Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
On 8 November 2004, the largest battle of the War on Terror began, with the US Army's assault on Fallujah and its network of tens of thousands of insurgents hiding in fortified bunkers, on rooftops, and inside booby-trapped houses. For Sgt. David Bellavia of 3rd Platoon, Alpha Company, it quickly turned into a battle on foot, from street to street and house to house. On the second day, he and his men laid siege to a mosque, only to be driven to a rooftop and surrounded, before heavy artillery could smash through to rescue them. By the third day, Bellavia charges an insurgent-filled house and finds himself trapped with six enemy fighters. One by one, he shoots, wrestles, stabs, and kills five of them, until his men arrive to take care of the final target. It is one of the most hair-raising battle stories of any age -- yet it does not spell the end of Bellavia's service. It would take serveral more weeks before the Battle of Fallujah finally came to a close, with Bellavia, miraculously, alive. In the words of the author: "HOUSE TO HOUSE holds nothing back. It is a raw, gritty look at killing and combat and how men react to it. It is gut-wrenching, shocking and brutal. It is honest.It is not a glorification of war. Yet it will not shy from acknowledging this: sometimes it takes something as terrible as war for the full beauty of the human spirit to emerge."
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book deals almost in it's entirety with SSgt Bellavia part in the US lead assault on the rebel held Iraq city of Fallujah. What a synopsis cannot hope to express is the reality of urban warfare that Bellavia and his platoon underwent during the army's 20 days of fighting. The authors portrait of the grime & dirt of war, which would be familiar to soldiers of any age, and the effect of modern weaponry has on the friable human body is deft and at times brutal. The book does not delve into the reasons for the conflict , though the authors express a clear moral, rather Manichean, world view of them being the "irreverent revenant" vs. the terrorists. What clearly strikes a reader is the intense and moving bond that is cemented in SSgt Bellavia squad when facing life threatening situations and how courage under fire was expressed. This would be a good companion to Keenan's "The Face of battle". My minor quibble would be that the civilian population's plight is barely mentioned. Recommended reading.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This high-octane war memoir, is a fast paced and exciting. Its pages are unflinching in their graphic description of war and not for those with a weak stomach.
It differs in many ways to the many memoirs I've read, penned by UK soldiers, obviously because its written by an American, but also because it deals with a microcosm of the war during a single operation.
Whereas most ware memoirs written by ex-servicemen tend to cover their whole tours, House to House follows the author and his squad during a single objective: clearing the city of Fallujah. This makes it a fast, frenetic and riveting read.
The writing style to seem very catered for the American attention span. It's relentless action with bullets flying on every page and hard fought battles in every chapter - it almost feels like a Hollywood Movie, which makes it a real page turner.
It also highlight the differences (and similarities) between how the British and American troops operate in theatre and how they see the war; with the Americans here being very Gung-Ho and often seeming blasé. True, you do get desensitised to a certain extent, but these guys seem to revel in the gore and gruesome nature of war.
However, the only thing I am here to judge is the book, and for me I found it an enthralling read. I couldn't put it down and I loved the fact that it catered for a nation with a short attention span. Because it made the urgency of the situations these boys were in all the more palpable.
This is an adrenaline-pumping, action-packed page turner which will have you on the edge of your seat. You may recoil at some of the scenes and graphic descriptions in its pages, and wonder how these men can behave in such a manner - but one thing's for sure, whether or not you agree with their methods, this book is one hell of a ride.
It culminates in a very bloody hand-to-hand fight for survival where both teeth and knives are used to devastating effect, and I, for one, have never read a more realistic account of a man fighting for his life in CQB (Close Quarter Battle) against and equally determined enemy.
The final set piece is so full of tension it will have your stomach in a knot. You'll feel like your on the ground, in the room fighting alongside the author and, throughout my time reading this, I was thinking, what an amazing film this would make - it's Black Hawk Down multiplied by 100.
During his 6 years in the army, the author, David Bellavia, saw some of the most intense and ferocious fighting of the Iraq war, which is recounted for you here in the pages of his books. He was awarded the Silver Star and the Bronze Star for his actions and was recommended for the Distinguished Service Cross and Medal of Honour for his actions in Fallujah. In 2005 he received New York State's highest award for military valour, the Conspicuous Service Cross, and was inducted into the Veterans' Hall of Fame... once you've read this book its easy to see why.
It differs in many ways to the many memoirs I've read, penned by UK soldiers, obviously because its written by an American, but also because it deals with a microcosm of the war during a single operation.
Whereas most ware memoirs written by ex-servicemen tend to cover their whole tours, House to House follows the author and his squad during a single objective: clearing the city of Fallujah. This makes it a fast, frenetic and riveting read.
The writing style to seem very catered for the American attention span. It's relentless action with bullets flying on every page and hard fought battles in every chapter - it almost feels like a Hollywood Movie, which makes it a real page turner.
It also highlight the differences (and similarities) between how the British and American troops operate in theatre and how they see the war; with the Americans here being very Gung-Ho and often seeming blasé. True, you do get desensitised to a certain extent, but these guys seem to revel in the gore and gruesome nature of war.
However, the only thing I am here to judge is the book, and for me I found it an enthralling read. I couldn't put it down and I loved the fact that it catered for a nation with a short attention span. Because it made the urgency of the situations these boys were in all the more palpable.
This is an adrenaline-pumping, action-packed page turner which will have you on the edge of your seat. You may recoil at some of the scenes and graphic descriptions in its pages, and wonder how these men can behave in such a manner - but one thing's for sure, whether or not you agree with their methods, this book is one hell of a ride.
