"In Pumpkinflowers: A Soldier's Story Mr. Friedman has written a top-notch account of this under-analyzed war, persuasively arguing that it heralded a new style of combat in the Middle East, though no one knew it at the time." --Jennifer Senior, New York Times "A haunting yet wry tale of young people at war, cursed by political forces beyond their control, that can stand alongside the best narrative nonfiction coming out of Afghanistan and Iraq."  -- Kirkus Reviews , starred review "Remarkably educational and heartfelt: Friedman's experiences provide a critical historical perspective on the changing climate of war in the Middle East, shifting from short official conflicts into longer unwinnable wars full of guerilla tactics and the deliberate creation of media narratives and images. His lyrical writing, attention to detail, and personal honesty draw the reader into empathy along with understanding. Friedman's memoir deserves wide readership."  -- Publishers Weekly , starred review   "Fast and engaging. A compelling war memoir containing elements of terror, observation, boredom, and grim (at times absurd) humor.

This is an excellent read."  -- Library Journal , starred review   "A compelling narrative, freighted with explosive geopolitical implications."  -- Booklist , starred review   "Pumpkinflowers  is a stunning achievement, a beautifully written account of a young soldier's experience in Israel's endless war with Lebanon. Evocative, emotionally wrenching and yet clear-eyed and dispassionate, Matti Friedman's haunting war memoir reminds one of Michael Herr's unforgettable Vietnam memoir,  Dispatches.  It too is destined to become a classic text on the absurdities of war."  -- Kai Bird, Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer and  New York Times  bestselling author of  The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames   "Poignant and fascinating . Matti Friedman tells a war story with a journalist's rigor and eye for detail and a poet's touch. This book about a 'forgotten' war manages to be lyrical, graceful and deeply evocative even when tackling the harshest subjects imaginable.

The author of The Aleppo Codex has given us another important and thoughtful work."  --Lucette Lagnado, author of The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit and The Arrogant Years   " Pumpkinflowers  is both an historical jigsaw puzzle and an examination of Israel's fraught national identity. Friedman recounts an almost forgotten moment in Israel's long entanglement with her neighbors, managing to illuminate the confusion at the heart of the conflict as well as chillingly echo America's own slide into prolonged wars in the Middle East."  -- Siobhan Fallon, author of  You Know When the Men Are Gone   "Who knew that a story about forgotten boys fighting a forgotten war in a forgotten corner of Lebanon could teach us such universal human truths? Matti Friedman's requiem to youth and family and soldiering hits the mark to which all of us aspire. This book broke my heart."  --Brian Castner, author of The Long Walk   "Inspiring, heartbreaking, illuminating. Matti Friedman's brilliant account of a forgotten war seen through the lens of a simple soldier is at once a coming of age story and an essential chronicle about how the 21st century was born."   -- Yossi Klein Halevi, author of  Like Dreamers  .