Targeted: Beirut

Thoughtful and poignant, Jack Carr and James M. Scott's Targeted: Beirut is an excellent work of scholarship.

Well-researched, it goes without saying, but I loved how the book focuses on everyone involved, from the Marines to President Reagan. What also sets it apart is the fact that it humanizes the casualties and the survivors. Once again, this work shows how the USA, and the rest of the Western world for that matter, never quite understood the intricacies of Islam and the various factions that came into play in Lebanon and the rest of the Middle East during that period. The Reagan administration, beset by infighting among top cabinet members regarding the Lebanese issue, is yet another example of America's doomed ventures in the Middle East over the years.

A compelling read that shines some light on one of the darkest days in the history of the US Marine Corps.

Here's the blurb:

The first in a new “authoritative, shocking” (Brad Meltzer, #1 New York Times bestselling author) nonfiction series examining the devastating terrorist attacks that changed the course of history from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jack Carr and Pulitzer Prize finalist James M. Scott, beginning with the 1983 Marine barracks bombing in Beirut.

1983: the United States Marine Corps experiences its greatest single-day loss of life since the Battle of Iwo Jima when a truck packed with explosives crashes into their headquarters and barracks in Beirut, Lebanon. This horrifying terrorist attack, which killed 241 servicemen, continues to influence US foreign policy and haunts the Marine Corps to this day.

Now, the full story is revealed as never before by Jack Carr and historian and Pulitzer Prize finalist James M. Scott with this “definitive, behind-the-scenes account of a mission and a fight that changed America” (Doug Stanton, #1 New York Times bestselling author). Based on comprehensive interviews with survivors, extensive military records, as well as personal letters, diaries, and photographs, this is “a masterwork of research and storytelling” (Peter Schweizer, #1 New York Times bestselling author).

For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.