The Fifth Act America's End in Afghanistan

Powerful testimony to what went wrong despite the bravery of American military personnel and our Afghan Allies . . . Ackerman s tales are compelling and heartfelt; this title will stand the test of time as a warning against further military misadventures. Booklist

The American betrayal of Afghanistan took twenty years. Elliot Ackerman, a participant and witness, tells the story with unsparing honesty in this intensely personal chronicle. George Packer, author of The Assassins Gate: America in Iraq and The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America

[A] haunting memoir . . . a harrowing portrait of chaos and collapse . . . Writing in evocative, gripping prose . . . Ackerman provides a clear-eyed indictment of America s failures in Afghanistan while paying homage to the soldiers who fought there. The result is a moving elegy for a blighted struggle. Publishers Weekly
 
Making sense of chaos is never easy, but this powerful book does much to explain why America s debacle in Afghanistan ended the way it did . . . Courage and folly, dedication and tragedy: Ackerman deftly captures all dimensions of a protracted foreign policy failure . . . A must-read account of the end of America s longest war. Kirkus (starred review)