Under the Wire

September 30, 2013
News reporter Marie Colvin, an American war correspondent for The Sunday Times in London, died in February 2012 in a Syrian attack. Conroy, a British photojournalist, was with Colvin on assignment at the time of her death and recounts those final weeks in her life, delivering a paean to his dear friend, a remarkable woman whose "reputation as a hard-arsed war reporterâone of the toughest, best and bravest of our timeâpreceded her." Her decades-long career landed her across the globe in places such as East Timor, Chechnya, Baghdad and Sri Lanka. She had a "superb sense of the absurd" as well as an "easy-going manner and effortless charm." Most of all, Colvin believed strongly in the power and responsibility of journalists to hold governments to account and to " witness to the plight of ordinary civiliansâ¦." Writing also of his preparations for Syria and his own experiences once there, Conroy highlights the emotional toll war-zone reporting can take on journalists' families. He describes ways he and his colleagues navigated battlegrounds, "walking a tightrope between life and death on a windy day." Conroy's visceral account is provides readers with a greater appreciation for the work of war correspondents and insight into the sacrifices they make.

October 1, 2013
In February 2012, American foreign-war correspondent Marie Colvin was killed by artillery fire in Syria. Her death, along with that of French photographer R'mi Ochlik, became international news as officials wrangled over retrieving their bodies and struggled to evacuate other journalists injured in the attack. Conroy, Colvin's photographer, was with her and was nearly killed as well. In this tense, hour-by-hour account, he takes readers back to Syria and the events that led to their being behind the battle lines. He also recalls an earlier assignment with Colvin in Libya, providing insight into the stress war correspondents live under in their quest for truth. Conroy pulls no punches, but he clearly admired Colvin and it's easy to understand why. Her relentless determination to document the suffering of civilians trapped within wars they cannot control is the stuff of legend. We can help, she explains at one point, we can show the world; we can bear witness. Colvin was a significant voice in international journalism and will be sorely missed, and Conroy's account is unforgettable.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)