KEYNOTE? Of interest to all armed forces personnel, with important research and information on how to survive coming home This book is crafted around soldiers' personal descriptions of their war experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq, culminating in life-altering injuries to the brain and psyche, along with the equally dramatic story of their recoveries. An irony of America's 21st century wars has been that while our combat medical and medevac capabilities have grown enormously, the nature of many of America's soldiers' wounds have undergone a subtle change. Men and women who survive the thick of combat, including repeated concussion blasts, increasingly present a difficult-to-detect kind of injury, no less debilitating than wounds from bullets or shrapnel. Hidden Battles on Unseen Fronts documents the increasing cases of physical or mental brain trauma among U.S. vets that are a result of more soldiers surviving flesh wounds in battle. The book includes interviews with troops and family members and essays by internationally known mental health professionals, veterans' advocates, and members of the Veterans Administration and Department of Defence, all of whom work to support those affected. From combat soldiers and even amputees, who discover that their greatest disability is their head, to support personnel such as Devore Barlowe, who returns from Iraq with severe PTSD, but still juggles her job and the single mothering of two young children, the voices of these warriors reinforce the book's over-arching theme of resilience and courage. REVIEWS: ?An invaluable volume for vets and their families, and yet another important cry for the proper treatment of the nation's defenders on the field and at home.??Publisher's Weekly ", , , heartrending accounts of wounded Soldiers and Marines make it a most worthwhile read." ?US Naval Institute Proceedings ?These inspirational stories demonstrate the successful use of resources by motivated families and individuals. However, they also highlight the difficulties that soldiers and their families face in gaining access to resources against seemingly insurmountable odds, and the economic hardships that characterize life with TBI and PTSD. . . . Recommended.??CHOICE AUTHOR Celia Straus is author of best-seller Prayers On My Pillow, and a film writer and producer who has been writing about the war experiences of service members and their families since 2003. ILLUSTRATIONS 16 pages of photos
