- Paperback: 256 pages
- Publisher: Monday Books (16 Oct 2006)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0955285429
- ISBN-13: 978-0955285424
- Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 2.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 714,285 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Road Trip to Hell
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Product Description
Synopsis
Chris Hughes, the "Daily Mirror's" defence correspondent, was the first western reporter into Iraq after 9/11, the first into Saddam's secret bunker and the only one to visit Osama bin Laden's mountain lair. He was also the only western journalist present when American Marines killed and wounded unarmed demonstrators in Fallujah, sparking the savage insurgency. He's survived carjackings and missile attacks, watched mothers weep over the skeletons of sons dragged from mass graves and joined mercenaries flying crates of guns out of Baghdad. Hughes has been to every major troublespot in Iraq in a dozen visits, mixing with the SAS, British mercenaries and ordinary Iraqis; in "Road Trip To Hell", he tells their stories with wit and irreverence in a very readable style. He admits he's no expert on the Middle East - 'I wanted to call this book "Clueless in Gaza",' he writes, 'but George W Bush rarely invades places with potential for witty literary allusion' - but he has a fine eye for detail and black humour and gives a unique insight into a terrible, crazy war.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
As an ex-squaddie, I was unsure about what to expect from this book, but I thought it was excellent - really well written and informative.
Until I'd read this book I'd had only sensationalist tabloid news stories upon which to base my opinions, as far as what is actually going on out there is concerned. But the author, Chris Hughes, has been pretty much on the case of Iraq since the September 11 attacks.
His affection for the place and its people is obvious, as it is, too, for the squaddies and other characters he mixes with. It was fascinating to see how journalists operate in these places and to get a reporters-eye view of what is actually going on out there.
Some of it is horrific, if you want to bury your head in the sand (no pun intended) this book is not for you. That said, humour runs through it - I found Hughes funny - dry, but without the cynicism. I liked the banter and wind-ups between the reporters, Iraqis and squaddies.
We've been flooded with Al Jazeera, BBC, CNN and the rest, for the past three and a half years, each, one feels, with their own agendas; but the overriding feeling I was left with, after reading Road Trip To Hell, was that it had the ring of truth to it. He doesn't tell us how to feel or what to think, just how it is - and all done in a very readable style
Until I'd read this book I'd had only sensationalist tabloid news stories upon which to base my opinions, as far as what is actually going on out there is concerned. But the author, Chris Hughes, has been pretty much on the case of Iraq since the September 11 attacks.
His affection for the place and its people is obvious, as it is, too, for the squaddies and other characters he mixes with. It was fascinating to see how journalists operate in these places and to get a reporters-eye view of what is actually going on out there.
Some of it is horrific, if you want to bury your head in the sand (no pun intended) this book is not for you. That said, humour runs through it - I found Hughes funny - dry, but without the cynicism. I liked the banter and wind-ups between the reporters, Iraqis and squaddies.
We've been flooded with Al Jazeera, BBC, CNN and the rest, for the past three and a half years, each, one feels, with their own agendas; but the overriding feeling I was left with, after reading Road Trip To Hell, was that it had the ring of truth to it. He doesn't tell us how to feel or what to think, just how it is - and all done in a very readable style
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a fascinating book.
As an ex-serviceman who worked as a security contractor in Baghdad for six months in 2004, I was always frustrated that, amongst the hours of news footage and acres of press that were churned out by the world's media, an accurate and impartial picture of circumstances and events there never really emerged. The sheer diversity and scale of suffering as well as the hopes and aspirations of the ordinary Iraqis and 'occupying' forces alike never came across in sufficient depth or accuracy to provide the avid viewers and readers around the world with a true understanding of what was really happening in post-war Iraq.
Chris Hughes succeeds where the television images and newspaper stories failed, succinctly capturing the atmosphere and conditions in a way that accurately reflects what everybody, Iraqi and 'liberator' alike, faced during that time. He clearly manages to convey the moments of gut-wrenching fear when dangerous situations develop without warning, the outrageously morbid humour that emerges amongst the kind of people whose professions regularly throw them into such circumstances (soldiers, ex-soldiers and journalists, for example - though not necessarily in that order) and the underlying day to day life of the Iraqis that continued unabated, despite the havoc being wreaked around them.
