Long Shot

February 1, 2019

In this autobiography, set mostly in the fall of 2014, Iran-born Kurdish journalist Azad describes being swept up in the chaotic events of the Syrian civil war as it spread into his home region of Rojava and its chief city of Kobanî. Azad relays how he became a sniper for Kurdish forces opposing ISIS, recounting in impressive detail his grim work as he fought from house to house, street to street, and, at times, room to room against ISIS troops besieging Kobanî. Azad's tale is not for the fainthearted, as he painfully relates through his own work what war is at its most basic level: death and carnage. For Americans who live comfortably in safe dwellings, Azad's story demonstrates that for many in the Middle East, there is little safety and comfort. VERDICT A remarkable account of a devastating, ongoing conflict; for most collections.--Ed Goedeken, Iowa State Univ. Lib., Ames

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2019
A gritty account of street combat against the ruthless fighters of the Islamic State group.In clear, thoughtful prose, Azad presents the experiences of many who responded to the jihadi threat in the Middle East. The author volunteered to join the Kurdish resistance against the Islamic State group in Rojava, a region that declared autonomy in the Syrian civil war, becoming an unlikely bulwark against extremism, especially considering their collective decision-making. "In Kobani," he writes, "between September 2014 and January 2015, two thousand of our men and women stopped ISIS' twelve thousand. Six months later, we pushed all the jihadis out of Rojava. Our defeat of ISIS set in motion their collapse." The narrative alternates between the campaign for the town of Kobani and recollections of Azad's upbringing, during which his progressive family experienced the territorial conflicts and aggression that have long bedeviled the Kurdish people. Although disillusioned with Iranian rule, Azad was obligated to serve in the military, from which he deserted in 2002, ultimately receiving asylum in the U.K. and learning English. Despite enjoying the West's openness and opportunity, nearly a decade later he felt compelled to return. "Since my arrival in England," he writes, "I had abandoned my purpose." Azad's small militia gradually secured Kobani despite numerous setbacks. They were aided by coalition air strikes against IS fighters, who were known for routinely committing atrocities. The flexibility of Kurdish defenders--they were able to move the small unit of snipers where most needed--allowed them to gradually seize the military initiative even though many volunteers did not return. "So many of my friends had died," writes the author, "that I had acquired a new, unwanted duty: to survive, to keep their memories alive." His ruminative prose reflects the unforgiving chaos of close-quarters battle between ruthless enemies, and he coolly describes the sniper's isolated, time-consuming experience of combat.A propulsive memoir that captures the grim reality of small-scale conflict and reveals the fragmented politics of the Middle East today.

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Starred review from January 1, 2019
This memoir by a Kurdish sharpshooter, written under his movement name of Azad, about his participation on the battlefield of Kobani is simply outstanding. The Islamic State had been conquering and pillaging with impunity up to their attack on this autonomous Kurdish region of Syria during that country's civil war in 2014. Kurdish volunteer militia, both men and women, among them deadly snipers, stopped the ISIS advance and beat them back, house by house, even though they were outnumbered almost six to one. Azad brings the hellish experience of war to these pages in great detail as he shares his belief in the Kurdish revolutionary cause of gender equality, freedom, and democracy. It is this vision of a free and independent Kurdish homeland that helped sustain Azad and his comrades against the evil of ISIS and the horrors of war. He intersperses tales of his personal journey from his birthplace in Iran to England and back to Kurdistan in brief chapters between the day-to-day combat accounts. These asides are valuable components of Azad's identity, as is his discovery of the revolutionary teachings of the Kurdish intellectual known as Apo. Azad's powerful story goes far beyond news reports and will fascinate those interested in military history, current events, or the craft of sharpshooting.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)