Reader Reviews
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Editorial Reviews and Endorsements for Prayer at Rumayla
Read the Prayer at Rumayla message thread on
Desert-Storm.com, with several reader reviews!
I could hear the pings of small arms rounds hitting the sides of the tank and could smell the sharp aroma of the round discharging downrange- Brian Shulz, Gulf War veteran
A raw, honest look at both the war and the aftereffects.... does not cut one politically correct corner- Joffi, Shadowmarch Message Board
The ending is stunning- Sarra Wright.
Sheehan-Miles makes one big departure from the genre (to say what would be a plot spoiler), and that gives the book a freshness and realism that are unexpected in the modern road novel. - Robert P. Beveridge
Like reliving the war all over again- Thomas2000, Desert-Storm.com
A wonderful piece of work- Steven Manchester, MA
Keeps a reader engrossed from the start- Chris Kornkven, WI
The men and women who actually fight those wars know the real deal- Jeffrey Hughes, VA
April 4, 2002
Brian Shultz, Gulf War Veteran
As a former member of C-4-64 Armor and M1 crewman, this book accurately depicts the nightmares faced during the Gulf war: many of those nightmares candy-coated for public view every night on CNN. But for the veterans who actually lived the life, Sheehan-Miles' book describes with dead-on accuracy the life and feel of an American armor soldier during the Gulf War. Reading the book I could picture myself on the back deck of the M1 again, feel the grit in my teeth, hair, clothes...everywhere. I could feel myself riding low in the loaders hatch, constantly traversing to scour the surrounding environment for the enemy. I could hear the pings of small arms rounds hitting the sides of the tank and could smell the sharp aroma of the round discharging downrange. The character, Chet Brown, is easy to relate to, although it is easy to dislike him in an odd sense. I wanted nothing more than to hold him down physically and urge him to communicate his thoughts and feelings, good and horrific. But as Chet so accurately relates in the book, "How do you answer a question like that?" (Referring to the oft-asked question, "What was it like?").
A quick read and a little raw in parts, but nonetheless a wonderful book about the emotional baggage that many vets brought home with them from Iraq.
March 21, 2002
Joffi,Shadowmarch Message Board
Prayer at Rumayla by Charles Sheehan-Miles Review
The author is a Gulf War Vet. I am a Gulf War Vet. Thus, the perspective of this review is from that viewpoint and is likely to differ from that of the average reader.
Let me start by giving a short overview of the author's background. Since the war, he has suffered some of the ill physical and psychological effects that many veterans have faced. He has overcome most of them. This influenced him to become actively involved in grassroots efforts concerning vets. He served for a time as Executive Director of one such organization which has helped me greatly called the National Gulf War Resource Center.
In other words, this is a deeply personal book for him which is one reason why it took him ten years to finish. And the personal aspect of the book shows. Much of the main character's background parallels his own. What doesn't is a reflection of people he knew, people he worked with during and after the war.
There is little bad I can say about this book. It is a raw, honest look at both the war and the aftereffects of it on many. It does not gloss over things, does not cut one politically correct corner. It may be a work fiction, but only in the sense that main character is fictional. The events happened. The toll it took on the main character happened to too many veterans, while in country and upon coming home.
In short, this is a novel of truth, told passionately, told honestly, told from the first person point of view of one who was hit with the full negative effect such an experience can produce.
The military terminology may not be clear to those who haven't served; much of it could have been defined earlier for the unknowing reader. However, the veteran and military brat will smile wryly at realistic portrayal of that lifestyle.
It is not a novel for the faint of heart or those would rather see what they want to see rather than what is there. Or those who would rather ignore what others see and feel.
At only 213 pages of story text, it is a quick read. The writing style enhances that quickness; one is taken along page after page. I could not put it down until it was finished. Except in places where the prose forced me to stop and reflect on my own experiences.
I highly recommend this book. From the view of a Gulf Vet and from the view of one who recognizes the powerful story and style on its own merits.
Original review posted here: Shadowmarch Message Board
March 13, 2002
Sarra Wright, Back in the Barn Mailing List
Prayer at Rumayla by Charles Sheehan-Miles
Xlibris Corporation 2001
This novel fictionalizes but doesn't sugar coat a subject that most of us would rather not experience first hand. In fact, if the only knowledge of the Gulf War that you had was from watching CNN where they packaged it up all pretty and nice for the home audience, you're going to wonder what the author is talking about. Really though, it's less the story of the actual war, and more the story of how one man deals with the changes in himself because of the things he has seen and done.
Protagonist Chet Brown, a tank loader and (to-be) decorated hero, returns home from Iraq. All he wants is to finally get back to the US safely, take the leave he's been waiting for since he enlisted, go home to the bosom of his family, and get married to the woman he thinks is waiting for him. So much for fairy tales and happy endings. He arrives on his fiancée's doorstep but the surprise is on him when his (ex) best friend answers the door wearing Chet's bathrobe, and he soon discovers that nothing else is the way he imagined, least of all himself. Back on base, he finds that wartime military duty is significantly different than peacetime military duty.