The most important thing that struck me about this book was that it has been written by a normal, fallible person, unconcerned with portraying himself, his profession or his government as paragons of politically correct thought and deed. He chooses instead to lay it all out in front of the reader, warts and all, and allow the reader to make of it what he will. This comes across admirably in his honest treatment of subjects such as the goldfish-like attention span and petty rivalries of tabloid journalism, the atrocities committed by the various protagonists, the differences in attitude and professionalism between the British and American forces and the prevalent political orientation of the time. Recklessly honest in fact!
There is no condescension, no veneer of self-righteousness and no soft soap. Instead there is a sometimes moving, sometimes shocking, sometimes uplifting but always eminently readable account of one journalist's personal experiences in perhaps the most dangerous place on earth at that time.
Chris Hughes, released from the constraints of tabloid journalism, has an easy, flowing style that encompasses gentle humour laced with occasional biting wit in the face of horrific and terrifying events. Yet throughout the book he maintains a touching empathy with the people of Iraq and their plight.
Whatever your views on the legality or morality of the war, if you only ever read one book about post-conflict Iraq, read this one.
As an ex-serviceman who worked as a security contractor in Baghdad for six months in 2004, I was always frustrated that, amongst the hours of news footage and acres of press that were churned out by the world's media, an accurate and impartial picture of circumstances and events there never really emerged. The sheer diversity and scale of suffering as well as the hopes and aspirations of the ordinary Iraqis and 'occupying' forces alike never came across in sufficient depth or accuracy to provide the avid viewers and readers around the world with a true understanding of what was really happening in post-war Iraq.
Chris Hughes succeeds where the television images and newspaper stories failed, succinctly capturing the atmosphere and conditions in a way that accurately reflects what everybody, Iraqi and 'liberator' alike, faced during that time. He clearly manages to convey the moments of gut-wrenching fear when dangerous situations develop without warning, the outrageously morbid humour that emerges amongst the kind of people whose professions regularly throw them into such circumstances (soldiers, ex-soldiers and journalists, for example - though not necessarily in that order) and the underlying day to day life of the Iraqis that continued unabated, despite the havoc being wreaked around them.
The most important thing that struck me about this book was that it has been written by a normal, fallible person, unconcerned with portraying himself, his profession or his government as paragons of politically correct thought and deed. He chooses instead to lay it all out in front of the reader, warts and all, and allow the reader to make of it what he will. This comes across admirably in his honest treatment of subjects such as the goldfish-like attention span and petty rivalries of tabloid journalism, the atrocities committed by the various protagonists, the differences in attitude and professionalism between the British and American forces and the prevalent political orientation of the time. Recklessly honest in fact!
There is no condescension, no veneer of self-righteousness and no soft soap. Instead there is a sometimes moving, sometimes shocking, sometimes uplifting but always eminently readable account of one journalist's personal experiences in perhaps the most dangerous place on earth at that time.
Chris Hughes, released from the constraints of tabloid journalism, has an easy, flowing style that encompasses gentle humour laced with occasional biting wit in the face of horrific and terrifying events. Yet throughout the book he maintains a touching empathy with the people of Iraq and their plight.
Whatever your views on the legality or morality of the war, if you only ever read one book about post-conflict Iraq, read this one.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is a very good description of what happens behind the scene and what is a war still means in the 21st century, TV pictures do not create any emotion anymore but reading how he survives as journalist in warzones, how he shares some moments of life with Iraqis as they go trough the horror of war clearly sends a strong message to the reader.
The tone of the book is perfect, very dry sense of humour for some chapters, more emotional sometimes, clearly the author has a strong opinion about the war in "eye-raq" as yanks say but it is an obvious one after what he has seen there and it seems clear these events had a large impact on his vision of life so he shares it with talent.
The tone of the book is perfect, very dry sense of humour for some chapters, more emotional sometimes, clearly the author has a strong opinion about the war in "eye-raq" as yanks say but it is an obvious one after what he has seen there and it seems clear these events had a large impact on his vision of life so he shares it with talent.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
No real surprises
This book was interesting but really, with so much coverage of the Iraq war from so many different sources I don't think the author actually adds anything. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Sam Whittam
Sally Chaplin
It's not exactly chick lit, so when I received this book for Christmas I was a bit disappointed. Warfare, a tabloid hack and all of it taking place in a country I know little... Read more
Published on 18 Jan 2007 by Mrs. Sj Chaplin
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