Books about Mogadishu from Amazon.com

“No matter how skilled the writer of nonfiction, you are always getting the story secondhand Here’s a chance to go right to the source. . . . These men were there.”
–MARK BOWDEN (from the Foreword)

It started as a mission to capture a Somali warlord. It turned into a disastrous urban firefight and death-defying rescue operation that shocked the world and rattled a great nation. Now the 1993 battle for Mogadishu, Somalia–the incident that was the basis of the book and film Black Hawk Down–is remembered by the men who fought and survived it. Six of the best in our military recall their brutal experiences and brave contributions in these never-before-published, firstperson accounts.

“Operation Gothic Serpent,” by Matt Eversmann: As a “chalk” leader, Eversmann was part of the first group of Rangers to “fast rope” from the Black Hawk helicopters. It was his chalk that suffered the first casualty of the battle.

“Sua Sponte: Of Their Own Accord,” by Raleigh Cash: Responsible for controlling and directing fire support for the platoon, Cash entered the raging battle in the ground convoy sent to rescue his besieged brothers in arms.

“Through My Eyes,” by Mike Kurth: One of only two African Americans in the battle, Kurth confronted his buddies’ deaths, realizing that “the only people whom I had let get anywhere near me since I was a child were gone.”

“What Was Left Behind,” by John Belman: He roped into the biggest firefight of the battle and considers some of the mistakes that were made, such as using Black Hawk helicopters to provide sniper cover.

“Be Careful What You Wish For,” by Tim Wilkinson: He was one of the Air Force pararescuemen or PJs–the highly trained specialists for whom “That Others May Live” is no catchphrase but a credo–and sums up his incomprehensible courage as “just holding up my end of the deal on a bad day.”

“On Friendship and Firefights,” by Dan Schilling: As a combat controller, he was one of the original planners for the deployment of SOF forces to Mogadishu in the spring of 1993. During the battle, he survived the initial assault and carnage of the vehicle convoys only to return to the city to rescue his two closest friends, becoming, literally, “Last Out.”

With America’s withdrawal from Somalia an oft-cited incitement to Osama bin Laden, it is imperative to revisit this seminal military mission and learn its lessons from the men who were there and, amazingly, are still here.


From the Hardcover edition..
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The goal of the book is to educate those who would like to know what Somalia was to those who served there. Most of the veterans of operations there have quietly moved on with their lives after receiving little recognition for their service, while most in the general public only remember the negative aspects of what happened on a single day, 3 October 1993, forgetting the courage shown on that day, and the service of those who came before and after. Eyes Over Mogadishu brings the reader through the whole experience, from preparing for movement, deploying to Mogadishu, and then the return home.

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"Ranger, Ranger, you die Somalia!" shouted the enraged Somali voices surrounding Blackhawk helicopter pilot Michael J. Durant, his bird shot down by a well-placed rocket-propelled grenade. With his devastating injuries, Durant would be lucky to survive the night.

"Mike Durant...Mike Durant..." came the disembodied voice floating above the war-torn streets of Mogadishu, mixed in with the steady drone of a large U.S. Army helicopter. "Mike Durant...We will not leave without you!"

Piloting a U.S. Army Special Operations Blackhawk, Durant was shot down and captured on October 3, 1993, in the battle depicted in Mark Bowden's bestselling book Black Hawk Down. Durant became a prisoner of Somali warlord Mohammed Aidid -- the man responsible for prolonging starvation in his country by hijacking United Nations food shipments. U.S. policy makers had determined that capturing Aidid was the only way to restore order. The simple snatch-and-grab plan, named Operation Gothic Serpent, turned into the biggest U.S. Firefight since the Vietnam War.

