“Superb . . . Dr. Metz’s Iraq and the Evolution of American Strategy is a book for which we have been waiting. This is a landmark text.”—From the Foreword by Colin S. Gray
“A tour-de-force assessment of America's long conflict with, and misunderstanding of, Iraq. Steven Metz displays a dazzling grasp of the nature of strategy and America's way of war, the challenges of insurgency and counterinsurgency, and the strengths and weaknesses of the George W. Bush White House--and how they all combined to produce failure in Iraq. Metz's book dissects the root causes of that failure more comprehensively and convincingly than any other work.”—Jeffrey Record, professor of strategy, Air War College, and author of Beating Goliath: Why Insurgencies Win
“If you are looking for another superficial screed about Iraq told by a partisan hack and designed to reinforce your pre-existing biases, then stay as far away from this book as possible. Steve Metz has produced a thoughtful, well-reasoned work of true scholarship. He explains how the development of American strategy shaped our experiences with Iraq, and how our experiences in Iraq shaped the American military. You may not agree with everything in this book, but you cannot help being enlightened and challenged by it.”—Kenneth M. Pollack, former director for Persian Gulf Affairs, National Security Council, and author of A Path Out of the Desert: A Grand Strategy for America in the Middle East
“Two institutions failed the American people in the run-up to the ongoing war in Iraq. Neither the Congress nor the media provided oversight of the Executive Branch, which is constitutionally required of the first institution and expected of the latter. As a consequence a fundamentally flawed strategy was implemented by an equally flawed military plan. The results have been tragic and costly. Dr. Steven Metz does our nation a great service by exploring the causes of this U.S. strategic debacle, one that may well exceed that of the Vietnam War. Recognizing a problem and its cause are the first steps in setting things right. In this book Dr. Metz identifies the problem, explains what caused it, and most importantly, shows us a better path for the future.”—Lt. Gen. Paul K. Van Riper, USMC (Ret.)
“Metz is as smart a thinker as they come. In Iraq and the Evolution of American Strategy, he closely analyzes how the past two decades of America’s conflict with (and then within) Iraq reveals a crucial shortcoming for a global power to have: doing poorly at both strategy development and implementation. Metz’s book is simultaneously a history and a valuable guidebook for developing better strategic paradigms in the future.”—P. W. Singer, director for the 21st Century Defense Initiative, The Brookings Institution
“This is a smart overview from one of our best strategic thinkers. Read it.”—Thomas E. Ricks, author of FIASCO: The American Military
