"Inspired by Alexander Solzhenitsyn's novel One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, Taliban Safari describes a long, exhausting day in June of 2009, when US Army Major Paul Darling set off with two teams on a mission to track down and kill Taliban insurgents in the Zabul Province of southeastern Afghanistan. Darling describes the mundane realties of deployed life--waiting, heat, heavy gear, food--along with the challenges: gaining the trust of the...

In the tradition of "Black Hawk Down," The Good Soldiers takes an unforgettable look at the heroes and the ruined soldiers fighting in the Iraq War. "It was the last-chance moment of the war. In January 2007, President George W. Bush announced a new strategy for Iraq. It became known as "the surge." Among those called to carry it out were the young, optimistic army infantry soldiers of the 2-16, the battalion nicknamed the Rangers. About to head...