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No Place to Hide: A Brain Surgeon’s Long Journey Home from the Iraq War
Join Air Force veteran Dr. W. Lee Warren as he chronicles his fascinating, heartbreaking, and enlightening experience as a neurosurgeon in an Iraq War combat hospital. Warren's life as a neurosurgeon in a trauma center began to unravel long before he shipped off to serve the U.S. 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. In No Place to Hide , Warren tells his story in a brand-new light, sharing how you Whether you are in the midst of your own struggles with faith, relationships, finances, or illness, No Place to Hide will teach you that how you respond in moments of crisis can determine your chances of survival. Praise for No Place to Hide : " No Place to Hide captures simply, eloquently, and passionately what it means to be a physician in time of war. Over ten years of war, we safely air evacuated more than ninety thousand injured and ill from Iraq and Afghanistan--five thousand were the sickest of the sick. This very personal story captures the essence of what it takes to be a military physician and the challenge for our nation to reintegrate all who deploy to war." --Lt. Gen. (ret.) C. Bruce Green, MD, 20th AF Surgeon General "Through Warren's eyes we observe not only the delicate mechanics of brain surgery but also its lifelong effects on real people and their families, both when the surgery succeeds and when it fails. Thank you, Lee Warren, for letting us see the world through your own unique vantage point. Thank you for the lives you saved, for the compassion you showed, for the faith you rediscovered, for reminding us of the precious gift of life." --Philip Yancey, bestselling author of The Jesus I Never Knew
360 pages, Paperback
Published January 22, 2019
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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 10, 2020
After reading I've Seen the End of You, I wanted to read about Dr. Warren's experience in deployment. I was not disappointed, at least in the book. Human behavior, on the other hand . . .
My husband was active duty Air Force for 10 years. We presently live outside the gates of Ft. Bragg, home to many of the brave men and women who deploy to areas normal Americans don't want to go to deal with people we don't want to think about. Many of our dearest friends are people like Dr. Warren who have seen unimaginable things. I've heard stories. I've noticed the changes in the warriors after deployments. I see the echoes of their duty in their eyes. Still the decisions that Dr. Warren had to make, that our medics and doctors still sometimes have to make . . . are haunting.
Parts of the book were naturally hard to read because of the content--like deciding whether to go to surgery and use a precious set of instruments on someone who may not make it past tomorrow anyway. Other parts were inspiring and beautiful--like the Marine who knowingly donated blood to the jihadist who he watched kill his best friend because it was the right thing to do. And God asked uncomfortable questions of me as I read and asked me to consider how deeply I believed things I thought I did.
Overall, this is an excellent read. It's an important read not only for those who want to know more about what our warriors faced while deployed to Iraq but also for those who are facing a crisis of faith, for those who wonder where God is when bad things happen, and for those who believe they have or must maintain control.
My husband was active duty Air Force for 10 years. We presently live outside the gates of Ft. Bragg, home to many of the brave men and women who deploy to areas normal Americans don't want to go to deal with people we don't want to think about. Many of our dearest friends are people like Dr. Warren who have seen unimaginable things. I've heard stories. I've noticed the changes in the warriors after deployments. I see the echoes of their duty in their eyes. Still the decisions that Dr. Warren had to make, that our medics and doctors still sometimes have to make . . . are haunting.
Parts of the book were naturally hard to read because of the content--like deciding whether to go to surgery and use a precious set of instruments on someone who may not make it past tomorrow anyway. Other parts were inspiring and beautiful--like the Marine who knowingly donated blood to the jihadist who he watched kill his best friend because it was the right thing to do. And God asked uncomfortable questions of me as I read and asked me to consider how deeply I believed things I thought I did.
Overall, this is an excellent read. It's an important read not only for those who want to know more about what our warriors faced while deployed to Iraq but also for those who are facing a crisis of faith, for those who wonder where God is when bad things happen, and for those who believe they have or must maintain control.
Displaying 1 of 1 review