What readers think of The Yellow Birds, plus links to write your own review.

Let me begin by saying that I rarely read books about war. I first heard of Yellow Birds when I read a glowing review in the NY Times.
I have always felt that the war in Iraq is unlike the Vietnam War when there was a draft and bodies being brought back became part of the 6 o'clock news. The Iraq war affects fewer families and there are restrictions on what can be show on TV now.
I was captured by the opening line, "The war tried to kill us in the spring" and the lyrical language throughout the book. There is a mystery of guilt which pervades the book and until the end we don't know why the narrator is so devastated. The descriptions of the terrain are both beautiful and ironic since war is so ugly. The shifting between home and Iraq are well done and keep us interested from beginning to end. All the characters, even minor ones, are expertly depicted. The structure of the book is perfect for expressing the theme.
This is one of the best books I have ever read. Even though the subject may not initially appeal to everyone, it should be read so we can learn what has been going on "over there" and how to avoid future tragedies.