Perception Wars: Iraq From The Outside In

by Jemil Metti

This book is Metti’s journey to Iraq under extraordinary family circumstances. It describes personal and academic challenges he encountered by the need to acclimate to a new language and culture. This story is also a depiction of cultural rejection aggravated by assimilation He was compelled to live in places not of his choosing; to master a tongue alien to his childhood; and to feel out of place every time he stepped outside the hospitable and generous embrace of his extended Iraqi family into the corporal punishment landmines of Iraqi education.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, War

228 pages, Paperback

First published June 12, 2008

About the author

Jemil Metti was born in Long Island, New York to an Iraqi father and a Hungarian mother who passed away when he was two months old. After two years of American boarding school commencing in 1954, he was transferred to Beirut, Lebanon for a one-year stint before ending up in Baghdad, Iraq in 1957.

After living there his entire teen years, he returned to the United States in 1970. Metti attended Northern Illinois University, S.U.N.Y.-Binghamton, and Wayne State University-Detroit to earn his B.A., M.A. and Ed.D. respectively.

Currently Michigan-based, Metti professionally worked in broadcast and print journalism, real estate sales and education. Though his professional focus had almost entirely shifted to education by 1978, he just couldn't stay away from writing, politics and global affairs. And thus began his bid to freelance for the Michigan-based Romeo Observer (1980-1981) and the Advisor Newspapers (1981-1990). Jemil Metti retired from teaching at the end of 2019. He is now a full-time writer.

Reviews

[Sherry Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jemil Metti true life story was captivating, interesting, and heartfelt though out the books. He shares pictures of himself and family.

[Jessi · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read with Jemil Metti's poetic style of writing.

The novel describes many situations and offers questions along that way that make the reader reflect on their own upbringing and views. Touching on heavy topics, Perception Wars allows readers to learn more about the system, influences (cultural, political, and religious), and history within Iraq. Metti also provides reflections on his own life experiences, inviting us to appreciate the complexity of family and of free will.

The book uses advanced English and jumps between timepoints in history, so it is worth reading a couple of times to grasp all the content.

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.