of alert, the exhaustion – were all conveyed with humanity.
Warren has nightmares about the many men who he sees die. The author includes emails he sent home to his family and friends and these emails recount the worst moments, and some small moments of hope. As well as military personnel, the hospital treats civilian casualties, terrorists, and occasionally, children who have been injured. These are poignant moments and there is one particular girl with extensive burns (which would have been challenging to treat in the USA with full facilities, let alone in a desert facility), whose story we follow.
Alongside the author’s story in Iraq, we learn of his struggle to come to terms with his own, failing personal life and his imminent divorce. Warren is candid. He is a highly successful neurosurgeon, respected in his field and respected by his church, his peers and his family. He sees all of this falling apart because of his failed marriage and it was fascinating to understand that, before Iraq, his life was so shallowly lived (my words, but Warren comes to a similar conclusion) – a sham in which he had all the trappings of success but did not feel happy inside – perhaps had never felt happy inside.
The appearance of success had been more important to him than anything else.
His four months stay in Iraq changed his perspective on himself and on his life. Four months may not sound long, but once you've read his accounts, you will see that Warren and other personnel were on the verge of a breakdown after such a long stretch in terrible conditions. He realises he has lived selfishly thinking only of himself. He learns to change. In fact, he is forced to change by the mental torment he is faced with daily at the hospital. Moments of crisis at the hospital push him to confront himself. He is a Christian and he talks much about his faith and his worries about his own faith. I found these aspects a fascinating insight into Christian American life and values.
I appreciated that Warren does not idealise the war, neither does he denounce it.
This is an account of what he saw, what he had to do and how he struggled to survive, mentally and emotionally. The support of his fellow doctors and the personal strengths they each brought to the team, are recounted very well, again with humanity.
This is not the type of book I would normally pick up, but I’m really pleased to have seen it on a kindle offer. (Don’t be put off by the boring cover!) Recommended.
This is the memoir of Air Force neurosurgeon, W. Lee Warren, who was sent to Iraq.
In a war zone, he worked with a team of specialised medical personnel, in a facility that received severe casualties from the front lines. The injured were operated on and then stayed in intensive care. If they survived, then, as soon as possible, they were flown to a military hospital in Germany and then home to the USA, once their injuries were able to sustain the trips.
We read of horrific injuries (and I mean horrific, mind-blowing injuries), and mass casualty situations when the hospital is inundated.
We follow Warren and the team as they attempt to save man after man whose bodies have literally been blown apart and who have received injuries that require extensive intervention. The medical team work in a hospital made up of tents. They frequently lack blood supplies and essential equipment. They work around the clock until they are exhausted. Many people who are brought to them, die.
Warren must make terrible, split-second choices about who lives and he recounts these experiences with honesty. Never before, as a civilian surgeon, has he been faced with such decisions. They have four operating theatres and very few sets of sterile equipment – so he is forced to choose between who gets the first emergency operations (and hence, who will live).
As a reader, we feel his agony at the decisions they had to make and the patients that they could not save. Also, the bombings of the hospital, the constant state of alert, the exhaustion – were all conveyed with humanity.
Warren has nightmares about the many men who he sees die. The author includes emails he sent home to his family and friends and these emails recount the worst moments, and some small moments of hope. As well as military personnel, the hospital treats civilian casualties, terrorists, and occasionally, children who have been injured. These are poignant moments and there is one particular girl with extensive burns (which would have been challenging to treat in the USA with full facilities, let alone in a desert facility), whose story we follow.
Alongside the author’s story in Iraq, we learn of his struggle to come to terms with his own, failing personal life and his imminent divorce. Warren is candid. He is a highly successful neurosurgeon, respected in his field and respected by his church, his peers and his family. He sees all of this falling apart because of his failed marriage and it was fascinating to understand that, before Iraq, his life was so shallowly lived (my words, but Warren comes to a similar conclusion) – a sham in which he had all the trappings of success but did not feel happy inside – perhaps had never felt happy inside.
The appearance of success had been more important to him than anything else.
His four months stay in Iraq changed his perspective on himself and on his life. Four months may not sound long, but once you've read his accounts, you will see that Warren and other personnel were on the verge of a breakdown after such a long stretch in terrible conditions. He realises he has lived selfishly thinking only of himself. He learns to change. In fact, he is forced to change by the mental torment he is faced with daily at the hospital. Moments of crisis at the hospital push him to confront himself. He is a Christian and he talks much about his faith and his worries about his own faith. I found these aspects a fascinating insight into Christian American life and values.
I appreciated that Warren does not idealise the war, neither does he denounce it.
