The Iran Iraq War 1980 1988

A good overview of a war that was never taught about in my high school. great photos and loved the portrait of a child soldier.

The "Essential Histories" series from Osprey could easily be compared to the Cliff Notes series. They'll give you a nice introduction to a topic you are not familiar with, but no real depth. Most volumns are under 100 pages; therefore, don't expect many "man in the trenches" stories. This volumn is a nice introduction to a recent war, and presented a bit better than most in the series.

I bought this book when it first came out before the current occupation of Iraq. Not only does it help explain some of the current situations now faced in Iraq, but it is perhaps one of the best Essential Histories written. Explaining in depth in the reasons for the war, and up to the use of childern by Iran in suicide offensives, the author is able to keep the reader interested and informed without overwhelming one with information. Osprey shows that one of its many talents is covering obscure wars (in this case for those of us in the west) for those who want a deeper understanding of how such seemingly unheard of conflicts affect the modern world.

As I write this review, the United States and its coalition partners have recently deposed Saddam Hussein. It looks as though a long occupation is about to begin and I wanted to learn more about Iraq and its recent history. I turned to this Osprey Essential History of the Iran Iraq War because I wanted a quick overview of this conflict.The book is 91 pages and is the typical Osprey sized paperback with plenty of pictures and maps. Without the maps and photos, the book is about 50-60 pages long and it took me about two hours to read. The War was approximately 8 years long and there were a million or more casualties. That is a lot of history to cram into this slim volume. To be able to do this, the author had to take the grand strategic view of the War. For those looking for nitty gritty of the War, this is not the book for you. There are no Angus McBride illustrations of T-72's or Iranian uniforms. This book tells its story from the lofty height of senior leaders and nation states.This book reminds me of one of those intense articles on history, economics and politics that one can find in a great magazine like the Economist. I own more than a 100 Osprey books and this is the best writing that I have ever come across in one of their books. Karsh's prose is economical and thought provoking. Having finished this book, I had to re-evaluate my understanding of both Saddam Hussein and the Ayatollah Khomeini. They are both much more complex characters than I had understood. This is an introductory book on the War and it has inspired me to go out and learn more about the conflict. Highly recommended and very timely.