Generation Kill: Devil Dogs, Iceman, Captain America, and the New Face of American War

Generation Kill is the definitive cultural history of the invasion of Iraq, an honest account of war and the men who fight in it, and a damn good read.

Wright spent the invasion embedded with Bravo Company, First Marine Recon, and he mostly lets the men speak for themselves, liberally quoting their personal philosophies, reflections on battle, and back-and-forth bullshit. These vignettes are balanced by Wright’s personal reflections on being shot at, mortared, and taking part in what I can only describe as History’s Worst Roadtrip.

A little criticism and comparison. Wright occasionally flubs some technical military stuff (how mortars work, FLIR) which some people might find annoying. He gives more ‘screen-time’ to outspoken Marines who match his attitudes, like Espera and Reyes, than the quieter and more conservative southerners. This is just a month-long slice of the American military at the peak of its power and confidence, before the worst effects of the Long War took hold. Compared to the HBO miniseries, the book is better paced—war truly is long periods of boredom interspersed with absolute terror—and that makes for problematic TV. Generation Kill is generally easier to read and grasp than Fick’s One Bullet Away because Wright, like most of us, is an outsider to the Marines (not that Fick is a bad writer: he’s quite skilled, but Wright makes a living with the pen and there’s a clear difference), while at the same time being more sensationalized. Really though, there’s no reason not to check out all of these versions of the story.

The Marines of First Recon are depicted as supremely skilled killers eager to test themselves against the Ultimate. They’re ironic patriots, mocking the Marines’ indoctrination and moto BS while enthusiastically basing their identity around warrior machismo. The best of them balance cold-blooded sharpshooting with moral sensitivity. They keep going, despite nonsensical orders, no sleep, no supplies, and a mission that they didn’t train for.

Generation Kill is a great book, one that can only be described with the two most important words in the whole Marine Corps: Get some!