Durant's experience as a prisoner in Somalia grew increasingly bizarre, crystallizing a clash of cultures by turns frightening, melancholy, hilarious, and strangely familiar. Revealing never-before-told stories with the incisive thought and emotion of one who was there, In the Company of Heroes is one man's unforgettable, true story of going to hell and making it back alive..
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Among America's clearest memories of ongoing conflict in Somalia will certainly be the swollen, bloodied face of helicopter pilot Michael Durant, displayed on the international television news reports after his capture in Mogadishu on October 3, 1993. While the failed mission leading to Durant's imprisonment captured the rage and anguish of the world, few Americans truly understood how many U.S. Army Ranger compatriots shared Durant's fortitude and courage there. Indeed, Durant was only one member of the elite Task Force Ranger Regiment deployed to apprehend Mohammed Farrah Aidid, Somailia's most powerful warlord on the fateful October day. Here is the little-known story of the 15 fierce, deadly hours of fighting that followed the Americans tightly calibrated attempt to target Aidid. Moment by moment, Mogahishu! recounts how this mission, intended to deflate the heart of Somali resistance, became instead a tragic showcase for the heroism and breathtaking self-sacrifice of the American servicement--and the catalyst of U.S. withdrawal of peacekeeping troops. Mogadishu! reveals while the operation produced on the most decorated military units in American history, it cost 18 of America's best-trained servicemen their lives. Using rare testimony from other military personnel, Kent DeLong offers the first complete account of how these Americans died, not for glory but for each other, far from their loved ones in a God-forsaken place called Mogadishu..
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Jeebleh is returning to Mogadiscio from New York for the first time in twenty years. It is not a nostalgia trip for him-Jeebleh's last residence here was a jail cell. And who could feel nostalgic for a city like this? The U.S. troops have recently come and gone, and the decimated city is ruled by clan warlords and patrolled by qaat-chewing gangs who shoot civilians to relieve their adolescent boredom.

Jeebleh is returning to visit his mother's grave and to settle her outstanding accounts-but more urgently, the youngest member of his oldest friend's family has been abducted. Though they have not seen each other in two decades, Jeebleh knows from their childhood that his friend-a virtual brother, who remained in Somalia when Jeebleh left-will need Jeebleh to step in. Jeebleh is determined to cut through the swirling violence and corruption to rescue the little girl-and, perhaps, a piece of his own identity.

Gripping, provocative, and revelatory, Links is the finest work yet from Farah, a novel that will secure his place in the international literary firmament and stand as a classic of modern world literature..
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For nearly two decades, and particularly since the civil war, Somali men, women, and sometimes even children without families fled the country in droves. Some sought refuge amongst established Somali communities in the Horn of Africa, the former colonial states of England, France, and Italy, and the Middle East. Others journeyed to new destinations. Today, Somali communities are found in nearly every corner of the world from small rural towns like Barron, Wisconsin and Lewiston, Maine in the United States, to cities like Johannesburg, Sydney, Helsinki, Minneapolis, and Toronto. Diasporic Somalis are just as likely to speak Afrikaans or Finnish as they are to speak Somali. This book represents the first attempt to map the social and cultural contours of the Somali diaspora in a global context. Using case studies from Somali communities in Africa, Europe, and North America, the contributors to this volume construct a global framework for studying the Somali diaspora. This framework simultaneously compares dispersed Somalis in different cultural, economic, political, and racial contexts, and captures the fluid, transnational context of the Somali diaspora. The central questions that guide this book are: How do these contexts inform the production and maintenance of Somali diaspora formation? Consequently, how do the making and remaking of diasporic identities affect local Somali communities, the global diaspora community, host societies as well as the homeland communities they left behind?.
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This digital document is an article from Infantry Magazine, published by Thomson Gale on November 1, 2004. The length of the article is 554 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The Battle of Mogadishu: Firsthand Accounts From the Men of Task Force Ranger.
Author: Youssef Aboul-Enein
Publication:Infantry Magazine (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 2004
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 93 Issue: 6 Page: 52(1)

Distributed by Thomson Gale.
Price: $5.95 [Notify me when price goes down.]

This digital document is an article from National Defense, published by National Defense Industrial Association on November 1, 2002. The length of the article is 1980 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Mogadishu hero says army aviators need more training.
Author: Roxana Tiron
Publication:National Defense (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 2002
Publisher: National Defense Industrial Association
Volume: 87 Issue: 588 Page: 56(2)

Distributed by Thomson Gale.
Price: $5.95 [Notify me when price goes down.]