It culminates in a very bloody hand-to-hand fight for survival where both teeth and knives are used to devastating effect, and I, for one, have never read a more realistic account of a man fighting for his life in CQB (Close Quarter Battle) against and equally determined enemy.
The final set piece is so full of tension it will have your stomach in a knot. You'll feel like your on the ground, in the room fighting alongside the author and, throughout my time reading this, I was thinking, what an amazing film this would make - it's Black Hawk Down multiplied by 100.
During his 6 years in the army, the author, David Bellavia, saw some of the most intense and ferocious fighting of the Iraq war, which is recounted for you here in the pages of his books. He was awarded the Silver Star and the Bronze Star for his actions and was recommended for the Distinguished Service Cross and Medal of Honour for his actions in Fallujah. In 2005 he received New York State's highest award for military valour, the Conspicuous Service Cross, and was inducted into the Veterans' Hall of Fame... once you've read this book its easy to see why.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I think this is a great book. I also found it very moving. It is not pretentious; nor does the author claim to offer any great insight into the nature of the battle other than through his direct, brutal, uncomfortable honesty. That honesty packs one heck of a punch.
What the book made clear to me is that no amount of smart weapons / firepower replaces the ultimate, (and for me at least) horrific, fact that this often boiled down to man versus man. It is indisputable that the Americans had overwhelming firepower, technology and manpower but this book makes clear that facets of this battle came down to soldiers' bravery (on both sides). It left me very reflective.
It also conveys the ferocity, barbarity and disjointed nature of modern war fighting as well as the ridiculous BS these teeth-arm troops face even within their own army. His email address had me chuckling. The book also has a total lack of: 'I joined the army went here, here and here and then did this that and the next thing'. That is not a criticism of those kind of army life story books it is just refreshing to see one that deals almost totally with a concentrated period rather than that period being the 'highlight' of the book. Here the battle and its aftermath really is the book.
This would be a great book for those who believe war sterile and for those who look at the decisions made in those wars from their armchairs and believe those men and women on the ground should have done better.
Thoroughly recommended.
What the book made clear to me is that no amount of smart weapons / firepower replaces the ultimate, (and for me at least) horrific, fact that this often boiled down to man versus man. It is indisputable that the Americans had overwhelming firepower, technology and manpower but this book makes clear that facets of this battle came down to soldiers' bravery (on both sides). It left me very reflective.
It also conveys the ferocity, barbarity and disjointed nature of modern war fighting as well as the ridiculous BS these teeth-arm troops face even within their own army. His email address had me chuckling. The book also has a total lack of: 'I joined the army went here, here and here and then did this that and the next thing'. That is not a criticism of those kind of army life story books it is just refreshing to see one that deals almost totally with a concentrated period rather than that period being the 'highlight' of the book. Here the battle and its aftermath really is the book.
This would be a great book for those who believe war sterile and for those who look at the decisions made in those wars from their armchairs and believe those men and women on the ground should have done better.
Thoroughly recommended.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Brutal and vivid
In 2004 as part of the Iraq war, the US Army assaulted the city of Fallujah, aware that it would require street by street, house by house clearing. Read more
Published 2 months ago by N. Brett
HOOFIN' READ!
Top read, a fast, detailed & focused package. You're with him, smells, sounds, shadows, the whole shooting match...... Read more
Published 10 months ago by abluedog
Great book
A great true account on what troops go through in modern warfare. SSgt Bellavia and the men serving alongside him are true heroes in a world where that word is thrown around for... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Lewis
Sticks in your mind
A lot of the books on Iraq and Afghanistan are about special forces. This book is about an infantry sergeant in Iraq and he tells his story in a way that is different and well... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Momi
An absorbing book
I have read quite a few modern warfare books and this one must be in the top five, alongside Generation Kill, Sniper One, Black Hawk Down and The Circuit. Read more
Published on 20 Jan 2010 by Severn
A no holds barred soldiers view
This book has to be one of the best books i have read on the war in Iraq the stlye of writing makes you almost believe your there with the author as he and his fellow soldiers... Read more
Published on 11 Nov 2009 by Mr. Paul Pimblott
House to House
I'd seen the author of this book on Andy McNab's show and I thought what he did was insane, so I decided to buy his book. From page 1 you don't want to put this book down. Read more
Published on 21 July 2009 by Mr. T. R. Marsh
The Horror
A literally horrific first person account of a soldiers hand to hand battle to take Fallujah in Iraq. Read more
Published on 18 Jun 2009 by John Ryan
momment to momment
Great book! the hand to hand combat scenes are riveting and for the author life defining
Some of the battle depictions can be a little hard to visualise and I'm not... Read more
Some of the battle depictions can be a little hard to visualise and I'm not... Read more
Published on 26 May 2009 by masspecguy
House to House by David Bellavia
The book is written through the eyes of an American Soldier in Iraq and is a true story. I found the story to start off slow, but once into some of the missions and obstacles that... Read more
Published on 10 Feb 2009 by I. Tomlinson
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Biography > Film, Television & Music > Music
- Books > Biography > Historical > Countries & Regions > Middle East
- Books > Biography > Political > Countries & Regions > Middle East
- Books > Biography > War & Espionage
- Books > History > Countries & Regions > Asia > Middle East > Arabian Peninsula
- Books > History > Countries & Regions > Asia > Middle East > Iraq
- Books > History > Military History > Wars, Battles & Campaigns
- Books > Society, Politics & Philosophy > Warfare & Defence > War & Defence Operations
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
