Monday, December 10, 2018

Book Review: Girl in Green

Girl in Green by Derek B. Miller

This book is a fictionalized tale of true events. It is very well done and a good sort of "mystery" though it is not classified in the mystery genre, I don't think. It involves a journalist and a soldier in Iraq. Some of the policy and descriptions of various warring groups gets pretty complicated, but I didn't let that bother me. The story is very well told and intriguing, though saddens me.

It's painfully clear that America (as usual) went blundering into the region of Iraq, Afghanistan, etc., without a clear understanding of the cultures, languages, reasons for clashes, and why a number of techniques other than bulldozing our way in might have worked better. We are such cowboys. It is very disheartening.

The girl in green shows up a couple of times, an innocent bystander amidst warring factions. Desire to "save" her drives the two main characters. The story plays out from there, with lots of complications and interesting twists and turns.

I like Miller's writing. This is the second book of his I have read. There's usually an odd character (after all, Miller is Norwegian - there's my stereotype), but it's not so odd as to be unbelievable. He has a good grasp on what makes humans tick.
P.S. I found out that Miller was born in USA but lives in Norway, so is he American or Norwegian? Whatever he is, he has a good understanding of both cultures.




No comments: