Our guest is Jerad W. Alexander, a journalist who's written for Esquire, Rolling Stone, The Nation, and other publications. From 1998 to 2006, he served as a U.S. Marine, deploying to the Mediterranean, East Africa, and Iraq, and his new memoir covers these experiences. That book is "Volunteers: Growing Up in the Forever War." As was noted of it by Kirkus Reviews: "Alexander offers a well-attuned perspective of the military world and how its expansive influence not only motivates, but also arouses a justification for war itself.... [His] insights into the myth-building ethos of the military...are well-articulated, and he ably explores ideals of masculinity, heroism, and camaraderie within the military establishment.... Alexander vividly captures the foreboding atmosphere of a country under siege and recounts the disturbing incidents he witnessed.... An absorbing memoir."
"Volunteers: Growing Up in the Forever War"
![Aired on Wednesday, November 10th.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2790e1a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1760x1084+0+0/resize/880x542!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F79%2Fc8%2F4ad554fe422c9b3736aa07bf66a8%2Fvolunteers-growing-up-in-the-forever-war-radio-episode-resize.png)