This is an account of what he saw, what he had to do and how he struggled to survive, mentally and emotionally. The support of his fellow doctors and the personal strengths they each brought to the team, are recounted very well, again with humanity.
This is not the type of book I would normally pick up, but I’m really pleased to have seen it on a kindle offer. (Don’t be put off by the boring cover!) Recommended.
July 31, 2014
Dr. W. Lee Warren arrived at the 332nd Theater Hospital in Balad ab, Iraq in late 2004. His term of duty as a neurosurgeon ended four months later at the end of April, 2005. No Place to Hide – A Brain Surgeon’s Long Journey Home From the Iraq War is the story of those months. But it is more.
Warren went to Iraq at a time when his marriage was teetering on the edge. His experience in Iraq is framed by the turmoil in his personal life. The dangers, pressure, and extreme injuries he faces every day in his work have him yearning to hear the voices of his young children, who don’t yet know of their parents’ impending divorce. As control of his life slips from his hands on all fronts, he is forced to rely on God in new ways. His story includes his spiritual pilgrimage during his time in the combat zone and also relates significant spiritual and psychological markers on his road to recovery after returning to the States.
The book is detailed and graphic. It contains precise accounts of injuries, the surgeries Warren performed, remembered conversations, and emails home. We slog through the mud with him on the way from his sleeping quarters to the tent hospital during the rainy season, choke in dust and smoke during hot dry weather, smell the blood, sweat and unwashed bodies in the O.R., and hear mortars, shells and rockets exploding at all hours of the day and night. His explanation, at the end (when he faced the post-traumatic stress he experienced years after returning from Iraq) sheds light on his detailed recall of events. For he brought back with him, and finally unpacked, a bag of memorabilia—bullet bits, shards of shrapnel, segments of rockets—along with hundreds of photos documenting his experiences both in and out of the operating room.
I personally wanted to read No Place to Hide to understand why so many war veterans return home only to continue to suffer symptoms of stress. This book is a good one to help one gain such an understanding. It’s an intense read as Warren’s stories reflect the non-stop pressure of life as a battlefield surgeon. Though well-written and captivating it is hard enough reading through such a litany of never-ending horrors. I can’t imagine living them!
Warren’s memoir also shows a different side of the U.S. army than that broadcast by mainstream media. The 332nd Hospital had a policy of taking in friend and foe alike, treating Iraqi militants and civilians no matter whose side they were on. Though Warren doesn’t deny that mistreatment of prisoners of war happened at the hands of U.S. soldiers, his stories illustrate that U.S. doctors worked long, hard, and often to save enemy lives.
Photos at the back of the book bring to life Dr. Warren and the scenes he describes.
I recommend this book not only as a way to vicariously experience war, but also as a wonderful testimony to God’s keeping power during the toughest of times.
I received No Place to Hide as a gift from the publisher, Zondervan, for the purpose of writing a review.
Warren went to Iraq at a time when his marriage was teetering on the edge. His experience in Iraq is framed by the turmoil in his personal life. The dangers, pressure, and extreme injuries he faces every day in his work have him yearning to hear the voices of his young children, who don’t yet know of their parents’ impending divorce. As control of his life slips from his hands on all fronts, he is forced to rely on God in new ways. His story includes his spiritual pilgrimage during his time in the combat zone and also relates significant spiritual and psychological markers on his road to recovery after returning to the States.
The book is detailed and graphic. It contains precise accounts of injuries, the surgeries Warren performed, remembered conversations, and emails home. We slog through the mud with him on the way from his sleeping quarters to the tent hospital during the rainy season, choke in dust and smoke during hot dry weather, smell the blood, sweat and unwashed bodies in the O.R., and hear mortars, shells and rockets exploding at all hours of the day and night. His explanation, at the end (when he faced the post-traumatic stress he experienced years after returning from Iraq) sheds light on his detailed recall of events. For he brought back with him, and finally unpacked, a bag of memorabilia—bullet bits, shards of shrapnel, segments of rockets—along with hundreds of photos documenting his experiences both in and out of the operating room.
I personally wanted to read No Place to Hide to understand why so many war veterans return home only to continue to suffer symptoms of stress. This book is a good one to help one gain such an understanding. It’s an intense read as Warren’s stories reflect the non-stop pressure of life as a battlefield surgeon. Though well-written and captivating it is hard enough reading through such a litany of never-ending horrors. I can’t imagine living them!
