The lies that led to the war in Iraq

 

Rare book. Mint condition. PB. 448pp. $25 including postage anywhere in Australia.

'Curveball' was the codename given to the mysterious defector whose first-hand evidence on Saddam's weapons of mass destruction proved vital in giving the Bush administration the excuse it needed to invade Iraq.

The only problem - this 'evidence' was nothing more than a pack of lies.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bob Drogin has written the definitive account of the most notorious intelligence fiasco in US history, revealing how squabbling, arrogance and incompetence within the various intelligence agencies allowed one man's lies to spread higher and higher up the chain of authority, eventually reaching the White House itself.

Breathlessly paced and shockingly revelatory, Curveball is an explosive true-life account of how honour and dishonesty amongst spies led to the UK and the US becoming embroiled in a catastrophic war.

An account of Australia's secret war against ISIS in Iraq

 

Mint condition. PB. 352pp. $25 including postage anywhere in Australia

A brand new book. More information here and here.

From the best-selling author of The Commando and Born to Fight comes a fascinating investigation of modern warfare that combines methodical research and the fast-paced action of battle with the personal stories of the combatants on both sides of the line.

Taking us from the suburbs of western Sydney and Australia's military army bases, to the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq, this is a remarkable book that reveals the as-yet untold story of the battle for Mosul and the secret involvement of Australians on both sides of the war - both our Commandos and Australian ISIS fighters.

Mosul details the rise of ISIS influence in Australia, the Iran and Australia allegiance to fight Daesh and shows what led up to the battle and the ramifications that are still being felt at home - by our soldiers and the victims of that war.

Ben Mckelvey has extraordinary access to SOOCOMD/2COMMANDO units - the most decorated modern Australian fighting unit; ISOF - Iraq's premier fighters; Yazidis women who had been slaves of ISIS; returned Commandos and their devastated families, and explains how petty criminals in Western Sydney became some of our worst jihadists who took their families to Iraq to fight for ISIS. Focusing on the stories of key figures like 2 Commando's Ian Turner and one of Australia's most infamous Jihadist, Khaled Sharrouf, Mckelvey takes us the heart of this brutal battle and brings history to life in an honest, thoughtful and compelling examination of modern warfare.

A must-read for anyone interested in modern military history.

About the author

Ben Mckelvey is a freelance writer and editor from Sydney who has filed for Good Weekend, GQ, Voyeur, Rolling Stone, The Bulletin, Cosmo, Cleo and the Age and West Australian newspapers. Ben's previous gigs have included editing Sports&Style and Juice magazines, and working at the Sydney Morning Herald as a Senior Feature Writer. He has been embedded with the ADF in East Timor and Iraq, and has worked independently in Iran and Afghanistan.

SOLD Life in an Iraqi village

 

SOLD

Very good condition. PB. 368pp. $25 including postage anywhere in Australia.

A delightful, well-written, and vastly informative ethnographic study, this is an account of Fernea's two-year stay in a tiny rural village in Iraq, where she assumed the dress and sheltered life of a harem woman. This volume gives a unique insight into a part of the Midddle Eastern life seldom seen by the West.

"A most enjoyable book abouut [Muslim women]--simple, dignified, human, colorful, sad and humble as the life they lead." --Muhsin Mahdi, Jewett Professor of Arabic Literature, Harvard Unversity.