ITEMS OF INTEREST
BOOK OF THE MONTH
Brothers in Arms Real War.
True Friends. Unlikely Heroes.
Geraint Jones
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 978-1-529000-40-5
Hardback: 337 Pages
RRP: £18.99
GRIPPING AND raw, this account of one man’s tour in Afghanistan is brutally honest. It is an eyeopening insight to what the author, Geraint ‘Gez’ Jones, experienced alongside his muchloved comrades in the face of ferocious insurgent action.
Faking IED strikes to draw fire, urgent medical evacuations, the ever-present and real threat of mines and roadside bombs, these became the norm and Gez and his comrades were blooded. There was death and injury, but no matter how sharp the fighting was, the hardest struggle was yet to come. The battle at home, the war for the mind; this took the most toll.
A close friend’s breakdown during a mortar attack left Gez and the group feeling shaken and vulnerable – more so than any physical injury. Later, he recalls the different kind of grit and determination it took to provide evidence at an inquest in the presence of the family of a fallen comrade.
One passage in particular stands out in illustrating this internal battle. Gez comes across Afghan children playing with a de…
