Greetings from Afghanistan, send more ammo : dispatches from Taliban country / Benjamin Tupper.

Abstract: “Captain Benjamin Tupper spent a year in Afghanistan in an Embedded Training Team, tasked with training, leading in combat, and mentoring the Afghan Army to victory against the brutal Taliban. Writing and recording from a remote outpost, Tupper's dispatches were posted on the blog The Sandbox and broadcast on NPR, bringing vivid snapshots of America's longest ongoing war to a wide audience back home. Here, he takes us inside the intricacies of the war, opening up a unique and multifaceted view of both Afghan culture and the daily life of an American soldier. From the rush of gunfire to surreal, euphoric moments of cross-cultural understanding, this emotional and thought-provoking narrative is rich with humor, eloquence and contradiction. Deeply personal and darkly funny, Tupper illuminates the challenges of the war, bringing to life both the mundane and the extraordinary and seeking a way forward”—from publisher.

Contents: Introduction : ETTs : the tip of the counterinsurgency spear—Section 1 : War stories—Embrace the suck—ETTs : the Taliban's high-value target—The flip-flop army—Donkeys and grenades : first combat—26 June : surrounded—27 June : a clear shot—Decency—Mines—Pink mist—Night letters—The weapon with no bullets—A cut throat—Rockets—Chance—An orange-bearded man—The Garden of Eden Massacre (almost)—Operation Iron Rage—Section 2 : Laughter is our best defense—Training for Iraq—The range—Self-preservation vs. combat street cred—Of "POO" and pop-tarts—This nickname has a nice ring to it—The "monkey and the typewriter" allegory—How to win the war—Fobbits, part 1 : an introduction—Fobbits, part 2 : creature comforts—Fobbits, part 3 : manufacturing danger—Missing in action : Jack, Bud, and Jim—When disobeying an order is just common sense—Section 3 : Culture shock—Inshallah—Dial a date—A summer road trip—We have all the watches, they have all the time—Informational detritus from the war zone—A world without women—Afghan porn—Women of Kyrgyzstan—Arab vacation day—Dogs of war—Welcome to Paktika—The sun never shines on Paktika—Poem—A warm-blooded and solar-powered enemy—My holiday appeal—Winter paralysis—Midnight winter Visitors—Jitters—Section 4 : Farewell, fallen comrades—Death of a war eagle—Fading away—Exhale—A shrug and a smile—September 11 coma—R.I.P. SSG Phaneuf—Pieces in the snow—Ski goes home—Alive in your mind's eye—Fayez—Fallen comrade ceremony—Section 5 : Home—The "new normal"—The heat in dreams—Not the reunion I was hoping for—Vandy—Operation Iron Rage revisited—PTSD : a blog as therapy—My alive day—Bronze Stars for broken souls—The end—Epilogue: Big Brother is watching, and he seems to be enjoying it.