Synopses & Reviews
A powerful account of eighteen months in the lives of three soldiers and a journalist, all patients in Ward 57, Walter Reed's amputee wing
Time magazine's Michael Weisskopf was riding through Baghdad in the back of U.S. Army Humvee, an embedded reporter alongside soldiers from the 1st Armored Division, when he heard a metallic thunk. Looking down, he saw a small, dark object rolling inches from his feet. He reached down and took it in his hand. Then everything went black.
Weisskopf lost his hand and was sent for treatment to Ward 57 at Walter Reed Medical Center, the wing of the armed forces hospital reserved for amputees. There he crossed paths with Pete Damon, Luis Rodriguez, and Bobby Isaacs, three soldiers whose stories he learned during months in the ward. Alongside these men, Weisskopf navigated the bewildering process of recovery and reentry, and began reconciling life before that day in Baghdad with everything that would follow his release.
Blood Brothers is the story of this difficult passage--for Weiss-kopf, Damon, Rodriguez, Isaacs, and hundreds of others--a story that began with healthy men heading off to a war zone, and continued through the months in Ward 57 as they prepared their minds and bodies for a different life than the one they left. A chronicle of devastation and recovery, this is a deeply affecting portrait of the private aftermath of combat casualties.
Review
"This thoroughly distinguished addition to the literature on the Iraq War adds further distinction to Weisskopf's career..." Booklist
Review
"Unlike much of the current literature on the Iraq war, little of this book discusses the political aspects of the conflict....[A] wonderful story of tragedy and recovery. Strongly recommended..." Library Journal
Review
"This may not be an easy story to read, but it is only one story among many, [Weisskopf] reminds us....An unflinching depiction of the aftermath of war and of the spirit of those who live through it." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"This book is a modern masterpiece. The spirit, wit, and searing honesty that have marked Michael Weisskopfs life and career as a world-class correspondent shine through on every page as we follow his passage among the amputees of Ward 57. Blood Brothers is an unforgettable account of what happened, physically and emotionally, to Weisskopf and these men after the war." David Maraniss, author of They Marched into Sunlight
Review
"Blood Brothers is unsparing, unsentimental, and unflinching, a story of pain but also a tale of redemptive courage. Michael Weisskopf has written a book unlike any other to emerge from the long war in Iraq. Read it and weep." Rick Atkinson, Author of In the Company of Soldiers and An Army at Dawn
Review
"This is a real war story. It is not about victory or defeat, or the heroism of men in combat, it is about loss and pain and learning to live with a body terribly maimed." Mark Bowden, author of Guests of the Ayatollah and Black Hawk Down
Review
"Walter Reed's Ward 57 is often in the news, but always viewed from the outside in. Blood Brothers gets it right because its author actually shared in the torments of the amputee warriors he befriended during his stay. Weisskopf's story is theirs, with the unyielding pain, the acute sense of loss, and the deep need to recover a personal narrative that makes that loss bearable." Garry Trudeau
Synopsis
A powerful account of eighteen months in the lives of three soldiers and a journalist, all patients in Ward 57, Walter Reed's amputee wing.
Time magazine's Michael Weisskopf was riding through Baghdad in the back of U.S. Army Humvee, an embedded reporter alongside soldiers from the 1st Armored Division, when he heard a metallic thunk. Looking down, he saw a small, dark object rolling inches from his feet. He reached down and took it in his hand. Then everything went black.
Weisskopf lost his hand and was sent for treatment to Ward 57 at Walter Reed Medical Center, the wing of the armed forces hospital reserved for amputees. There he crossed paths with Pete Damon, Luis Rodriguez, and Bobby Isaacs, three soldiers whose stories he learned during months in the ward. Alongside these men, Weisskopf navigated the bewildering process of recovery and reentry, and began reconciling life before that day in Baghdad with everything that would follow his release.
Blood Brothers is the story of this difficult passage for Weiss-kopf, Damon, Rodriguez, Isaacs, and hundreds of others a story that began with healthy men heading off to a war zone, and continued through the months in Ward 57 as they prepared their minds and bodies for a different life than the one they left. A chronicle of devastation and recovery, this is a deeply affecting portrait of the private aftermath of combat casualties.
Synopsis
This "expert piece of journalism by a brave man about brave men" follows three soldiers and a reporter through eighteen months on Ward 57, Walter Reed's amputee wing (The Washington Post)
Time magazine's Michael Weisskopf was riding through Baghdad in the back of a U.S. Army Humvee when he heard a metallic thunk. Looking down, he spotted a small object inches from his feet and reached down to take it in his hand. Then everything went black.
Weisskopf lost his hand and was sent to Ward 57 at Walter Reed Medical Center, the wing reserved for amputees. There he met soldiers Pete Damon, Luis Rodriguez, and Bobby Isaacs, alongside whom he navigated the bewildering process of recovery and began reconciling life before that day in Baghdad with everything that would follow his release.
Blood Brothers is the story of this difficult passage--a story that begins with healthy men heading off to war, and continues through the months in Ward 57 as they prepare for a different life than the one they left. A chronicle of devastation and recovery, this is a deeply affecting portrait of the private aftermath of combat casualties.
About the Author
A senior correspondent for Time magazine, Michael Weisskopf is a Pulitzer Prize finalist and winner of the George Polk Award, Goldsmith Award for Investigative Reporting, National Headliners Award, and the Daniel Pearl Award for Courage and Integrity in Journalism. Weisskopf lives in Washington, D.C.