SUNRISE+OVER+FALLUJAH



= SETTING =
 * This book takes place in the middle east in 2003. The story starts off with all of the troops that were sent from american military bases over to kuwait including the main character “Birdy”. **

= IRAQ = (Google Images)

= KUWAIT = (Google Images)

= BREIF SUMMARY =
 * This story explains in detail about one soldiers experiences throughout the campaign in Iraq, codename “Operation Iraqi Freedom”. This character is in the civil affairs unit of the army. Their objective is to make good relations with the indigenous population of iraq. Although they are not a combat unit and they are tailing behind the third battalion of the Army, there are still some instances in which “birdy” and his squad-mates come across hostile enemy contact. **

media type="youtube" key="W78ayvOCQ0Q" width="419" height="346"media type="youtube" key="KC3PmOSzymM" width="419" height="346" Video 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KC3PmOSzymM Video 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W78ayvOCQ0Q
 * Book Trailer **

= THEMES =
 * One common theme in the book is courage. Courage is constantly coming up in the book even in the smallest ways. For instance when their humvee got stuck in mud alongside the road it must have taken great courage to get out of their vehicle like they did when there were civilians very close to them. this was dangerous because in iraq some combatants were dressed as civilians. **

= CONNECTIONS =


 * This book connects to the real world because the main events that have taken place in the book had actually happened in real life. even though all of the small details are probably not true there were still groups of the army that were in civil affairs. As a matter of fact the Civil Affairs were just as important if not more important than the combat units that we had going through Iraq. **

= = = BACKGROUND ON THE AUTHOR = [|Walter Dean Myers Interview]
 * Walter Dean Myers was born o **** n August 12, 1937, in Martinsburg ****, West Virginia. His given name at birth was Walter Milton Myers, but when he was young he was given to **** a man in Harlem named Herbert Dean. He doesn’t know why his parents gave him away but he was raised by Herbert and his wife, Florence. As a child, Walter’s life revolved around the neighborhoo **** d and church guided him. He claims that the neighborhood protected him, and the church Walter was smart, but he didn’t do well in school so he joined the army on his 17th birthday. As a child **** Walter loved to play basketball and to write so whe **** n he dropped out of high schoo **** l, one of his teachers told him to never stop writing; advice that he took. He began writing at night about the teen years of his li **** fe, something that he still doe **** s. **

= FAVORITE QUOTES = "I reminded myself of the mission in Iraq. I was defending America from its enemies, removing weapons on mass destruction from Iraq, and building a democracy. If the jerks drinking tea didn't appreciate that, I didn't care (Myers 62)." This is a quote from Birdy, who is talking about what he feels like while he is on a tour through a town. People are looking at him oddly, some even daring him to shoot them. He had to remind himself of what the true reason for the war was.

"When you kill a camel, it is better to cut off the body than the head, if you cut off the head, then the camel doesn't know what he it (Myers 92)." This is a quote by Saddam Hussein's cousin in the novel. It explains how when you get rid of the leader of somethings, there are still people who want to follow the same ideas, even without the leader. However if you can get people to stop believing in the idea, then you can stop it.

= GENRE =
 * Realistic fiction - The events that occur in the novel did not happen directly to the main character, but the events of the story are based off of stories that soldiers who were really in the war tell. **

= ROUND AND FLAT CHARACTER ANALYSIS =


 * Robin Perry (aka. Birdy) - A teenager from New York City who joins the army instead of becoming a businessman like his father. He feels like he is following in his uncles footsteps who fought in the Vietnam War. He is fighting for the civil affairs unit, which deals with keeping the local people of Iraq happy and on the side of the Americans. He is nicknamed Birdy by another soldier in his unit. **


 * Uncle Ritchie - Robin's uncle who he sends letters to throughout the novel, about his experiences, and how Robin now understands what Uncle Ritchie went through in Vietnam. **


 * Charles Jones (aka. Jonesy) - He is Birdy's best friend throughout the novel. He was a boost to the moral of the unit, and was very good at helping the locals. He dreamed of going home and opening a blues bar, because of his enjoyment of singing the blues. **


 * Marla - She is a women from Robin's unit, and is very strong. She acts as a secondary leader for the unit, unofficially, but she is someone that everyone can trust. No matter what happens she stays strong and helps the others through it. **


 * Captain Coles - Coles is the captain of Birdy's civil affairs unit. He is the person who all the missions and orders come through for the unit. He is very wise and understands what its like for the Iraqis being in the middle of a war. He is also very good at spotting trouble, and who the enemy actually is. **