The middle chapters of the book deal with Chet's month long leave, and what he does when he finds himself adrift. He wanders from Fort Stewart, Georgia to New York and back. Part of his journey is his search for himself, and part is his search for someone who cares enough not to ask, how it was or did he kill anyone. I'm not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV, and it doesn't spell it out, but I'm thinking that part of Chet's problems stem from PTSD. His memories and dreams are very vivid re-enactments of combat, and his (over) reactions to minor incidents and situations are characteristic. The ending is stunning, not for one second did I see it coming. It wasn't at all out of character, just a surprise to me, since I was thinking in a different direction. All in all, I enjoyed the read, if not the knowledge that this story has large chunks drawn from real experiences.
March 7, 2002
Robert P. Beveridge, Back in the Barn Mailing List
Charles Sheehan-Miles, Prayer at Rumayla (Xlibris, 2001)
I had some trepidations before cracking the cover on this one; with a very few notable exceptions, I've never been much of one for war novels, which tend to either fall into the knee-jerk anti-war camp or the "sis-boom-bah rah-rah-rah" camp. Prayer at Rumayla leans towards the left side of the division, but prefers to let the images and events therein do its preaching, which already puts Sheehan-Miles ahead of 95% of the pack. Despite the book' s "A novel of the Gulf War" subtitle, this is more a case of the Gulf War being a driving force for the main character's actions after he's back in the U.S. after combat.
Chet Brown, a tank loader in the Gulf War, is home after a particularly nasty engagement in Iraq. While there, he had no real goals other than to get home; now that he's back, he keeps wondering if he can go back over. His dissatisfaction with his former life and the changes in both himself and those around him lead him to spend a month's leave traveling, rather than staying in Georgia, and the three central chapters of the novel (about half the book) recount Chet's trip to New York and back.
More than anything, this is a roadtrip novel, with the usual conventions of the genre. Chet finds out about himself by meeting a series of others who reflect various parts of his personality (the obvious comparison is to On the Road here, but I found my mind drawn to various post-Vietnam novels, especially those of Lucius Shepard and J. K. Flowers rather than the land-of-Camelot stuff Kerouac was on about). However, Sheehan-Miles makes one big departure from the genre (to say what would be a plot spoiler), and that gives the book a freshness and realism that are unexpected in the modern road novel. The book is unpredictable because it plays on the predictability of its genre, and the (lack of) twist at the end is all the more powerful for not bowing to convention.
My only real problems with the book have nothing to do with the narrative itself. There are a rash of proofreading errors and more than one case where an editor should have slapped the author upside the head for sentence construction problems. Neither is overly common, however (one crops up every ten pages or so), and so the distraction value is kept to a minimum.
A promising first novel. Hopefully we'll be seeing more. *** ½
March 3, 2002
Thomas2000, Desert-Storm.com Message Board
From the time that I began reading, there was no way I was able to put it down. I could relate with many things that Chet went through, and it was like reliving the war all over again as I read. There are many parts of the war that I try not to remember, but the book opened my eyes to the fact that we did what we had to do, when we had to do it, and from that point on, those memories will be with us for life.
February 5, 2002
Steve Manchester, Massachusetts
KUDOS to Charles Sheehan-Miles on a wonderful piece of work.
Prayer At Rumayla was a trip I didn't expect to take, but was real glad I did. The journey was fast paced, with real-life scenarios that will undoubtedly make readers think quite differently about Operation Desert Storm, and the war's brutal after-effects! The varying problems that the author brought to light will serve as a great example for those who dare to leap into the mind and heart of a suffering veteran.
As a Gulf War Vet---- I thank Charles for writing such a powerful work. CONGRATULATIONS!
Note: Steve Manchester is the author of The Unexpected Storm: The Gulf War Legacy(Hellgate Press, October 2000)
January 2002
Chris A. Kornkven, Wisconsin
This is a stunning and totally unpredictable book written in a style that keeps a reader engrossed from the start, with a shocking ending. I began reading it, and shortly found I was 180 pages into the story.
The book is actually two very good stories in one, brilliantly written by the author to immediately wrench and hold your attention. A story of what happens when young soldiers are committed to battle, the inseparable bonding between all sharing the experience, how it differently affects those involved, and sometimes the aftermath.
I truly like a writing style in which the author provides enough detail to put oneself in the position of the main character, yet not so much as to become boring. I also thoroughly enjoyed how the character's thought process worked....going from one thought to the next that is so totally unexpected....and many times in a humorous direction.
I highly recommend this very good book!
January 2002
Jeffrey P. Hughes, Virginia
War is sometimes necessary. But it is never as glorious as we are often led to believe by our political leadership and by a press which oftentimes tends to be one-sided. Particularly a war as swift and "clean" as the Gulf War was lends itself to quick stereotyping. But the men and women who actually fight those wars know the real deal.
And so here it is for the rest of us. Prayer at Rumayla is a novel that tells it like it was, from an author who was there. Charles Sheehan-Miles was a member of a tank crew which took part in that famous "left hook" through the Iraqi desert. Written from a soldier's view, it tells some of the stuff that the news reports never did. And it does it within the universal theme of war's tragic consequences.
I would have preferred that the book be longer, with deeper characterization. But this is a good effort. Recommended...