Not a war story, a human story

Blood Brothers: Among the Soldiers of Ward 57
by Michael Weisskopf

Each of us transforms as we pass through life. In various instances we find ourselves not recognizing our current self or the past, struggling to reconcile the two. Though for the fortunate, this is a gradual process with ample time to process.

In Blood Brothers, Michael Weisskopf presents a quartet of men violently forced to find new identities after suffering amputation related to their experiences in Iraq. Each struggles not only with the loss of his limb(s), but also with what that loss means in regards to being a man, a soldier, a husband and a lover. One member of this ad hoc collection of amputees is Weisskopf himself, who lost a hand to a grenade tossed into his humvee while reporting on soldiers in Iraq.

Mr. Weisskopf presents a candid exploration of his and the other men's experiences from the shattering moments of their injuries to their slow, excruciating steps towards recovery and a newly defined normalcy. He also examines his definition of heroism and tries to reconcile it with his and the others' experiences.

This is a story told plainly and simply without fanfare, movie score or parade. This is not a book about agenda or commentary on war, but instead a simple, compelling and heartwrenching tale of four men struggling and surviving. This isn't a war story, it's a human story.

Mr. Weisskopf had given us a difficult, but beautiful gift.

-- J. Croff