Warren’s memoir also shows a different side of the U.S. army than that broadcast by mainstream media. The 332nd Hospital had a policy of taking in friend and foe alike, treating Iraqi militants and civilians no matter whose side they were on. Though Warren doesn’t deny that mistreatment of prisoners of war happened at the hands of U.S. soldiers, his stories illustrate that U.S. doctors worked long, hard, and often to save enemy lives.
Photos at the back of the book bring to life Dr. Warren and the scenes he describes.
I recommend this book not only as a way to vicariously experience war, but also as a wonderful testimony to God’s keeping power during the toughest of times.
I received No Place to Hide as a gift from the publisher, Zondervan, for the purpose of writing a review.
January 27, 2019
An honest look at the brutality of war through a neurosurgeons eyes. The author, an Air Force Major, tells of his 4 months in theater during the Iraq war. His time there while under mortar and rocket fire and the daily mass casualty scenarios painted it as a hell on earth. His narrative and insights put war into perspective much as "All Quiet on the Western Front" did to generations in the past.
May 5, 2015
Dr.Warren talked about his story but in fact this is the story of every iraqi doctor where you live daily with explosions, assassinations, and other stuff...
he lived in fear for 4 months in a safe place relative to " outside the wire " and he will tell you about his experience when he get outside the wire and walked in baghdad...
there is a great faith in this book, hard moments when you can't just sit and read but you want to do something (especially if you are a doctor and iraqi in particular)... i liked his description about our country, about U.S. soldiers who gave us their lives... but we are still bleeding, our country is still bleeding.. and i wish there is another Dr.Lee to tell you what we are living in here in this time after 10 years from the events in this book...
he lived in fear for 4 months in a safe place relative to " outside the wire " and he will tell you about his experience when he get outside the wire and walked in baghdad...
there is a great faith in this book, hard moments when you can't just sit and read but you want to do something (especially if you are a doctor and iraqi in particular)... i liked his description about our country, about U.S. soldiers who gave us their lives... but we are still bleeding, our country is still bleeding.. and i wish there is another Dr.Lee to tell you what we are living in here in this time after 10 years from the events in this book...
March 21, 2014
Why Read: Originally something on NetGalley I wasn’t super interested in, I ended up enjoying the book ten times more than I thought I would. Normally I don’t read anything remotely resembling war fiction or religion, but somehow this book was different. So I suppose I’m actually quite glad it came into my lap.
Review: When a book gets me to tear up… I know it’s a good one. Especially when the topics are about things that I would never normally read: war and religion ring a bell? Even the concept of divorce and family drama are not themes that I usually read about because they are to sad, and I can’t feel the same resonance that I feel with other books.
But ‘No Place to Hide’ was unique. Reading about Warren’s experiences in the Iraq War as a neurosurgeon were illuminating. I felt transported to each individual case he described, sometimes even feeling my eyes water as he spoke. Perhaps it was because the topic was so close to some of the subjects I study in school, but I prefer to think that it was the quality of the writing and the pure honesty that I felt really was exuded by the book. One of the most striking things that I read was the concept that doctors in Iraq treated terrorists and patients the same way and tried to save them both. Of course I’ve read about the Hippocratic Oath, but to extend the same kindness was, to me, very telling and bumped up the respect I felt for doctors a notch.
The chapters were comfortably broken up between narrative storytelling and emails sent back home to over 20,000 people worldwide. It made the book bearable, I believe, because some of the really difficult scenes to read through were his descriptions of wounds and the internal discussions about God, and doing your duty as a doctor. And just as suddenly you’d be reading an email back home which had a ring of truth but also some optimism.
The one complaint I really have about the book is the large component of religion. That’s a personal view, of course, and truly I think it only bothered me so much because that amount of faith to me is staggering, and wasn’t written on the back cover. So really the whole component of god and everything that comes along with it was unexpected.
However, despite that – I’d recommend this book. Even to people who aren’t religious. Because the experience of reading about a combat neurosurgeon is one that I will probably carry with me for quite a long time.
Rating: 4.2/5 Stars
Review: When a book gets me to tear up… I know it’s a good one. Especially when the topics are about things that I would never normally read: war and religion ring a bell? Even the concept of divorce and family drama are not themes that I usually read about because they are to sad, and I can’t feel the same resonance that I feel with other books.
But ‘No Place to Hide’ was unique. Reading about Warren’s experiences in the Iraq War as a neurosurgeon were illuminating. I felt transported to each individual case he described, sometimes even feeling my eyes water as he spoke. Perhaps it was because the topic was so close to some of the subjects I study in school, but I prefer to think that it was the quality of the writing and the pure honesty that I felt really was exuded by the book. One of the most striking things that I read was the concept that doctors in Iraq treated terrorists and patients the same way and tried to save them both. Of course I’ve read about the Hippocratic Oath, but to extend the same kindness was, to me, very telling and bumped up the respect I felt for doctors a notch.
