A 2014 New York Times Book Review Notable Book and Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year A Boston Globe 'Best Nonfiction of 2014' (Kate Tuttle’s pick)NPR; Staff Pick: 'The Dark Side; Science and Society Eye Opening Reads Categories'Amazon; 'Best Books of 2014: Nonfiction' Imagine that a terrorist tried to kill you. If you could face him again; on your terms; what would you do?The True American tells the story of Raisuddin Bhuiyan; a Bangladesh Air Force officer who dreams of immigrating to America and working in technology. But days after 9/11; an avowed "American terrorist" named Mark Stroman; seeking revenge; walks into the Dallas minimart where Bhuiyan has found temporary work and shoots him; maiming and nearly killing him. Two other victims; at other gas stations; aren’t so lucky; dying at once. The True American traces the making of these two men; Stroman and Bhuiyan; and of their fateful encounter. It follows them as they rebuild shattered lives―one striving on Death Row to become a better man; the other to heal and pull himself up from the lowest rung on the ladder of an unfamiliar country.Ten years after the shooting; an Islamic pilgrimage seeds in Bhuiyan a strange idea: if he is ever to be whole; he must reenter Stroman's life. He longs to confront Stroman and speak to him face to face about the attack that changed their lives. Bhuiyan publicly forgives Stroman; in the name of his religion and its notion of mercy. Then he wages a legal and public-relations campaign; against the State of Texas and Governor Rick Perry; to have his attacker spared from the death penalty.Ranging from Texas's juvenile justice system to the swirling crowd of pilgrims at the Hajj in Mecca; from a biker bar to an immigrant mosque in Dallas; from young military cadets in Bangladesh to elite paratroopers in Israel; from a wealthy household of chicken importers in Karachi; Pakistan; to the sober residences of Brownwood; Texas; The True American is a rich; colorful; profoundly moving exploration of the American dream in its many dimensions. Ultimately it tells a story about our love-hate relationship with immigrants; about the encounter of Islam and the West; about how―or whether―we choose what we become.
#650723 in Books 2003-04Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 1.02 x 6.36 x 9.34l; #File Name: 0393057763255 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Great addition to the literatureBy Lehigh History StudentTrafalgar was a brutal conflict that changed the course of the wars on the continent. With the destruction of the French and Spanish fleet the British had control over the seas. This book talks about the prolonged conflict and the mission that Napoleon hoped to send his fleet on in order to deceive the British. Only Nelson's luck allowed the plot to unravel and the British to defeat the French. This is a good book once you have started to read about Trafalgar but I would not recommend starting with it. This book leaves out some events that occurred in the background but sheds new light on other aspects of the conflict. Overall it is well worth a read.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. This is an excellent book especially for research and writing. I enjoyed reading this very much and would recommend this.By GThis is an excellent book especially for research and writing. I enjoyed reading this very much and would recommend this0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Pocock's lessons on War and PeaceBy Christopher KellyIt seems particularly timely now; when issues of war and peace are being debated over kitchen tables as well as in Congress and Parliaments; to remember how it was that Lord Nelson managed to win a peace after the battle of Copenhagen. The Terror before Trafalgar by the late Tom Pocock tells this story very well.An alliance misnamed "The Armed Neutrality of the North" combined the forces of Russia (led by the half-mad Tsar Paul I); Prussia; Sweden and Denmark. This group was allied with Napoleonic France against Britain and placed an embargo to British shipping throughout the Baltic ports. This alliance represented a mortal threat to British power as Scandinavia was the principal source of timber and hemp for rope and canvas -- critical components of the Royal Navy.On April 2; 1801 Vice Admiral Lord Nelson led a fleet of twelve ships of the line of the Royal Navy in action against the Danes at the battle of Copenhagen. He was second-in-command to Admiral Lord Hyde Parker. Nelson violated the conventional naval tactics of the day by leading his ships against the Danish ships AND the battery of a fixed fortification (Tre Kroner). At one stage of the battle; it appeared that the British were taking heavy damage from the tenacious Danish forces when Lord Parker sent a signal ordering Nelson to make a tactical withdrawal. Lord Nelson raised a telescope to his blind eye and declared; "I really do not see the signal."At a critical moment that afternoon Lord Nelson penned a note to the Danes seeking a temporary truce:"To the Brothers of Englishmen; the Danes'Lord Nelson has directions to spare Denmark when she is no longer resisting; but if firing is continued on the part of Denmark; Lord Nelson will be obliged to set on fire the floating batteries he has taken; without having the power of saving the brave Danes who have defended them."After being pounded with broadsides from the British 74-gun ships of the line; the Danes agreed to a temporary truce and the crisis passed. In spite of Parker's caution; Lord Nelson and the Royal Navy prevailed that day capturing 12 Danish ships; sinking two; blowing up another and setting much of Copenhagen ablaze. The butcher's bill for the battle of Copenhagen was 350 British dead; about 1;600 Danes killed and 2;000 captured.Lord Nelson came "ashore to deliver the ultimatum to Crown Prince Frederick of Denmark in person. His deep-lined face and spare; one-armed figure; hung with stars and orders; attracted curious stares when he accompanied his host to the banqueting hall. As he climbed the wide; wooden staircase Nelson turned to a British officer beside him and; in the hearing of the Crown Prince; say; 'Though I have only one eye; I see all this will burn very well.' In the negotiations that followed dinner; the Crown Prince agreed to Nelson's initial terms: a truce of fourteen weeks." Source: The Terror Before Trafalgar."Though I have only one eye; I see all this will burn very well."Unbeknownst to Nelson or the Danes; on March 24 (before the battle of Copenhagen was fought) Tsar Paul I had been assassinated in Russia by his own courtiers with the contrivance of his son and heir who promptly became Tsar Alexander I. Russian foreign policy immediately veered from being pro-French to becoming pro-British. Why is it that the Russians are so reliably unreliable; so dependably undependable? This regime change and Nelson's victory at Copenhagen led to the collapse of The Armed Neutrality of the North. Nelson's combination of force; flattery; credible threats and raw courage had won the peace for Britain.If you enjoyed The Terror Before Trafalgar you will also like America Invades America Invades: How We've Invaded or been Militarily Involved with almost Every Country on Earth by Kelly / Laycock and Italy Invades
