Desert Storm

Children's Literature - Greg M. Romaneck

Following the August 1990 occupation of Kuwait by the armed forces of Saddam Hussein, President George Bush issued an ultimatum to the Iraqi dictator. President Bush enjoined Hussein to withdraw from Kuwait or face the dire military consequences of his imperial actions. Saddam Hussein ignored President Bush's warning and set about pillaging and fortifying Kuwait against an American attack. Over a period of months the American President forged an international alliance aimed at freeing Kuwait. Then, after several months had passed, the allied air forces began military action by launching fierce air attacks against an array of Iraqi targets. This air war was followed by a lightening ground assault that crushed the Iraqi army in short order. While Iraq was not occupied and Hussein remained in power, his army lay in shambles and Kuwait was freed in what came to be known as Operation Desert Storm. It is this campaign that Perritano introduces to younger readers in this volume of the illustrated "America at War" series. Through a combination of a sparse text and ample illustrations, the author attempts to tell a complex military story in a very few pages. As is the case with other books in this set, this minimalist approach fails to cover the ground adequately. There simply is too little content to allow readers to understand the subject matter at hand. This lack of substance makes this a book of minimal value. Reviewer: Greg M. Romaneck