The chapters were comfortably broken up between narrative storytelling and emails sent back home to over 20,000 people worldwide. It made the book bearable, I believe, because some of the really difficult scenes to read through were his descriptions of wounds and the internal discussions about God, and doing your duty as a doctor. And just as suddenly you’d be reading an email back home which had a ring of truth but also some optimism.
The one complaint I really have about the book is the large component of religion. That’s a personal view, of course, and truly I think it only bothered me so much because that amount of faith to me is staggering, and wasn’t written on the back cover. So really the whole component of god and everything that comes along with it was unexpected.
However, despite that – I’d recommend this book. Even to people who aren’t religious. Because the experience of reading about a combat neurosurgeon is one that I will probably carry with me for quite a long time.
Rating: 4.2/5 Stars
June 5, 2014
I received this book in exchange for my honest review
When I signed up to review this book, I never thought it would be a book that I would enjoy as much as I did. The cover was boring and if it weren't for the American flag, I probably wouldn't have chose it as a book I wanted to review.
No Place to Hide, A Brain Surgeon's Long Journey Home From The Iraq War by W. Lee Warren, M.D. is a biography of a brain surgeon and his encounters while in the Iraq war. W. Lee Warren, M.D. never expected the challenges he would face in Iraq to be that much worse than those he faced back home in Texas, but he was wrong. While in Iraq, Warren treated both Iraq and American soldiers, all while being under fire himself. When Warren finds out his wife wants a divorce, it leads him on a journey to find higher faith.
The way W, Lee Warren, M.D. wrote this book was so personal, that it was very easy to follow and addictive to read. Unlike many biographies, this one didn't really feel like a biography. This book actually made me look at my so called battles in life and realize they are nothing compared to what the people in this book were going through.
When I signed up to review this book, I never thought it would be a book that I would enjoy as much as I did. The cover was boring and if it weren't for the American flag, I probably wouldn't have chose it as a book I wanted to review.
No Place to Hide, A Brain Surgeon's Long Journey Home From The Iraq War by W. Lee Warren, M.D. is a biography of a brain surgeon and his encounters while in the Iraq war. W. Lee Warren, M.D. never expected the challenges he would face in Iraq to be that much worse than those he faced back home in Texas, but he was wrong. While in Iraq, Warren treated both Iraq and American soldiers, all while being under fire himself. When Warren finds out his wife wants a divorce, it leads him on a journey to find higher faith.
The way W, Lee Warren, M.D. wrote this book was so personal, that it was very easy to follow and addictive to read. Unlike many biographies, this one didn't really feel like a biography. This book actually made me look at my so called battles in life and realize they are nothing compared to what the people in this book were going through.
September 8, 2017
Took me back to my first deployment to Balad where the author had been just 5 years before me. Some of his descriptions sounded eerily familiar to what I had written in my own journal. Major differences were that he operated out of a tent at the height of US combat operations and the base was under near constant mortar fire. When I arrived, the hospital was a hardened facility and we were at the tail end of our combat involvement. Also the mortars only seemed to come every 3-4 days and we were better protected with anti-mortar artillery systems. It brought back a lot of memories for sure. The most compelling part of his narrative was the personal family struggles he dealt with while away at war and the demons he faced afterwards with his PTSD. It sounds like the writing of this book along with meeting a patient he saved several years after helped bring him the peace and closure he so desperately sought.
March 20, 2015
I found out about this book when it was added to the 2015 Air Force Chief of Staff's Reading List. This book is about a neurosurgeon's experience at the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group (Air Force Theater Hospital) at Balad AB, Iraq. I was part of the 332nd at 2 different times in 2005-2006 and 2007-2008. The first was almost exactly a year after Dr Warren was there. It was very interesting to read about somebody else's experiences in a similar situation. Dr Warren wrote this book about his experiences and did not touch on the political aspects of the war which I appreciated. A great read on how modern assymetrical warfare impacts the men and women with boots on the ground.
May 27, 2014
Great read for those who are interested in personal accounts of the war in Iraq. It details the experiences of an Air Force neurosurgeon in Balad, Iraq during a 4 month rotation in 2004-2005 in the period leading up to the election. This was a brutal time with multiple terrorist/insurgent attacks and many horrible casualties inflicted by IEDs. Told with detail, sometimes grisly, and with a testimony to Lee Warren's Christian faith.
