1991-2003

The author, writing under a pseudonym, describes his experiences after being forced to join Saddam Hussein's army to fight against America in 2003, argues that life for the Iraqi people is no better since the fall of the Baathist government, and tells of his life after leaving the military.

The author describes America's strategy in Iraq maintaining that the Bush administration failed to fully understand the ethnic and religious divisions within the country that has resulted in increased violence and civil war.

An inside look at Iraq under the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein that reviews his rise to power, foreign relations, life in Iraq while he ruled, the Iraq War, and other related topics.

Zainab Salbi was eleven years old when her father was chosen to serve as Saddam Hussein's personal pilot, her family often forced to spend weekends with Saddam. As a palace insider, she offers a glimpse of life under a dictator and provides an intimate portrait of the man she was taught to call "uncle".