Description
Book SynopsisWinner of the Nautilus Book Award and the Military Writers Society of America Gold Medal. A young combat veteran hides in his closet under a pile of clothes on bad nights. Another, home for five days, can’t figure out how to talk to his wife. And a commander’s spouse recounts the soul-draining effect of attending nearly one hundred memorial services… When therapist Elizabeth Heaney left her private practice to counsel military service members and their families, she came face-to-face with unheard-of struggles and fears. Emotions run deeply—and often silently—in the hearts of combat veterans in this eye-opening portrait of the complex, nuanced lives of service personnel, who return from battling the enemy and grapple with readjusting to civilian life. Presenting the soldiers’ stories—told in their own words—as well as her own story of change, Heaney offers an intimate perspective, not of war itself but of its emotional aftermath. Some of these stories scrape the bone; others are hopeful, even comical. Every one reveals the sacrifices of those on the front lines and the courage, grace, and honor with which they serve.
Trade Review“In this deeply moving book, Elizabeth Heaney gives voice to war veterans and their families who otherwise would keep painfully hidden what she recognizes as their ‘terrible knowledge.’ Listening to their stories is an essential first step toward healing the wounds of 15 years of war.” —David Wood, Pulitzer Prize-winning correspondent and author of the forthcoming book What Have We Done: the Moral Injury of our Longest Wars “The Honor Was Mine is not a book about war; it’s a book about humanity—an enlightening, powerful treatise of one person’s struggle to help a generation of warriors and their families as they face the effects of a battle that doesn’t end when they come home. If you’ve ever worn the uniform, are family of those who have or will, or simply a human being who needs to understand the price of war and those who sacrifice so much to help, read this book. The Honor Was Mine will help you understand.” —Danny Johnson, author of The Last Road Home and a Distinguished Flying Cross recipient “Elizabeth Heaney writes with humility and sincere compassion about the men and women who are continuing to pay the price for America’s wars. She paints a moving portrait of the challenges they face and the triumphs, sometimes small but never minor, that come from doing hard emotional work. She writes from a place of genuine empathy, never condescension. This book is sure to become an essential building block in the bridge across the military-civilian divide.” —LCDR Jerri Bell, USN (Ret.)
