final fight streetwise school girl enemy

Birdy agrees, but understands that the issue is complicated and frustrating. Sergeant Harris, for one, believes as a matter of principle that anyone who is hurt deserves treatment. One of the most unsettling aspects of Sunrise Over Fallujah is that the medical teams are technically forbidden from giving aid to suspected enemy combatants. The irony of trying to make friends after dropping bombs on a city does not escape the members of Birdy’s unit.

For the most part, the Iraqi civilians adopt a wait and see approach, and are naturally wary of American soldiers offering to help.

Knowing friend from enemy becomes a nearly impossible task, and the penalty for failure is steep. At the same time, the people of Iraq are split along political and tribal lines. The various military units that Birdy interacts with each have distinct agendas, some of which appear almost at odds with each other. The image of the puzzle, however, is unclear. An Uncertain Purposeįor a young adult just out of high school, Birdy understands remarkably well that he is simply one piece of a large puzzle. Behind the disapproval, of course, Birdy’s father certainly fears that he will never see his son again. For him, it probably feels like a bad memory is repeating itself. Birdy writes letters to Uncle Richie that discuss the combat and his feelings much more personally than to his mother or father.Īs a reader, it is easy to imagine that Birdy’s father disliked the fact that his brother volunteered to Vietnam. Birdy has a strong relationship with his Uncle Richie, but his father wanted him to enroll in college rather than the army. A Generational Conflictīirdy struggles both with his own internal doubts and the unspoken disapproval of his father. However, the bonds they form are built on absolute trust and dedication. They realize that back in the United States, they likely would not move in the same circles. Captain Coles, the unit’s leader, keeps a cool head during crisis situations, a quality that Birdy admires.īirdy and his comrades know that their friendships are tenuous, borne out of fear and isolation as much as anything else. He develops a crush on Marla Kennedy, a streetwise girl from Long Island. Jonesy, a blues man from Georgia, becomes Birdy’s best friend. Near the end of the book they are used as pawns to solidify the position of a Special Forces unit near Iran.īirdy makes battlefield friends with several members of his unit. They are called away on a variety of “extracurricular” activities, engaging in more and more combat operations. Birdy is part of a Civil Affairs unit, charged with generating goodwill between the Iraqi people and the victorious coalition military.Īs the weeks pass, the mission of his unit becomes muddled. Not only are there soldiers facing the literal, deadly conflict of warfare, there is the internal, doubt-riddled turmoil of the protagonist, Robin “Birdy” Perry. In discussing the conflict of the book, Sunrise Over Fallujah stands out because of the multi-layered nature of the struggle.

The reader witnesses scenes from the war in Iraq through Birdy’s eyes as he gradually becomes more disillusioned with the whole mission. Iraq in 2003 is the setting, during the initial days and weeks of the American-led coalition’s fight to oust Saddam Hussein. Nicknamed “Birdy” by his brothers and sisters in arms, Robin forges meaningful relationships despite the horror and pain all around him. Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers tells the story of Robin Perry, one ordinary serviceman facing extraordinary circumstances.

Final fight streetwise school girl enemy