Understanding the U.S. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan

Beth Bailey is Foundation Professor at the University of Kansas, where she is a member of the Department of History and Director of the Military and Society Center. Her most recent book is America's Army: Making the All-Volunteer Force. The recipient of numerous prizes and fellowships for her scholarship, she has won two Distinguished Writing Awards from the Army Historical Foundation.Richard H. Immerman is Professor of History, Edward Buthusiem Distinguished Faculty Fellow, and Marvin Wachman Director of the Center for the Study of Force and Diplomacy at Temple University and the Francis W. De Serio Chair of Strategic and Theater Intelligence at the Army War College. His most recent book is The Hidden Hand: A Brief History of the CIA. From 2007–2009 he served as Assistant Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Analytic Integrity.

"A truly exceptional and immensely important contribution to the literature on U.S. foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Bailey and Immerman have compiled an all-star cast to help us better grasp the causes, conduct, and, most significantly, consequences of the recent American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. This collection of fine essays will be essential reading for years to come." - Gregory A. Daddis,Academy Professor, West Point "An impressive compendium that furthers the intellectual effort to come to grips with the roots and legacies of America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and that provides a wide spectrum of perspectives on how and why the world has changed so dramatically since 11 September 2001." - General David H. Petraeus,U.S. Army (Ret) "Today, we are engaged in wrenching debates about what to do in Syria and Iraq. This volume provides indispensable background for assessing the costs and benefits, the risks and opportunities of engaging in 'low intensity' conflicts with elusive adversaries in places in which we are unfamiliar and among people who regard us with suspicion. This is an important collection of essays to analyze and debate as we face momentous decisions." - Melvyn P. Leffler,Edward Stettinius Professor of American History, University of Virginia "Bailey and Immermans edited collection of essays on the countrys two most recent wars is simply outstandingThere have been numerous recent accounts of both wars, but this new book brings the two conflicts together in a way not done before. For both established scholars and informed general readers, this collection is an excellent source of thoughtful and learned assessments of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. A mandatory contribution to the current literature on the topic. Summing Up: Essential." (Choice)