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After the Blast: An Australian officer in Iraq and Afghanistan Paperback – 24 June 2015

by Garth Callender (Author)

4.4 128 ratings

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A very Australian story of heroism and healing. In 2004 Garth Callender, a junior cavalry officer, was deployed to Iraq. He quickly found his feet leading convoys of armoured vehicles through the streets of Baghdad and into the desert beyond. But one morning his crew was targeted in a roadside bomb attack. Garth became Australia's first serious casualty in the war. After recovering from his injuries, Garth returned to Iraq in 2006 as second-in-command of the Australian Army's security detachment in Baghdad. He found a city in the grip of a rising insurgency. His unit had to contend with missile attacks, suicide bombers and the death by misadventure of one of their own, Private Jake Kovco. Determined to prevent the kinds of bomb attacks that left him scarred, Garth volunteered once more in 2009 - to lead a weapons intelligence team in Afghanistan. He was helicoptered to blast zones in the aftermath of attacks, and worked to identify the insurgent bomb-makers responsible. Revealing, moving, funny and full of drama, Garth Callender's story is one of a kind. 'Garth Callender, a wounded veteran, tells his story of multiple combat tours with acid intensity. Stark, brutal and honest, After the Blast exposes the ghastly business of modern warfare. It is an uncompromising account that will shock some readers. Raw emotions, fears, loves, frustrations and anger are unflinchingly recalled. This book provides a rare insight to the harsh realities of Australia's contemporary conflicts.' Major General John Cantwell, AO, DSC, Author of Exit Wounds 'Garth Callender shows you what soldiers really think - and, more importantly, feel.' James Brown, author of Anzac's Long Shadow

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Print length

256 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Black Inc
Publication date

24 June 2015
Dimensions

15.6 x 1.45 x 23.39 cm
ISBN-10

1863957383
ISBN-13

978-1863957380
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Publisher ‏ : ‎ Black Inc (24 June 2015)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1863957383
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1863957380
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.6 x 1.45 x 23.39 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 195,838 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 104 in Australian & New Zealand Indigenous Biographies
- 153 in Iraq War Biographies
- 156 in History of Afghanistan

Customer Reviews:
4.4 128 ratings

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4.4 out of 5

128 global ratings

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Mandy Walkden-Brown

Terrific read.

Reviewed in Australia on 1 December 2018

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Well written, Insightful and at times quite chilling depiction of life as a deployed officer of the Australian Army in the modern war zones of both Iraq and Afghanistan.

The SECDET teams established in Afghanistan to respond to IED attacks and gather information from the detonation and formulate patterns was fascinating.

Realistic, down-to-earth depiction. A stark reminder of what a Soldier's life is like. An Officer's at least.

Also reminds one of how important a soldier's support network, spouse, family, friends and community is and that those close to the men and women of the world's defence forces enlist alongside their loved one. I can imagine little that would be more stressful.

Wish more Defence Force personnel wrote of their experience in modern war zones or Peace Keeping missions. It would give us more insight into what they have to deal with on a day-by-day basis. Also really underlines why it's so difficult for soldiers moving back home after spending time in such adrenaline charged conditions.

Kudos too to Defence for allowing the occasional piece of constructive criticism that Major Callender imparts to stand unredacted.

Reviewed in Australia on 6 November 2018

Great respect: that’s what this well written and highly professional account of Australian soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan evokes. For civilians who know so little of the places and conditions involved, it felt like a privilege to be given this honest and straightforward insight. A genuinely humbling memoir.

Reviewed in Australia on 12 January 2022

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Refreshing to read a book about Australia's involvement in the middle east that isn't centred around SOCOMD. It's a great book and gives a real insight into the pressures of working as an officer deployed with the ADF.

Reviewed in Australia on 5 September 2018

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I enjoyed this book and felt a lot of empathy for the author.

It must have been terrifying travelling through the desert without knowing what was going on.

It gives a great insight into a little known part of Australia’s involvement in the Gulf War.

Highly recommended.

Reviewed in Australia on 20 October 2015

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A very good read. Graphically recalling events.

Reviewed in Australia on 26 April 2020

Thank you for this great insight into the what it was really like in a modern war zone and the effects it has on a great Australian.
Thank you for your service and to your family also for understanding

Reviewed in Australia on 30 October 2018

Having a child that served in Iraq this opened my eyes to help me understand more of what he went through. Oh how I hate war!

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Raymond Ware

An insightful and intelligently written book

Reviewed in the United States on 22 September 2015

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A very insightful read, I have enormous respect for these brave humans who are prepared to put their lives in danger to protect the rest of us. Well written and easy for a non-Defence mind to understand.

Sherro58

An honest, well told memoir

Reviewed in the United States on 11 July 2015

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The author deals in a matter of fact manner with his experiences during two tour of Iraq and one in Afghanistan. His straightforward style, devoid of embellishment, gives the reader a very realistic experience of the challenges of the asymmetric nature of these campaigns. With disarming modesty he describes coping with serious wounds, volunteering to go to Iraq a second time and then his quite different, and one senses, cathartic role in Afghanistan.

I read this in one sitting - an absorbing tale and highly recommended.

sharlene kadar

Really enjoyed this book

Reviewed in the United States on 9 May 2016

Verified Purchase

Excellent

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After the Blast: An Australian officer in Iraq and Afghanistan Paperback – 24 June 2015

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From the brand

Best Sellers

History

Non-Fiction

Award Winners

Memoir

Biography

Young Adult

Growing Up

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