Minefields of the Heart: A Mother's Stories of a Son at War

"Minefields of the Heart is very finely written. Because a mother's love is so overpowering, so singular in its focus, I had half-feared that this book would be a morass of melodrama. But Sue Diaz is a disciplined and careful writer, and this, ultimately, is where the power of her book comes from. She is spare where most writers would be mawkish, she is understated where most writers would be sentimental, and she understands that life, death, war, grief, gratitude, and the loss of innocence---hers and her son's---need no baroque writerly adornments,"---From the foreword by Jim Frederick, author of Black Hearts: One Platoon's Descent into Madness in Iraq's Triangle of Death

"Harrowing, hopeful, and beautifully written. Ernic Pyle meets Anne Lamott."---Sharon Bray, author of When Words Heal

"Minefields of the Heart is a brilliant. beautiful, and complelling book. Though intended specifically `for all who have served and those who love them,' the book should be read by any American who wants to understand what war really does to those who endure and to their families. As a bonus, the book is a real page-turner. You can't put it down until you finish it."---William P. Mahedy, author of Out of the Night: The Spiritual Journey of Vietnam Vets

"This is a book to break your heart, and to heal it. Diaz writes to and for her son, to and for the veterans she leads in writing workshops, The larger gift of this book is its generosity. allowing the reader to take the journey of a mother whose son carries the wounds of two deployments to Iraq. Minefields of the Heart teaches us what we might rather not know, but knowing, we are deeper and better human beings."---Pat Schneider, founder, Amherst Writers & Artists, and author of Writing Alone and with Others

"Minefields of the Heart is an accessible and well-told reflection on the impact of war on the families of our troops today. It is an intimate look through a mother's eyes, giving us a heartfelt appreciation of the military family experience."---Edward Tick (author of War and the Sonl) and KATE DAHLSTEDT, codirectors of Soldier's Heart

How do combat veterans and their loved ones bridge the divide that war, by its very nature, creates between them? How does someone who has fought in a war come home, especially after a tour of duty marked by near-daily mortar attacks, enemy fire, and roadside bombs? With a journalist's eye and a mother's warmth, Sue Diaz asks these questions as she chronicles the two deployments to Iraq of her son, Sgt. Roman Diaz, from the perspective of the home front

Sergeant Diaz's second deployment put him south of Baghdad in the region aptly termed the Triangle of Death. There his platoon experienced extraordinarily heavy casualties during the height of the Iraqi insurgency. That unit has since become the focus of considerable media attention following events that made headlines in the summer of 2006: an insurgent attack at a remote outpost on three of their own---one killed at the scene, the other two kidnapped, their bodies found days later; and a terrible war crime committed against an Iraqi family by four soldiers from First Platoon

Minefields of the Heart adds a very personal dimension to the larger story of this Bravo Company platoon from the 101st Airborne's 502nd Infantry Regiment, a unit known since World War II as the "Black Heart Brigade."

Diaz recounts the emotional rollercoaster her family and other soldiers' families experience during and after deployment. She explores this terrain not only through stories of her son's and family's experiences connected to the Iraq War, but also by insights she's gained from other veterans' accounts---from what she calls "the box" that soldiers returning from any war carry within. This added layer gives her narrative broader meaning, bringing home the impact of war in general on those who fight and on those who love them

Minefields of the Heart is a story of innocence lost, understanding gained, and hope reaffirmed. In addition to veterans and their families, this book will appeal to anyone who wants to understand war's impact on individuals as well as on the fabric of our society

Sue Diaz is an award-winning journalist who writes frequently for the Christian Science Monitor and contributes to National Public Radio. Since 2007, she has conducted writing workshops for veterans at the San Diego Vet Center. At the website that she created with the help of a Purple Heart veteran of Iraq, www.warriorswall.com, Diaz provides a place for veterans from across the country to write and share their stories. She lives in San Diego