DAVID KENT

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BOOKENDS

Before I get to the subject of this week’s column I want to acknowledge the great work of the Friends of the Library on another successful book sale. There are three people in particular who deserve special recognition. If it weren’t for Linda Selover, Giles Russell, and Hugh MacDougal the book sale simply couldn’t happen.

• One of the most difficult tasks an author faces when writing about war is how to mix in a positive theme while describing all its horrors.
Recently I found a title that actually does find a way to describe the horrors of war yet not upstage what is in essence a warm-hearted love story. It is especially relevant because it’s about the Iraq War and gives the reader an idea of what our soldiers are going through over there. Since most people do not have a loved ones fighting in Iraq, and we haven’t really felt the effects of the war (except perhaps with the price of gas) the book takes on added significance.
“From Baghdad With Love,” by Jay Kopelman, is the story of a Marine officer’s attempt to transport his adopted puppy out of Iraq to the United States. It’s easy to become endeared to the mutt just by looking at the book’s cover. Who doesn’t love a cute puppy? The whole effort is complicated from the start because there is a military regulation that forbids the adoption of pets. It doesn’t take long to understand why.
The story begins with the Marines on patrol in Fallujah going house to house to clear out Iraqi insurgents. They’ve been trained not to trust anybody or anything. The insurgents will use any means to kill our soldiers, including boobytrapped animals and mentally handicapped human beings. In one house the troops hear a movement and have their rifles cocked. Instead of an insurgent or booby-trapped animal what appears is an innocent little puppy (stray dogs are very common in Iraq).
Thus begins the story of Lava (so named after the battalion’s moniker) and Kopelman’s quest to transport him out of Iraq. Two mitigating factors are the constant attempts to hide Lava, and Kopelman’s upcoming transfer stateside.
Besides the suspense of whether Kopelman actually succeeds in rescuing Lava, the backdrop of Iraq provides the reader with exactly what our soldiers are dealing with in a war zone. It is not pretty. But the book also illustrates how something as innocent as a puppy can provide relief from the stresses of war, and allow even battle-hardened veterans to exhibit a softer side. “From Baghdad With Love” is more than just a cute story about a dog and his devoted master. It is a description of war in a way that most of us can’t comprehend but does so by playing on our fuzziest of emotions. It’s a different way of telling a war story and one that I highly recommend.

Labels: Bookends, Columns