Love My Rifle More Than You

Updated Saturday 10 May, 2008 12:19 PM | Headlines | Discussion Forum | International Edition

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Love My Rifle More Than You

(Kayla Williams)

There is a joke, we are informed, that goes around in the American Military; what’s the difference between a bitch and a slut? The answer? A slut will sleep with anyone; a bitch will sleep with anyone, but you. One assumes, given the remainder of the book’s content, that the person telling the joke was a man. Kayla informs us, right at the start of the book, that she has to remind herself that she is not a slut…

It is hard to review this book properly, but basics first. Kayla Williams – like the more famous Jessica Lynch – was a female US Army soldier deployed to Iraq. She served as an interpreter – she makes various interesting comments on Arab culture, along with some interesting background notes on her previous boyfriend, a Palestinian – for various American units operating within Iraq, as well as garrison duty in small outposts. In the process of her trip, she learns much more about Iraq…and almost has a nervous breakdown.

In most places, the book is well-written, with problems that could have come from any other occupation, from bitchy co-workers to sexual harassment by some male soldiers, mostly men who have been deprived of any other sexual contact in Iraq. Kayla tells us how a woman in an army unit can be pretty much a queen for a year, or she can keep herself to herself; a middle ground apparently doesn’t exist. What is much harder to do is feel any real sympathy for Kayla herself; half the time, she comes over as bitchy, rather than sympathetic. It is hard to draw up any real link between Kayla, who, as flesh and blood, should have more to her than just a stereotype, and the reader, myself. It’s also hard to understand, at times, why she joined the army.

I won’t say, here, that I have experience. My sum total of military experience is almost zero. At the same time, I have met plenty of soldiers and most of them had a good reason to be in the army. Pride in themselves, pride in their units, a determination to seek excitement, a desire to try something new, a desire, even, to kill…so what is her motivation?

A more interesting point is that Kayla is willing to discuss some matters openly, including torture and the way that some people act when offered power over their fellow men. Facts are discussed openly and freely, including some of her own experiences with being offered such power, but at the same time there are subjects she seems not to want to discuss. If the book was intended to help her heal, it doesn’t always make it easier by refusing to discuss certain matters…although I could be completely wrong. Overall, though, the book is fascinating and well worth a read.

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