May 26, 2014
EXCELLENT. Best book I've read in a long time regardless of your political views or your thoughts on the war in Iraq. It ranks up there with "Unbroken" as a book I didn't expect to be so absorbed by that I couldn't put it down. Can't wait to see what else he has written.
January 27, 2015
This is literally the best book I've read in a long time. It opens your eyes and truly changes you. The author is a Christian and I personally think that makes the book even better!
April 24, 2021
What is it like to operate on a soldier or terrorist in the midst of a war? Lee Warren can tell you. I highly recommend this thoughtful no holds barred account of the war as seen in a trauma hospital in the midst of a war zone. The severe brain injuries never stop coming as Dr. Warren and his colleagues struggle to save as many lives as possible. An excellent account of the trials and trauma of a brain surgeon's ware experience. Hard to put down and gripping with drama, this book takes the reader to where he has never imagined he would go. Highly recommended!
May 12, 2014
W. Lee Warren. No Place to Hide: A Brain Surgeon’s Long Journey Home from the Iraq War. Zondervan, 2014.
W. Lee Warren was an American medic in Iraq during the Iraq War. He treated Americans and Iraqis, including Iraqi insurgents. He even met Saddam Hussein after Saddam’s overthrow. This book is largely about the operations that he performed on Americans and Iraqis, and the carnage with which he came into contact. Writing his story was a way for him to address his post-traumatic stress.
The most insightful parts of the book, in my opinion, were Warren’s spiritual and political reflections. I could identify with his spiritual reflections. He was once a person who believed that he had to look all-right to the outside world, especially Christians, even when things were not all right. He learned, however, that there were things in life that he could not control, and that worship was coming to God in a state of honest vulnerability.
While Christian author Philip Yancey states in the book’s afterword that Warren leaves to others the debates about whether the Iraq War was right or wrong, Warren did offer political opinions about the war. Overall, Warren struck me as rather ambivalent. Warren believed that the Americans were the good guys, noting that Americans treated the enemy combatants who were wounded or dying, whereas the enemy did not do the same for the Americans. Warren also indicates that he believes that the Iraq War was, at least in part, about bringing democracy to Iraq. At the same time, Warren laments the torture that certain American soldiers performed at Abu Ghraib, asking what would have happened if they chose instead to love their enemies and end the cycle of sorrow and hate. On page 275, Warren wishes that he could have asked both George W. Bush and Saddam Hussein if the war was truly worth it: “In the grand scheme of things, what have you gained from all the palaces and parades, from the bombs and the bullets and the dollars spent and the lives lost?” Warren also reflects about how a number of Iraqis were becoming insurgents in order to feed their families.
This was a thoughtful book—-often technical, but thoughtful.
Note: I received a complimentary review copy of this book through the BookLook Bloggers (http://booklookbloggers.com/) book review bloggers program. The program does not require for my review to be positive, and my review reflects my honest reaction to the book.
W. Lee Warren was an American medic in Iraq during the Iraq War. He treated Americans and Iraqis, including Iraqi insurgents. He even met Saddam Hussein after Saddam’s overthrow. This book is largely about the operations that he performed on Americans and Iraqis, and the carnage with which he came into contact. Writing his story was a way for him to address his post-traumatic stress.
The most insightful parts of the book, in my opinion, were Warren’s spiritual and political reflections. I could identify with his spiritual reflections. He was once a person who believed that he had to look all-right to the outside world, especially Christians, even when things were not all right. He learned, however, that there were things in life that he could not control, and that worship was coming to God in a state of honest vulnerability.
While Christian author Philip Yancey states in the book’s afterword that Warren leaves to others the debates about whether the Iraq War was right or wrong, Warren did offer political opinions about the war. Overall, Warren struck me as rather ambivalent. Warren believed that the Americans were the good guys, noting that Americans treated the enemy combatants who were wounded or dying, whereas the enemy did not do the same for the Americans. Warren also indicates that he believes that the Iraq War was, at least in part, about bringing democracy to Iraq. At the same time, Warren laments the torture that certain American soldiers performed at Abu Ghraib, asking what would have happened if they chose instead to love their enemies and end the cycle of sorrow and hate. On page 275, Warren wishes that he could have asked both George W. Bush and Saddam Hussein if the war was truly worth it: “In the grand scheme of things, what have you gained from all the palaces and parades, from the bombs and the bullets and the dollars spent and the lives lost?” Warren also reflects about how a number of Iraqis were becoming insurgents in order to feed their families.
This was a thoughtful book—-often technical, but thoughtful.
Note: I received a complimentary review copy of this book through the BookLook Bloggers (http://booklookbloggers.com/) book review bloggers program. The program does not require for my review to be positive, and my review reflects my honest reaction to the book.
