Minefields of the heart [electronic resource] : a mother's stories of a son at war / Sue Diaz ; foreword by Jim Frederick.

ISBN:

9781597975636

Title:

Author:

Diaz, Sue.

Personal Author:

Diaz, Sue.

Edition:

1st ed.

Publication Information:

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xxii, 162 pages) : illustrations

Contents:

Introduction -- The road to war -- Lifting the lid -- Roman's choice -- Soldier from suburbia -- Basic training, Fort Benning, Georgia -- Infantryman's creed -- To basic training and beyond--with Spongebob -- War -- Not a video game -- Marching towards Baghdad -- Seven ducklings -- Answering the call -- Both sides now -- Brothers in arms -- Dad's d-day diary -- Grocery shopping with Lucinda -- A rare snail-mail letter from Roman -- The Spongebob letters I -- Baghdad Christmas -- A holiday tradition -- A taste of home -- The Spongebob letters II -- Weapons of mass illusion -- The family on the beach -- Not so fast -- The Spongebob letters III -- Sergeant Horton's Marlboros -- At home and between deployments -- Coming home -- A separate peace -- The Spongebob letters IV -- Christmas card, 2004 -- A new assignment. another trip home -- Moments to remember -- Coming home once more to say good-bye again -- Target practice -- Once more to the lake -- Walking the walk -- Hurricane Katrina -- Sarge -- The Spongebob letters V -- The hell of war -- Letters -- A letter from home Roman nearly never read -- Doorbell moment -- Christmas card, 2005 -- A Christmas apart -- Encounter with an IED -- A soldier's silence -- War as it happens -- Up in smoke -- Making a difference -- Moonlight and mizunos -- From bad to worse -- Attack at Yusufiyah -- Fallen eagles -- Lucinda, keeping it real -- Operation brain surgery -- To Baghdad via books and Berkeley -- The innocent days -- The journey home begins -- The soldiers' return -- The road home -- Guernica revisited -- The notebooks.

Local Note:

eBooks on EBSCOhost

Personal Subject:

Diaz, Roman.

Diaz, Sue.

Subject Term:

Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Social aspects -- United States.

Soldiers -- Family relationships -- United States.

Mothers and sons -- United States -- Biography.

Format:

Electronic Resources

Electronic Access:

Click here to view

Publication Date:

2010

Publication Information:

Available:*

Shelf Number	Material Type	Copy	Shelf Location	Status
956.704431 22	1:E-BOOK	1	1:ONLINE	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

How do combat veterans and their loved ones bridge the divide that war, by its very nature, creates between them? How does someone who has fought in a war come home, especially after a tour of duty marked by near-daily mortar attacks, enemy fire, and roadside bombs? With a journalist s eye and a mother s warmth, Sue Diaz asks these questions as she chronicles the two deployments to Iraq of her son, Sgt. Roman Diaz, from the perspective of the home front.Sergeant Diaz s second deployment put him south of Baghdad in the region aptly termed the Triangle of Death. There his platoon experienced extraordinarily heavy casualties during the height of the Iraqi insurgency. That unit has since become the focus of considerable media attention following events that made headlines in the summer of 2006: an insurgent attack at a remote outpost on three of their own one killed at the scene, the other two kidnapped, their bodies found days later; and a terrible war crime committed against an Iraqi family by four soldiers from First Platoon."Minefields of the Heart" adds a very personal dimension to the larger story of this Bravo Company platoon from the 101st Airborne s 502nd Infantry Regiment, a unit known since World War II as the Black Heart Brigade. Diaz recounts the emotional rollercoaster her family and other soldiers families experience during and after deployment. She explores this terrain not only through stories of her son s and family s experiences connected to the Iraq War, but also by insights she s gained from other veterans accounts from what she calls the box that soldiers returning from any war carry within. This added layer gives her narrative broader meaning, bringing home the impact of war in general on those who fight and on those who love them."Minefields of the Heart" is a story of innocence lost, understanding gained, and hope reaffirmed. In addition to veterans and their families, this book will appeal to anyone who wants to understand war s impact on individuals as well as on the fabric of our society."