Books like Task Force Black

The cover made it look like the usual Iraq/Afghanistan soldier's memoirs. It is not, Mark Urban is in fact a journalist and this book is a look at the intelligence and political battles faced behind the scenes.I found the book pretty interesting despite it not being the usual bombastic tale of gun fights, air support and ambushes. In particular I found the stuff about McChrystal very interesting as he has become a figure of some mystery in the media in recent years.From the start it would appear that Urban is fairly pro-war and doesn't ask or answer some of the ethical questions behind the invasion of Iraq. There are references to Tony Blair but none dealing with the bit question about the intelligence behind the WMD claims. This is a big omission and even though it is not the focus of the book I think it should still have been given a chapter.The prose is a bit boggy in places when compared to soldier's memoirs but I think that this is a bit of an unfair comparison. When looked at what it is, I think it is a fine book looking at some parts of warfare which are often overlooked in popular media. Perhaps Urban could have been a little more critical of decisions taken but I think two things should be borne in mind here. One, he developed a bond with the people involved, this is very clear. Two, he is not a soldier, casting aspersions without having been in the position would have been inappropriate.