July 8, 2014
No Place to Hide: A Brain Surgeon’s Long Journey Home from the Iraq War by W. Lee Warren, MD chronicles Dr. Warren’s experiences in an Air Force surgical hospital during the war in Iraq. Four life-changing months were spent in Balad, Iraq as Dr. Warren worked to save the lives of our military men and women as well as both Iraqi allies and enemies.
But there’s so much more to his story than that. Arriving in Iraq while the fate of his marriage and family were unknown, Dr. Warren spends these months learning to listen for God’s voice, lean into His protection, and obey His direction. He lived a war-torn life in a war-torn country and returned home a different man.
Having three kids in the military, I’m all-too familiar with deployments. They are difficult on the men and women who are deployed and nearly unbearable for the families who stay at home. No Place to Hide has just enough medical details mingled with the war details to keep you on the edge of your seat. The chapters are short so that you don’t get bogged down in the technical details as Dr. Warren shares what happened to him and how it affected his faith walk.
Because how could it not? As Dr. Warren learns, there is no place we can go to hide from God. There are no circumstances that are out of God’s reach. Not a difficult marriage or a divorce. Not financial problems. Not stress in our work environment. Not health issues. Not anger or bitterness, depression or fatigue. Not a foreign country, and not a war.
If you need some encouragement in your own walk, I’d recommend No Place to Hide. It’s well-written and interesting. More importantly, it will challenge you. As you see God’s faithfulness in the life of one man who went to war, may you begin to see His faithfulness in yours.
But there’s so much more to his story than that. Arriving in Iraq while the fate of his marriage and family were unknown, Dr. Warren spends these months learning to listen for God’s voice, lean into His protection, and obey His direction. He lived a war-torn life in a war-torn country and returned home a different man.
Having three kids in the military, I’m all-too familiar with deployments. They are difficult on the men and women who are deployed and nearly unbearable for the families who stay at home. No Place to Hide has just enough medical details mingled with the war details to keep you on the edge of your seat. The chapters are short so that you don’t get bogged down in the technical details as Dr. Warren shares what happened to him and how it affected his faith walk.
Because how could it not? As Dr. Warren learns, there is no place we can go to hide from God. There are no circumstances that are out of God’s reach. Not a difficult marriage or a divorce. Not financial problems. Not stress in our work environment. Not health issues. Not anger or bitterness, depression or fatigue. Not a foreign country, and not a war.
If you need some encouragement in your own walk, I’d recommend No Place to Hide. It’s well-written and interesting. More importantly, it will challenge you. As you see God’s faithfulness in the life of one man who went to war, may you begin to see His faithfulness in yours.
May 15, 2018
“Just a little bomb, nobody died.” Is one of the most eye opening quotes in Dr. Lee Warren’s biography. It takes the reader on his life changing event. As a brain surgeon on an Air Force base in San Antonio, Texas he gets deployed into combat in Iraq. Through many trials and tribulations we learn a lot about the challenges of war. This biography is heart warming because of the way he shows humility throughout his experience even though he has issues outside of the war.
The book starts out with Dr. Warren on a plane headed to Qatar just to get on another plane headed for Iraq. Warren explained how uncomfortable the plane ride was, with a lot of men in a small place, some with motion sickness. We learn about where he is coming from and what his life is like. He has a wife and family that he is leaving behind for 120 days. As he arrives in combat to Iraq he explains his nervous feelings and his concerns about his stay. We learn about the hospital that he will be serving at and how limited they are on supplies. He explains how bland everything looks, brown clothing, brown ground, brown vehicles, brown, dried blood. His biggest concern at the time was mortar attacks. One had happened when he first arrived and he realized that these would be frequent and deadly if close enough.
I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars because of the truancy of Dr. Warren’s words. He helped the readers in to feeling some of the emotions he felt and put images into their heads of what he saw. I appreciate the fact that it is a true story and with that, he does not come across as boastful in any way. I enjoyed his writing and the way he explained things to those who may not have a good perspective of what he went through.
The book starts out with Dr. Warren on a plane headed to Qatar just to get on another plane headed for Iraq. Warren explained how uncomfortable the plane ride was, with a lot of men in a small place, some with motion sickness. We learn about where he is coming from and what his life is like. He has a wife and family that he is leaving behind for 120 days. As he arrives in combat to Iraq he explains his nervous feelings and his concerns about his stay. We learn about the hospital that he will be serving at and how limited they are on supplies. He explains how bland everything looks, brown clothing, brown ground, brown vehicles, brown, dried blood. His biggest concern at the time was mortar attacks. One had happened when he first arrived and he realized that these would be frequent and deadly if close enough.
