Issam M. Jameel

Before tackling this book I made the mistake of reading reviews which criticized it, or rather the author and his family’s viewpoint of the situation in Iraq. Many of these were negative in their criticisms, which seemed very defensive rather than offering critique or review. In the end I kept that in mind as I read. These defensive feelings I believe came from how the author’s reactions and his siblings reacted toward American occupation. I also kept in mind that this book came to fruition from the author’s journal of his journey back to Iraq from Sydney. The book had many elements I can imagine did not change, and I appreciate the author’s decision to structure the book this way, because I have read similar non-fiction accounts which thin out the authors subjective feelings and thus in this book we get a candid look at just that. The book also depicts the interactions between a family where some are still in Iraq and others have chosen to go abroad and how they dealt with each others' choices. It is wonderful to get a realistic account of how Iraqi families are affected by the war and their country's strife. In sum, the book is a very brief glimpse into the life of an Iraqi family but a story readers could benefit and possibly empathize with.… (plus d'informations)

War memoirs, be they written from the perspective of a participant (e.g., Philip Caputo's A Rumor of War), a journalist (e.g., Robert Fisk's Pity the Nation), a humanitarian/witness (e.g., Chris Giannou's much under-appreciated Besieged: A Doctor's Story of Life and Death in Beirut) or, as is the case with Jameel's Iraq Through a Bullet Hole, that of an exile returned, can prove to be far more telling and compelling in terms of dissecting, analyzing and ultimately understanding the human condition than works of virtually any other nature.

Unfortunately, in this case, Jameel's narrative fails to impress. A stranger in his own home, Jameel remains disconnected from the conflict and his community; while the author superficially recognizes and addresses this disconnection, he never really explore it with precision or in great depth. In the end, the premise, a slice of life of an exile and convert in a time of war, is promising, but the work itself is underwhelming, at best.… (plus d'informations)

Issam Jameel’s Iraq Through a Bullet Hole is an informal, depressing account of an Iraqi exile’s visit to Iraq in 2005, after an enforced absence of 12 years. He visits family and friends in Baghdad and Kirkuk, and has to deal with the privations and dangers of a country ravaged by war.
Everyone has their own view of the rights and wrongs of the US invasion, but what struck me most was the complete disconnect between the aims of the US and the aspirations of the ordinary Iraqis who had to live through the war years. Survival was the main goal, with the interaction of Shia, Sunni and Kurds contributing to the general mayhem, and the presence of the US troops being viewed mainly as a dangerous irrelevance.
Issam Jameel is an established playwright, and this is his first book in English, so his narrative does not flow as well as it might. But it is a useful addition to the story of the Iraq war.… (plus d'informations)