I Lost My Love in Bagdad

"I LOST MY LOVE IN BAGHDAD" IS AN EXTRAORDINARILY GRIPPING AND INFORMATIVE ACCOUNT OF THE CHAOS INSIDE THE GREEN ZONE BY "NEWSWEEK`S" YOUNGEST WAR CORRESPONDENT, WHOSE FIANCE WAS KILLED DURING AN ATTEMPTED KIDNAPPING. AT AGE TWENTY-FIVE, MICHAEL HASTINGS ARRIVED IN BAGHDAD TO COVER THE WAR IN IRAQ FOR "NEWSWEEK," HE HAD AT HIS DISPOSAL A LITTLE HEMINGWAY ROMANTICISM AND ALL THE APPARATUS OF A TWENTY-FIRST-CENTURY REPORTER -- CELL PHONES, HIGH-SPEED INTERNET ACCESS, DIGITAL VIDEO CAMERAS, FIXERS, DRIVERS, GUARDS, TRANSLATORS. IN STARTLING DETAIL, HE DESCRIBES THE CHAOS, THE VIOLENCE, THE NEVER-ENDING THREATS OF BOMB AND MORTAR ATTACKS, THE FRONT LINES THAT CAN BE A HALF MILE FROM THE GREEN ZONE, THAT CAN BE ANYWHERE. THIS IS A NEW KIND OF WAR: PRIVATE SECURITY COMPANIES FOLLOW THEIR OWN RULES OR LACK THEREOF; SOLDIERS IN COMBAT GET INSTANT MESSAGES FROM THEIR GIRLFRIENDS AND FAMILIES; MEMBERS OF THE LOUISIANA NATIONAL GUARD WATCH KATRINA`S DECIMATION OF THEIR CITY ON A TV IN THE BARRACKS. BACK IN NEW YORK, HASTINGS HAD FALLEN IN LOVE WITH ANDI PARHAMOVICH, A YOUNG IDEALIST WHO WORKED FOR AIR AMERICA. A YEAR INTO THEIR COURTSHIP, ANDI FOLLOWED MICHAEL TO IRAQ, TAKING A JOB WITH THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTE. THEIR WAR-ZONE ROMANCE IS ANOTHER WINDOW INTO LIFE IN BAGHDAD. THEY CALL EACH OTHER PET NAMES; THEY MAKE PLANS FOR THE FUTURE; THEY FIGHT, USUALLY BECAUSE EACH IS FEARFUL FOR THE OTHER`S SAFETY; AND THEY TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET TOGETHER, WHEN IT MEANS PUTTING BODYGUARDS AND DRIVERS IN JEOPARDY. THEN ANDI GOES ON A DANGEROUS MISSION FOR HER NEW EMPLOYER -- A MEETING AT THE IRAQI ISLAMIC PARTY HEADQUARTERS THAT ENDS IN CATASTROPHE. SEARING, UNFLINCHING, AND REVELATORY, "I LOST MY LOVE IN BAGHDAD" IS BOTH A RAW, BRAVE, BRILLIANTLY OBSERVED ACCOUNT OF THE WAR AND A HEARTBREAKING STORY OF ONE LIFE LOST TO IT.