A WOMAN AT WAR by Molly Moore

 Finished We 9/23/20

This is one of my hardbacks that I don't know when I bought it and apparently had never read.

This is NOT a story of 'a woman in a man's world', but it's more of a blue print on what went down during Desert Shield and Desert Storm. It was only a three day war and thousands of  Iraqi soldiers surrendered during the first minutes of the attack. 

There is an excellent 'wrap-up' beginning on page 315.

Many military and government officials do not want reporters to be anywhere near the frontlines for fear of giving away the generals' battle plans. But, Molly reminded them that the generals on the frontlines were more than willing to get their plans 'on the record'. And, modern battles move so fast and the 'front' is so wide ranging that even if 'secret' information was released it would no longer be relevant. 

So much of the information that was gleaned from American intelligence agencies was just flat-out wrong. They over stated completely the strength of The Republican Guard and how many enemy soldiers were actually on the field of battle. Moore seems to believe that this was done for political reasons and none other. 

The biggest 'reveal' was that the 'new' battle plans were largely ineffective and tanks and 'boots on the ground' fighting is what carried the day. 

Communication was the biggest problem at the frontlines. During the battles generals had no idea what was going on....Just like Vietnam, WWII, and the Civil War. 

From the back cover of the book:

"During the Gulf War, most journalists were confined to media pools. But not Molly Moore, the senior military correspondent of The Washington Post. Moore was the only reporter to accompany a senior commanding general as he led his troops into battle in Kuwait. This is her eyewitness account of the war as she lived it by the side of the top Marine general, Walter E. Boomer. There has never been a book quite like Molly Moore's, for hers is the unique story of what a woman experienced inside the Gulf War military machine - in a male-dominated military amidst an Islamic culture in which women are on a level with the family pet. Molly Moore offers a detailed account of the buildup toward war in both Washington and the Gulf, and reveals the heroism as well as the calamity of the battlefield - the miscalculations, the failed communications, the distress and disarray among the troops and their officers. With an appealing combination of chilling authority and a warm understanding of the human dimensions of battle, she provides a frank and unprecedented view of the war planning councils as the action escalates. Here, too, are the tensions and exhilaration of daily life in a war zone - what it was like to wait for days for a gas mask when everyone else was well protected; how it felt to live in the desert, where, among other hazards, freezing winds made it impossible to take out a pair of contact lenses, and lack of privacy left women on duty with few choices about bathroom facilities. A Woman at War showcases as well the fresh and exciting new voice of Molly Moore herself, the first woman Pentagon correspondent in the history of The Washington Post. For its unusually candid and graphic depictionof men - and for the first time, women - in battle, A Woman at War will be highly valued and long remembered."