I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars because of the truancy of Dr. Warren’s words. He helped the readers in to feeling some of the emotions he felt and put images into their heads of what he saw. I appreciate the fact that it is a true story and with that, he does not come across as boastful in any way. I enjoyed his writing and the way he explained things to those who may not have a good perspective of what he went through.
February 19, 2023
I became aware of Lee Warren’s story from the podcast, Snap. The podcast’s title was “Cross to Bear”, which had the theme that people who appear to be holding it together are often the people closest to falling apart. Great podcast, great storytelling.
After reading the full book, I feel Warren really struggles to let go of the mantle of holding it all together. He is constantly comparing his pain, his success, his spirituality, his marriage, his role as father, his skills as a brain surgeon, his understanding of right and wrong, his ability to serve to others. The book is story after story of being humbled by observing someone else’s ability to navigate a “more difficult” life experience with dignity and grace. After the 10th epiphany, I wanted to say: Don’t you get it yet? You gain nothing by comparing your pain and joy to someone else. Move on.
That said, Warren’s strength is his ability to describe what happened in the hospital. He is a dedicated surgeon that is able to describe the difficult choices the staff faced with limited resources.
His weakness is sharing the more personal details of his life. I think the reason he fails at telling his more personal story is that he breaks the cardinal storytelling rule: Show don’t tell. I am guessing he did this to protect those close to him. The result is he tells you his marriage failed, but he doesn’t describe how it fails. I understand wanting to protect those close to you, but it results in awkward preachy storytelling.
After reading the full book, I feel Warren really struggles to let go of the mantle of holding it all together. He is constantly comparing his pain, his success, his spirituality, his marriage, his role as father, his skills as a brain surgeon, his understanding of right and wrong, his ability to serve to others. The book is story after story of being humbled by observing someone else’s ability to navigate a “more difficult” life experience with dignity and grace. After the 10th epiphany, I wanted to say: Don’t you get it yet? You gain nothing by comparing your pain and joy to someone else. Move on.
That said, Warren’s strength is his ability to describe what happened in the hospital. He is a dedicated surgeon that is able to describe the difficult choices the staff faced with limited resources.
His weakness is sharing the more personal details of his life. I think the reason he fails at telling his more personal story is that he breaks the cardinal storytelling rule: Show don’t tell. I am guessing he did this to protect those close to him. The result is he tells you his marriage failed, but he doesn’t describe how it fails. I understand wanting to protect those close to you, but it results in awkward preachy storytelling.
August 6, 2016
No Place to Hide is really a book about two wars – one a military conflict and the other a combat surgeons battle for control. The first war magnifies the physical sacrifice and emotional wounds that service men and women are willing to endure for our freedoms. No Place to Hide details the cost of war while honoring human compassion. This book will take you on an emotional roller coaster through intimate accounts of lives saved and lives lost. The second war takes place within Dr. Warren as his sense of control over his life and marriage slips away. He battles feelings of insecurity, a failing marriage, and the horrors of war that threaten to shake his faith. From cover to cover Dr. W. Lee Warren's book honors our troops and glorifies God.
September 8, 2015
The book is a personal account by Dr. Lee Warren, a neurosurgeon, of his 4 month deployment in Iraq at a field hospital working with other medical staff to save lives: American and Iraq, even terrorists. "We are Americans. We treat everybody." In addition to describing the medical emergencies in graphic detail, he also shares his personal concerns and feelings about his wife (he is getting a divorce), his children, his faith, working in battle gear, in tents, under constant mortar and shelling attacks, sleep deprivation, the extremes of weather and how he copes through all of it. Although he was not in armed combat, he still went home with PTSD. This book, along with a new love, is how he healed himself.
June 28, 2015
I finished this book 4 days ago, after consuming the entire book one day at work. I still have no idea what to say about this book except to say that if you don't read it, you are missing out on one of the best books I have read all year.
I laughed, I cried (a lot) and I felt compelled to contact the author when I finished it to thank him for his story and his service to our country. And to express how profoundly his book effected me.
I'm not sure I could go back and read it again anytime soon, but I will recommend it to ANYONE. Just make sure to have a box of tissues handy.
I promise, you won't be sorry.
~Amy
I laughed, I cried (a lot) and I felt compelled to contact the author when I finished it to thank him for his story and his service to our country. And to express how profoundly his book effected me.
I'm not sure I could go back and read it again anytime soon, but I will recommend it to ANYONE. Just make sure to have a box of tissues handy.
I promise, you won't be sorry.
