Synopses & Reviews
IN 2004, AT THE AGE OF FORTY-EIGHT, DR. DAVE HNIDA, a family physician from Littleton, Colorado, volunteered to be deployed to Iraq and spent a tour of duty as a battalion surgeon with a combat unit. In 2007, he went back—this time as a trauma chief at one of the busiest Combat Support Hospitals (CSH) during the Surge. In an environment that was nothing less than a modern-day M*A*S*H, the doctors main objective was simple: Get em in, get em out. The only CSH staffed by reservists— who tended to be older, more-experienced doctors disdainful of authority—the 399th soon became a medevac destination of choice because of its high survival rate, an astounding 98 percent.
This was fast-food medicine at its best: working in a series of tents connected to the occasional run-down building, Dr. Hnida and his fellow doctors raced to keep the wounded alive until they could be airlifted out of Iraq for more extensive repairs. Here the Hippocratic Oath superseded that of the pledge to Uncle Sam; if you got the red-carpet helicopter ride, his team took care of you, no questions asked. On one stretcher there might be a critically injured American soldier while three feet away lay the insurgent, shot in the head, who planted the IED that inflicted those wounds.
But there was levity amid the chaos. On call round-the-clock with an unrelenting caseload, the doctors prescription for sanity included jokes, pranks, and misbehavior. Dr. Hnidas deployment was filled with colorful characters and gifted surgeons, a diverse group who became trusted friends as together they dealt with the psychological toll of seeing the casualties of war firsthand.
In a conflict with no easy answers and even less good news, Paradise General gives us something that we can all believe in—the story of an ordinary citizen turned volunteer soldier trying to make a difference. With honesty and candor, and an off-the-wall, self-deprecating humor that sustained him and his battle buddies through their darkest hours, Dr. Hnida delivers a devastating and inspiring account of his CSH tour and an unparalleled look at medical care during an unscripted war.
Review
“In another era, Homer would be telling this tale. Why would a 48-year-old physician leave his family and a lovely Colorado town to crawl for his life through the bloody sands of Iraqi battlefields? Why would he stay, when terrorists were offering a bounty for the chance to cut off his head? Because, as we learn in Dr. David Hnida’s unforgettable story, heroism can be another word for heartache. His tale of sacrifice and hope is a crucial, firsthand chronicle of our time and likely to become a classic of war literature.” —Christopher McDougall, author of Born to Run
Review
"I opened the book expecting to find a standard true-grit military memoir, but Hnida grabbed me by the throat on the first page. Paradise General is an honest and unflinching view of day to day life in a combat support hospital. What sets it apart from other accounts is the intimate look at the complicated motivations that drive a hometown doctor to answer the call to serve his country. Hnida bears witness to the carnage and trauma of war with humor, dignity, compassion and self-deprecation. As someone who has seen firsthand the devastation of these roadside bombs on families, I was brought inside the operating room and left with a greater respect for those who leave behind the comforts of home to serve." —Lee Woodruff, co-author of In An Instant
Review
"Dave Hnida has written a wonderfully moving and frequently very funny book about his tour in a combat hospital in Iraq. When Hnida and his fellow doctors and nurses lose a soldier you grieve with them. You celebrate their victories over self-doubt and a sometimes cold Army bureaucracy. But what makes the book special is Hnida's perspective as a citizen-soldier who left behind a family and comfortable medical practice in Colorado for a war zone. Hnida's background as a suburban dad and doctor makes him a perfect guide through the confounding, terrifying, and strangely exhilarating world inhabited by the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan.” —Greg Jaffe, co-author of The Fourth Star and military correspondent for The Washington Post
Review
"Paradise General will inspire, shock, and entertain you. Dr. Hnida brings a combat emergency room to life, from the infrequent quiet moments, leavened with wit, humor, and reflection, to the chaos of a midnight helicopter-borne cargo of mangled limbs. You can't help but be awed by the courage of Dr. Hnida and his fellow physicians as they work tirelessly to save the lives of countless patients, both friend and foe, without the right equipment, sleep, or complaint." —Craig M. Mullaney, author of the New York Times bestseller The Unforgiving Minute: A Soldier's Education
Review
“Unforgettable . . . In another era, Homer would be telling this tale. Dr. Hnida’s tale of sacrifice and hope is a crucial, firsthand chronicle of our time and likely to become a classic of war literature.” —Christopher McDougall, author of Born to Run
Review
“A true-life M*A*S*H tale of doctors, wars and field hospitals.” —Bill Husted, The Denver Post
Review
“Page-turning . . . a sobering account of combat injuries and the courageous medical corps who work against the odds to treat them.” —Laura Landro, The Wall Street Journal
Review
“Hnida grabbed me by the throat on the first page. What sets it apart from other accounts is the intimate look at the complicated motivations that drive a hometown doctor to answer the call to serve his country.” —Lee Woodruff, co-author of In An Instant
Review
“Wonderfully moving and frequently very funny . . . a perfect guide through the confounding, terrifying, and strangely exhilarating world inhabited by the U.S. military in Iraq.” —Greg Jaffe, military correspondent, The Washington Post
About the Author
Dr. Dave Hnida is a family physician and medical commentator. He has worked as a local and national correspondent for NBC and CBS, and has made appearances on the Today show and The Early Show. He lives with his family in Littleton, Colorado.