In 2003, The Washington Posts Anthony Shadid went to war in Iraq, but not as an embedded journalist. Born and raised in Oklahoma, of Lebanese descent, Shadid, a fluent Arabic speaker, has spent the last three years dividing his time between Washington, D.C., and Baghdad. The only journalist to win a Pulitzer Prize for his extraordinary coverage of Iraq, Shadid is also the only writer to describe the human story of ordinary Iraqis weathering the unexpected impact of Americas invasion and occupation. Through the moving stories of individual Iraqis, Shadid shows how Saddams downfall paved the way not just for hopes of democracy but also for the importation of jihad and the rise of a bloody insurgency. A superb reportersbook, wrote Seymour Hersh; Night Draws Near is, according to Mark Danner, essential.