~Amy
July 14, 2015
US Air Force Dr. Warren operated in a tent on a base subject to regular mortar and rocket attacks in Iraq. He didn't lack for work as Iraq civilians, terrorists, US and international coalition forces were rushed into the tent hospital after receiving injuries. As a brain surgeon most of his cases were severe injuries to the head.
This was a tough read. Dr. Warren was going through an emotionally tough time in his life personally as he deployed and then dealing with the trauma of horribly wounded people he was responsible for saving. I don't think you can get through it all without being moved emotionally yourself.
This was a tough read. Dr. Warren was going through an emotionally tough time in his life personally as he deployed and then dealing with the trauma of horribly wounded people he was responsible for saving. I don't think you can get through it all without being moved emotionally yourself.
July 6, 2015
Covert proselytizing, 1 star.
This would have been a good book if it wasn't so full of absurd religious nonsense. For instance:
"I was fascinated that the Bible says God chose this very area - the zone between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers - as the place to begin human history. The canopy of stars twinkling above me would have looked the same to Adam and Eve peering up from Eden."
It's embarrassing.
This would have been a good book if it wasn't so full of absurd religious nonsense. For instance:
"I was fascinated that the Bible says God chose this very area - the zone between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers - as the place to begin human history. The canopy of stars twinkling above me would have looked the same to Adam and Eve peering up from Eden."
It's embarrassing.
June 14, 2015
I picked this book up after seeing it on the 2015 Air Force Chief of Staff reading list. First night reading it I was hooked and finished over a third of it. It is a fantastic book with the personal accounts of Dr. Warren and his Iraq experience. It gave a different perspective of the battle field. Easy to follow and wrapped everything up very nicely at the end.
April 1, 2015
I saw this book on the Air Force Chief of Staff reading list and decided to take a chance on it. It became a page-turner read for me as I just wanted to read yet another short chapter to see what happened.
March 1, 2016
I enjoyed his telling of his experience as a brain surgeon in Iraq. He drew on his faith largely to get him through, and as a result he did get preachy at times. If that's something that will bother you, this book is not for you.
December 21, 2014
He writes extremely well about what had to be a very harrowing experience. I smiled and cried by turns. I hope he's doing well and loving life.
February 1, 2015
Tried to read. Too much of the grisly war hospital. Stayed with is 25% couldn't take it. So disturbing.
January 16, 2017
Wow
This book was absolutely amazing. I felt like I was right their with the author the whole time while telling his story
This book was absolutely amazing. I felt like I was right their with the author the whole time while telling his story
November 11, 2020
This is a combination of two of my favorite genres: medical memoir and military history. I rarely wish a book could go on for another 500 pages, but I did for this book.
Dr. Warren does an exceptional work in depicting the horrors of war, bolstering pride in our troops and the humanitarian efforts of these brave men and women, noting the shame of veteran neglect after war, showing the beautiful compassion our troops have towards all people--friendly or not-so-friendly, and informing the average citizen of what PTSD looks/feels like for a non-combatant.
And my controversial two cents: Every American would benefit from turning off the news or giving up FB and Twitter for a couple days to pick up this book and remember what America is really about.
Dr. Warren does an exceptional work in depicting the horrors of war, bolstering pride in our troops and the humanitarian efforts of these brave men and women, noting the shame of veteran neglect after war, showing the beautiful compassion our troops have towards all people--friendly or not-so-friendly, and informing the average citizen of what PTSD looks/feels like for a non-combatant.
And my controversial two cents: Every American would benefit from turning off the news or giving up FB and Twitter for a couple days to pick up this book and remember what America is really about.
January 19, 2020
Every American should read this book. We are so blessed and have it so good. We need to know the price Of sacrifice of our troops and the magic the military doctors can do in desperate conditions. Thank you, Lee Warren, for opening our eyes and for choosing to take this journey to your personal healing through writing your book.
July 18, 2022
Reading this book gave me a new appreciation of the trauma of war and what our servicemen and women go through to protect our country. I started reading this around Memorial Day; I felt like it was a good way to focus on the meaning of the holiday. It was a compelling book and I read it in a month which is pretty fast for me. I was on long car rides for a few of those days, so that helped.
I have been listening to Dr. Warren's podcast and was interested in what he has written. The only part of this book that was hard for me was all the military abbreviations. I was able to ask my husband about them because he was in the army, but other ones I had to Google.
I have been listening to Dr. Warren's podcast and was interested in what he has written. The only part of this book that was hard for me was all the military abbreviations. I was able to ask my husband about them because he was in the army, but other ones I had to Google.
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